Oh, Canada

We decided to take our first trip abroad together, and went to Victoria, Canada, the capitol of British Columbia. It is indeed beautiful, like their license plates state. But Canada had some sort of weird black magic happening- it didn’t get dark until after 10 pm, incidentally my bedtime, and it made me at one point declare how hot it was despite being only 72 degrees. I don’t know what your game is Canada, but you’re up to something!

We took the Victoria Clipper to get there- a boat! It’s much quicker and easier to get to Victoria by water than by land. And the clipper is pretty efficient- buy your ticket, show up, flash a passport, and board. On the ride over I saw a whale come up to breathe. I’m not entirely sure what kind of whale it was, but I think it was a humpback and since there is no one to confirm or deny it, I’m going with humpback. Our clipper ride back was in the late evening, so we got to watch as the sun set, making it a sunset cruise. The clipper is a nearly 3 hour trip- seems to be a thing with boat rides…

Our Victoria trip was quick, just 2 nights, but we lived it up and spent like the kings we are not. Things are expensive there. But the Canadian dollar isn’t as strong as the American, so that’s to our benefit. We stayed in a darling Bed and Breakfast. It was a giant house with gingerbread decor and stained glass windows. It had a library, breakfast dining room, entry area and multiple rooms, all with their own names describing their part of the house. There was a large, taxidermied peacock in the entry room, which was definitely unique. 

Our room was the Parlour room (extra U complete unnecessary in my opinion, but carry on Canada). It was huge! A giant, quite comfy, king sized bed, a sitting area with a fire place, enormous bathroom complete with jacuzzi tub, and our very own stained glass windows. Breakfast was served in the dining room at 8:30 and tea and coffee were available at 3. Mitch wasn’t a huge fan of the Breakfast time, but the food was great.

The tub had one of those really cute showers that looks like an old phone that you lift up to use to rinse. There was a holster for it, to keep you from having to hold it the entire time, which worked well. Except it was a bit tricky to arrange and the shower curtain, while cute, did nothing of use and the entire floor was soaked post shower. Not damn, not even wet, we’re talking fish could have probably lived on the floor, soaked. But the pressure was great, so worth splashing through to get to the door.

Since we were spending just 2 nights in Victoria, we packed it in (as usual), but did manage to squeeze in a nap for sleepy Mitch. We wandered the downtown area, located under a mile from our B&B and took in the sights. We hit lots of cute restaurants, including one of the many British style pubs called the Sticky Wicket- best pub name I’ve ever heard by far. We also got ice cream, more than once. Which was delicious, but weird since we were in Canada, land of ice and snow. But the weather was amazing- sunny and warm. It got up to 80 degrees the day we left! 

We toured the Craigdorroch Castle, a mansion built in the late 1800s by a coal tycoon, but only occupied by his wife, three unmarried daughters, and two orphaned grandchildren because he died prior to it’s completion. After the matriarch died, the home served as a military and veterans hospital and a college before the historical society regained it and began to restore it to its former glory. We also checked out the bug zoo and got to hold a variety of creepy crawlies including several kinds of walking stick insects and a hissing cockroach. Well, Mitch held the cockroach, I opted out of that one. 

We also got a HIGHLY ILLEGAL AND BANNED IN AMERICA KinderEgg. We like to live on the wild side. It was quite tasty and we got a lovely little flower girl as our prize. I can only assume she is a priceless import now and we will make sure to display her with the proper care and revery. We also got a “Crunchy” bar. It was crunchy fluffed butterscotch maybe covered in chocolate. Have I mentioned we ate a lot? We also walked everywhere, so snacks were necessary.

Before we left the area, we walked to Fisherman’s Wharf and got to see the floating houses up close as well as some very well fed harbor seals. There are 9 seals that live under the docks according to the shop keepers, and they are rewarded for their company with lots of fish. They were adorable and very excited to get a snack. From the wharf we water-taxied back to the downtown harbor area. Luckily we passed a chlorate shop when walking around downtown that Mitch just HAD to go in, so we had some incredibly good chocolates for the clipper ride back. Sometimes his sweet tooth has benefits.

Mitch was not sure about Mr Peacock

I think he likes me.

Our cute B&B. Our room is the one on the left with the white curtains.

Seriously, how cute is this?

I tried to get a good snap before we let our stuff explode everywhere. You can't see the windows well, but the top are pink tulip stained glass. 

We saw this so we stopped. Beavertails!

