• MMM in the Americas 24-25
    With Anna and Sam, eating Wild-caught salmon
    Watching the salmon run in a back channel of the Campbell RiverWild Pacific SalmonPeople fishing for salmonRandy and Penny cooked the best beef ribs we've ever hadWith delicious accompanying vegetablesThe Colonel and the Cook: Tim and LeaFerry to the mainland, and another (pictured) to the sunshine coast: Fab BC coastal views😀You will recognise this if you watched The Beachcombers in the 70s (Mark did)Roberts Creek BeachSpeeches and March for Canada's National Day for Truth and ReconciliationAnna chasing son Amil, with daughter Zia front centreSilver sea sunset; last of the coast for a whileLovely morning walk in the rain 🌞Beautiful rainforest, but maximum temp of 10 degrees? Might be time to goWarmed up after a long walk through urban forest in VancouverBye rainforest; thanks for having usPerry - it was great to catch up in the car and over dinnerOver the Rockies!We speak with Molly regularly. She sent this from Carey's Peak, Barrington Tops, NSW, Australia

    Bye-bye BC and friends 😍

    Sep 28–Oct 2, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    We wrapped up our stay in British Columbia with a few days on the lovely 'sunshine coast' with Anna and Sam, and a brief visit to Vancouver with Perry.
    First we said goodbye to our generous and gracious hosts Tim & Lea & 3 cats at Campbell River - after nearly 3 weeks 😯. This included a super-fabulous cook-up by friends Randy and Penny.
    We also took time to walk along the river, observing the 'salmon run' and seeing people fishing for salmon, snorkeling to see salmon, and generally enjoying the forest trails. The life cycle of Wild Pacific Salmon is actually pretty wild! The 'run' means the return from the ocean to mate & spawn in their river of origin, then promptly die 😬, leaving their offspring to grow and then head for ocean life before returning to breed, and so on.
    We were thrilled to spend a couple of days in the lives of Anna and Sam and family. We last saw them in Galapagos 13 years ago and now they're married with 2 kids and a house in Roberts Creek, with a great community of friends. We had a fun time 😀.
    And a final blast-from-the-past was the last-minute reconnection with Perry in Vancouver; who I met on an Intrepid trip I was leading in Thailand in the year 2000. So great to see one another and be treated to his generosity once again. Then a flight over the mountains to the prairies for the next chapter of our trip 😀...    Read more