August 31st

10pm: Well with Nicky still away, once the kids are in bed I get the whole evening to myself - this means lots of guitar practise. I have been putting in some hours on the lap steel - which is hard work but fun.

August 30th

8.20am: Big day today, Tabby's first day at full time school. Here she is with some of her friends as the excitement builds waiting for the yellow school bus to arrive. Cameras & video cams everywhere as the next batch of kids was dispatched off for all the joys that school brings. Only seems like yesterday that she was learing to crawl, toddle & all the rest..........

August 29th

7pm: Well this is the sum total of ripe tomatilloes so far - a testament to our crappy, cold summer! Not sure what to do with it, there are plenty of others on the bushes, but they aren't anywhere near as ripe or ready to pick as this little beauty - here's hoping for an Indian summer.

August 28th

4pm: Calgary Farmers Market - the last stop on a day out in Calgary which took in Good Earth at Aspen Landing for breakfast, Fatburger for lunch & a few stops in between. Kids enjoyed themselves & came back with a few treats - Tabby received her first little CD player. A nice family day out, even if mummy wasn't there.

August 27th

4pm: Tabby on the final day of her art camp - looks like she enjoyed herself creating pictures & the like. We had a little show with the kids at the end - very sweet. Charlie refused daycare & was rewarded with a day in front of TV.

August 26th

6pm: Huge drama this afternoon, as we sat down for supper a monumental gust of wind blew through the neighbourhood - uprooting this big old Spruce tree in front of Tabby's eyes. Extremely lucky that it fell away from us, shudder to think what would have happened if it had fallen on us. Further down the road, trees had fallen onto houses causing damage & the local fire department spent the rest of the evening on our street chopping & sawing down dangerous trees. Tabby was distraught, as this was her favourite tree. Wendy next door was really helpful in trying to clam her down - Charlie was still shell shocked from his traumatic first day in Daycare - Nicky missed all the fun!!

August 25th

11pm: Nicky has headed back across the Atlantic for her dad's 70th birthday. I am going to attempt to work around the kids - Tabby is at an art camp, Charlie is heading for the first time to daycare - not sure he is going to like it. We will find out tomorrow, as you can see Nicky is somewhere between Canada & Greenland as we speak...

August 24th

5pm: Bear fever continues unabated in The Peaks of Grassi! I haven't seen one, but you cant help looking over your shoulder & the kids are still under strict supervision when it comes to going out!

August 23rd

8pm: I have to admit I am not a big wine buff, however this bottle that we picked up in Spokane the other day knocked my socks off. A juicy big red bursting all over the place. We picked up a few cool things foodwise in the USA but this is my favourite by far!

August 21st

10am: We overnighted in Spokane, Washington. In the morning we headed down to Atticus Coffee in the downtown & had a splendid breakfast &then set out to find the famous Mary Lou's Milk Bottle cafe - it was closed, but looked very neat. I think it was nominated in the 50 or so most kitschy American roadside attractions.Didn't have a great deal of time to form an impression of Spokane, but as we drove out we both said almost simultaneously - lets come back here again & explore. Have already been to Couer D'Alene just a few miles up the i90 in Idaho & liked it, Sandpoint which is on the road back up to Canada looks charming as well. I can see a week being spent down here next year. It's about 5 hours drive from Canmore, not excessive by Canadian/US standards. Again the drive back up through the Idaho panhandle was eye opening in places - a stronghold of the Aryan Nation - we kept spotting potential members, including a family that had stopped just by the roadside in Hayden that ticked all the boxes when it came to stereotypical, backwoods White trash!! We were glad to get over the border in super quick time, sad to leave this beautiful part of the US behind us & flabbergasted to see the mercury steadily plummeting as we headed back home.

August 20th

4pm: A long, long drive back through Oregon & Washington states to Spokane - our halfway point on the way back home. It was the best part of 12 hours, but of course as it was through for me, mostly virgin territory - pretty fascinating. Highlights were the wonderful Whole Foods store we got our lunch supplies from in Portland!! & then the drive over the high mountain passes of the Snoqualmie National Park in Washington. Very scenic & a beautiful stop-off to observe the snowy peak of Mount Rainier (above). Again backwoods America, we stopped at some very iffy service stations for the never ending kids toilet breaks. The drive then from Yakima, over the high prairie to Spokane along i90 was enjoyable as the sun set over the fields. Man was I tired though by the end of the day.....!

