Victoria and the Maiden Voyage

For Memorial Day weekend we went up to visit Matt's grandma. We left on Thursday evening after work. I had driven the Suby with the kayaks on top to the office and because it was nearly flooding outside, received a few Noah's Ark jokes. It proceeded to rain very hard the entire way up. It was a bit nerve wracking between the darkness, the heavy rain, and our first long trip with the kayaks (aside from moving from one town to another). We made it just fine and at about a quarter to midnight. Our plan originally was to get up and catch the first ferry over to Victoria, but we were not confident in our ability to get up after arriving so late. Turns out we both woke up the next morning without an alarm... at 6 am. [...]

Victoria, B.C.

We walked onto the ferry (after grabbing coffee, of course) and about an hour and a half later we were pulling into the Inner Harbor. The weather was a bit chilly, but blue skies and not very much wind. There were a lot of sail boats jammed into one area of the harbor...A LOT... they were packed like sardines and we wondered how the people in back were going to get out if they wanted to sail. The Swiftsure Yacht Race was going on that weekend and that part of the harbor was packed with festivities and participating sailboats and crews. I had the sneaking suspicion one of my coworkers was down there somewhere, but I couldn't remember what boat he was on. It turns out he was and that race ended up not going well because it was so windless. I think he said it took 8 hours to get the last 1000 yards of the course and of all the boats that started very few actually finished.

We had an amazing breakfast at Willie's Bakery and Cafe (we highly recommend the eggs Benedict and the french toast) then walked up the hill to the Craigdarroch Castle. It's a very large turreted mansion that was built by a coal barron, Robert Dunsmuir. 

The picture below is of a wreath made out of hair. It was pretty and terribly creepy all at once. It looked to be made from quite a few different types of hair and must have taken someone a long time.

After his death the place has been a college and a hospital before becoming a museum. Not much of the original family belongings are there because the children sold nearly everything. Aside from the ornateness of this place the most impressive fact was that when it was built in the late 1800's it had forced heating and AC (the fireplaces were for ambiance), electricity, gas, and a fully integrated alarm system. This family had more money than they knew what to do with.

Interesting tidbit: Their 6th daughter, Jessie, married a prominent man from Ireland. Jessie's great grandson was Julian Jameson, who, for a time, owned the family distillery producing Jameson Irish Whisky. I love it when one random trip to Victoria ties into our trip to Ireland and respect for Jameson. 

We wondered down around the Inner Harbor checking out a few shops and stopping to enjoy some very delicious tea at Teavana. Then we decided to hit the Bug Zoo. This is a relatively tiny place that is recommended for children. However, I would recommend it to adults just the same. It's one room divided in half and all around the peremeter are tanks of insects. In about an hour the guide will stop by each tank and explain what's in there. At most stops he takes one out and you get to hold it! When we first walked in I had some serious heeby jeebies. Staring into a tank of stick bugs, for example, is like staring at a magic eye poster. You see one and you see two. Then as you let yourself relax you realize that the one is hanging onto another which is hanging on to one much larger that you previously thought was a stick. That one in fact has about 15 other stick bugs of various sizes attached to him. There are very, very few actual sticks. It's all stick bugs. We held stick bugs, leaf bugs, fainting beetles, and all sorts of strange things that have very effective . camouflage. Toward the end there are some you can't hold- like a very large orb spider and a katydid- however, if you desire to hold a Madagascar hissing cockroach, tarantula, emperor scorpion, or a millipede the size of your forearm this is your chance. I held the roach, tarantula, and scorpion. The roach creeped me out the most. Matt held the roach, tarantula, and the millipede, but was too intimidated by the scorpion. It was pretty scary looking- very large and very black. Apparently the tarantula is about 10 and has never hurt anyone. The same was said about the 4 year old scorpion, but not many were that brave. All in all it changed from a nervous to an exhilarating experience.

A leaf bug

An emperor scorpian

A tarantula (I forget what kind) 

A Madagascar hissing cockroach-- eek!

A millipede

We finished out the day by walking around to a different side of the harbor looking for Spinnakers Gastro Brewpub. I believe this is supposed to be the oldest brewery in Canada. We were lucky enough to snag some outdoor seating upstairs with views of the water. The appetizers were delicious and the beer was okay. They had one with lime and tequila in it (we did the taster flight, so no one was forced to drink a full pint of it). I think I ended up with a pint of nut brown and Matt got a cask aged one that won an award, but didn't taste like it should have. Perhaps living in the northwest has affected our taste buds, but their beers were underwhelming yet drinkable and enjoyable just the same.

The view from Spinnaker's cozy deck.

Sequim and Port Angeles, WA

Back in the U.S. of A. on the Olympic Peninsula we took our kayaks out on their maiden voyage. We've had them for a month, but with the move and work we hadn't had a chance to take them out. We went out to Dungessness Bay because they have a decent beach and boat ramp area. Parking was at a premium, but we managed to get lucky. Paddling felt awkward at first, but in no time we felt very comfortable. There weren't any waves, but once you started to get near the mouth of the bay the water was rushing in so fast we couldn't paddle against it. We came across a few curious seals, but none were brave enough to come closer than 40 yards or so. Matt's mom took a turn too while we tried to keep Sage contained on the beach.

It's tradition when we are visiting to play Phase 10. It was memorable. I won and grandma didn't- a first! It was a fierce competition between Kris, Matt, and I for at least the second half of the game.

She's the one to beat in Phase 10 or Cribbage

The next day we took them out to Freshwater Bay west of Port Angeles. Kris and I went out first for about half an hour. It was flat calm- very peaceful. No wonder this is such a popular place. Unfortunately, we didn't see any wildlife other than a few birds. Matt and I paddled west along the cliffs. It drizzled a bit but we didn't decide to come back until it started to rain hard. When we set out the tide was out and starting to come it. When we got back there was no beach and everyone was trying to arrive at once. We squeezed ourselves in and loaded everything up in the pouring rain. Absolutely worth it. Being outside, especially in inclement weather, calls for comfort food recovery. Beer and burgers!