Canada 2025 The East & Laguna Beach CA

Canada Trip Part 2

We flew to Toronto and then to Hamilton by bus where we visited Bobbie's sister Naomi and her husband Rick. We spent 2 nights at their cottage north of Huntsville Ontario. We went swimming in Clear Lake and enjoyed walks along the nearby stream. They kindly lent us their car for the rest of our time in Ontario.

Small stream in Summer

While with them in Hamilton we also attended the 2025 Winger family reunion next to the backyard pool of David Winger. Cousin Janet created a family history picture book for the occasion.

Our next stop was Bill's sister's place in London Ontario where Bill went golfing with his brother John, sister Elizabeth and her husband Al at St Thomas golf course.
We had some fun outings visiting antique stores in London and St Marys with Elizabeth, and Bobbie had a swim in St Marys Quarry. We also tried Mennonite "frye pies". a sort of very tasty deep-fried donut with various sweet fillings.  Bill's nephew Matthew and partner Stacie joined us for a BBQ dinner one night and regaled us with the story of their trip to Legoland in Denmark. Just when you think you have heard everything, you find another fascinating place to travel to that you have never even thought of.

We also had a magnificent dinner and evening with Bill's cousin David. His wife, Eileen, cooked an Indian banquet for us that was better than anything we ever had in an Indian restaurant. That evening was the only rain we got during the whole trip. We also visited with Bobbie's niece Natasha and her husband John and had a tasty Italian dinner with them in London. (Notice there do not seem to be any generic Canadian restaurants on our trip.)  Next stop was Sharbot Lake (north of Kingston Ont) visiting Bobbie's cousin Janet and husband Jim, who have visited us a couple of times in Australia. Bill drove an ATV for the first time down some of the snowmobile trails through the bush. (Note: no snow at the time) Bobbie held on tightly. We also went for a small cruise on their private lake where Bill managed to catch a fish. Our stay concluded with dinner and a visit to the scenic River House Vineyard and Winery. 

Bill and fish

River House Vineyard

Next stop was Ottawa where we stayed with Bill's niece Shannon and her family. We spent a pleasant day cycling along the edge of the Ottawa River and visiting the Canadian Parliament buildings which are under renovation.  We also sampled local pizza, and ice cream rolls that are made on a frozen plate was you watch.  Yummy and very unusual.

Parliament Buildings under restoration

River canal Ottawa Canada

 

Next stop Montreal to visit Bill's cousin Bruce, where we stayed in the in Tadja Hall, the MacGill University Faculty Club on the edge of the St Lawrence River.  We took a day to explore old Montreal and attended two outdoor evening music concerts in local riverside parks with Bruce and his Carole. 

Observation platform Montreal harbour

Montreal from Observation platform

We then travelled back to Toronto to stay with friends Archie and Sandy in the beaches area of Toronto. Pleasant memories wandering through and around the old neighbourhood where Bobbie and Bill met. Bobbie had a short swim at a beach on Lake Ontario near Archie's house. We also caught up with old friends from Rochdale at a downtown pub and had dinner with Neal and Linda, who we had travelled with in Greece and Spain, more than a few years ago. We then went to Port Credit, a suburb of Toronto, and visited Bill's brother John.  He was very generous with his time and treated us to dinner at his Golf Club and lunch at the Caledon Hills Fishing Club north of Toronto.

 We spent a day walking along the edge of the Lake Ontario watching the birds and enjoying summer weather in the park. We also spent most of a day at the large shopping centre in Mississauga and managed to boost the Canadian economy.

Following that we attended the 2025 Grainger family reunion in Wroxeter Ontario and went on a hayride after the lunch. We visited more friends Sandie and Brian in Bayfield on the way back to Hamilton to return Naomi and Rick's car. Brother John kindly picked us up and put us up in Port Credit before taking us to the airport for our flight to Los Angeles. 

Bill's friend Dolores from College days now lives in Laguna Beach California.  She kindly picked us up at the airport and put us up for 4 days in Laguna Beach. Her house was within walking distance of the beach and has a community swimming pool where Bobbie was able to get in the water again. We spent a day there using the free trolley that runs up and down the coast of Laguna Beach and attended a local arts fair called Sawdust. The last day in California was spent on the beach with Dolores and partner Tom. Friday fish and chips at the beach front could not have been better.

Sawdust Art festival

Fish and Chips

We left the warm weather of North America to return to Yamba where it has rained for the next 2 days. The sun finally came out yesterday and it is nice to be home and in familiar surroundings and in your own bed.

