Idabel Lake and the danger of loons

Idabel Lake is an amazingly beautiful lake south of Kelowna. While it's minutes from the Big White Ski Resort, and only 45 minutes from Kelowna, Idabel is wonderfully remote and secluded. Apart from disturbing stretches of blocks of logged forest nearby, the terrain almost Hiroshima-like in its imagery.













Mobile phone coverage is spotty at best, and television, if at all, is by satellite. Idabel is largely a drive-by lake; people drive by on the way to somewhere else. For those who stop however, there are clear mornings, wonderful swimming and fishing, the joy of peace and quiet and the melancholy voice of a lone loon on the lake.

On a clear night the Milky Way is a brilliant display of planets, stars and all sorts of satellites and space craft from our world and others too. The natural audio of the lake in the middle of the night includes owls and raccoons, deer and other mysterious creatures that banged around outside our door at three in the morning.




Signs are prominently posted at Idabel offering warnings about loons. These birds might look innocent enough but the recent truth is much more disturbing. The signs, in plain English, warn boaters to beware of loons. Apparently, and increasingly over recent years, loons have been dive-bombing canoes, kayaks, and row boats with a passion to injure humans within the craft. Many boaters on waters known to be held by aggressive loons, have taken to wearing bike helmets and hockey shoulder pads to protect themselves.






We think of loons as being solitary, lonely and peaceful. All Canadians recognise the call of the loon as essential to our very national experience. That experience seems to be changing.

Photos by Jeem . Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.

The Devil's Elbow ~ great beer and good food

On Beatty Street in downtown Vancouver is the wonderful Devil's Elbow. It's located next door to the new and improved location of the popular Chambar.

The full name for the pub is Devil's Elbow Ale & Smoke House, and it's the Vancouver venue for the Howe Sound Brewing Co. of Squamish. Howe Sound brews some of the best craft beer in BC and the Inn in Squamish has become a favourite spot for Jeem and others too. The Vancouver pub takes its name from Howe Sound's popular Devil's Elbow India Pale Ale.




The place is nice, rustic and simple. There is the full range of Howe Sound brews available, and other local brews too. The restaurant carries whisky products from local craft distilleries too.









We were in the neighbourhood in advance of a Whitecaps FC game and the Devil's Elbow turned out to be a perfect place for some pre-game drinks and food. The atmosphere was fun and lively with a number of the Curva Collective in attendance before the game, so the singing-march out of the pub was an added entertainment bonus.



Service was excellent and the food interesting. The focus is on smoked meat, with the meat smoked in-house. It all went well with the beer.

We shared  a couple of appetizers in deep fried pickles and pulled pork purses. The pickles were a nice treat, salty and tart at the same time.








The purses were excellent, though another deep fried item is not exactly what Jeem needed. They featured smoked bacon, smoked pork butt, cabbage and a honey-barbecue sauce.















For his main Jeem had a smoked beef brisket plate, with the meat served in a smoked coffee bourbon sauce. Coleslaw and potato salad rounded out the plate and neither were particularly impressive; both were dry and bland, which probably worked to balance the heavy-handed punch of the smoked meat.



All in all a fine experience. The menu is different from that offered by the Inn in Squamish, and it's a nice change from most other pubs in Vancouver. The beer from Howe Sound is always excellent.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.

Lighthouse Bistro on Nanaimo's waterfront

What is now the city of Nanaimo used to be home to five Coast Salish First Nation villages. That all changed when the Europeans came and especially after the Hudson's Bay Company set up an outpost here over 150 years ago.














Today, Nanaimo is home to over 80,000 and the city's citizens enjoy a lifestyle that balances modern amenities with an attachment to nature and recreation.







The waterfront shopping district is relatively new is well worth the visit. It blends with the Fishermen's Wharf, the old downtown business district, an artsy neighbourhood, and the launching pad for boats and sea planes.

And it is here we found ourselves one beautiful Sunday afternoon for a late lunch, or brunch, or something.









There are a number of eateries along the waterfront but few can boast the view one finds at the Lighthouse Bistro, Pub and Restaurant. Being a wonderful day, we chose the outdoor venue that seemed to be the Lighthouse Bistro portion of the complex.










Service was attentive and friendly. As one tired of looking east towards the roar of the sea planes, there was always the open kitchen to watch as the cooks pondered menu requests.









And menu requests here are simple and pub-inspired. One of our party had a Caesar salad with grilled sockeye, while Jeem opted for the halibut and chips.

The Caesar salad was adequate at best, lacking that extra punch one might expect from a waterfront restaurant on Canada's southwest coast.

Jeem's halibut was fresh and tasty, though not inspired, and still the better of the two dishes. The chips were boring beyond belief, and the portion of fries small by most standards. Not that Jeem needs more fries, but charge an extra toonie and offer hand-cut fries done properly. McCain offers as much in the frozen food section of any Argentinian or Canadian supermarket. In fact, Canada's McCain company is the largest provider of frozen fries on the planet. The chips served here are probably from McCain, so why not offer the better version? But I digress.

All that being said, the location is wonderful. The service was pleasant. The wine selection better than one might expect. And the company was great. Not bad for a summer Sunday afternoon in Nanaimo.






Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.

 

Little Qualicum River Regional Park

Recently while visiting the east side of Vancouver Island, we went for a walk through Little Qualicum River Regional Park near Parksville.









Little Qualicum River Regional Park is part of the Regional District of Nanaimo, and was acquired by the district in 1999.















The park runs along both sides of the Little Qualicum River immediately downstream from the much larger Little Qualicum Falls Provincial Park. The two parks connect through hiking trails, though I'm not sure we ever found the connection. I'm not sure we were even looking for a connection.



The regional park is 44 ha in size and is largely undeveloped, with various trails, of varying degrees of difficulty, all leading somewhere, and some obviously to the little river itself.









































The regional park is largely undeveloped, though there are camp sites, and several walking trails. And the trails are quite invigorating, for exercise and for the sheer beauty of the park. There are many birds to be heard and sometimes seen, and a variety of animals can be stumbled upon, including, though not on our visit, bear, deer and cougar.





And Canada's most dangerous spiders, which are small yet highly poisonous. Which we did see. Often, as it turned out.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.

BC can defeat Stephen Harper

Polls are interesting. And often worth a grain of salt, as we learned from the last provincial election.

The most recent poll from BC shows the NDP solidifying its numbers here in BC with the Conservatives running third and fading.

At this stage of the campaign, voters in BC are moving away from Stephen Harper's Conservatives and towards the NDP. 

That trend makes it ever more important for those of us hoping to put an end to Stephen Harper's government to stick with the NDP. Waffling and shifting votes to the Greens or Liberals will not defeat the Conservatives. 

The other reality is that polls are one thing, actually getting out to vote is another. We saw that truth in the last provincial election too. The only way to really change things in this federal election is to vote and we all have a part to play, especially in encouraging young people.

We're all in this together.

Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.