We had another great camp this year out at Gwillim Lake! And this year was the first that Catherine and I were a part of the organizing committee. The camp means a whole lot to us and the boys have had an amazing time every year! Being a part of committee means we are out at camp the week ahead and so I prepared our kit as Catherine was busy studying at UofC for the training week time. I’d made a pretty good effort to be out the door when I wanted on the Monday, only two hours late, when I slammed the truck canopy window onto a bike pedal extending departure by another 2.5 hours. I write this matter of factly now but at the time the report was more colourful.

Training week was fun, the weather was decent, and the taks not overwhelming. Lots to organize and do but we were still able to get Jules back to Dawson Creek for his babysitting course on the Thursday of the week. Catherine arrived from Calgary after an overnight drive, short sleep at home, and on the heels of 2 intense weeks of study right at the beginning of camp. She was thrown into organizing, touring new folks and generally being on, from minute one and I needed to do my best to keep up. Our efforts got us featured in the momos song though. If you’re not sure what is a momo, see last year’s post.

The week rolled really well and everyone had a ton of fun and spoke lots of French, Felix was counting and singing en francais as well.

The skits were funny and engaging and a visit from bonhomme is always appreciated.

Activities were all a hit! Momo mania for the win!

Downtime good times!

Did I mention that Les Parents won the Rabaska race and the volleyball tourney!

As we walk to and fro
What we are in for, we don't know
Anticipation is high you see
40 years, BCFFC

Gwillim they say, the most special of all
No doubt this week about that call
The signs around the trail and the main
Who'll stop the rain

What is this thing you talk about
Momos my friend, there is no doubt
Listen for songs, laughter, and maybe a dare
It's all good, les momos sont Bear Aware

And here we get ready to set afloat
But not a fire
A symbol of our conquest
Of muck and myre

Outside together despite the weather
Une équipe momos, never better
Sharing stories and skits and meals
A wild monkey and rubber band steals

Lantern card games into the night
Gaga ball mud pits, to parent delight
Le rabaska a bien été
Les parents ont gagné

Et puis après ces jours mouillés
The sun emerged on this last day
I've heard around, many OPA!
I know for me, I need some SOAPA!

This is a camp like no other
Anyone will tell you and their brother
The kids bring it like a boss
Les momos should not play Lacrosse

And despite some mean abeilles
We'll be back another day
Despite the rain, les sourires en plus
Meme en soirée, les enfants joueent, jouent, jouent
We are ready for the BOOM A CHICKA BOOM
Biking around camp with a zoom
When Gwillim calls again
Nous reviendrons pour ces mémoires pleines
Merci à un et tout
This camp is great because of you!

Looking back at my notes for this day I had to ask Catherine “Why does it say Spilly Morning, delayed departure?” She reminded me of all the cleanups we had to do on top of trying to leave and how it completely thwarted our intention for early on the road. This morning also led to permanent disassembly of the dinette. They say don’t cry over spilled milk but sometimes you do. While the morning was tricky to say the least when did eventually get on the road it was a pretty good first leg of our drive into California as we headed for the Giant Sequoias on Ave. of the Giants. The drive along the coast was stunning and this part of Oregon had some of the nicest seaside towns on the route. We stopped north of Brookings at Harris Beach. As we followed the road to the parking we saw there was a steep hill, small lot and not a lot of turn around for the truck/trailer. We opted to park at the top of the hill, much less congested, but a hike down to the beach. We loaded the wagon and got to it. The sand was so hot and we were all sweating as we pulled our gear across the beach. We set up for a picnic of chicken caesar wraps and as we did the boys compelled one of us to be on water watch. The waves were big and crashing and fun and they couldn’t resist. We could tell though that the water came up high and fast and so it was a bit stressful. We tried to keep them to a certain depth and modest submersion but quickly lost the plot. So, in one of us went with them. We all left somewhat soaked and covered in sand. The shower was occupied by another clan in the same boat and we all struggled to get kids de-sanded as much as possible. Mostly gave up on this and then the climb up the hill was on. I set off with Russ and miraculously kept him motivated and ahead of me. He likes to lollygag along so him to the top of a big hill first was worth celebrating and so we shared a Coke! The rest of the crew joined us and we changed and dusted off before setting off again.

