Westward ho and back

My friend and I had an excellent adventure to the west coast and back. I had a leisurely drive to the airport via Frenchy's and Michael's (my two fav guys :) and met my buddy off the shuttle from Cape Breton. We made our way to the gate and stopped for a late lunch at the wine bar - isn't this how all good girls trips begin? We had wonderful sandwiches with a glass of vino and the waitress even photo bombed our first selfie just for fun. We were shortly on our way to Toronto and enroute I watched the movie Book Club which is a great chick flick with lots of laughs if you get a chance to watch it.  A quick bite at Red Rocket in Pearson and on the flight to Vancouver. I managed to sleep the flight away with the help of noise cancelling earphones, iPod and neck pillow, awakening as we descended into Richmond. We collected ourselves and grabbed a cab as the Travelodge shuttle stopped at 1 am. We were quickly deposited at our hotel for an exorbitant $20 as it's only a few minutes and we later in the week only paid $35 all the way to downtown Vancouver. My mistake for not asking the fee first but I've found that elderly caucasian Canadian drivers have the highest rip off percentage overall. Just sayin. We checked in at the hotel with a clerk who was cloned from Dev Patel in the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. He even went upstairs himself to check the last available non smoking room to see if it was acceptable for the 'ladies'. We quickly settled in and crashed for the night as it was 5am 'our time' by now. 

We surprised ourselves by being up in time for the included breakfast and found ourselves joining an eclectic mix of travellers from BC and beyond as we managed to scratch up something to eat. A quick trip to the Dollar Store for luggage tags as we found in reviewing the info that the bags aren’t carried on to the Rocky Mountaineer but rather transported by bus and sent to our nightly hotel rooms. We’d planned to take the shuttle back to the airport and the skytrain to downtown but the front desk clerk suggested that Bridgeport station was a 10 minute walk and there was a $5 surcharge for the airport station so…we readied ourselves and headed down the street on a warm sunny day. We joined a lady from Terrace, BC who worked in tourism and had a great chat on the way to the station and on the train. What interesting people you meet when you travel! We arrived at the station, and since we had a voucher as part of our tour, checked out the Lookout which was a great way to get our bearings. The tour guide in the 360 degree viewing area suggested several spots for lunch and so we ambled off through Gas Town shopping our way along the street as we purchased some jade jewelry. We found Peckinpahs which was a trendy casual restaurant with great BBQ and enjoyed a wonderful meal. Out on the cobblestone street to explore the shops, Gas Town steam clock and views of the harbour. Made our way to the skytrain in now rush hour traffic (their ridership is much higher than Halifax) and exited at Bridgeport. After a bit of wandering in the parking lot and questioning the host at the local casino we were on our way back to the hotel. We regrouped and strolled next door to Moxies sharing a marguerita pizza for supper and then quickly settling for the night after a full first day. 

We’d booked a day tour to Victoria with a company called Land and Sea Tours and I’d recommend them for such things. We originally thought we’d be in a bus of 30 passengers as there were several travelling to Victoria that day but won the transport lottery as there were eight of us assigned to a Sprinter van with our guide Erich. We travelled with an Australian couple (meeting friends) and two American couples who were a pretty amicable if somewhat limited mobility foursome. Got the historical overview of Canada, Vancouver Island etc on the drive to the Tsawwassen - Swartz Bay ferry and then browsed the terminal while we waited for the next run. Beautiful crafts, special treats, fruit and lots of tourists. We grabbed a muffin and warm cider and enjoyed the balmy day. Onto the ferry and up to sit in the warm sunshine on deck until we turned and the cool breezes sent us inside. A trip to the cafe gained us a salad and soup, lots of noise and a great view of the islands slipping by. Back into the van and down from Swartz Bay to Victoria to find that the city has grown exponentially since my 1996 visit there. Some more background info and we’re dropped off downtown at the inner harbour to explore for two hours. We wander along the Empress Hotel, buy an island ice cream (good but isn’t all ice cream?) and head towards Chinatown. Victoria’s version is the third oldest globally and has the narrowest street in the world with commercial shops (Fan Tan Alley). Although I wasn’t looking I found a cute navy dotted summer dress that should travel well, so impulse bought it. We strolled through Bastian Square and were impressed with the quality and uniqueness of the craft work there. Finally wandered our way back to the waterfront and watched the seaplanes taking off in the inner harbour and joined our group. Off to Buchart Gardens for a tour of the former limestone quarry which is a privately maintained garden for decades. It was a lovely drive out through the interior of the island and the fall garden was a much different setting than our spring visit in 1996 but still beautiful. As the day wound down and we weren’t sharing the space with multiple tour buses it was peaceful as well. We strolled through the various collections, shopped in the gift shop and promised ourselves afternoon tea here should we ever return. Into the van and off to the ferry terminal, and once boarded we made our way to the buffett and ate a delicious supper as the sun set over the gulf. ahhh. Docked, back into the van and deposited at the hotel. A great day was had by all. 

