OldPlaidCamper

Cleaning up

Cleaning up or coming clean – this one might be a bit of a confession. Where to start?

Love this place – could easily stay here

We were wandering around in a very humid forest the other day, one of those grey days where you can feel the cloud cover just above your head providing a roof or ceiling for the mosquitoes – they were happily buzzing and humming around my ears, oblivious to the high strength bug spray applied earlier. They seemed almost disappointed. Haven’t you got anything a little stronger, sir?

As we walked, sweaty shirt clinging to and emphasizing my (admittedly very attractive) mid years physique, it occurred to me I was running low on clean clothing, and eau de repellent wasn’t making things any better. Being away from home comforts like a washing machine, you soon realize how they’re taken for granted.

“Yeah, you’re great and all, but if you could drop the leash, I might just run on ahead? I can find you – I’ll follow my nose…”

I don’t mind my reputation going before me, but when monuments, museums and public buildings are closing up as I approach, even I can take a hint. We (I) needed to find a laundromat. Mrs PC, fragrant as ever – and better at packing the essentials in sensible quantities – pointed out where the campground laundromat was, and all was well, at least for a few days.

“Where are you all going? Is it something I said, or something else?”

Yes, inevitably, what with the weather and my much vaunted “packing light” skills, it was back to the laundromat once more. Hmm, not fun, but at least I wasn’t being refused entry at historic sites, and Scout and Mrs. PC had stopped pretending to not know me.

This issue needed to be cleared up, or even cleaned up, and we managed to do just that. We purchased our very own washing machine. In fact, we went crazy and threw in a dryer. At those prices (eye watering, but not as eye watering as my special fragrance) it seemed like a good plan. Even better, the new appliances had a home attached! Huh? A home? That’s right, we’ve moved, and we’re now happy, fragrant, and almost settled residents of Quebec City.

“You’ve done your laundry? I like you again! Is that cheese?”

I know, I know, this entire post stinks. All that preamble just to say we’ve relocated for the next little while… For how long? Who knows? Until the beer and cheese runs out? Mmm, cheese, especially those blues ones, with that very special aroma…

Shout it from (and across) the roof tops – we like this city!

I think the new washing machine is beeping at me, so we’ll leave it here for now, all fresh and ready for whatever comes next. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Until the beer runs out? We may be some time…

A blast

Quebec City has been a blast – more about that to follow next week.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Rainy day celebration

It will likely be a rainy day Canada Day tomorrow and we’re ok with that, as Scout has discovered some nearby forest trails that she’ll be happy to explore all weekend – we will too, provided there’s enough bug spray…

Many places are desperately needing significant rain to help douse wild fires, so fingers crossed for those locations, and a damp Canada Day would be very welcome.

Canada Day! I’ll repeat myself – now that’s never happened before on this blog, oh no – and say how much I love Canada and being a Canadian citizen. As a nation, it’s a work in progress, like anywhere, and there are faults and things to fix, but I mostly believe, to borrow a phrase or two, we’re paddling in the right direction, and the journey is the destination.

So, rain or shine, we’ll be wandering some eastern woodlands and delighting in the day. Might be too wet for outdoor eating, although the mosquitoes don’t seem to mind the rain and will doubtless have a bite or two, but when we reach beer o’clock, we’ll be happy to raise a glass and celebrate Canada!

Thanks for reading, and happy Canada Day tomorrow if you’re Canadian, almost Canadian or just like the idea of Canada! I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Ongoing research

It’s been hot this week, and we’ve used that as an unnecessary excuse to conduct some important research. I’ve attached photographic evidence and some explanatory notes.

If the weather cools down and/or we can access better internet in the coming days, I’ll post something a little more detailed next week.

In the meantime, hello summer, thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

I did warn you! Wake me when the so-called research is over…

Suspended – a tale of canine courage

Suspended? The blog? No, more of a brief blogging pause as we spend the next week or two with less certain internet availability. But before that, here’s a wobbly one featuring a brave dog:

On a recent very warm morning we visited Parc des Chutes-de-la-Chaudière in search of some shade. There is a waterfall that’s used to generate electricity, and you can take great photos of the falls from a suspension bridge traversing the Chaudière River. You’ll need to be brave though…

A few steps in and we were aware of a slight bouncing sensation underfoot. A few more strides and the bouncing became quite pronounced. Scout stopped dead in her tracks and for a few moments it looked like she wouldn’t go forward or back. Hmm. Then Mrs. PC strode past and Scout clearly didn’t like the idea of not being in front, so off we wobbled at quite a pace. None of us wanted to spend too long on the bridge…

The views were great, mostly snatched glances from the bridge (we were not stopping, oh no) and the views are as good from just off the bridge – firmer footing and a more relaxed canine companion. We did find some leafy shade, and spent a few moments enjoying relief from the sun and pretending our heart rates were running at normal. We knew there was a return trip over the bridge but didn’t tell Scout.