The pit stop was 2 hours, a bit longer than anticipated. We needed fuel so stopped for gas and Catherine darted across the street to DQ for some dilly bars for the kids and a couple of the best caffeinated ice cream drinks I’ve ever had. This picked us all up and we were quickly crossing into California where they actually are stopping to make sure you aren’t bringing fruit in. After being waved over to an open checkpoint lane, the most pointed question we got from the officer was if we brought her one! Quickly on our way again, the miles dragged on a bit and feet needed to be put up. So much so, trees were looking like feet?

Eureka! was still a solid hour from our destination and now the day was getting long. We finally hit Avenue of the Giants but missed the correct way and had to backtrack 20 minutes. Some added stress that melted away as we moved through some of the most magnificent trees in the world and arrived at our campground. It was all ready for the Henry 6 and were ready for it.

As I parked the boys clamoured over around and in the amazing giants around them and even made a friend, Raymond. They proudly exclaimed, “Our first American friend!” As twilight trickled through the Giants’ arms the last of the day trailed into a beautiful full moon night that dropped amazing shadows through the forest. We did s’mores and Raymond was happy to join us at the fire for this. Redwoods did not disappoint for our arrival.

We started off with another great camping breakfast from the BBQ, this time sausages and pancakes, and again not morsel left behind. I had found out that there would be an interpretive presentation about owls and so we set off to the visitor centre where we learned about owls, dissected their pellets and discovered a lot about the local flora and fauna.

This was just the beginning of a jam packed day that saw us venture back north up the coastal highway about 20 miles. First stop was the historic Hecate lighthouse, one of a half dozen or so that were set up along the Oregon coast in the late 19th century to aid in the shipping and development on the west coast. Hecate was built in 1894 and still has glass and a working light! We hiked up the hill from the parking lot at sea level, along the same trail that the materials were hauled to build the place more than a century ago. The kids were quite interested in the history and the cost of the specially constructed glass.

After setting up our briefcase picnic table (such a wicked item!) to have sandwiches and Fanta for lunch beach side at the lighthouse stop we ventured back toward Florence and a stop at the biggest sea cave in the US. The cave is also home to a large group of resident sea lions that hunt off the cliff sides and make the place home. It is a wondrous place that you access by taking an elevator 300ft through the rock to cave level. The boys were thrilled to observe and explore and Dominic remarked “its like WE are in the zoo”

After losing the argument about buying popcorn from the gift shop above, we departed the salty air with our salty snack, and I’m glad I lost this argument. From here we cruised quickly as we could back toward our campground and the dune buggy tour we had booked. This tour had been on the agenda for the boys since before leaving Dawson Creek and while they all wanted to ride/drive their own, we compromised and got on the big blue buggy tour! The tour came with guided commentary from the driver and some unexpected harassment by an over hydrated local on their quad but our driver was good and safe and fun! I learned that when the pacific highway was first a thing that the beach was used at low tide for fast commuting and to this day has a speed limit of 25 miles an hour.

This was a phenomenal day and when we returned to camp everyone wanted to write or draw about it and we chilled with some camping food and drink. Dom plucked away at his uke and everyone relaxed. We still didn’t want to leave without hitting up Cleawox Lake for some dune running into the water, swimming, and splashing about. They say don’t dig in the sand and someone had…unfortunately Dom found the hole and biffed it pretty good. He was briefly winded but okay and we carried on our run into the water!

Some brief organizing and tidying by the fire and we poured ourselves into bed to be up and ready to hit the road for the California Redwoods.

We woke up with no miles to make and a couple days of adventuring before us in the sand dunes of Jessie M. Honeyman State Park. So we decided to start with some awesome BBQ cooked bacon and egg breakfast sandwiches. Having being able to connect to cellular data at our campsite and do some research the night before, we made a plan to combat the stinky water problem that was occurring with the trailer. It was divide and conquer and so Catherine hiked off with the boys to go explore the sand dunes while I went into Florence to seek out vinegar.

Climbing the dunes and keeping track of everyone in what is a surprisingly vast and definitely unpredictable landscape is a big effort for one parent.

I did my best to complete my task as efficiently as possible. However, not without delay…I realized the vinegar I bought was labelled distilled and I had no idea if this was the regular strength for vinegar in the US or Canada. My phone, not connected to the internet, meant that I went back into town to see if there was anything different. There was not. I returned with more of the same vinegar available and continued on the task of pumping it into the hot water tank and water lines. I was still completing this task when everyone returned for lunch. Catherine confirmed that the vinegar I was using was similar to any vinegar available and so I finished the job.

