Winter Came Back

Well we thought for sure that winter in Nanaimo was done, but apparently we were wrong! It started to snow late afternoon on Wednesday and by the time we left here to head to Duke Point to pick up our friend at the ferry terminal; it was a full fledged blizzard! We are putting all of the blame on Jenn, as she has come from cold, snowy Ontario.

We left here just after 7:00 pm and with the quarter sized snow flakes blowing directly into our headlights, making out the road was a little tough. The speed limit on the highway there was 90 km's and I was driving along at 40 km's just to be on the safe side. I haven't driven in a blizzard in 3 winters, as the first two were in the south; and this year when it has snowed, we usually just stayed in. On the way back things appeared better; and we decided a nice hot tub and sauna at the aquatic centre would feel great; about half way there, we decided that it was time to turn back and try again the next night.

On Thursday we spent the afternoon shopping and taking Jenn for a quick tour around Nanaimo; and had that much needed hot tub later in the evening.

Today was beautiful; and we drove over to Cathedral Grove. This is a preserved area of forest with some of Canada's oldest Douglas firs. There was a smattering of snow on the ground; and it was a beautiful way to spend an hour walking through the forest. We then continued our drive and just outside of Port Alberni, we stopped at Sproat Lake for a picnic lunch and a nice walk out to some Petroglyphs. Heading back home, we stopped at Little Qualicum water falls; and found ourselves on a hike heading down to some falls. Again, just a little bit of snow, but it added to the ambiance. Our last stop on our way home was Goat on Roof in Coombs. This is a little tourist attraction that has an array of gift shops and a market. We were here earlier in the fall and both times, the goats haven't been out.

We arrived home around six and enjoyed a slow cooked blade roast dinner. Mmm Mmm good. A lot of the snow has already melted and should be gone by tomorrow.

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February in Nanaimo

I know that it's been forever since I did an update on the blog; but we really haven't been doing too much exciting stuff lately.

Most of the snow was gone by early January and the winter up to this point has been really nice. The day time temps average around 8 and we haven't been below freezing over night in over a month. We've also have had very little rain. And when it does rain, it seems to do it over night.

We go for daily walks in and around our park. There's a really nice trail that boarders the park; and takes you along a river. The river is a playground for all kinds of birds. Just today we were over there and were entertained by a flock of Canadian geese.

Depending on how high or low the tide is decides how far we walk along the river. There's a couple of low places along the way, and when the tide is high, there's no way to cross. A few weeks back we had a really nice big rainbow going across the river; but we didn't find the pot of gold, oh well, maybe next time.

We have also been going to the aquatic centre quite a bit; and have been enjoying the sauna, steam room and hot tub. We usually go in the evenings; as there are less kids at that time.

A friend of ours is coming for a weeks visit starting tomorrow; and we'll be taking her to all kinds of places. We're both looking forward to it.

We also both celebrated our birthdays recently; and we both enjoyed our days.

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