As it turned out, Scout being Scout, the return over the bridge was not a problem. She shrugged, put one paw in front of the other, and without looking down (I did – not a good idea – my stomach lurched) trotted across as fast as her legs would carry her. Pretty fast, I can tell you!

If you have sturdy legs and a bold disposition, then a trip to the bridge and the falls is recommended.

Thanks for reading and we’ll leave it there for this week, with pulses steady and our little wobble behind us! I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

If we have reliable wifi, we’ll aim to post something next week!

Can I come out now? Has he finished talking about the bridge?

Bienvenue à Quebec!

We kept heading east, sad to see Ontario fall behind in the rear view mirror (already planning for a return trip – that beautiful backcountry) but what’s this ahead? Quebec? Why, yes, yes it is! Bienvenue à Quebec! For now we’re taking some time to slow down after quite a long road trip, for what we hope will be an extended stay. (We will continue east at some point in the future, part of our wooly notion that we should, as fairly new young Canadians, explore as much as we can…)

Road trips are great – I enjoy the planning almost as much as the actual trip – but stopping awhile is also good. Planning spontaneity isn’t easy…

A little cabin just outside Quebec City is set to be home for a few weeks. A base to unwind, unpack and head out to enjoy the museums, art galleries, and history – all the great culture of an amazing region. (Perhaps a warning here: what follows may not meet some cultural expectations…)

History (family history – Mrs. PC was a Frampton before PCdom) The owners feigned interest…

Let’s move on from history to some highbrow artwork:

Pou-pou! Snigger…(I do actually like the label artwork, and the beer was great!)

Scout here, readers! Sorry about Old PC’s puerile sense of humour. Personally, I love it here; the old buildings, lovely statues, and grand squares… I’ll try and encourage OPC to grow up and write something more akin to his age and not his shoe size for next time!

Puerile?! Let’s pretend over excitement was the cause, and next time I’ll see if I can measure up to Scout’s higher standards. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

(But c’mon… allez pou-pou! Mrs PC laughed as well…)

“Can we not just enjoy where we are, and appreciate the culture? Someone, please, make him stop!”

Ontario north woods – fully completely

We left the Great Plains behind, (good song here) sad about that, nodded at the 100th meridian, and continued east (most of those nineteenth century settler wagons went the other way – ever the contrarians our wagon is a Tacoma – many horses carrying our camp kitchen loaded with various tinned and dried goods…) aiming for Ontario and the north woods. A land of lakes and trees. And lakes and trees. And lakes and trees.

Lakes and trees? Probably going the right way…(photo by Mrs PC)

For this stage of our trip, the cool and groovy mixtape DJ had spent ages curating an appropriate track list. Or he just downloaded a comprehensive Tragically Hip essentials playlist from Apple. Forget the details, it worked and that’s the main thing.

The wagon. Parked under trees. Near a lake.

The best Ontario driving day for me on this trip – and there were many days as Ontario is quite large – was the stretch east of Thunder Bay to Kapuskasing. Rolling hills covered with trees, lakes every three seconds, and if there wasn’t a lake, then a river or wetland, glimpsed through the trees. The entire day was one beautiful sight after another. The roads were pretty good, better than I’d expected, mostly empty and that made for a great drive. Gosh, that lake was pretty! Through the next bend and surprise, gosh this lake is pretty. And so on. Loved it! All in for this patch of Canada. Fully Completely.

Lakeside stop. Time to rest the horses, and water the livestock.

“Did you just call me livestock?!” Offended face.

If not for the destination further east in mind, we might have been tempted to slow down and hang out for longer in the Ontario north woods. We’re already planning some camping trips for another time – it really was spectacular country!

Near Kapuskasing, not long after sunrise

The road is calling, so we’ll leave it here – or back there, in lovely northern Ontario, with Gord and the boys on the radio. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Prairie songs

Prairies or plains, plains or prairies? It doesn’t really matter – either way, they’re great! Well, that’s what I think…

We were driving through Alberta (Alberta Bound – Paul Brandt) and Saskatchewan last week, enjoying the delights, much missed in recent years, of a road trip.

