We leave Osoyoos and head to two wineries Crowsnest and Forbidden Fruit. I purchase Sauvignon Blanc, a Cabernet Merlot and an award winning Iced Apple wine.
We arrive in Burnaby BC to Adam and Thomas’s – friends from Edmonton who moved to Saskatoon and then Burnaby a few years ago. Adam, a former Gourmet Goodies staff person, has remained a friend – the kind of friend you can call on infrequently and it seems as no time has really passed. We also reminisce about the ‘good old days of catering at Gourmet Goodies’. We spend the late afternoon enjoying some Chinese food from a recommended take out and turn in early.
Monday morning Adam heads to work and Thomas, on a day off, makes us a hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs, coffee and toast. We hit the road at 10:30 am and head from Horseshoe Bay for the ferry to Langdale on the Sunshine Coast. We drive up the Sunshine Coast to Saltery Bay, stopping for latte and cinnamon bun at the Gumboot Café, and take the ferry to Powell River. The winter ferry schedule means we’re in Powell River for about 4 hours until we leave at 8:40 pm. So, we search for a place to eat dinner and walk several blocks past seasonally closed stores. We stop in at Snicker’s, an unusual name for a Greek restaurant (named after the owner’s son’s favourite chocolate bar….). The meal is surprisingly decent – Jon had the halibut dinner and I had a finely grilled steak plate. We head to the ferry, board and arrive in Comox at 10 pm, heading straight for Royston, where Jon’s brother and Jacqueline live. Their house is a reflection of their busy and creative lives. Sam and Jacqueline own condos that they renovate and rent out or sell. Sam also works for the government in aquaculture full-time and Jacqueline is also an artist (poet and painter). They are into raw food and it was a pleasurable experience to try some ‘uncooked’ tasty dishes as well as mediating daily (something I also tried). We did dine out at a new restaurant ‘The Flying Canoe’ in the Best Western Westerly Hotel in Courtenay. Another good surprise – I had the albacore tuna main with black rice and long string beans, finished in hollandaise. We stayed for two days and then left for Victoria.
