Cluxewe (Port McNeill)

we stayed in this heavenly place known for killer whale watching during our last week in british columbia. it was the best way to say goodbye to an adventurous summer.

on the way up to port mcneill from port alberni we stopped at cathedral trail and checked out some amazingly beautiful/old/huge trees there. it was breathtaking.

whilst in cluxewe (near port mcneill)

driving all the way up the island

staying in nanaimo for a night (living forest oceanside)

waking up to the waves crashing on the shore everyday

hoping to see a killer-whale

catching peyton partying

watching patron

deciding to go home

that moooon

Port Alberni

beautiful doors

sunsets

motorcycle rally

autumn in full force!

amazing breakfast!

look close: perfect spider web.

port alberni was

a giant spider

that hug by that place

a night ride

td every other day

autumn in full force

breaking points

diverse congregations

amazing breakfast at miller's place

tsunami territory

Duncan

the hardest part about this gypsy life is finding a new gym to work out at every week. this one was cool.

new toys for peyton.

peyton and i took a day trip to crofton to see the ocean and drop off lunch to sam. it was gorgeous.

peyton learns to shake a paw!

just behind the campground we stayed while in duncan.

while in duncan

peyton learns to shake a paw

super 8

staples/subway/petsmart/sushi/safeway

office party

cloudy, blustery, swirling wind day

natives playing music at night

camping by the river

Chemainus

at the end of august we headed out to vancouver island. the first place we stayed was at the beautiful campground in chemainus. i can't think of a better place to usher in autumn. the leaves started falling, and air was cool and crisp, and my soul was happy at the change.

we (and an older dog next to us) taught peyton to fetch for the first time in the river! it's so cool to be able to teach her new things!

my family is super adorable. i love them so much it hurts.

we are going to miss the crap out of devon kendall.

memories from chemainus

autumn hits

fish tacos

peyton learns to fetch

devon leaves

en route to vancouver island.

on the nineteenth of august we began the trek from kelowna to "the island." vancouver island, to be more specific. it was about a nine hour drive to vancouver itself, and then a 2 hour ferry ride over to the island. i loved this trek, you guys. sometimes i think maybe the gypsy life isn't for me. all the moving, and the no space, and the not having any of my wardrobe, and the constant moving... but then we make drives like this.

first of all, leaving kelowna you drive through the west side, which means you get to drive over okanagan lake and through orchard country which is breathtaking. then you follow the lake for awhile and you're supposed to turn right just before peachland; except i was too busy enjoying the scenery and samuel didn't know so we took an hour detour down to penticton. whoops.

after you turn away from the okanagan valley, you hit mountain country. there is like a never ending climb to the top of those babies. around every bend sam and i both thought, okay, we are coming to the top, but no. it was forever. and everywhere we looked it was just mountains for days. when we finally dropped down it was beautiful. right around hope the more sparse vegetation of the okanagan turned into lush green trees and shrubs. there were ferns lining the highway, vines hanging from some of the trees and wildflowers spotting the ground. it was breath taking. on top of all that, there was also a dense fog from the tops of the trees up, so the mountains whose shear faces were right next to us went straight up into the sky and disappeared in the fog before you could see their tops. i have never been in a more mystical place. it felt like a fairytale.

coming into vacouver we crossed the fraser river on this bridge, and the bridge they were building next to it was pretty sweet.

then we got on the ferry


and saw things like this






the island is enchanting. we are so happy to be out here, finally. we've been waiting alll summer. and let me tell you, there is no better place to greet autumn.

Kelowna

from sparwood we made a long, long drive over to kelowna. about nine hours if you were wondering. just a little disclaimer: this gypsy life might seem really fun and exciting, and "oh, what an adventure!" and for the most part, it is. but when you wake up on a sunday morning and don't know where you're headed next, only to find out it's going to be a nine hour drive half-way across a province--it's not that fun. packing up your life and driving that far at a moments notice isn't always the business. especially when you don't even know where you're gonna stay when you get there (at midnight). and you have to sleep in a hot, hot trailer on the side of the road by some hotel that people you're with may or may not be staying at.

but without all of those annoying inconveniences on this journey, all the really great times wouldn't be as sweet. so i am thankful that sometimes it's a pain to live this way. because when you hike up to that beautiful waterfall, or you hear the ocean waves crashing on the beach, or you smell that sharp, salty ocean air on the ferry, or you get sand in your mouth diving for the ball on the beach of that beautiful lake one august morning, or you stare at your husband across the table from you at a little sushi place that is just to die for, and you feel that deep and abiding love for him so intense that you have to hide the tears in your eyes from the waitress, it feels really good. even better because you have to go through some trials in order to experience it all.

some pictures from a date we went on, downtown kelowna:

the sushi was from here. and if you want the best all you can eat sushi in all of bc you would be wise to try it. great prices, even better food, and still even better service. after we ate we went to a movie (bourne legacy, loved it, incase you were wondering), and then to the mall to get sam a canucks hat. you know canada's getting into your bones when you are buying hockey paraphernalia.

here are some iphone pics from other days there...

we love foothills creamery! i would say their ice cream is what i will miss most about canada. particularly the blast off! flavor. it is an addiction. like i really think samuel and i are going to need rehab when we get back to the states. we may or may not have gotten a 4L jug of it from this distribution center i hunted down in west kelowna. and when i say may or may not have, i mean we definitely did.

memories in kelowna:

this post

a bath

best sushi

a hotel room

costco!

the beach of the movies

creepy lady with the chicken in her lap at that one place

that hawaiin milkshake

the nicest laundry people

lakes on lakes

sailboats

gettin that blast off!

gym hopping

the causeway

on the road to kelowna.

on the road from sparwood to kelowna there were a lot of really neat places that we stopped. from the "old stuff" antique store, to two scoop steve's, we had a blast on that seemingly endless drive. we even got to enjoy a walk down to the banks of the moyie river because it is necessary for little peyton girl to get out and stretch her legs every once in awhile. and also because we can never, ever pass up good ice cream. here are some fun pictures we took on the journey.

this super intricate sandcastle was in creston, bc. we had to drive back through there on the way to kelowna and we saw a man carving it on the side of the road. i was intrigued, so i made sam pull over and i jumped out to see what he was up to. he told me that he was working on a world record and said this was actually only a small part of what the finished product would be. people and their unique talents just amaze me. every single day!