forty days: ladysmith
Date: July 14, 2022
Time Start: 10:50 p.m.
Time Finish: 1:10 p.m.
Cruise From: Conover Cove, Wallace Island
Cruise To: Ladysmith, Vancouver Island
Engine Hours Start: 1422
Engine Hours Finish: 1424
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny, south wind
It's time to say goodbye to Conover Cove and our new group of boat friends from B.C. Ladysmith is our destination today. And it is beautiful leaving Conover Cove and cruising along Wallace Island and then around the north end of Salt Spring Island toward Vancouver Island. Dan gets some final advice from Dave on Bristol Buoy before we leave. Dave is full of good ideas, a creative guy!
Time Start: 10:50 p.m.
Time Finish: 1:10 p.m.
Cruise From: Conover Cove, Wallace Island
Cruise To: Ladysmith, Vancouver Island
Engine Hours Start: 1422
Engine Hours Finish: 1424
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny, south wind
It's time to say goodbye to Conover Cove and our new group of boat friends from B.C. Ladysmith is our destination today. And it is beautiful leaving Conover Cove and cruising along Wallace Island and then around the north end of Salt Spring Island toward Vancouver Island. Dan gets some final advice from Dave on Bristol Buoy before we leave. Dave is full of good ideas, a creative guy!
We're drawn to the white rock faces of Tent Island thinking there will be birds there. We are right, gulls and cormorants are visible on the cliffs. We plan to stop there on our return for a closer look.
We have a reserved spot on the dock of the community marina in Ladysmith and tie up close to the main building. Laundry gets done, and we enjoy hot shore showers. We always enjoy this marina, with lots of colorful banners and educational features, as well as interesting boats. Among the visiting boats we are to excited to find Shiraz Trader and hope we will get to visit with Ellen and Michael. They are also from Olympia and we first met them at our very first Ranger Tug rendezvous in 2011!
The marina has a nice small restaurant, the Oyster Bay Cafe, with seating on the dock. The evening is perfect, and we enjoy their crab cakes and fish tacos along with salads and refreshing beverages. A toast to boat days!
We stroll the docks after dinner, enjoying the boats as well as the nesting boxes for purple martins on dock posts. These birds are making a comeback with the aid of these boxes, and birds are busily flying in and out of the boxes as they tend the nests.
The evening sky:
Date: July 15, 2022
Ladysmith layover day
Weather:; Mostly cloudy, drizzle, low 60's
It's shopping day, but first the fridge gets defrosted. Michael passes by on the dock, it is so great to see him! And then Ellen is on the dock, too! Hugs, brief chats, and we hope to connect later as they are on their way to meet friends.
A rendezvous of "Albin" boats is taking place at the marina over the weekend, and we take a look at some of these unique smalll boats. They don't quite meet our needs. We love having an open cockpit as well as an accessible swim step with dinghy on our tug. We would be too enclosed on the Albins.
Ladysmith layover day
Weather:; Mostly cloudy, drizzle, low 60's
It's shopping day, but first the fridge gets defrosted. Michael passes by on the dock, it is so great to see him! And then Ellen is on the dock, too! Hugs, brief chats, and we hope to connect later as they are on their way to meet friends.
A rendezvous of "Albin" boats is taking place at the marina over the weekend, and we take a look at some of these unique smalll boats. They don't quite meet our needs. We love having an open cockpit as well as an accessible swim step with dinghy on our tug. We would be too enclosed on the Albins.
We're off to town, to the 49th Parallel store, a good walk from the marina. It's up the hill, over the railroad tracks, cross the highway, walk through town to get there. We stop at Plantitude, a veggie restaurant, for a little lunch along the way. I have a veggie panini with an Afriican soup made with yams and peanuts, delish! Dan has a "bowl" with "chikin", it was huge and he ate it all. The desserts look terrific, but we have a stop at the Town Bakery on our minds!
It's an afternoon to tuck in as the gray and drizzle continue. The evening sky gives hope for tomorrow.
Date: July 16, 2022
Ladysmith layover day
Weather: Gray, calm, upper 60's
It's a lazy Saturday layover day for us at Ladysmith. We start the day with fresh strawberries and cinnamon rolls from the Old Town Bakery.
A trail follows the shore south to a large and popular community park, "Transfer Park". The park is built on the industrial site that was part of the city's coal mining history. It's full of people today enjoying a summer day. The park has a large amphitheater for concerts and performances, picnic tables and shelters, play areas and a spray park for kids, kayak rentals, beaches and lawn areas. On a part of the hillside is a large "Ladysmith" sign made with plants, and we have seen it from the water as we cruise by in our boat.
Ladysmith layover day
Weather: Gray, calm, upper 60's
It's a lazy Saturday layover day for us at Ladysmith. We start the day with fresh strawberries and cinnamon rolls from the Old Town Bakery.
A trail follows the shore south to a large and popular community park, "Transfer Park". The park is built on the industrial site that was part of the city's coal mining history. It's full of people today enjoying a summer day. The park has a large amphitheater for concerts and performances, picnic tables and shelters, play areas and a spray park for kids, kayak rentals, beaches and lawn areas. On a part of the hillside is a large "Ladysmith" sign made with plants, and we have seen it from the water as we cruise by in our boat.
We enjoy a visit with Mary-Ann and Gary here from Sooke. They are on the marina dock, too, spending the weekend with two young grandsons who are playing in the park. They love trains and give us tips on places for historic train rides, tell us about a carousel to visit in Albany, Oregon, and reccommend some YouTube videos to watch on Fleming boats. They are currently on a McGregor sailboat. Mary-Ann has a boutique shop in Sooke that features fabric creations. We'll have to visit Sooke, it sounds like a scenic place.
We follow our footsteps back to the marina, ready to enjoy happy hour at the Oyster Bay Cafe. And the appetizers fill us up, that's dinner!
Our final sunset on the docks of Ladysmith: