stubsadventures

It’s that time of year, cookie baking, crazy amount of visiting, this year was crazy amounts of hosting and then the icing on the cake, my annual birthday trip to the west coast. I have spend my birthday the last few years exploring as many nooks and crannies as possible in southern BC anywhere that is next to the ocean.

The Christmas season was filled with a lot of relaxing, eating, hanging out, being made fun of and making fun of others, all of the important holiday elements. I must admit that I was really spoiled this year. I don’t think I will ever get used to the thoughtfulness of the people around me. Between the folks who work for me, my coworkers and friends and family, I received some of the most thoughtful gifts this year. Besides the fact that they were great presents, everyone had put so much thought into them and all had a story of why they chose that gift for me. I was humbled to say the least. I was also pretty proud of the gifts that I had gotten other people, so each time I gave one, I was so excited for the person to open it. I have smiled a lot in the last few weeks.

I was pretty excited to head to Kelowna and explore that area. I have never really spent time there but was there for work last month and decided it was time to check it out. Some of my best friends live there as well, so it was pretty win-win. During the day I was there, Caper and I did a 5km hike in Maya Bellevue PP. I can honestly say the drive to the top of the hill to begin that hike was one of the craziest I have ever done in my life. I was without a doubt actually white knuckling it. Then, I finally got to the top of this mountain and the last 1.5km were the scariest. I was just glad get to the end and still be alive. The hike itself was actually kind of brutal without snowshoes. The snow was deep enough to make you work through it and there was a crust of ice on top you crashed through every time. It was a pretty long 5km. The trail is just a small part of a system that runs along a mountain where an old railway used to run. Despite the less than perfect conditions, the views were well worth all the effort.

Usually, during this trip, I will stop at a Gulf Island (between Vancouver and Van Island). This year, I decided to head to White Rock, which is in very southern BC, almost right on the border with the US. The city here is adorable. Although pretty high end, I actually like the area. The shops downtown are full of character and it’s hard to argue any city next to the ocean isn’t awesome. The people all seems really friendly and I’m staying at The Ocean Promenade Hotel, which was one of the most helpful places I have ever stopped. The rooms are really clean (mine is huge but it is a suite) and the staff are awesome. Highly recommend this place.

Tomorrow, ferry ride to the island, then four nights at my second favorite cottage in the world. I’m headed back to Point No Point Resort for the third time, which is basically unheard of for me. The thought alone of this place just makes me smile and I can’t believe I’m going to be there tomorrow!

Also included some pictures of my recent hiking around Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park where is close to my place.

Stubs.

Anyone who has heard me talk about Cape Breton Island knows what that place means to me. Cape Breton is a feeling and the people there make it that much better.

On my recent trip home, it was a priority to spend some quality time with my grandfather. He is an amazing man and probably, the other only family member besides my brother who can relate to a life in a process facility. There is nothing like it, or the dangers related to it. My grandfather worked at the Sydney Steel Plant in the years following WW2, until his retirement. After recently reading a book about the plant covering its inception to the announcement of closure, I was eager to spend time with him because (of course) I had a million questions about his time there and how it differed and paralleled what my experience has been like working in the oil patch.

The cherry on the cake was when he took me for a tour of what the area looks like today and described to me what used to be where I stood. There is nothing left of the plant now, nothing at all but some piles of slag that are still in the process of being recycled. It’s hard to imagine, multiple plants of that size, making everything from steel, to nails and wires, is now gone. Nothing but fields, sports fields, children’s playgrounds and a small canal. All this, where a plant the size of a small city used to reside.

The steel plant has an amazing legacy and played an important role in NS and more specifically Cape Breton history. It’s amazing to look back and the conditions that existed, the danger that was common place and the incidents that occurred on sometimes a daily basis.

On my way home, I took the milk run and stopped in to explore Sydney Mines, Cape Breton. And, while there I happened upon an old battery which absolutely made my day. As a young kid and even now when I go home, I find these old batteries on the coast of NS some of the most fascinating places I have ever explored, world wide. Real history just sitting there out in the open, standing the test of time. Build to defend Sydney harbour during WWII, I really enjoyed my time roaming around the structures.

Stubs.