September 2, 2008

Tofino is my favourite place!

Campfire, ocean waves, good friends, beans and smores....mmmmm! What more could you want from a weekend away?!

This past Labour Day weekend a few friends and I headed up island to Tofino, my new favourite place, for a weekend of camping and relaxing. Jared picked up up in his big truck, Rommy chatted with Jared in the front and Meghan and I squished into the back with homemade muffins and cookies to keep us company. The drive was long but the company fun and entertaining. 

We set up our two tents in the dark with the sounds of the ocean rolling below on the beach. Luckily, no rain fell that first night, so in the morning, after I got up an went for a gorgeous walk on the beach, we ate some muffins and rigged up our tarps, just in case.

That day we explored the beach, played a little Bocce and enjoyed the afternoon sun on the beach. Supper around a campfire is the best! Hot dogs, chili and beans....with an encore of Smores! Mmm! And hot chocolate at every meal. 

We slept okay, wrapped tightly in our tents and sleeping bags and extra blankets....with the exception of the guys hearing a few bear-like noises in the night near the girls tent....ya...ahem.
Sunday we let the guys make breakfast of bacon and eggs and hash browns over the fire. 
There is nothing better than eating outside! 

The rain still stayed away and we enjoyed most of the sunny, warm day on the beach, chatting and napping and reading.

Monday we packed up and headed for home. The long drive went by quickly with the beautiful scenery and friendly chatter.

Camping, anywhere but especially in Tofino, is my new favourite thing! I'd go anytime!

Here are more photos from the weekend:

Road Trip from BC to Alberta and Back

On August 13th I headed out on a road trip with my mom, Dorinda Driver, and my Great Aunt Shirley "The Early Riser", from BC through the Rockies to Edmonton for my cousin, Joel's wedding.
He had a great time! Yummy picnics and stopped at a few pretty spots for a photo or two.
Edmonton was HOT! So hot, I vowed never to live there even with the possibility of getting that hot!
But we had a great time catching up with cousins and aunties and uncles and Grandma. The wedding was so beautiful and the reception lovely! Our hotel room was spectacular, too! 
I cherish that weekend where I spent lots of fun moments with cousins I rarely get to see. We went bowling, had a group supper at good old Pizza Hut, hit the West Ed Mall for some laser tag and hang out time, ate a huuuge take-out Chinese dinner and reminisced about our favourite times spent in the past in Terrace at our grandparents house. 
I was so sad to say good-bye and longed for a few more days to spend with everyone. But alas, we packed up the car and headed back home again, ready for our next adventure.
We started home and ended up braving torrential rain, hail, lightning and saw 3 forest fires start in a crazy storm on the way to our next stop, 3 Valley Gap Chateau, near Revelstoke. The Chateau was neat in a kooky way, with the feel of an old chalet in the mountains that needs a bit of a makeover, but is homey and relaxed and very interesting. We toured their Ghost Town and saw some fabulous log cabins, original to the area, artifacts and recreations. 

I took many photos, too many to post here, but here are the links to my albums on facebook. Anyone can view them, even if you're not addicted to facebook yet.