Sailing

This past Saturday, I joined C and his Boy Scout troop on a 4 hour sail trip on the SS Odyssey. There were 35 of us (parents and scouts and some siblings) plus the crew of about 10.

C with his friend M.

Here is the main mast.

The Odyssey is a 90 foot yawl. It is considered a tall ship.  It has a rich history. It was originally designed for a Vanderbilt granddaughter. The boat was used in racing for years. In WW II, the Navy used the boat for radar, sonar testing, and echo sounding studies. In 1978, it was purchased by the Boy Scouts of America and is currently used as a sail training vessel for Sea Scouts.

The inside is quite charming. There is a small piano on board. The large dining table tips as the boat moves.

Scouts looking really thrilled that I'm taking their picture. :) Some boys played cards at this table.

We passed by Stadium High as we left the Tacoma port.

Would you believe this is a public high school? It was previously a hotel.

We sailed out into Commencement Bay and near to Vaschon Island.

The scouts were able to help with hoisting the sails and lowering them, if they wanted. C declined and let the older scouts do this.

Passengers were also able to steer the boat.

I was very thankful that there was no rain at all during our trip. The sun came out at various times. No, we didn't feel seasick! I had a pleasant time chatting with the other moms.

This week during C's science class, his teacher asked if anyone had every been sailing and C could say, yes, he had been sailing on Saturday.




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Foray to Visit Family and Frolick

Beacon Hill park in Victoria

We made our annual Spring trip to Victoria this past weekend. The weather wasn't too bad. You never know what to expect in Spring. Sometimes it can be terribly windy and/or rainy and a few times we have had sunshine and warmth.

On Friday we took the early morning ferry from Anacortes to Sidney, B.C. A ferry employee told us  about the intriguing history of Spieden Island (in the San Juan Islands). It is a private island and we often spot wildlife on its steep slopes on our journey. In the 1970s it was used for big game hunting. Exotic animals were flown in and the wealthy could come and hunt them. Later it became a conservationist centre. It remains a private island.

We worked on a jigsaw puzzle during the last part of the trip. That's one thing I appreciate about the Anacortes ferry is all the puzzles that are spread out on tables.

When we arrived in Sidney we had lunch at the The Five and Dime diner.

On Friday night we took my parents out for "Christian chicken" at Swiss Chalet. After dropping my parents off at their apartment we went to Cattle Point — a park along the shore with rocky bluffs. Cattle Point is an Urban Star Park. That means that it is darker than typical urban areas and you can better see the stars.

Near Cattle Point is a WWII memorial to the 97 Oak Bay residents who died. I think it is a beautiful memorial.

The inscription says "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend."

We stayed at the Oak Bay Hotel which has become a favourite of my husband. You can see photos of it from our stay there in 2016. These beautiful flowers were in the lobby.

On Saturday my mom wanted to drive to the Esquimalt Causeway and go to Metchosin for lunch. My parents aren't able to get out on drives very often. It was my pleasure to take them out. Here is C by the sea — along the Esquimalt Causeway.

We had lunch at My Chosen Cafe which has a small petting zoo behind it. We had the waitress take our photo but it didn't turn out too well. I don't think my oldest son was ready for the photo to be taken so I cropped him out.

In the afternoon C and I went shopping in Oak Bay village. We visited a small bookstore. C sat in a chair and perused a comic book while I looked around. The manager offered him a tissue for his sniffles. C thought that was very Canadian.

Later in the afternoon we went to Beacon Hill park. J and A weren't feeling energetic. C and I walked all around. I wanted to find the Moss Lady.

I had forgotten how beautiful Beacon Hill park is.

I would love to be back there in a month or so with more sun and more flowers.

On Saturday night we had dinner in the dining room of my parents' building. That evening we went in the hot tub again. We had very interesting chats with the other hotel guests.

On Sunday morning we checked out of our hotel. J took this glam photo of me in front of the hotel.

We went to my parents' church.

We were blessed by the solid preaching of Barton Priebe and good music.

We returned by the Tsawwassen ferry. We just missed the 1 pm ferry but caught the 2 pm ferry. J saw a seal come up out of the water near to the boat.

Our border crossing went fine. Back in Washington we had dinner in Mount Vernon (after some closed restaurants and frustration) and returned home.

It was a short trip but enjoyable. I think we'll stay longer next time we go up to Victoria.


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