We had lunch as quickly as possible and let the lines and tank sit while we went to play at the fresh water lake at the bottom of one of the dunes nearby. This was an amazing experience with running down the dune into the water and some good swimming in the lake. Despite the cooler air and cloud cover it was still amazing and we had to force kids out of the water despite some shivers.

On the return to camp the boys performed at the campground amphitheatre, which was amazing, and as I learned later the second performance of the day.

After dinner it was back to the dunes and I got to experience the joy of running down the dunes! The goal I found was to take as big a high, loping steps as you can and then it feels like you are running on the moon. Very, very, fun!

We rounded out our day by settling by a campfire and roasting marshmallows for s’mores. The water smell was corrected in the trailer and we decided to bypass the hot water tank for the rest of the trip.

We were loaded and ready to go when we woke up in New West and roused the kids, 5:45 we headed for the Peace Arch Border crossing. We were well prepared for a thorough inspection and made sure we didn’t have anything in the fridge that might slow us down. After an arduous 5 mins at the border we were on our way to the Oregon coast. I’m pretty sure the border guard hadn’t had a coffee yet and we showed up…my thinking is that he wasn’t taking on a full inspection of our packed rig before that happened. 1st to the border paid off.

We breezed through Seattle by 10am and stopped for fuel just before crossing the Columbia river into Oregon. We drove into the hills and toward the coast along the Columbia River and found ourselves making our first pit stop in Clatskanie. In Clatskanie, OR it was calls of “I’m first on an American playground, I’m first on swings, I’m first on skate park.” They were so excited to get going on adventuring!

From here we headed for the coast, hitting numerous cool bridges and passing through seaside towns on our way to Canon beach. Canon beach is immense and we the access is mostly geared to single vehicles and not really suitable for RVs because it is very busy (to be fair it was sunny and a weekend). We searched and searched for parking and made several questionable RV moves, viewed Haystack Rock from a really neat windy road and thought maybe that would be that. However, we found parking on the roadside near a main beach access and so off we went.

We went to the Fish and Chips place, ordered and hit the beach as they would text us when order ready. The kids hit the (cold) Pacicific Ocean with zeal and played and played. Sand henceforth became part of our journeying. Fish and chips on the beach was delicious and after a couple hours we were back to the trailer. Catherine said on the way “If we don’t get a parking ticket, this was pefect!” And we got back to a green notice on the windshield…I opened with apprehension and hooray, a warning…perfect beach stop execution, a great start!

We hit the road to Felix’s ongoing belting of “Hey sexy lady!” Not sure where he picked it up…normally I can blame TV, myself or a sibling for these type of things. More wonderful Oregon Coast scenery and finally an arrival in Florence for groceries and then 10 minutes to our campground, Jessy Honeyman State Park, where we made a late supper, discovered the trailer water smelled and did some exploring before bed. Plans were made for dealing with the water situation as Catherine and I went to bed. The day was Epic and a harbinger for things to come!

After completing a list of lists and then some secondary notes and supplemental lists we were wheels rolling from Dawson Creek on our three week Western US adventure. It was quite a final hurrah to get out the door as, in the 24 hours immediately prior to departure, we replaced all four truck tires, Julian had emergency dental surgery the morning before leaving, and Catherine extended her work day by several hours to wrap things… all said we were on the road by 2:45pm.

The boys were champs for this first drive and we pulled off another amazing night drive, arriving in Vancouver at 5:30am! I hit the first leg through the Pine Pass (notably a great local beer also), Catherine took over after we had some cereal and gas station Korean chicko chicken in PG and she drove to Williams Lake where we re-fueled, did a 10 minute PJ and pee stop and I drove the graveyard shift. We dodged all the construction stoppages through the Fraser Canyon, and outpaced the sunrise as we crossed the Port Mann Bridge.

Arriving in New Westminster the adults and older kids slept some more and the younger two excitedly occupied Grandma and Grandpa’s early morning.

The day was filled with visits and some last minute details before the big border crossing tomorrow!

This was a massive start. We are tired, everyone’s happy and ready for tomorrow. Hands up, let’s do this!

