Prairie Boy

Today’s itinerary includes two ferry rides, a boarder crossing and a short bike ride ending at Birdsong B&B on Salt Spring Island. Breakfast was unremarkable, more like Super 8 fare than yesterday's five star meal. (Sorry, no pictures of cheerios.)  We are off to the ferry where Cathy gets great pleasure out of riding past all the car lineups on our bikes and rolling up to the front of the ferry.

The bird life around the ferry terminal engages me while we wait to board.

Pigeon Guillemots, Great Blue Herrons, Herring Gulls, nesting Pelagic Cormorants, and other birds fill my lens as I eagerly swing in all directions.

Pigeon Guillemots

Gull with nesting material.

Great Blue Heron preparing to land.

Gull bringing in nesting material.

Pelagic Cormorant with nesting material.

The pillars supporting ferry terminal moorings were rated by the local bird population as five star accommodation and nest building sites. We saw many birds gathering nesting material and working on Mike Homes approved, architecturally integrated, spousally sanctioned places to deposit their eggs for future offspring.

Crossing the boarder back into Canada could not have been more pleasant.  Customs agents from Victoria had not arrived for the car/bicycle line up so we successfully crashed the pedestrian lineup. With our bikes in tow we walked along, panniers rubbing the rope barriers, and people generally clearing out of our way as we snaked up to the customs counter.  The agent was a talkative guy interested in where we had been cycling and pushed us through with a ‘Have a good day’.

As we arrive in Fulford Harbour the grey overcast sky gently begins to wring out the clouds producing a soft gentle rain.

Rain….not after such a glorious two sunny days on Whidbey Island. Oh well I suppose we are due. Our rain gear ready we proceed to find our way to the B&B. Plenty of up and down here on Salt Spring.

We have incidentally arrived at the same time as a major bicycle rally over the next two days. The bike route is colourfully marked with painted surplus bicycles.

On down hill stretches we are such woosy riders we brake to keep speeds under 35 km./hours. (This will please anyone who cares about my propensity for self injury!!) Still, at this speed the rain turns into facial daggers necessitating a constant squint. We feel it is a slow soak inside and out.  We take a couple of wrong turns, pull out a soaking wet B&B reservation for an address and find our way to Rouke St. and our destination.  We arrive at a spectacular setting in amongst mature trees with an open vista across a bay where boats and birds pass on a regular basis. We unload our generously 'moistened' packs, spread out as we are wont to do and settle in for a delightful evening. 

I soon notice a Hummingbird feeder and ensconce myself in the doorway to capture some more bird pictures.


I thought Olive and Hamish might enjoy the flying hummingbird.