Our destination for the journey was beyond the Great Plains, and when friends heard about our trip, a few muttered something about how the days can drag traveling through the boring middle western provinces. You know, there’s nothing to see out there.

Drag? Nothing? Huh?! I respectfully disagree! On this trip, once we passed Calgary and the smoke from wildfires north of the trans-Canada corridor – hope that they get big rain and less windy days soon – we enjoyed bright sunshine and big blue skies. A drag? Nothing to see? Um, where to begin? How about the rolling green and gold hills?

Blue, green and gold – the interesting nothing! (Photo by Mrs PC)

Or the sight and sounds of a train rumbling and clanking, parallel to the road?

Then there are hawks above, geese at eye level, and water fowl on the ponds – a drag? The sparkling ponds and newly green early spring trees? Dreary?!

From a parking lot (probably a Tim’s, somewhere in SK) I did clean the windshield soon after

What about seeing horse paddocks and corrals, mighty farm machinery, and the intricate wrought metal ranch gates? I’m always thrilled by the older style grain elevators, and the newer vast – perhaps not beautiful but certainly impressive – modern equivalents. Empty space?!

A splendid sight (taken on a different trip)

Empty? Ok, then how about the joy of an empty open road in front of you, stretching into the distance? For me, this is a road trip prize to savour when it happens, and it often happens on the prairies.

Damn traffic (photo by Mrs. PC. Cuss words all my own)

So, if the prairies are a bore, something dull and simply to be endured as you pass though, then colour me dreary, because I love the plains. It helps when you can fuel up at Tim’s (dark roast, always the dark roast) and Ian Tyson or Paul Brandt are doing their thing on the radio. Oh, ok, not the radio – on the road trip mixtape that some nerd might have thrown together before leaving. Can I say mixtape when it’s an Apple playlist? I think so. (Navajo Rug – Ian Tyson) Great songs for the Great Plains!

Always the dark roast. And maybe some TimBits.

So there we are or there we were. I love the coast, I love the mountains, and yes, I love the prairies!

Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Traffic again?! (I did clean the windshield earlier, honest!) Photo by Mrs PC.

Tiny home

We needed to be across the island earlier this week and opted to stay overnight in a tiny house. I’ve been fascinated by tiny homes for years, and have spent many a happy hour poring over design details and reading stories of folks living in small dwellings.

Our temporary residence was very well put together, and included a kitchen, bathroom, living room and bedroom squeezed into a tiny footprint. My question has always been “but could a person (or two adults and a dog) really live in such a small space?”

With housing costs rocketing, some demand could be met by smaller and more affordable housing. I think this is to be encouraged, although it seems tough on younger generations that these are the only options when earlier generations had a wider choice. Most start small, but there’s small and then there’s small. Although I might have jumped at the chance! An invisible first world problem perhaps, but it’s there…

Enough of the furrowed brow stuff. This isn’t meant to be a piece about solving the housing crisis, but I will say if more jurisdictions gave permission for tiny houses to be built, they could be one piece of a housing puzzle solution…

I said enough of that! Setting all the debate stuff aside, we really enjoyed staying in a small home, and I also enjoyed fantasizing that yes, I could live like this all the time. (Especially if we had maybe one more room, and perhaps just a touch more storage?!) Oops, tiny house fail for that man…

The entrance into the home site had a large white lilac growing beside and over the gate – what a perfume – so our morning coffee on the small deck was caffeine and lilac flavoured, making for a bright and strong start!

Must leave it here, as I’m pretty sure I’ve got some tiny house plans and costings stashed away… Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Harbouring thoughts of spring…

It’s not always(!) sunny here, but when it isn’t, you can still find spots of colour and brightness, particularly when searching for spring near the harbour.

Bright enough, but what about the pink tree?!

Scout and I remembered we hadn’t visited “the pink tree” yet this spring, often because we’d been distracted by the beach and/or a sunny deck on recent bright days.

We decided to put that right, hoping we hadn’t left it too late to see the tree in full glory…

Pops of orange, but not what we’re looking for

There was no need to worry, and although the morning wasn’t bright, the display more than made up for it – what a sensory delight!

Let’s keep it short yet bright, like blossom on a spring day… or something… Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

	Maria on Beer and chocolate…
	plaidcamper on Beer and chocolate…
	plaidcamper on Beer and chocolate…
	Maria on Beer and chocolate…
	PaddlingSouth on Beer and chocolate…