Part 14. Fall shopping!

We have just returned from a trip 'to town' and have brought home many new and interesting things. Mostly groceries but also clothing, wine and Robins new toy... a band saw mill!!
He has wanted one for some time now and due to the fact we have many logs we could use for decking and lumber he decided now was the time!
More on that later...
We left home heading to Vancouver Island. A good trip with calm seas and no wind. Nothing much of interest en route except a sea otter who was lounging on his back taking in the scenery.

Please note this is not one of my pictures. On this trip we were not close enough to get a good picture but this is eactly what they look like....the most cutest animal!!

This trip was to be a combination of business and pleasure. We didn't have too many groceries to get but the 8 cases of wine were a high priority and we were hoping to see our friends Richard and Janice who have moved to the west coast of Vancouver Island.
It is always nice to stay in hotels with a swimming pool and we also enjoy the many and varied restaurants on offer.
The weather was good and so we also got to walk each day...not just round the malls!
The saw mill. It is a Band Saw Mill with a 16 foot bed which means you can cut 16 foot lengths.

It has a band style cutting edge as opposed to a circular blade. This one is the smallest that this company makes but suits our purposes nicely. Easy to use and compact too.
Amazingly it fit in the back of the rented mini van for transportation back to Port Hardy and then home.
It should be a good investment and will certainly be usefull as we are always needing lumber for building projects and repairs.

The journey home was also good but the weather had certainly changed! We awoke to 4 inches of snow in Campbell River. That meant that the 2.5 hours/over 100km drive ahead could be difficult. This stretch of the road has no towns, no cell service and very little traffic. We had no chains and were wondering if it had indeed been ploughed. There were no warnings on the radio so we set off. It turned out to be fine and very picturesque. There were a couple of places with compact snow but not enough to slow us down.

The weather has improved snow wise but wind and rain have been the order of the day.
If we don't get blown away, will post next time.