Our thanks to all of our extremely generous friends and relatives who put up with us, fed us, acted as exemplary tour guides and drivers.  We were so busy that we did not post this last blog until after we got home to Yamba.  You are all welcome to visit us in Yamba so can repay all of the favours. 

Canada 2025 The West

This is going to be a bit of an unusual trip as we are doing a lot of visiting of friends and relatives. Scenery and excursions are necessarily taking a back seat to time spent with old friends. And those activites are probably of interest only to those involved. However, here goes. We landed in Vancouver and went directly to the ferry dock in Horseshoe Bay. On a previous trip we left too little time between the airport and the Ferry, and missed it. This time we had so much time we walked around Horseshoe Bay and had lunch. Horseshoe Bay is mainly a ferry dock and loading ramps. There is a pleasant park by the waterfront where we watched the myriads of Canada Geese. The geese are very prolific as they love to eat the tender shoots of grass on any lawn. They forage all through the parks, breeding and shitting, annoying all the locals and being photographed by tourists. They are a protected species, so they are not hunted but they can be real pests. 

Leaving the geese behind, we caught the 20:30 ferry to Naniamo, then drove north on Vancouver Island to Courtenay and the home of friends Helen and Glyn. They seemed happy to see us despite our arrival about 23:00. We were all very happy to cut reminiscences short and get some sleep. During the following three days, Helen and Glyn were exemplary hosts, wining and dining us, helping us run errands (getting a Canadian e-SIM) and giving tours of the local sites. We did pretty walks along a stoney beach on the strait, a hike around the verdant alpine meadows of Mount Washinton where the wildflowers were in bloom, and a stroll along the river to Nymph Falls. The weather was overcast at first, but we also had some cool, sunny days. 

Vancouver Island beach

We returned to Vancouver, where we visited our old neighbourhood. The area is much busier and more upmarket now. We mourned the loss of Joe's espresso bar, a relic of the old Italian neighbourhood of the 60s. Walking by our old house, we chanced on the new owner, raking leaves out front. Seems she is about the third owner since we sold it, and she converted it back into two flats. We did the opposite when we bought it, turning two flats into one house! We also had dinner with some of Bill's college friends. He and Ira calculated that it had been 51 years since they had seen each other. 

Old Vancouver house 

Our next stop was Vernon, about a five hour drive from Vancouver. Most of the trip was through the Rocky Mountains. I had forgotten how monumentally big they are, in height, and extent. None of my photographs really capture the overwhleming impact of the mountains and the incredible roads and rail lines that go through them. We had dinner with Bill's friend Mike and his wife. He had just retired from his business as an apiarist. We spent an enjoyable evening sampling wine and chatting over old times. We drove on to major tourist spots Banff and Lake Louise. Banff is a centre of skiing and hiking, and a general tourist town for the beauty of the mountain area. We explored a local arts and crafts market, and tried funnel cake, a sort of warm waffle cone filled with ice cream and toppings. As you can guess, it will be a miracle if we are still able to do up all our buttons by the time we head home. Lake Louise is famed for the beauty of its green, glacial water surrounded by towering, snow capped mountains. All well and good, if you can get anywhere close enough to see it. The lake and surrounding town are being loved to death by tourists. Parking spaces were rare and expensive. We paid $37.00 for a spot. You had to pay the full day rate no matter how long you stayed. With luck, you could get a photo of the lake without tourists, but highly unlikely.

After Lake Louise, we drove on to Okotoks, a community just south of Calgary. Mike and Rhonda, old friends from Toronto, are now living there and enjoying their retirement. There were superb hosts, despite us dropping in while Mike was undergoing extensive dental surgery. Rhonda gave us a tour of Okotoks including the big rocks that are a remnant of ancient glacial activity. Our visit to Calgary coincided with the Stampede, and Mike and Rhonda treated us to ringside seats. The entire city gets involved, and cowboy boots and hats are everywhere. We enjoyed a sunny afternoon of watching bronco riding, bull riding, barrel races and calf roping. Riding bucking animals looks like a very painful way to make a living. We also attended a Stampede breakfast, where local businesses or organizations provide a "free" pancake breakfast. (You are usually asked to give a donation to a charity.) The homeless in Calgary eat well during Stampede week. At this point, we will pause our blog, so something gets posted before we get home and continue with another instalment soon.