We’d done the skytrain the first day as a dry run for our relocation from Richmond to Vancouver on Friday morning but I’m used to backpack travel and my partner had a rolling suitcase so we had voted on the airport shuttle to the train vs 15 minute march. But after a bit of math I suggested that we ask about the cost of a taxi and for $35 we were efficiently transported (as well as entertained by his ‘new to Canada’ take of our country) by our Bangladeshi cabbie to the Pinnacle Waterfront downtown. We had intended to store our bags but were delighted to find that our room was ready and so we had luggage delivered, checked out our digs, were delivered gourmet chocolates (birthday gift to me) switched bags around and headed down to catch the hop on hop off tour bus which was included in our package. A beautiful sunny, fall day (apparently it had rained ALL week the previous one) and we joined lots of tourists enjoying the city. At the suggestion of the front desk clerk we hopped off in Stanley Park and enjoyed a wonderful lunch at the Pavillion restaurant then strolled the grounds and rejoined the bus to the totem poles (great display) and some photo ops of the Lions Gate bridge at Prospect Point. Over to Granville Island and we took in the market which is a wonderful collection of any type of food you can imagine - you MUST do it if you make it to Vancouver. We munched on blackberries and finally crawled back to the bus stop. A lonnnggg wait for the bus as there were various accidents on the route (not surprised with the crazy traffic) and we were finally rescued. Made our way through a bit of the east side and chinatown (pretty sketchy) and back through Gas Town to the hotel. A run downstairs to check in with the Rocky Mountaineer staff in the lobby and get our boarding passes. No ID or documentation was requested so should anyone have picked up our purses and assumed our identity they would've enjoyed a great trip. Into our dressy outfits and down for a three course supper in the beautiful hotel restaurant. Great company, good wine and delicious food - what a great way to turn 62! A short soak in the hot tub. Ahhhh and off to bed. 

Silverleaf service car

Up at 6am to ready for the day as the bags were to be collected at 6:35. By 6:15am the bell hop was knocking on the door so we shoved the final items in the bags and off they went leaving us half an hour to get ourselves together. Down to the lobby as the final guests checked in and the coach waited. This is one super early group of risers! We were whisked off to the North Vancouver station through Squamish reserve and then greeted at the platform by large numbers of staff. We were quickly settled in coach #1 (sliver leaf service) seats 51 and 52 by Shay and Sarah our stewards and ‘all aboard’ we were off on the Rainforest to Gold Rush tour. Past industrial views, then curving around Howe Sound we were given safety briefings, served warm facecloths and linen napkins, a toast to the journey and breakfast - warm croissant, butter and jam, tea, frittata and we were smiling. The bar is open by 9:30 am and fellow passengers were enjoying coffee with Baileys and bloody marys but we opted for a second cup of tea. Lots of info on the geography, environment of the temperate rainforest, and history of our route. A mid morning snack / drink as we chugged our way up the steep inclines noting snow capped peaks, along lakes, crossing trestles over rivers and before noon we were pulling into Whistler station on our first abbreviated day. We were advised that Australian staff completely run Whistler and that was found to be correct. We had opted for Blackcomb peak to peak tickets and purchased them on the train, which was a wonderful choice as we eyed the ticket lineups later. We were transported by couch to the Delta Inn and Suites and told that our room would be ready by 4pm so we could store any hand luggage with the bell hop and our bags would be in our room. Off to wander in the sunshine through the squares with pretty foliage in the tourist town that is Whistler. As we reached the gondola cars we were advised that the temperature at the top was -11c so pulled the gloves and hats from the pockets. Lots of extreme bikers making their way with their bikes in the cars and then rapidly down the mountainside. A beautiful ride up the incline and a stop to sightsee and pose on the Olympic podium. Over to the peak to peak gondola and a few minutes delay as some heavy equipment was working. Hanging suspended over the chasm was something we were proud to say we’ve done but don’t need to repeat. Especially the extra five minutes

Peak to Peak Whistler

swinging in the breeze as we neared the far side while the crane was moved again. Amazing views of the ski slopes, river with dam and fall foliage. Retraced our steps to the first lift and settled in a car where we joined a couple off the Rocky Mountaineer - he with a swishy camera complete with huge lens. We’re about halfway down when he leaps up shouting bear and begins snapping photos of a baby bear picking blueberries. Apparently there about 60 resident bears in Whistler (evidenced by complicated garbage/compost containers which humans struggle with and mother bears teach their young to open). We discussed the surprise of connecting with a mama bear on a bike traveling at high speed and decided the gondola was the best mode of transport. Down through the village and back to the hotel to try to check in - had to wait until 4:45 pm to get in and then the key card didn’t work so not impressed with the service. The suite however was lovely - a small apartment really - with walk in closets, full kitchen, living room, bedroom, large bathroom, balcony and fireplace. You could easily stay for a week of skiing here. We readied and off for supper - tried 21 Steps which was a tapas spot recommended by Shay but a 45 minute wait, Old Spaghetti Factory but closed for a private function and finally settled on Bocca which is an Italian restaurant where were had a wonderful, very authentic supper. Back to the room to crash and awoken several times in the night by young revellers in the street outside our window. Whistler is one big party town. 

Up at 6am again and this time  the luggage was only picked up 15 minutes earlier than stated. We made our way to the lobby and the Rocky Mountaineer hostess advised that almost everyone had been very early. Thinking my travel partner had gotten on the bus, I climbed on the coach in the predawn dark and was unable to see anyone’s face in the full bus so I quietly called out my friend’s name to no response. Finally a male voice said “if you’re going on the Rocky Mountaineer you’re on the right bus” so I shuffled my way to the open rear seat. My buddy arrived in a few minutes saying “this bunch are keeners, I was getting another cup of tea”. We were off to the station in the light rain, quickly boarded and settled for the morning routine. As we made our way through  interior BC industrial towns towards Quesnel I compared the views to the spring ones of 1996 and they were similar but not as dramatic. Lots of ranches, a few deer, some osprey nests and in the upper elevations…snow. Information again, lots of music, chatting with the other passengers from USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and even Switzerland as we got to know each other a bit. After a full 12 hour day we pulled into Quesnel station and were transported by coach to the Sandman hotel. Very clean, quiet accommodation and attentive staff. When we arrived in the room, only one of my buddy’s two bags had been delivered. Call to the desk and within 15 minutes it had been located and delivered. Whew. We dropped into bed and slept soundly as there are no revellers here, only blue collar workers. 

The usual early rising, coach to the station and boarding in the dawn light. Out through Quesnel and the pulp and paper mills/yards and on to Prince George where there was a crew change of engine staff. We discovered that Gayle, the female engineer, was doing her final run after 38 years of service. We discuss our travel plans with Robin the train manager and he promises to check into it. Off in the drizzle past industrial towns, over steep trestle bridges, past lakes with ducks, small settlements and then ranches as we made good time until noon. By the afternoon we met snow again in the higher elevations and were frequently sided for long freight trains to rush past. By suppertime the updates include several hours of delay into Jasper. We are fed supper (penne pesto chicken with garlic bread) which they whip up from somewhere in the kitchen and the drinks flow. Almost midnight into Jasper, it’s snowing and cold and there has been no help with the travel arrangements - the forecast is for 30+ cm of the white stuff - and the staff are fussing over mobility impaired American passengers. As I said to my travel buddy “they’re paying .35 less on the dollar than we are for the same trip”. But of course they are the demographic being courted. We slip and slide across the street to the Whistlers Inn and are pleased with our reception - we’ve been upgraded to a suite, have free drink tickets (actually had supper as well but missed it) and a lovely warm welcome by staff. We forego the trip to the bar, opt to crawl into the cozy beds and deal with travel in the morning. 

In the am we check in for our flight at 6:25am the following day. The weather forecast is terrible with people being advised to stay home in Calgary and videos of folks cross country skiing down streets with over 30 buses stuck in them. A dialog with the two daughters who have lived west including highway closures, pics of accidents and road reports encourages us to cancel the rental car and opt for a bus to get us to the airport. I call Dana at Rocky Mountaineer ‘guest experience’ and she offers to cancel the rental and finds us tickets on the Brewster express bus leaving at 1:30 pm and and arriving at 10:30pm. No choice. We accept, ready for the day, head down to breakfast and pick up our bus confirmation. We chat with a senior British couple making their way from Vancouver to Halifax on the Via train and they have been delayed 16 hours by the same freight train situations! We decide to use our voucher for the Jasper sky tram even though visibility is just about zero - have the morning to spend pre bus waiting - so we wander the streets shopping a bit in the bitter cold. We find the tour office and wait for the next shuttle bus to the gondola. The clerk tells a vacationing couple that the Icefields Parkway is closed today. hmmm. We catch the 10 am shuttle and are the only passengers onboard as our driver discusses this third storm in a few weeks and life in Jasper. We are dropped in the snowstorm at the lift and an Aussie clerk gives us ‘flight’ tickets so we wait for the next car while exploring the gift shop of unique, reasonably priced offerings. We head 7700 ft up the mountain with our Aussie car operator, ears popping and almost no visibility. We giggle as we take blizzard selfies at the top and then head in for hot chocolate. We opt to take the next car down and as it’s cleared a bit we are able to see just in front of us. The shuttle returns and drops us downtown so we stop at a bakery for a boxed lunch to eat on the bus. We catch up with some Aussie passengers from the train as they’re staying over and heading to Banff then back to Vancouver on the Rocky Mountaineer. They describe being unable to do most of the coach tour this am as various roads are closed. I receive a call from the bus company and….the bus is cancelled today as the Icefields Parkway is closed. Options suggested are Greyhound or Sundog buses but when the hotel clerk checks for us, they leave at 8am. Sigh. We call Dana again, she hasn’t cancelled the rental so has the bus company refund our tickets and we head over to Avis to pick up a vehicle. We are given a white Dodge Durango with only 13,000 km and the most complicated operating system you can imagine. Good thing I have a copilot to operate the computer screen as you can’t operate this sucker and drive alone! My buddy figures out how to reduce the heat in the steering wheel and seat (whew) and we make our way out of town. Within a few km we’ve seen a large coyote, big

Jasper wildlife

horned sheep licking salt off the road, mountain goats playing on the rocky roadside - more wildlife than the entire train trip. The roads are fairly clear and we make our way past Hinton but are soon into a bottleneck before Edson due to multiple accidents involving tractor trailers, losing about an hour. The sky clears, the road is dry and we hustle along over to bypass Edmonton and down the #2 highway towards our waiting Calgary airport hotel. We stop for tea and a restroom break at Pokono (famous for its rodeo) and back on the highway. Everything is fine until Innisfail when the snow returns, visibility is poor and the road is + + slippery making 70km/hr the top speed yet vehicles are flying by us. We predict what will happen and within 15 minutes this is the case as we come to a complete stop with a highway closure at 9pm. The bed we’ve booked at the Delta Calgary Airport is sounding really comfortable but feeling a country away. As the truckers step outside their rigs for a smoke and skate back to the cabs and emergency vehicles scream by on either side of the two lanes of stopped traffic, we sit and wait. Soon there is a diversion of vehicles from behind us heading into Cartstairs on the secondary highway from the preceding exit. After more than two hours we are finally, slowly inching forward and then diverted to the next exit. A driver, who is clearly a new Canadian from his thick accent and likely only knows how to get from Edmonton to Calgary on the #2 highway, bails from the cab of his 10 ton truck and asks if we know where the 1A is? Nope! I offer to Google map it for him but he rushes off to the rig behind us and then runs back to his truck. Since he’s likely gotten local information, we follow him. In the dark on the slippery, rough, winding, secondary road the extensive line of vehicles inches along and finally we are returned to the #2 highway. Now in NS, that scare would mean the traffic would slow down, but here? I manage to get up to 70 km/hr again which (as long as we don’t have to stop) seems manageable. Within five minutes the vehicles are flying by us. If we can just make it to the airport without another road closure…The driving conditions worsen as we near Calgary and we are ecstatic when we see the airport exit - well, my navigator sees it as I don’t dare take my eyes off the ruts in the snow to look. We attempt to find gas as the requirement is a full tank and all the service stations are closed due to the storm. It’s 1 am and after one perilous circle of the area we decide to head to the hotel. Return the rental to the lot, drag our stuff to the hotel, check in for the three hours remaining before our flight, shower and become horizontal until the 4:30 am alarm. 

