Keefers discovered while walking down the street.

Keefers has always drawn very positive responses from strangers. It is common for a stranger to stop and say 'Wow your dog is beautiful' or 'I love your dog.'  But today was different.

We were out for a walk and getting close to home.  A car drives by, stops, and a lady comes running over. 
Lady: Your dog is beautiful. Is he well trained? 
Charles: Uhhh.

It turns out the Victoria Operatic Society is doing Annie at Christmas and the need a good looking dog for a small part.  She thought Keefers would be perfect for the role.  So late in life, he may become a star, all because we moved to Victoria, BC!  We think his role is basically to walk part way across the stage and stop. We shall see if anything comes of this.  :)

I don't know what will happen, but it was a memorable experience.


CSK

June 11 - trip completed

Today was the final day of our westward trek. Fourteen days after leaving from Bedford, NS we were off to ride the ferry to Vancouver Island and reach our house in Brentwood Bay, BC

We have had a great trip across the country and wonderful visits with friends and relations.

Grandma Webber's house

Keefers determined not to get left behind

Pictures from the ferry as we went through Active Pass.  We arrived at the ferry dock in time to get coffee and a newspaper.  Then we were loaded on the ferry and on our way.  A beautiful day for traveling by water.  Just before we arrived the ferry was having a "man overboard" drill.  We had never experienced this before and were just as fascinated as all the tourists.  Having grown up in BC we do not consider ourselves tourists on BC ferries!  Someone said they saw a life vest go in the water, it was unclear to us if it was just a life vest or if there was a person in the life vest.  Later the crew manned their stations, got the appropriate equipment and went to the motor boat that was slowly lowered down beside the ferry until it was in the water.  After they got themselves sorted the boat was under it's own power, off to rescue the man overboard.  A little amusement for us all before we headed down to the car deck and off the ferry to Brentwood Bay.

Arriving at our new home.
Keefers seemed to know that this was our destination.
He demanded to be let into the house immediately, once the door was opened he dragged his leash in to have a good sniff.  He seemed much more relaxed within minutes of arriving.

To quote Susan's facebook page 'At our new home. Absolutely love it! Keefers, our dog, couldn't wait to get in the house as though he knew it was home even though he has never been here before.'

 Keefers in the backyard.  We think he likes it as he sat out there on a little patch of grass while we ate dinner.  Very unusual for him to miss food!  Also, he has stuck like glue to us most of this trip so for him to be elsewhere and content has been rare.

Keefers saying hello to his old red blanket that the had not seen in 2 months!  He was delighted!

The view out over Saanich Inlet from the road above the condos, a short walk from our home in Brentwood Bay.

June 10

We have finally arrived on the west coast - Vancouver.
One night here and then off to Victoria and our new home.

A day off and then two short travel days has allowed Keefers to recover.  He looks less old and creaky. Laying in the back seat of the Rondo for hours on end really took a toll on him.

The drive from Hope to Vancouver does not generate many photo ops so no pictures. We will have a few tomorrow.

CSK

June 9

Well ... we missed a few days.
We are now in Hope visiting Susan's brother and his sons.

First back to June 6.  A decade ago we drove the kids and Keefers across the country. One of the things I wanted to show the kids was the Rocky Mountains rising out of the prairie - a majestic site.  Unfortunately that was the year of sky was  forest fires and we drove from Calgary to Lake Louise without seeing a mountain. The smoke was that thick. This year the sky was clear and we could see the mountains. They really are there.

Now back to the regular narrative.
We stayed in Banff on June 6.   Charles seriously considered staying at the Banff Springs hotel but the rates were too steep even for one night. So we went up to look as we were leaving.

Keefers on the lawn at the Banff Springs Hotel

Driving from Banff to Lake Louise we took the Bow River Parkway. The highlight was a flock (herd?) of mountain sheep and 2 elk.

 

The next stop was the summit of  Rogers Pass.

