Autumns Return 2017

Autumn returned on the west coast and it sure didn't feel like an autumn day today.  Most of the leaves on the trees in the forest, back country and parklands haven't even changed to their fall colours.  The sunlight still feels warm and all the oak trees are dropping their acorns and the squirrels are collecting those nuts for winter.  We visited our friends in the city and the chestnut tree leaves are still green and not the yellow-brown of autumn.  Their prickly bur are still attached to the branches.  When a gust of wind comes along, they'll drop and smash open their seed vessels on the sidewalk below releasing their chestnuts.  The squirrels enjoy burying them to eat later under the snow and people come along to collect them for decorations.

A Lovely Labour Day at Ruckle Provincial Park 2017

We spent three marvelous days on Salt Spring Island with some of our friends which we haven't seen in many years.  The island is really not easy to reach but well worth the ferry trip over and the farmers market was selling lots of very interesting produce and art work; especially paintings.  We had a lovely picnic on Sunday in Ruckle Provincial Park and we painted in the heat of summer with the lovely cool sea breeze around us.  Our Labour Day was spent back at this park with the beautiful forest before we headed back to the ferry terminal and came back home to the mainland.