Mitch choose the tail- Nutella with Reeses Pieces and peanut butter drizzle. 

It's Bullwinkle! 

Kinder Egg fun.

The Craigdorroch Castle- it was huge and quite stately. 

Hissing cockroach

Stick bug

My turn. The kid next to me is clearly impressed with my bravery. 

Sweet, adorable, oh so fat harbor seals.

More floating houses, up close

Our water taxi.

So long Canada! It was great.

Whale Watching: A Killer Time

Overall Canada has been great and a lot of fun, but more about that in my next post. Let's focus on the highlight- Whale Watching!

I've wanted to see whales for a long time, but things have never lined up quite right to do a whale watching tour. Until now. Victoria is known for it's whale watching and is home to several Orca pods. They have three resident pods and several transient pods that move through. There are so many whale watching companies, so I found one online and booked a trip. Whale Watching is a 3 hour venture on a covered boat. They have small, zodiac crafts available too, but that looked cold and Mitch and I are wimps. So covered boat it is. Right choice!

We boarded the boat and secured a seat up top, in the captain's area. Our captain has been doing this for 25 years and sits on the board of a conservation organization and is clearly passionate about the whales and the area. We took off from the harbor, passing the cruise ships docked for the day, most on their way to Alaska, and a cute little area of floating houses (think Sleepless in Seattle), as well as the world's only International SeaPlane Airport, and got to watch a couple of seaplanes take off.

Then we journeyed out to the bay. We passed a few areas that often have whales; the captain and crew looking hard for any signs, and a few minutes later- success! They spotted a pod in the distance, so we headed over. As we got closer it became clear there were 6-8 Orcas in the pod, including one large male and a very young calf. The male was identified as T103. He's typically a solo male, nearly 50 years old, but seems to have joined up with the pod of young females- possibly for companionship, possibly to find a mate. Either way, he was large and majestic and beautiful to watch.

We watched the pod swim up the shore line, coming up to breath frequently, their dorsal fins breaking the surface in a smooth and fluid manner. The calf stuck close to his mama, and is likely just a few months old- probably born in late winter. The male tended to be at the back of the pod- they are a matriarchal species, and males will stay with their mothers until they die. Since this male is so old, his mother died many years ago and he has been solo ever since.

All of a sudden the graceful motions of the pod turned into a more frenzied splashing and circling. They found food! Likely a seal- their primary prey. The group worked together and enjoyed their meal underwater, out of sight. But this led to an impressive display of tail splashes and breaching! The male breached twice- once coming halfway out of the water, and the second time coming completely out of the water, his belly reaching at least 10 feet above water as he splashed back, dorsal fin down, either to celebrate his tasty lunch or just to show off to his young companions. Orca's are incredibly social and many of their behaviors are social in nature and draw attention from their peers.

The pod then calmed down and resumed the hunt, always on the look out for the next meal. They went up to the shore line, just 8-10 feet from shore at one point, then headed a bit further out into the water. Canadian regulations require all boats remain 100 meters away from whales at all times. However if a whale gets closer to the boat, the captain needs to kill the engine and wait, to ensure no harm comes to the animals. The whales are completely unbothered by the boats- they're just another thing on the water and they're not blocking the way to a meal, so they don't matter.

While we watched the whales swim, staying a solid 115 meters away (based on the captains report- I won't pretend I'm that good at eye measurements), the whales made a turn. Directly towards us. He killed the engine and we sat and watched. And they came closer! At one point the male was 15-20 meters from the boat, twisting and coming up for air, and just enjoying the water. The females also got close, completely unbothered by the people snapping photos like mad. It was fantastic and I was totally awe struck.

As they swam a bit further out we continued to follow them, spending a solid 2 hours just watching the pod look for their next meal. All of it was simply beautiful.

On the way back to the harbor we stopped for some kelp- the captain snacked on it, and pieces were passed around for everyone to try. It was salty, but not terrible. The captain and crew remarked on what a spectacular trip we had and how truly rare it is to see the whales breach, especially to the height we did, and to have them get that close to the boat. Mitch and I were completely blown away by the entire trip and I'm so glad we went!

 

 
   

 

 

Seattle, Part 2- We actually go to Seattle.

