And I was the one who didn't want to go, preferring the more relaxing aspects of a cruise. I was wrong. Paradise is the only way to describe Kauai. We stayed five nights in the south and six nights in the north of the island. In both spots there seems to be a tradition of…

It's the last for now, I promise. Last week's watercolour class was a scene I wouldn't have believed if I hadn't seen the picture with my own two eyes. It's a tree growing out of a crevasse in Enchanted Rock State Natural Area in Texas: How is that possible? After researching batholiths, it's quite explainable.…

Time for more painting. My watercolour teacher shares my love of trees. In his class I have painted birches, black oaks, fir trees, deciduous trees, palms, trees in winter, some in summer, the gamut. Walking in my daughter's neighbourhood in Calgary I spied a tree that I had to try on my own: It's a…

Backing away from knitting again, this post has to do with trees.  I realized I left out one of my favourite pictures from the Juan de Fuca Trail series:

After a brief foray into a hiking blog, I had to remind myself that this is about knitting. Sometimes in knitting, one little thing will stall your internal knitting machine, requiring more energy than you have in reserve to get going again. Taize is a slow go, hence its description as a meditative knit. It…

Botanical Beach and beyond: It was after this point in the day, about seven hours in, that I told Chuck that everything was crying except for my eyes. Another 60+ point:  it felt bad at the end of the day's hike, but at least for me, by the next morning I was ready to go again.…

Parkinson to Botanical: the rain forest portion. Dave says to me, "You look like you just stepped out of the shower!" "I'm not sure if it's sweat or the rain." Entering the rain forest portion we read a sign: Do not be surprised if you encounter rain. This rain forest receives 12 feet of precipitation…

Day two:  Parkinson to Botanical Beach.  We decided to change the order of the hike  to experience trees and trails of every shape and texture. If you only want to do only one day of the Juan de Fuca trail this is the one to do: After that drop off, there's a kilometer of beach…

Meanwhile, back at the camp: From my years as summer camp staff I knew we needed to have a skit at campfire, so I morphed into the camp fairy and dubbed my mates with their hiking names. I was, of course, Lifesastitch. C was Chuckwagon for his catering duties. Lynn was Bunny Hop because, for…

Day one – Chin Beach to Sombrio – Leave your fear at home.  Drove to the meeting spot by the side of the road so Dave and Jeff could switch to daypacks. First bit of advice to the 60+/-  crowd and those with recent broken ankles: find a friend who will maintain a base camp,…