As the days drift by so does another month. Still cooler and windier weather has kept us off the water most days but the few days that were nice were very nice and Ken and I hit the water, I in my kayak and Ken in the zodiac.

Ken caugh a nice size yellowtail tuna, which he had a great time bringing into the boat, it puller the zodiac around without too much troubleand in the end it made a great feast of fish tacos for th beach.

The days I have been out in the kayak have been beyond decription. I love my kayak! With all the walking, paddling and sailing I have been doing I have to constantly remind myself to rehydrate...a little bout with heat/sunstroke/dehydration knocking me on my butt for a couple of days is a good reminder. What can I say "I should know better".

A definate highlight of January was our Thanksgiving in January. We all decided down here in Juncalito that we really do have a lot to be thankful for...great friends, family and the opportunity to hed south to warmer weather in the winter, so Bob and Mary deepfried 3 turkdys and yet another feast was held in Juncalito.

I can't believe 3 months are gone already and only that only 2 more remain until we have to head north. Time doesn't stand still but then again neither do we!

A Cardinal enjoys a bit of citrus on a branch near our camp.

Bob and Mary showoff one of their prize turkeys.

Ken's yellowtail, what a fight!

Chris and Carl, Edith and Peter, and Ken and I enjoy a happy hour at a nearby hotel/timeshare. It's good to get off the beach once in a while.

Seasons Greetings

The holidays have been good to us here in Juncalito. Lots to eat and drink with lots of great friends. The wind blew in the holidays with cooler weather(temperatures to 4 degrees one night had Ken putting on long johns)but still very pleasant. Christmas Eve found us at Rattlesnake beach(just down the road from us)at a bonfire with appies and cocktails, Christmas Day we had a potluck baron on beef dinner on our beach with about 16 of us, and New Years Eve was spent again with friends on the beach enjoying a "soup kitchen" where everyone brought a pot of soup. There were about 15 types of soups to try, with everything from my garlic soup to shrimp gumbo, seafood chowder and chicken veggie or lentil, there was something every ones tastes and lots of leftovers for New Years Day. The evening was capped of with fireworks in the village and we were home and in bed not too long after Baja Midnight(8:30)and no hangover in the morning!


With the wind blowing we went out sailing with Carl on one of the last days of the year. As it turned out it was the only day when the wind didn't blow until 11:30 so we motored to a nearby island and went for a hike while we waited for the wind to start picking up, which it did, so we could sail for a few hours. It turned out to be a great day for hiking and sailing, what luck!

Now, as we are in the New Year, the wind has calmed somewhat and again we are settling into the quiet days and evenings on the beach. 2012 wow, another one down!

Ken makes a toast to the holidays at Christmas dinner.

Rowing SWEET PEA to shore on our day sailing with Carl. That's BLEW in the background, Carl's 28ft Lance sailboat.

The view of Honeymoon bay with BLEW and a private yacht moored.

It was quite the hike up a rocky ridge to a the top of the island...

but what a view we had!

On New Years Eve we had another bonfire on the beach and a treat of some entertainment of some didjrity-doos (spelling???) being played.

Look who's coming to dinner!

The guest of honour, dressed to perfection!

What a spread! Chris's baked onion in front, Yummy! Al, carving the turkey in the back and everything in between.

Ken and I get dressed for Thanksgiving and enjoy the day with friends.

Yes, it does get chilly.

The Mexican Musial ride arrives at the San Javier Mission.

A cocktail vendor sells every type of drink you could want, not just the old tequilla standbys.

We have our routine. As the time here on the beach trickles by not much happens to change the daily routine, so when something does happen I jump at the chance to take pictures and write a line or two on the blog site. So, what has happened here on the beach that could have made me pick up my pen? American Thanksgiving and with that a change in the temperature.

If you have been following the blog you already know that Ken and I returned home for our Canadian Thanksgiving and consumed more than our fair share of food to be thankful for but that is no reason for us to refuse a great opportunity to partake in another festivity full of fantastic food, fun and friends (some of whom are actually Americans and have the just reason to be gobble, gobbling so late in the year). We all pitched in 30 pesos each (about $2.00 each)for the turkey and everyone brought a side dish, potluck style. Everything was there...turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes...the works. Delightful!

The day was hot and humid and we were lucky to have eaten early because come 5-6 p.m. a few clouds rolled in as and Ken and I lay contently groaning in our camper we listened to the rain drops on the roof. We have had a couple of rainfalls this season but nothing that amounted to much, however, after every rainy day the weather seems a little cooler and the wind a little crisper. Here we are today still in shorts but many of us donning sweatshirts and would believe...toques! Elaine and Donny (from Merritt) stopped by Juncilito on their way to Los Frailles and Elaine handed out early Xmas presents of toques she had made on the drive down (she also brought a bunch of little baby toques for us to give out to some of the Mexican ninos) Toques do you believe it? Just in time! Thanks Elaine.