Our day ended at Chase BC, where we spent 2 days.  Chase is at the south-western end of Shuswap lake. Charles's cousin Jan was having a birthday party and pig roast on her farm down the road. 

While doing laundry we saw a very cool red scooter.

The hills above Chase.

The party was wonderful - a gathering of friends, neighbours and relatives.  The food was great and all prepared by neighbourds - rural life has attractions.

Keefers enjoyed the people and the party. But was denied entrance to the food tent. After a few hours he took up a position in the grass where he could see all routes to our vehicle. He was clearly concerned that we would leave without him.

This morning we had breakfast with Charles's mom, dad, and sister. Then the big trek to Hope BC to see Susan's brother, Geordie, nephews, Colin and Mark, new dog, Wolfy and their new house.  We really enjoyed the setting and the house.  When we arrived Geordie was about to take Wolfy for a walk so we joined him for a half hour trek through the woods.  The dogs were pretty tuckered out when we returned.  There were a few territorial issues but overall they got along well.  We hope they'll have many happy years of visiting each other on the island and in Hope.

                                           Keefers and Wolfy, canine cousins at Uncle Geordie's

Tomorrow we will get to Vancouver.

CSK

Day 9 - June 6

We started the day in Strathmore AB and went backwards! Our first stop was the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller. A beautiful hot day there.  We walked around the badlands with Keefers.  Then took turns viewing the museum.  For some reason dogs are not allowed in the museum....too many bones perhaps?



Drumheller is quite a town - there are dinosaur statues everywhere. These are only a few of the ones we saw, we could have spent hours photographing them all.

The museum is excellent with lots of cool dinosaur skeletons. The museum displays take you through the evolution of life on earth using fossils from BC and Alberta. But the focus is dinosaurs. Highly recommended. Well worth a trip.

 Large dinosaur

 T-Rex I think

 A display about the Burgess Shale and the (pre?) Cambrian explosion.

 Very strange creatures at 12X scale

How could we resist this picture?  Alberta must be a little low on funds since they couldn't afford the second H!  Lol












The landscape and ecology of the bad lands around Drumheller are also fascinating.

Then we were off to Banff Alberta, where we saw the mountains first in the distance and then were surrounded by them.  We're almost to BC!  The mountains were gorgeous and this was the view Charles had hoped to show the kids 10 years ago, but that year there were many forest fires burning in BC and the tops were covered by smoke/smog.  Oh well.  :)

CSK

Day 8 - June 5

Moose Jaw to Strathmore Alberta. A longer day than I expected.
A lovely day and a good drive. We have been blessed by good weather.

The Days Inn in Strathmore is a very good deal. The room we got is wonderful. Two Queen Beds, microwave, fridge, lots of room for Keefers on the floor.  Very high ceilings that give the feeling of extra space.

Lots of scenery but not much to take pictures of. Big sky and rolling prairie are impressive and infinitely variable but don't make for good photos for amateurs.  A few pictures are below.

Tomorrow morning we are off to Drumheller to look at dinosaurs. We understand that there are lots of walking trails where we can take Keefers. Maybe he will discover new dinosaur bones :)

Tomorrow we will go to Banff for the night.

Keefers with the Moose Jaw Moose.

We stopped in Brooks AB - home of the Brooks Bandits who had a good year in Jr A. The tournament was in Summerside PEI for those not in the know!  :)

Day 7 - June 4

Hello
Today we drove from Winnipeg, MB to Moose Jaw, SK - there were no rooms in Regina, we don't know what exciting event was going on there, or if the dogs had just taken over the city.

The highlight was a picnic lunch in the Qu'Appelle Valley at Crooked Lake.  Keefers was able to run, swim and chase sticks.

The valley feels like a lovely park compared to the prairie above.  We saw many interesting birds, including one that is black with white wings.

Closer to Regina they are rapidly building cottages and houses for city folk.

Tomorrow we are off to Strathmore near Calgary. We plan to go to Drumheller on Thursday to look at dinosaur bones.

The Qu'Appelle River

Horses