We started our Seattle day with an obligatory visit to Pike’s Place Market and made our first stop at Peiroshky Peiroshky which was delicious. We wandered the market and admired the flowers and all the fish, but opted out of purchasing any of the very large fresh fish. Jack’s Seafood provided excellent Clam Chowder and Crab Cocktail to fulfill our fish needs. I loved seeing the Peonies everywhere, Mitch was a bigger fan of the giant shrimp. We also saw the original Starbucks location, but the line was insane and I spend plenty of time at Starbucks at home, so we were content to walk by and not go in.

After that we hit the Space Needle and got some excellent views and history. It’s touristy, but interesting and really did present a great view of the city and the harbor area, where we were able to scope out our ferry to Canada and marvel at the giant cruise ships that had pulled into port. We also got a few of the obligatory selfies and the Space Needle provides a free souvenir photo with a variety of backgrounds to choose from. Not too shabby! 

From there we headed to the Westland Distillery, which proved to be the best part of the day. They are a local single malt whiskey distillery and have been around for just a few years. We took a tour, saw the process and all the casks aging, and learned how they do things. Then we got to the tasting- obviously the best part! We got to try 4 different types of Single Malt- American Oak, Sherry Aged, Peeted, and Single Cask Strength special. 

Westland bills itself as American Single Malt Whiskey, but that’s not actually a thing. Yet. They’re working on it. The Pacific Northwest is very similar in climate to Scotland, so making Scotch style whiskey makes sense. I liked the Sherry Aged best; Mitch was partial to the American Oak. But we both agreed, the option to bottle our own was one we couldn’t pass up (plus it made your tasting and tour free!). Westland allows you to bottle your own whiskey from their current cask. You fill out the ledger, so they have a record and complete the info on the label- your name, date, bottle number (we got 61 and 62) and percent alcohol and proof. Then you fill it yourself! You literally put the bottle under the tap, turn the handle, and let it go. Another first- we’ve now bottled our own whiskey. Then place the labels on the bottle and “seal” it with another sticker across the corked top- and ta-da! Your very own hand bottled whiskey. Cask strength and defiantly special. We decided to get two bottles- one to share with friends as we continue on the trip, and one to take home for just us. 

That evening we had dinner with Dani and Shelby and get to try some beer from a local brewery out in the pass- Dru Bru. Mitch liked their cider, I was a fan of the stout (the cider was pretty good too, but I only got a sip of it). It was an excellent end to an exciting and really fun day.

Seattle total:

4- relatives: 1 brother, 3 cousins

3- Different fish centered meals

3- Peiroshkies (we shared them)

4- Whiskeys sampled

2- Whiskeys purchased

4- total bottles of whiskey now in the car (we’re prepared)

360- degrees of view from the Space Needle

 We passed on the Geoduck.

 Hand bottled whiskey! Next up: becoming distillers. 

 Space Needle Selfie

 The Space Needle will take your picture for free- just ask the machine to do it. 

Hello Seattle

We packed up the camping gear, said goodbye to the pilots and southern Oregon and headed North! Hello Seattle!

Seattle is home to a lot of people, specifically my brother Casey, cousin Matt, Cousin Danielle, and her wife Shelby. Casey and Matt (and their roommates/ coworkers) were kind enough to let us crash our first night in town, getting in quite late. Casey and Matt work changing water meters and have been in the area for a couple of months. Casey was able to take a day off and hang out with us- which was great. It’s been several months since we’ve seen each other, so some sibling time was in order. 

After spending the day with Casey, we headed up to North Bend where Dani and Shelby were kind enough to put us up. It’s great to have friends and relatives spread all over the place! Seattle came at the perfect time, we were definitely in need of a recharge and spent a day doing very little.

We checked out the North Bend and Snoqualmie area, most notably known for being the setting of fiction town and TV show “Twin Peaks” and had breakfast at Twede’s Cafe, aka Double R Cafe. I’ve never seen “Twin Peaks” and neither has Mitch, but we’re told this is iconic. We’ll be adding it to our Netflix cue for the sole purpose of being able to say “We’ve been there!”.

Just a few miles away is Snowqualmie Falls- apparently featured in the intro of “Twin Peaks”, but also a really beautiful water fall and home to the first completely underground hydroelectric plant. The falls are gorgeous and there is a little trail that goes to the bottom where the plant is located. We decided to walk down. As we progressed it started to sprinkle, then it began to drizzle, and when it hit actual light rain status we decided we should turn around. The path was incredibly steep, but luckily it was mostly covered by large trees so we made it out just lightly damp instead of completely soaked. 

We topped off the evening with Sushi and Netflix and much needed rest. Tomorrow, however, we head into the big city.

 Coffee was good.

I Can Fly!

Mitch has been paragliding for about 3 years and regularly talks about how peaceful and amazing it is to be flying thousands of feet above the ground. Last year I got to see him launch from a mountain for the first time. Prior to that I’d only seen him get towed up and do short flights. Watching hundreds of paragliders launch is pretty spectacular. There were so many people and wings everywhere.

As I watched them all launch, and then drove down the mountain to pick them up after they land, I was impressed at what a friendly community it is. Last year I watched a tandem flight launch as well- a very experienced pilot who has a tandem license took up the wife of another paraglider who had never flown before. It was cool to watch, but thats all I intended to do- watch.

Since then, Mitch has been working on me to do one. No one in Tucson does tandems, so it hasn’t been a pressing issue. But at Woodrat there are tandem pilots. I half heartedly said if he found someone willing to take me up, I’d consider it= not actually expecting anything to come of it. 

He found someone. Sam has been paragliding for nearly 20 years, is an instructor, and also does tandem flights. He runs SunDog Paragliding and is a friendly old hippie type who clearly loves what he does and has managed to make a living out of it. He drives an old van with the back rows taken out to make space for his gear. He said he’d take me up and much to my surprise, I agreed. I was going to do a tandem flight!

We arranged to do a “glass-off” on Tuesday. Glass off is a late afternoon flight when the air is typically very smooth, like glass, as the sun is starting to lower and preparing to set. Tuesday afternoon came and we met up with Sam and prepped to make the 30 minute drive up the very bumpy dirt road to the top of the mountain. A few people asked if they could ride up and he agreed. Then a few more hopped in, and then a couple more. We had a total of 13 people, 10 wings (one driver and two tandem passengers- the other tandem passenger was a 10 year old girl going with her dad. She was completely fearless and basically a pro). It was quite a sight. Several people were lying on top of wings in the back, two people perched on a cooler sitting between the front seats. The little girl sat on her dads lap up front, and Mitch and I squeezed in on the small bench seat with two other people. We’re talking clown car load here.

We got to the top and reality started to set in- I was actually doing this. I signed all the waivers and became a 30 day temporary USHPA member (for the purposes of a tandem “training” flight- they’re only allowed as a “learning introduction”). Sam hooked me in to my harness and then got himself situated. He set out his wing and explained what he was going to do. Then hooked himself to me. Meanwhile Mitch took pictures and watched with the biggest grin on his face. I was not nearly as nervous as I expected as I watched other pilots launch into the air, knowing I was soon to follow. 

The launch is the hardest part- it takes coordination and some strength. I have neither of those. Sam got the wing up, but a tandem wing is huge- it has to be able to hold two people after all, and when the air catches it, it pulls back. Hard. I tried to brace myself, but I fell on my butt and got dragged a bit. Another pilot and friend, Ioan, ran over to help me up and then held me in place while Sam reorganized and got the wing up again. Then we ran forward a couple yards and my feet left the ground. I was flying!

Sam told me to lean back and as we got higher he did too, both comfortable in our harnesses, thousands of feet above the ground. We made it to 5000 ft and speeds of over 20mph. He had my take the reins at one point and I steered us in a circle inside a thermal, bringing us higher and higher. It’s like nothing I’ve ever done before.

The view was remarkable. It felt like watching an Imax where they fly you over the mountaintops, but it was real. The mountains and Rouge Valley are gorgeous, and I have to say seeing them at 5000 ft is pretty impressive. The air was also calm and smooth. We hit a few thermals, bringing us higher, and floated around, watching other pilots as they hit thermals and just enjoyed the smooth afternoon air. The sky was cloudless and I could see for miles. Luckily I wore my warm jacket, because it’s rather chilly at that altitude.

After about 40 minutes we headed towards the LongSword Winery landing zone. We flew over the river and grapes and turned around to make our landing. Landing was smooth. I stood up in my harness and my feet lightly hit the ground. I walked a few feet then fell on my butt again- but it was a much softer fall this time and easier to get up. Sam unhooked me and I walked with my harness towards the side to be out of the way of any other landing pilots. After that, I unhooked myself and watched a few more people land as the adrenal in my body slowed and reality sunk back in.

Mitch was right- flying is pretty incredible.

Here are some pictures, and even video of me falling on my butt- thanks for filming that Mitch...