After a two year hiatus BCFFC was back at Gwillim Lake in the beautiful north of our province. Nestled in a bay on the south shore is SD 59s Pat O’Reilly Outdoor and Environmental Education Centre, a phenomenal facility that hosts the camp each year.

There is much to do over the course of the week for both parents and children; from Rabaska paddling to climbing and archery. The kids were outside all day every day playing, biking, hiking, swimming, canoeing, crafting and making new friends all while battling the bugs, the elements and doing it in French!

Our family loves this experience and we can’t wait to be back for more!!!

Here we are to send away, 
The sun is setting for today 
Postcard memories made for mailing
BCFFC hearts are sailing 
Une dernière chose au bord de l’eau
Je laisse partir mon bateau

Fires lit in French camp I know
Bringing Gwillim to tomorrow
The sounds of pigs dying abound
In the forest, what’s that sound
Happy children, please take care
Wear a helmet, be bear aware

And when you settle in the twilight
Remember, Les Momos, make the highlights
Saule et Algue le cree
Pour le camp des belles journees
Et quand tu en as besoin 
Votre committee te soutien

This is a camp, like no other
Ask your mom or grandmother
What they’ll say you’ll see
That Gwillim is, a special place to be
Alors, dans ces forets ancestrales  
Découvre ton, courage special
And when you’ve found it your strength will grow, 
Just like Tonytemo

Where’s my momo kids will say
So important, they are each day 
Chaise pliante, cocottes, or chercheurs d’or
Games and laughter, heard near and far
Rabaska racing around the lake
Victory this year, the momos did take 

Maybe next year parent redemption 
AV/CB showed grit and then some 
And as we hit the curtain call
Merci beaucoup to one and all
One day again we’ll capture toads
So see you further, on up the road

As the school year wound down amidst the still great uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic, British Columbia seemed to be flattening the curve and a reasonable re-opening of community life was being pursued. The bubble was being allowed to grow so long as we all didn’t blow them up too fast and they burst. For us, this meant looking at getting the trailer on the road and getting out to camp as a family. For the first kick at the can we decided to head out to Swan Lake Provincial Park where we aimed to spend a couple nights as well as host an informal gathering for Felix’s second birthday.

Getting the trailer all set for the first camp is a always a series of Where’s Waldo searches; I know what I’m looking for but can’t seem to locate it. Has the winter wrought any damage to the unit, do I have the de-winterizing tools/materials? Can I keep the kids out of the trailer as I attempt to clean, organize, load, and test? In the end, the trailer fared well over the winter and some modest cleaning plus searching out the fun times gear was all it took, no major hiccups to get going.

The first camp however, did not afford the same smooth sailing. I left earlier in the day to get out and find a site, having taken a GF day, and Catherine was going to meet me after she finished her work. I didn’t quite get away as early as I would have liked and upon arrival to Swan our favoured campsite was not available so we started with a couple laps to see what was on offer. I settled on a site that backed onto a grassy patch with some trees and shrubs that connected to the campground play area. The camp steward passed by a couple times as I was not satisfied with the positioning of the trailer for a good twenty minutes. Also, the first trailer back up of the season is not the smoothest operation. Finally having settled on the spot and the kids demanding their freedom from the truck I released them and set to work dropping the trailer. In the meantime Catherine arrived earlier than expected and helped coral kids. As I was getting ready to open up the trailer the camp attendant circled back and started checking us in. She immediately noted with Catherine that the site was reserved the next night and so our plan to stay the two nights in that spot was immediately derailed. We decided to move and went to look at the three available multi-night sites…nothing great. Frustration mounting, as Catherine let the attendant know which one we settled on, she was interrupted by another camper looking to move from his site to another more befitting his plans. From this we were able to grab a double site that is our second choice when we visit the park. However, we needed to wait for him to return later with the right truck to move his unit out of the site. Okay, put the trailer back on, cross the road and wait. At this point, everyone is losing it and we have to do dinner. We broke out the BBQ and did up some hotdogs and tried to contain the kids as we waited to set up. As dinner finished up, the trailer was moved out and we got to setting up in earnest. This meant me scrambling to do things as quickly as possible and Catherine trying to supervise the four hooligans (this is the right term at this point in the story). All said and done, it barely seemed worth it and was not really enjoyable to be out at that point. We salvaged the night slowly, roasted mallows, went for a walk, and got the kids to bed. Catherine and I lamented the stress over bevvy’s, small consolation, but enough to crack jokes about the near collapse of a trans-Canada trip only in Grande prairie, though maybe too soon for that one.

