Rain, Rain go away, I have more important things to do than deal with you,
another rainy day. after four essentially rain-free weeks, it has rained every day for the last three weeks weeks, except for the days I was in Denali, so i guess i cannot complain. Before the rains started, i was a novice at dealing with the rain on road camping trips. now i am an expert, a wet expert, but nonetheless an expert. i have learned how to take the rain in stride, and spend half my time in the rain carrying out my daily chores thinking about how i can improve the way i am hand,ling things, so i guess that is is good sign. Fortunately, the rain has not spoiled my stay on Vancouver Island one bit. In fact, it has enhanced it, added to the drama, and made the trip more challenging, which is partially what these trips are all about. Leben and Erde couldn't care less about the rain, but i am the one who has to sleep in the tent next to them so i do. i give myself credit for tonight's performance after i arrived int Rathtrevor Provincial Park, and i think i have perfected my technique to about 90 of. perfect performace. Now i know why Gene Kelley was so happy.
I left charming Port Alberni after a one hour interview with a reported for the local paper. i fear i gave her way, way too much information, which the poor woman must now sort through to craft a story about a man and his two dogs traveling from coast to coast to coast, camping all the way. Maybe she'll write the book for me from the notes i gave her.
We had a short ride today, fewer than 50 miles, to this camp we are in now, Rathtrevor Provincial Park. i am staying here tonight so i can meet up with Nicholas and Kyra and Ruby tomorrow, a very special treat for me. The camp is one of the most elegant camps i have stayed in, right on the ocean, although i am not too sure that elegance is a requirement for a good camping experience for me. the problem I have with this camp is that the sites are are hard gravel, with no grass or sand to pitch a tent on. it's quite sad how many parks have done this, discouraging tenters, and encouraging more people to take the easy route to enjoy nature, in an RV. i have lost almost 25 pounds on this trip tenting it, which i did not need to lose. if i had travelled in an RV, I would have gained 25. let me correct that, I lost 20 poinds. i gained five back at dinner last night at the Strachans'. My hope is that when they open up their Back-to-Nature camp, Sue opens up a baked goods shop or restaurant. if she does, you will need to reserve a year in advance. What a chef she is! What pioneers the two of them are.
another topic. i have generally resisted discussing on this blog the details of managing a paralyzed dog on the road because most of my readers would tune out to the blog if I did. i am not bragging or complaining when I tell you that it is not easy. for instance, the other day at the Pacific while at the yurt camp, to get Leben off the beach we had to go up a steep slope with fallen logs on it that Erde herself had a hard time navigating. i literally had to lie down on my back and winch him up. not easy. i could have removed him from his wheelchair and slung him up, but i wanted him to feel some sense of accomplishment so i took the harder route. those who know me that know that that is my modus operandi. (At the top of the slope, he gave me a That-was-Easy look. If he only knew.)
i am running out if battery on my iPad. I also want to get in a few more pages in that book.
ED
P.S.
tomorrow, somewhere, i will hit 10,000 miles for this part of the trip. i will take a photo of that spot and post it as one of my popular As It Is Happening posts.
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