We’re still pretty groggy when we ready for our day but the relief of actually making our flight tops our fatigue. We grab a cup of tea/muffin in the departure lounge and board without incident. When I find my row I notice a (non English speaking) lady sitting in the aisle seat so I point at ‘my’ window seat - which usually indicates that I need to get into the seat so anyone in aisle or middle seat would step out and allow me access. In this case missus hops into the window seat I’ve pointed at. Nope, not gonna happen as I am going to sleep the flight away in my little nest so I shake my head and point to her and the aisle seat then me and the window seat and she complies. I smile and settle in. The scene is repeated when a young woman appears for the middle seat but she simply shrugs and accepts the aisle seat after missus hops next to me. My seat mate is clearly nervous and she fidgets, reads the emergency card, sighs and glances around. We are delayed for 45 minutes as first the cargo door is frozen shut and must be dismantled to put baggage in, our spot has to be plowed, then we must deice twice due to the delay. The first officer notes the female pilot and I am instantly reassured as she’s had to work twice as hard as the old boys to put her butt in that seat. I am oblivious to my surroundings from take off to landing but upon awakening decide I should be more sociable so I say to my neighbour “tu hablas espanol?” as she looks Central American and with a look of terror, she shakes her head firmly. "Oh great" I say to my travel partner “I profiled my seat mate on the flight, don’t tell HR”. My buddy says “did you see how young that pilot was? she’s younger than our kids” to which I replied “our kids aren’t that young anymore really”. There was much angst as those with tight connections rushed to their next flight and some had been rebooked. We weren't concerned as we had a nine hour layover in Toronto so we stored our bags and headed out. 

We spent our time in Toronto exploring and visiting with my friend’s grandsons. We took the train downtown and strolled as tourists and it was much warmer than the March adventure. We found a pub for a late lunch called The Town Crier and enjoyed a sandwich and soup. Then we caught the subway north and followed up with the bus to Scarborough. Got to spend a couple of hours with the boys and their parents before we had to grab an Uber and head back to the airport. The usual drama of the last flight in to Halifax as we gathered at the gate so we opted to check our bags (assured it was gate check but NOT) and spent 20 minutes waiting at the carousel in Halifax of course. As one of the other passengers said “you know Air Canada’s motto? We’re not happy until you’re not happy!” and I agreed. Napped for over half the flight and didn’t lose much time getting over to the ALT Hotel and settling. 

My buddy headed out on an early morning flight to Sydney and I didn’t even hear her ready and leave. Up about 8am, organized myself and headed home via a Frenchys stop on the way so as to avoid the cleaner who was supposed to arrive - this didn’t happen but that’s a first world problem. Over the course of texts / phone calls from the shore captain I gathered that he had engaged in another of those adventures with his German chef friend and we were having a pig roast on Saturday. It involved a ‘cheap pig’ as a local farm was culling the herd. This hobby farm reminds me of Green Acres as the couple are both city folk with limited animal husbandry skills. Apparently earlier in the day three of the larger pigs had been harvested and when my spouse (wrangler) and his buddy (marksman) arrived for their two pigs they were pretty wiley. My apologies to PETA as it does sound like a horror movie where three of your group are killed and the murderers return for you later in the day so you try to escape. There were issues with a pen, a foot chase through the woods (these are free range critters) and several near misses. After several hours their antics yielded two carcasses which now needed to be butchered so that involved in another 30 minute drive and assisting the chef before heading home. The practical German friend reinforced the ‘It’s a cheap pig’ theme but my life partner was not convinced. 

Friday (as our oldest winged her way to Cuba to see her husband for two weeks) I unpacked, did laundry, straightened up the house and made supper as the daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter arrived from the city for two nights. Saturday was taken up with the pig roast and while it turned on the spit our granddaughter noted “pig no oink no more’ but not in a vegan way as in “it’s delicious’ We had congris (rice and beans) yucca and salad with the pork and fed about 20 people from family and friends. Always a good time and we have leftovers for some time. Sunday we travelled to the German chef’s for supper as he had roasted his pig and invited a large group of his neighbours to share it. Monday I baked a pumpkin pie  for the family Thanksgiving dinner which we travelled to. Busy weekend. 

Today I was a lady of leisure and made my way into town to partake of three activities. I began at the rug hooking group and while I socialized I worked on the granddaughter’s blanket for her new ‘big girl bed’ . For such gatherings it’s important to have a simple pattern that can be managed while chatting. A buddy and I moved on to the book club at the library where we discussed The interpreter by Suki Kim, which a story of Korean immigrants which turned into a murder mystery. The knitting group arrived to the same library space at 2 pm and three of us continued on. My summer neighbour joined us and had a tutorial on thrummed mittens. I continued to crochet on the blanket (the knitting group doesn’t discriminate) and am 3/4 of the way finished. I made my way home in time to whip up leftovers for supper. Ahhh life is good.