Every year the pueblo of San Javier hosts 'San Javier Days'. Three days in which the little pueblo grows from a meager 200ish people to 4-5000! Ken and I decided that after 13 years of coming down here it was about time we took in the festival, and what a festival is was! First of all the Mexican Musical ride on horseback slowed the traffic to a halt and we ended us walking the last km or so faster than we could have rode it (we took the bike on the 32 km ride into the mountains, of which the first 21 km is now paved). Actually we started walking in to town when a old Jeep Wagoneer passed us and then proceed to die in the middle of the road, 5 0r 6 people jumped out of the Jeep and into the back the truck that was in front of them on the road. The driver of the Jeep got the vehicle going about the time we walked by so they told us to get in and off we went, coughing and choking all the why. We made it to town in style and it felt as if we were in a parade as our driver yelled salutations and shook hands with just about everyone we passed. When we got to San Javier I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it...all the people, tents and vendors! The town was in pleasant turmoil! What a hoot. Ken couldn't get out of there fast enough and I was wishing we would have brought our tent and stayed the night for the party. Well, maybe not, 3 hours was enough.

Today it is back to the routine, Ken is hiking the with a group from a caravan that has stopped in at the beach on their way up the Baja so he is having a great time and Linda and I walked over to the Internet so I could visit with you! Hope all is well with you as it is with us!

Happy Camper

Ken is very proud of his Dorado. He has waited a long time to bring one of these in! They are a magnificent color in the water, bright blues and greens and yellows, not to mention they fight like there's no tomorrow(which I guess technically there isn't for them) flying out of the water, twisting trying to get loose.

The locals are happy he has brought in diner as well, they have been waiting patiently.

And one large Grouper kept Ken on the line as it drove into the rocks looking for a place to get away...no way!

It has been a good year for fishing so far. We have enough fishing stories to fill a book but I will not bore you. Suffice to say we are getting our fill of ceviche and fish cooked every way you can think(sometimes for days/meals at a time). Lots of community fish cookouts and potlucks on the beach. This Thursdays however we are doing a U.S. Thanksgiving dinner on the beach inclusive of turkey and the works...yum.

Weather has cooled off a little with highs of about 26-27 in the daytime and the water temperature has dropped at least 10 degrees since we arrived. But who is complaining? Not I!
Lovin' the Life!

Juncalito

Ken loves the water and this year he has been able to enjoy the warm 85 plus degree water in more than one way. I, on the other hand sprained my ankle on the day before we crossed into Mexico so I have been doing little but reading and enjoying the sun.

Out in the kayak, Ken paddled with a 8 meter whale shark, at times he would hang on to the tail or dorsel fin and get pulled along. I, on the other hand was happy enough to paddle along with in awe of the size and beauty on this amazingly gentle creature.


Sometimes it is very hard just trying to keep cool with temperatures in the high 30's in the day and just way to warm to sleep at night.

Out into the waves...armed with the kayak, skirt and paddle. Oh what fun he'll have!

The waves break and the kayak flies!

The waves break and Ken flies!

A photographer from France, making a photo book thought Ken was an interesting character, don't we all!!!

It's great, together again. After meeting this summer at Liard Hot Springs Gaby, Hiske (from Holland), Swantja, Stefan (from Germany), and Ken and I met up again in Juncalito to enjoy a margarita or two and a story or two about our love of travel.

Well here we are again doing our thing down here in the Baja at Juncalito. We have set-up our camp and are getting down to a routine of daily life on the beach, morning sunrises over the bay, swimming in the 80 degree water, fishing and happy hours with our friends. The weather here was definately warmer than we are used to with nights cooling down to 30 degrees and not a puff of air movement in the camper. Days are down to 29 degrees instead of 39 now and we can handle that! Life goes fast on the beach but here a few highlights from our stay so far.

Thanksgiving

My sister Karen and Aunt Rose enjoying the warm fall day during a walk to Powers Creek, where we hung out as kids.
Karen and I on the trail to the creek, I'm so glad we made the trek down to the creek(I don't feel so bad about all that over indulging).

A funny thing happened on the way to Mexico...Ken and I looked at each other and said "we should stay" for Thanksgiving that is! So after a full days drive into Washington, we found a storage place in Euphrata and parked the truck and trailer, rolled out the motorbike and headed back home to Westbank to spend Thanksgiving with family and friends, everyone was there and who knows when that will happen again. It is great to have the flexibility to go where and when the wind flies. So another week was spend in Canada eating and drinking way too much, but that's what life is all about isn't it... living it!

South of 49

Ken and I look our to sea on our walk at Roger Curtis on Bowen Island.

Here's me and Ken with his sisters Joanne and Shari at the beach.

Shari and Ken feed the deer at Joannes place on Bowen Island, the deer have it good!

I'm ready to go sailing with Rose and Ron on his 26 ft MacGregor.