Moral of the story, thinking back to our history of first camps: Keep it simple and expect chaos.

Easter Weekend! It had to be a combo of work time for Catherine and family time for us all. Stage 1 of the weekend was shelter and fire building with the boys while Catherine put in a basement office shift. We geared up for the morning with winter gear because there was a good wind blowing despite the mercury rising above zero. loaded a sled, some easy trail grub, hatchet, and headed out. We went up to the windmills as our first location had another dog walker. When marching into the bush the cold was a bit more than was reasonable and the snow still too deep to manage effectively, so we observed some deer tracks and returned to the truck to head back. Back at Radar lake, our dog walking competition was gone and we were good to go on the isolation. We headed in and found a spot with some downed trees and a couple good spots to make a shelter. We chose a tree with a nice dry patch under it and began setting to work on a lean-to structure. By setting to work I mean, the dog disappeared, Russell raided the snacks, Dom started gathering souvenirs, Felix removed clothing, and Julian tried to help me reign it all in and actually build. We did get somewhere, and over the course of two hours managed to get the start of a shelter done and a mock-up of a fire. Task complete we headed for home and a warm lunch plus the familiar digital comforts of the pandemic.

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Stage 2 of the weekend was Eggs-a-la-Mayer. The egg dying, competitive cracking eggstravaganza that now spans three provinces and was, for the first time, live streamed to other family participants! Keeping everyone’s hands from turning purple during the colouring of the eggs was a constant defensive struggle and only I ended up with green fingers. For the cracking competition, Dom had a veritable arsenal of eggs and won all his battles. Jules, Russ and Felix also had respectable victories. Catherine and I did most of the losing and therefore most of the eating (winning)! The eggs plus sauce toppings is a taste the boys are still acquiring.

Stage 3 was the competitive Easter Egg Hunt! With both an indoor and an outdoor phase, the hunters needed to be released in waves by age and experience. All Easter baskets were filled, many eggs held surprises from chocolate and one giant egg each even had a new outfit. The Easter Bunny having gone all out this year spreading pandemonium in our house! It took until about 3pm for the chocolate/candy bingefest to subside and then the goodies were actually not really revisited in earnest after that  (by the kids).

Stage 4 was getting my own haircut done, with a little help (err, cough) from Catherine. Managed to sort it out, though I am not sure how “can you do the hairline” was instantly converted to, “I see some long hairs you missed”. All told, I will be clarifying that I have changed the razor settings before inviting help back next time. To cap off the weekend and really the actual point of stage 4, we went on a family bike ride, first one of the season!

Bonus footage:

It has been a couple weeks, back to work, mid-pandemic, on the heels of a spring break shaped in the same way. At work I have seen the commitment of the educators around me to learning and developing a continued education program for their students. This is a herculean feat and as things change day to day with the dictates of the pandemic, the plane is truly being built in the sky. On the home front, attempting to home school the two oldest while keeping the two youngest at bay and entertained, while trying to work from home is an utterly impossible feat. Catherine attempted, we collectively lasted two days and then needed to bring the younger two to their daycare. Thankfully they are the only ones there. This situation is but a glimpse of the complications and stress added to our lives; I know that households throughout our network, family, and community have faced massive challenges and upheaval. It’s important to go easy on ourselves and know that we are not working remotely but trying to work from home during a crisis; we are not home schooling, we are trying to help our children learn something and have a sense of normalcy from home during a crisis; we are unsure, we are worried, we are stressed and we are trying our best.

Honestly, Catherine and I have been doing a pretty good job of forgiving one another for our stressed out moments and instances of disagreement. We don’t dwell, look for a laugh about it in order to move forward. I worry though that the stress builds up in the kids too. The feeling of being cooped up, the waning patience with one another in the house, it’s hard and you can only hope that the less than ideal parenting over this time does not have a lasting impact. Catherine and I go through all the ups and downs and we make sure the kids see the restoration from the downs so that they get a sense of how to cope together and be forgiving of one another. The long term impact of this situation will take some time to decode. We try and be flexible, recognizing our stress is theirs. Our solution is always more outside and put the devices down. Disconnect and connect.