Summer is over....isn't it?....The weatherman says not this week!

Back in June I wrote about having to take the boat to Manitoulin Island, and for the most part things went well...except the boat went into the water after DH arrived at camp, but it didn't last...there were "issues" and when I finally arrived at camp...sadly, there was still no boat in the water. Ah well, there's always the canoe...2 hours later and 8 lovely Bass, one of them caught within a minute of casting we had our first fresh fish dinner of the season. The boat was fixed in due course and we had several lovely afternoons catching dinner. We had 1 particularly yummy dinner of Yellow Perch and 2 more of Bass before it was sadly time for me to head home to the reality of customer work and the 'regular paycheck job'.

So that left DH on the island to pack-up and haul home the detritus of a month-long camping expedition.....and that with an intermediate stop in Craigleith for an annual family get together over the Labour Day weekend. The trailer is now unpacked, cleaned, everything laundered and replaced, repairs made, and back at the storage facility.....oh  but there's that pesky boat thing again!

This time due to schedule changes after Labour Day we had to rise at 0300 and on the road at 0330 to make the Chi-Cheemaun .  3 1/2 hours of driving in the dark, but we made it on time to keep our reservation. But what a trip...raining, cool temperatures and one fierce wind....As passengers with dogs we are restricted to the outside decks...which in this case proved to be the better place to be as the boat was rockin' and rollin' in the wind. The up side of that is that the line-up for breakfast in the cafeteria was quite short, and being outside and keeping our eyes on the horizon kept us safe from the ravages of sea-sickness, unlike many others on board.

The 'puppies' enjoying the boat ride on the 'Cheech'

After slogging around in ankle-deep water hitching the boat and loading the canoe, it was off to say good-bye to one of our 'camp' neighbours and let the puppies have a romp in the wet with her puppy Biz (180 lb Newfoundland).

Zeus (on right) with his special friend Bismarck

The view from the side

The wind had picked up considerably in the 3-4 hours we were on the island and the trip back was even wilder...dinner was very quickly obtained as the line-up was even shorter than in the morning...and the portions....er, generous! So damp and tired we returned home at 10 pm. DH had church in the morning but I was not scheduled for the 'working for a paycheck' job on Sunday which gave me the perfect opportunity to finish MY quilt for the Hamilton Quilters' Guild show October 3 & 4. More about my quilt...soon!

 

Passing by Cove Island

So the summer is for the most part done, and sadly, we won't see the island again until next year; I'm back driving the big yellow bus, and there are still a couple more shifts to work on the Trolley at the Hamilton waterfront, and some customer quilts have now been delivered.

Some folks have complained bitterly about the 'summer that never was', but for my part it's been great...the Trolley Conductor job has been a blast with a nearly daily dose of  'outside' and all that the Hamilton waterfront has to offer...I learned lots and hope that the folks I came into contact with over the summer felt they did too. What's not to like about watching baby swans (cygnets) grow from tiny grey balls of fluff to rapidly maturing graceful young adult swans, or the amazing multicultural events and festivals unfold, and, of course the never ending, and amazing variety of human activity all around us on a daily basis?

Cheers