The silhouette of an awesome afternoon sail, oh yes the wind did pick up....a bit!

As our first year of official retirement comes to a close, and the weather and the leaves turn we are preparing to head south once again to the Southern States and Mexico. Our last two weeks here in the Okanagan have been spent trying to touch base with as many friends and family as we could, doing yard work around our house(which is now rented) and getting ready for our winter away. Our plan is to be away until the end of April but that plan was made today and we will see what happens tomorrow, until then have a great winter and remember we are only as far away as the Internet!

That's enough...

At Carp Lake P.P. Ken and I help Ralph check out the on island campsites.

We stand ready to forge the McCloud River, Ralph in his canoe, Georg and Christine in their inflatable river boat and Ken and I in our canoes.






Ken and Ralph haul the boats over a log jam.

Carl gets ready for a little evening campfire in the back yard.

Chris and I start the campfire.

A great ride to the alpine meadows on Yanks Peak.

You don't know who you will run into out in the bush?!?!

Another cool but beautiful sunset over Tatla Lake.

Ken and Gabriel, a member of the Chilcoton Indian Band who gave us a tour for the Pithouse and new medicine bathhouse they are building at Chilco Lake.

Inside the Pithouse where the members hold meetings and ritual ceremonies.

Christine, Georg, Ken and Myself relax and have a snack on a afternoon hike.

As we slowly travel south to the Okanagan Valley we are visiting a few of our favourite spots. We popped back into Carp Lake P.P. to visit Ralph, where we rondez vous'd with Georg and Christine, our friends from Austria that here in Canada visiting for the 11th time, this stay only 6 weeks in duration. Ralph suggested that a canoe/kayak trip down the McCloud River might be a nice way spend an hour or two, 5 hours and about 20 log jams later we arrived back at the campground tired but smiling with a good story to tell.

After Carp Lake it was off to visit Chris and Carl in Likely again... likely story! Ken and I wanted to do a few motorbike rides in this area that we couldn't do in June when we were there because the weather was just too wet, the Likeyly to Barkerville road via Ghost Lake and the Likely to Barkerville trail over Yanks Peak. The road via Ghost Lake was closed due to washouts but managed to make it through the 6 ft ditches and blockades but ended up riding back on the highway through Quesnel because we ran out of time. Two days later we rode Yanks Peak which is really only a gnarly snowmobile trail system, it always amazes me where that KTM can go with Ken at the helm. All I can do during these rides is hang on for dear life! Once again grins and great stories. We hate leaving Chris and Carl's but we will see them soon in the Baja!

Tatla Lake is always on our list of must stops, always lots of good riding and until this stop we thought lots of good fishing. Unfortunately all Ken caught this time around was squaw fish and they were quickly returned to the water. We took a few ride around the area to Chilko Lake and Bluff Lake, took in the Tatla Lake fall fair along with a lot of nice locals selling fresh baking and veggies. Guess who showed up? George and Christine, we had been chasing each other around the Chilcoton and we finally caught up to each other at Tatla Lake. It seemed as good a place as any to enjoy a beer and a warm fire before they headed home to Innsbruck.

Our thought around the fire...isn't it funny how not much more than 100 years ago, chopping wood and living off the land was a daily occurrence-all in a days work, today we go out looking for time away from work so we can...chop wood and live off the land. Hmmm!

If you listen carefully you can probably hear the rain once again falling on the roof our camper. We have had about enough, it is time to head home and get cleaned up, dry out the camper and get the bikes ready for the trip to Mexico. See you there.

The big 5-0

The Baja gang.

Chris, Kisbet, Carl, Linda, Ken, Heather and Chula.

Clavin, Linda's grandson, helps me blow out my candles!


The road down from camping at Twin Falls and the Hudson Bay Glacier, in Smithers.

Around Smithers.

Looking down into Crater Lake on the top of Hudson Bay Mountian.

We hiked the alpine on Hudson Bay Mountain.

Well, I made it half a century and having a blast. Ken and I spent my birthday in Smithers with friends from the Baja(Linda-at whose beautiful log house we were staying, and Chris and Carl-who you might remember from our stay in Likely) eating, drinking and being merry, oh life is good!

The area is beautiful, the starting of rolling farmland yet still in the mountains with glaciers and many lakes. We did a few hikes in the area, around Hudson Bay mountain and rode around Babine Mountain range on a forestry road, the sun even came out for a day or so to lift our spirits. When we were not exploring the area we spent time taking in the parade, it was Fall Fair time in Smithers, play cards and taking in the local museums and visiting with Linda's wonderful family. Linda family has lived in Smither for generations and there are pictures of her family and grandfather, who was a skiing legend in this town, in all the local museums. In Smithers there is a what we call Dahlieville which is similar to Fickeville in Westbank!

After just about a week it is time for us to move on from Smithers and Linda's great hospitality, before we wear it out, and move on. It has been a great time here and I'll always have fond memories of my 50th!