The Thoughtful Wanderer: A BUSY AND REWARDING WEEK

Sunday, August 14, 2022

A BUSY AND REWARDING WEEK

POST # 514

I was very happy to see that the driver of this logging truck decided to not turn right, in front of the bus. That would have put a quick end to my departure from Port Alberni this past Friday. All went well, and I, along with about ten other people boarded the Vancouver Island Connector bus, en route to Nanaimo, and beyond. My destination was Nanaimo, which took about one and a half hours. It was a pleasant and uneventful trip.

So my time in Port Alberni had finally come to an end, but not before I checked off the last couple of items on my "to do" list. As mentioned last week, I had booked a trip to Bamfield on the MV Frances Barkley, and that took place this past Tuesday. Weather wise, it was a picture perfect day. We departed as scheduled at 8 am, and as we headed down the channel, I took a photo looking back at Port Alberni.

The MV Frances Barkley is a working ship, and there were many stops along the way, dropping off and picking up passengers, as well as off-loading freight.

Approximately half way to Bamfield, this fog bank came into view, and I was thinking that our beautiful blue sky was going to be disappearing for the remainder of the journey. Thankfully, we only spent a short period fog bound, and then the bright blue skies returned for the remainder of the journey.

We arrived in Bamfield around 12:30 pm. Our departure time was expected to be 2 pm so we had a little while to explore Bamfield.

It was unfortunate that we arrived the day we did, because according to this sign posted in town, tomorrow would have been better.

Before long, it was time to re-board our vessel and head out on our return journey to Port Alberni. I took this photo as the MV Frances Barkley was docking.

It's an interesting photo, because it appears that this small boat is about to be crushed against the dock. What can't be seen is that the ship has already been secured to the dock, and this is as close as its bow ever came to that little vessel.

Boarding was a quick affair, and then we were on our way. The return trip is direct to Port Alberni, so it went much faster than our outbound journey. There was time to visit with a few of the other passengers, and even make a couple of new contacts for future house sit gigs, so that was an unexpected bonus.

As I mentioned earlier, I had a couple of items to check off of my "to do" list, and with the voyage now completed, it was time to do the second voyage that I had been planning while at my current location. The Somass river is tidal, and I planned to take advantage of an outgoing tide. Shortly after I had arrived here, I was down at the dock one morning surveying my surroundings, and I noticed something coming towards me in the river. Eventually I worked out that this was a human being floating along. As he got within shouting distance, I wished him a good morning and asked what he was doing out there in the middle of the stream. He told me that he had entered the river right by the bridge, which is about 800 meters from my location. He said he was floating back to his brother's place, a couple of doors down from where I was. We enjoyed our brief chat, and right then and there, I decided that I would do the same thing prior to leaving here. Two days before my departure, the tide was right, so I walked to the bridge, entered the river, and had a very enjoyable float back home. It took about a half hour, and it really was a great way to spend some time.

On my final night at the property, there was a full moon, and it was magnificent to sit by the river and enjoy this spectacle. And prior to the moon rise, I was treated with another spectacular sunset.

My time spent here wouldn't be complete without taking a few more photos. Here is the view looking in the front window at my indoor "jungle" of plants.

And of course, I just had to take one last photo of each furball. This is how they spent most of their days. Cats have it very easy, at least these two certainly do.

Yesterday, the day after my arrival here in Nanaimo, I was asked to take care of the neighbour's bonehead for the day, while the owner was away in Vancouver. So the day was spent going back and forth between the two houses, in order to keep both critters happy. According to the owner, Kane suffers from separation anxiety, but it took no time at all for him to feel comfortable around me, and we had a very enjoyable day together.