August 19th

8pm: Well all good things come to an end & so to our final night by the sea. After a fabulous day on our own private beach, well just us & a rotting Sea Lion! - we headed down to the much hyped fish restaurant, Local Ocean. Well this purveyor of locavore seafood, did not disappoint in the slightest. My seafood, pasta centred around a lovely fillet of sturgeon was sublime. Nicky had a huge shellfish paella, the kids had fresh fish & chips. Local beers, nice wine, a warm sunset - perfect. We wandered up & down the harbour front to walk off the food afterwards, watching the sea lions playing in the water & the boats coming & going. We really liked this little slice of coast, the kids especially loved being on the beach & just experiencing something other than our Alpine home range -- we will be back!!

August 18th

4pm: The beach at Pacific City. We wanted to find a quiet beach & drove north again along the coast, first we stumble don my idea of hell - a beach dedicated to ATV's and other environment wreckers. Making a hasty retreat from the assembled backwards baseball be-capped, RayBan & goatee wearing petrol heads - we found another beach. To our dismay it was a beach that allowed cars on it!! So on this fabulous strip of sand we are continually disturbed by people too lazy to walk, driving their stinky cars up & down the beach - incredible.......I mean the walk from the car park to where we sat, was about 5 minutes. A beautiful spot, spoiled by cars.

August 17th

4pm: We decided to do something a little different, I had researched local hikes & we found this one - the Harts Cove trail, between Lincoln City & Neskowin. The trail takes you through the Siuslaw National Forest. It was near enough deserted being midweek & the weather a bit drizzly. A 10km hike through the forest, the kids walked the entire first half of it to this bluff overlooking the ocean. You could hear the Sea Lions barking but couldn't really see them - it was a lovely hike, the forest pristine & peaceful. Charlie had to be given a lift, at times, on my shoulders for the return journey as his little legs were so tired, but he walked a lot of it as well. The last mile was really tough as it was a steep uphill switchback trail. We headed to the Pelican Pub in Neskowin afterwards for a well deserved meal!

August 16th

8pm: On the road back to our apartment in Depoe Bay from a great fish & chip supper in Newport, we stopped to take a picture of the coast shrouded in mist. Kind of reminded me of the Amalfi coastline in Italy. Earlier in the day we had of course visited various beaches, a bit of a cool day again but given the 90+ temperatures a few miles inland we weren't complaining too much.

August 15th

3pm: Stonefield Beach, Yachats, Oregon The kids were impressed with the abundant marine life surrounding us, this feisty fellow was found hiding under a large stone in one of the rock pools near where we were camped out for the afternoon. We also saw plenty of whales, sea lions, seabirds of all descriptions, starfish & live mussels. There is a big aquarium in Newport & numerous opportunities to get on crowded boats for whale watching - but we were able to observe a lot of interesting flora & fauna just be getting off the beaten track.

August 14th

3pm: Nye Beach, Newport, Oregon Today started out bright & clear but the sea mist lurking offshore, slowly closed us in. After visiting the Newport farmer's market & then buying some freshly caught Tuna, we headed for the beach. Charlie couldn't wait, he just ran for the sea......

August 13th

4pm: Cape Perpetua, Oregon After spending a lovely morning on the beach discovering mussels, starfish & numerous crabs with the kids we headed up into the mountains to get some scenic eye candy. This is the lookout station (from WW2 I believe, where they kept a look out for enemy shipping & aircraft). You can see US101 snaking it's way round the coast & the blue Pacific. Quite stunning, although keeping the kids from nose diving over the walls & down the cliff meant it wasn't quite as relaxing as it might have been.

August 22nd

3pm: Well it seems that there has been all kinds of drama happening in our back garden while we were away. We had heard via the Internet about stories of Grizzly & Black bears feeding on berry bushes in the Peaks of Grassi backyards. Knowing that there were a couple of bushes in our yard, the thought crossed my mind that we could have been one of the aforementioned yards. Well I was right, according to the neighbours we had several bears feasting on the berry bushes & subsequently the Fish & Wildlife Officers had come round & chopped down all the bushes. The results of that exercise can be seen above. My stupid fault for not removing them unfortunately - I should have done this last autumn when the bushes were in bloom & could easily be identified. In the meantime the kids are banned from being in the garden on their own!!

