Vancouver Island Christmas

Sheringham Point Lighthouse - a neighbour here on Seaside Drive in Shirley, BC



Christmas Eve was a good time - whiskey, wine, etc. We decided last minute to exchange a few gifts - and used some ugly wrapping paper



Hudson with his new toy



Christmas Day brought stormy weather and a power outage. We drove into Sooke to see if anyone had power and if anything was open. As we drove through Otter Bay we saw a tree that had caught fire from a power line. Let the homeowner know - he wasn't phased. Probably because it's so wet in the Pacific Northwest...

We've been doing a lot of hikes and runs

China Beach has been a favorite of ours for years - a hike through rainforest to a relatively sandy beach when not high tide (which it was on this day)









Sandcut Beach now has a trailhead along West Coast Road (14)









This otter stalked us a little to make sure we - especially Hudson - left so it could come on shore



East Sooke Park is a fantastic area - 50 km of trails through rainforest along the Strait of Juan de Fuca









French Beach is within walking distance from the house

Christmas Vacation

So, the first three weeks back in Seattle have generally sucked. Some good times but mostly bad, including:

• An inner ear infection that is incessantly irritating
• Lost the credit card while drinking
• Lost the car key while running (eventually found)
• It has rained every day and the crack of dawn comes closer to 8am than 7am

The good - no work for over 2 weeks

I also got a nice gift from my buddy Gary (Leafs lighter) and collected on a $500 bet I won for quitting smoking for 6 months (already spent $100)



Also won a $250 bar tab from an election bet and shared with some good friends. Scott Anderson is the the guy on the far left who lost $750 in total. No guilt as Scott is a well-to-do former chief of M&A at McCaw Cellular



I had hoped to get a lot of runs and hikes in but my bad stretch of health issues killed that plan. Was mostly limited to runs at Green Lake and with Hud at Marymoor





Despite a few good nights of drinking with buddies we decided to get out of town for Christmas - up to Sooke, BC. It has been almost three years since we were here

Missed the BC ferries - good food and excellent views for 90 minutes









View from the house near French Beach - and sun



Merry Christmas!

December in Seattle

Arrived in Seattle last Sunday night after a 1,300 mile drive. Left Boulder Saturday morning - me in the Subaru with Hudson and Maureen in the Explorer. Swung by Legion Park to take a few last pics





Headed out I-25N and swung through Fort Collins on US-287



Then it was 340 miles on I-80 in Wyoming









Wyoming has little traffic and is 75 MPH the whole way. Only problem - these signs have been up the 3 years we've been travelling and generally for good reason



After 200 miles the "Check Engine" light came on. Shit. All seemed ok and it turned off 300 miles later



Billboards on I-80 try to get you excited for Little America for 100 miles. Little America is actually a town with a population of 68. Despite a median household income of $18K no one is below the poverty line





Spent the night in Utah





Sunday headed out solo - Maureen & Hudson stayed with her Dad a few nights. 1st stop a gas station with a sense of humor and powerful winds





Idaho





Oregon







Washington





It was sunny through most of Oregon and Washington - until I hit I-90. By the time I hit Snoqualmie Pass in the dark it was raining with fog and standing water. Yuck

It's great being back - yesterday we got up to Snohomish, did a lap of Green Lake with Hudson and hit the Burke-Gilman trail. It also sucks after sunny Boulder: