Blue Summer Skies at Dodd Lake

Viewpoint on Goat Main overlooking Goat and Powell Lakes.

On a recent quad ride with friends in the Powell River backcountry, we stopped at a picnic spot at the north end of Dodd Lake.

To get there you turn off Highway 101 at Dixon Road then take Goat Lake Main past the Dodd Lake Campground to Windsor Lake Main. Turn right until you reach an old logging road that leads down to the lake and a picnic area right on the shore. This last section is best done by quad, mountain bike or hiking.

Picnic shelter at the north end of Dodd Lake.

There are so many great places to explore in the Powell River backcountry.

A pocket gravel beach near the picnic spot.

Some are maintained by logging companies like Western Forest Products. Click here and you can download a map that shows logging roads in the area.

Beautiful cumulus clouds on a warm summer day.

This picnic site is maintained by it's users. As you can see we take good care of it.

Do you have user maintained recreation sites where you live? Are they well maintained?


Thanks for visiting part of my world this week. For more great posts from Our World Tuesday, click here.

And also a meme called Through My Lens by Mersad.

Today is Sky Watch Friday. Go to the Sky Watch Friday website and you'll see sky photos from all over the world! -- Margy

Here Fishy, Fishy, Fishy

Thanks for coming fishing with us. -- Margy

Banana Nut Bread

I fondly remember Mom helping me make Banana Nut Bread.

I learned a lot about cooking from my mom. One of her favourite breakfast foods was bananas. Wayne and I are the same way. Sometimes we eat them as a side or as part of a fresh fruit bowl.

We don't always eat our bananas fast enough and a few get brown and soft. We don't throw them away, we just mash and toss them into a batter and make some Banana Nut Bread for breakfast.

Banana Nut Bread

Mixing the wet ingredients.

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup mashed bananas
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mixing in the pecans.

Directions:

Mash bananas with a fork. Mix together eggs, sugar, bananas and oil.

Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well. Stir in vanilla and chopped pecans.

Grease and flour one large or two small loaf pans. Pour in ingredients and bake in a 350 degree oven for 45-50 minutes on the top rack.

Preparing the baking pans.

Remove when brown on top and firm to the touch.

Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Store in plastic wrap or foil to keep moist.

Back when we could cooked together, Mom would mash the bananas, grease the pans, and stir in the nuts.

Mom always liked cooking and baking, so it was a fun activity we could still do together even when she was well into her 90s.

Banana Nut Bread hot from the oven.

What are some of the things that you fondly remember doing with your parents? -- Margy

Gorge Harbour, Cortes Island BC

Our Bayliner 2452 at the Gorge Harbour Resort Marina.

During the summer we keep our Bayliner 2452 in Powell River's Westview Harbour so we can go cruising. We live in a boating paradise known worldwide. We have the Gulf Island to the south and Desolation Sound to the north. To the west is Discovery Passage between Vancouver Island and the many smaller islands dotted along the Inside Passage leading to Alaska.

Last week we took our boat north to Cortes Island. Our destination was the Gorge Harbour Resort Marina.

Heading to the marina for fuel and docking.

We didn't know there was a Ranger Tug rendezvous in progress. Originally we were told they were full, but after we gassed up they found a spot for us. It was right next to the fuel dock so we could use our lines to move the boat and tie up for the night.

The resort is both land-based and marina-based.

Because the people in the Ranger rendezvous were having their own BBQ, it was easy to get dinner reservations at the resort's Floathouse Restaurant. Dinner outside on the deck was wonderful. We splurged with raw oysters and beer to start. Yum!

Dining in style at the Floathouse Restaruant.

Gorge Harbour Resort has something for everyone. There's a lodge and cottages, RV and camping spots, the marina, a small store for provisions, a swimming pool, fun activities for all ages and even entertainment during the summer months.

The resort is constantly updating and improving. Our first trip there was in 2006. We offloaded our bikes to ride to Whaletown where the car and passenger ferry from Quadra Island arrives.

Gorge Harbour Marina Resort back in 2006.

We exited back out through the Gorge that gives the protected bay it's name. Using the docks or anchoring here is good in all seasons and weather conditions.

Exiting through the narrow gorge.

Then we were on our way to another favourite spot, Heriot Bay. There are so many places to explore in Coastal BC. I invite you to come visit and see for yourself. No boat, no problem. Explore using BC Ferries routes. -- Margy

Friends in Need

The new blue picnic table on our front porch.

... are especially nice especially when you don't know you are in need. Wayne and I came home after a mini-vacation to Vancouver Island to discover a new picnic table on our front porch.

We talked through all the possibilities of how it could have gotten there but weren't sure until we found a note tucked under a solar light on our old table.

Last summer our good friends Dave and Marg stayed at our cabin on the way home from our barge camping and quad riding trip to the head of Powell Lake. They noticed that our old table was missing one leg and sitting on an old shake block found floating in the lake.

Dave built the table in town and delivered it right to our cabin on Powell Lake.

Dave built us a new table in his shop at home and Marg came with him in their boat to make the delivery when they knew we would be away. What a surprise that was. Doesn't it look great! I love the colour that matches our cabin roof. Thanks so much Dave and Marg. You are super special friends in many ways.

Using the repurposed old picnic table as a work bench.

And what about the old picnic table you ask? Never fear. It has been repurposed into a work bench at the back of the cabin.

I used it to make my painted rock ladybug and Wayne is using it to sand and paint the wooden floorboards for our sailboat Ste. Marie.

Have you ever received something special from friends? Tell us your story. -- Margy

Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer

Mother Nature uses morning haze on the Strait of Georgia to paint a watercolour picture.

 We had plenty of time to enjoy the view while trolling for salmon on the calm seas.

Summer is such a wonderful time of year. What have you been doing for fun? -- Margy