April 16, 2005

April 16, 2005

Port Angeles, Washington to Qualicum Beach, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

DAY 303

 

HMPH ! I have just discovered that my daily journal day numbering is out by 1 day. Today is day 303 of our travel adventure. I wonder where I missed / duplicated a day ?

The weather today was strange. It changed frequently, rapidly, and drastically. One minute it would be partially sunny, and warm, and the next it would be cold, windy, pouring rain, and near blizzard conditions. It repeated this cycle over and over and over today.

We got up very early this morning, to be ready to drive across the street to the ferry terminal when it opened at 7:00 A.M.. I was absolutely stunned at the cost of taking the rig on the ferry. One hundred and fifteen dollars ! ! ! U.S. dollars ! ! ! We got into the ferry line up, and onto the 8:20 A.M. ferry across the Juan de Fuca Strait to Victoria on Vancouver Island. While on the ferry our friends in Vancouver, Dwight and Jennifer, phoned to find out where we were, how were we doing, and when could they expect us in Vancouver ( B.C., not Washington ) ? We arrived in Victoria at 10:00 A.M. The border agent we got at Customs was very thorough. He examined our passports, then Teddy's and Bo's vaccination documents. He asked about our purchases while in the U.S., and closely examined the list I provided him of our purchases. He questioned me about some of them. He walked all around the rig, and seeing there was no dealer sticker on the trailer, he asked for the trailer registration documents to prove that we had not purchased a new trailer while in the U.S.. He asked about Bo, and whether he was a planned or unplanned acquisition, and at what cost. HEY ... Bo was a freebie, so to speak. No duties due on Bo ! He examined Bo's vaccination documents closely. He asked about the firewood I had in the back of the truck. Where was it from ? ( Missouri ) What kind of wood was it ? ( oak ) What was I going to do with it ? ( burn it, eventually) Why hadn't I already done so, instead of hauling it around for the last 4½ months ? ( didn't have as many opportunities for camp fires as I had hoped ) Importation of firewood is prohibited, so I was certain he was going to make me unload it and discard it there. He didn't. He made no mention of the fact that we were a day late returning, so I'm hopeful that he didn't make a notation to that effect in the computer, registered against our names and / or license plate number. Surprisingly, he didn't ask any questions about either our food, or the pet foods.

We drove through Victoria, and headed north on Hwy. 1, the Trans Canada Highway. At Mill Bay we stopped for diesel. YIKES ! ! ! The most expensive fill I've had so far. $100 to fill the tank ! Fuel has risen in price dramatically since we left Canada 6 months ( + 1 day ) ago. At Duncan we stopped again to buy supplies at Wal-Mart, and groceries at Real Canadian Superstore. It's like we're in a foreign country again, instead of being back home. We've been away so long that Canadian money looks strange. We're seeing Canadian products that we haven't seen in a long time ( Hawkins Cheezies, Old Dutch Potato Chips ), and not seeing products that we've become accustomed to buying over the last six months. I asked Joanne how she could tell we were back in Canada ? She said it was the Old Dutch Potato Chips. I thought it was the drunk Indian in the shopping mall parking lot ( HA HA HA HA HA SNORT SNORT SNORT ). Welcome to Vancouver Island.

We switched from Trans Canada Hwy. 1 to Hwy. 19, which heads north all the way up the east coast of Vancouver Island. At some point this afternoon, I tried to turn on the cruise control, the first time I've tried to use it since the transmission rebuild. It doesn't work. I'm really upset ! I'm now about 800 km. / 500 miles ( and a 95 minute ferry ride ) north of the shop that fixed the transmission. I can't just drive back and say "Hey ... you did something to the cruise control. Please fix it." We stopped for the night at Qualicum Bay, at a motel and RV park on the water front. After setting up, resting a bit, and doing a bit of work on the computer, we went for the Saturday buffet dinner in the Chinese restaurant attached to the motel. When we returned from supper, Joanne went to bed early. She was very tired from getting up so early this morning. I did today's accounting < shudder >, then today's journal entry.

DSK