August 12th

11am: First morning on the coast, it was somewhat foggy, "atmospheric" you might say - but ahhhh the salty, sea air. Having grown up by the sea, it was nice to be back within earshot of the pounding waves & to take the kids down to the beach for a run around. Run around they did, splashing through puddles & into the muddiest nooks & crannies they could find. This is the beach at Newport, with it's famous bridge spanning the estuary. We love this place already!

August 11th

2pm: McMinnVille, Oregon We headed down from Oregon to the coast today, stopping off for a short while at the aviation museum in McMinnville. The cost to get in the museum was astronomical, so instead we wandered around in the heat outside - there was plenty to see. Rusting old planes, tanks & the likes. Tabby was intrigued with the whole concept of war. "Why do people want to kill each other?" &other such questions. Life & the world through the eyes of a 5 year old is very innocent. It was a depressing place, looking at these enormously expensive, killing machines now rusting away in the heat & humidity. Tabby's question is hard to answer.....

August 10th

1pm: Portland, Oregon; Only 3 days in Portland & so much to explore, here is a little pod of food trucks on the trendy Alberta Street. We are just about to eat the most amazing Venezuelan dishes from the truck in the background - arepas (corn breads) with black beans, chorizo & other goodness. The kids loved their food, but we would have been happy eating from any of the trucks in this pod. All over the city there is amazing food to be had, the night before we feasted on the best pizza I have eaten outside of Italy (Apizza Scholls) & later this day we ate $10 worth of fresh Mexican tacos from another hole in the wall. Finished the day off with a cable car ride & a walk up to the park that overlooks the city - better pictures were taken for sure but this sums up one of my favourite things about this city.

August 9th

11am; Portland, OR The kids love the streetcars in Portland, deprived of much meaningful public transport in Alberta, it is nice to see the system here. Portland & Calgary are polar opposites in so many ways, especially politically & culturally. I just adore Portland, it is such a cool progressive, artsy & liberal city - not astoundingly beautiful in any way but just a friendly, tolerant & vibrant place. If I could I would move here in a shot!! We rode the streetcars, ate at the food trucks, browsed the bookshops, walked in the parks & generally enjoyed city life for a short while. Hardly a junk food chain in sight in the downtown core & inner cities as well - so refreshing.

August 8th

2pm: I-84, just east of Arlington, OR A longer drive today down to Portland, we headed through Spokane & then down through the high, desert plains of Eastern Washington. We crossed the Columbia River at Kennewick & then followed it's course all the way into Portland through the scenic, but traffic clogged Colombia Gorge. The kids behaved impeccably on what was a long, hot & dusty drive. I love the countryside, in all it's barren, arid glory. The stop off above gave us a chance to look at this great river.

August 7th

8pm: Liberty Lake, WA Well a long drive down from Canmore to Liberty Lake, a little community just outside Spokane. It was of course much, much warmer down here than up there. The drive itself took us through the Kootenay region of British Columbia, and over the border into Idaho. The Idaho section was interesting, real redneck, hillbilly country in parts - the area we drove through is home to the remnants of the Aryan Nation. Not hard to imagine them holed up in the tumbledown shacks that you see from the highway. Anyway we reached Liberty Lake, had a really nice dinner & then took the kids to the lake itself, where they had a blast playing in the sand on a staggeringly beautiful evening!

August 6th

7pm: Rain again, another wet day in this horrible summer. Cannot wait to head south for warmer climes tomorrow. Yes, holiday time as of 8am tomorrow morning as we drive down to Oregon. I hope it's going to be a LOT warmer & drier than soggy, cold Canmore.

August 5th

9.45pm: The long & winding road, on my way home after a few days in Vancouver - this is the final stretch of the 1 hour drive back from Calgary - I will be home in 3 minutes from here. Always nice to be coming back home to my little family.

August 4th

8pm: A beautifully warm Vancouver evening, after work i went down to Granville Island for a walk. Here we have the magnificent little aquabus service that ferries people across the river right in the heart of downtown. These boats come & go frequently, I am not sure what their real purpose is - tourism or commuting - they are are cool though. Vancouver is such a magnificent city, I am normally immersed in work here & don't get time to observe & record little things like this. Shame.

August 3rd

August 2nd

3pm: We headed down to Quarry Lake today, its only 10 minutes walk from the house - overcast & slightly chilly afternoon with about 10 million mosquitoes to keep us company. The kids love the lake, plenty of scope for getting muddy and wet.

August 1st

11pm: I forgot to take any photos today until late on, i had been practising my guitar so threw together this little shot. Some days are just not meant for fancy photography.