October 17, 2005

October 17, 2005

Beaver Lake / Lake Cowichan to Nanaimo, B.C.

YEAR 2 DAY 122

 

Today was cloudy and mild, with light rain for most of the day.

This morning after showering and breakfast we prepared to depart Beaver Lake Resort. I did preventive maintenance, refilled the freshwater tank, drained the holding tanks, hitched up and prepared for departure. We drove back through the town of Cowichan Lake, then east on Hwy. 18 to Duncan where we turned north on Hwy. 1. I stopped at Arbutus RV beside the Nanaimo Airport to buy a clear lens for an exterior light, but they were out of stock. Just before Nanaimo, where the highway split into Hwy. 1 and Hwy. 19, we got onto Hwy. 19 going north.

We found our way to RV Resort On The Lake, on the outskirts of Nanaimo. We checked in and got settled into a site. After having lunch, I took a brief nap, then went to the office to meet with the owner to discuss the lots that will be available for sale here, starting next spring. I walked around a bit, checking the place out, and visiting with resident, friendly cats and dogs. Very nice, large club house, with office, lounge with sofas and easy chairs and large screen TV, social meeting room with large kitchen, games room with pool table and shuffleboard, and 4 complete bathrooms for guest use. Outside was a swimming pool and hot tub. Behind the property is Westwood Lake, with a walking trail completely encircling the lake. It's a very nice RV resort. Cable TV at each site and Wi-Fi. Based on the reasonableness of their bi-weekly rate, we've decided to stay here for 2 weeks, until it's time to head down into the United States at the end of the month. If the weather wasn't so miserable here on Vancouver Island in the fall, we would consider this as a possible place to buy a summer "home base".

I spent the afternoon trying to figure out how to solve the problems of the furniture moving around while we travel now that the flooring has been replaced. Everything stayed in its place on carpeting, but on vinyl flooring, everything slides around. I solved some of the problems with anti-slip matting applied with double sided tape, and some of the problems I solved with Velcro. But overall, my afternoon of trial and error efforts were more error than anything else. It was a bit frustrating, but I did figure out how to solve some problems by making mistakes with Velcro and non-slip matting. The biggest challenge was the sofa. I've decided I will have to buy some "L" brackets, install them on the inside underside of the sofa, and screw the sofa right down to the floor. Tomorrow will be a day of shopping at Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and Canadian Tire.

We took Bo for an obedience walk. We had supper, then watched TV. With this many cable channels, we spend more time surfing the channels than we do watching anything. I did today's accounting, and journal entry. I tried connecting to Wi-Fi, but had a problem. I'll have to check with the office tomorrow to find out the correct procedure and / or security keyword.

We just watched the local news on TV. There was a mud slide tonight on the Trans Canada Highway between Hope and Chilliwack. The highway is closed until some time tomorrow. Cars trapped, surrounded by mud, and downed power lines on vehicles. Eerily reminiscent of the Hope slide of 1965 that resulted in 4 deaths. Gee ... we drove that section of the highway 3 times last week. There but for the grace of God ... ! Too much rain around here in the fall !

DSK