Courtenay's Puntledge River has been ideal for tubing this summer

By Keith and Heather Nicol

Daughter Kristie floating down the river

    With good consistent water levels and some warm temperatures from mid July to mid August, the Puntledge River in Courtenay, B.C. has been very active with tubers this summer. It is very convenient since the river flows through Courtenay and the put in is just on the outskirts of town. There are several places to pull out and previous blogs describe these (http://keithnicol.blogspot.ca/2017/07/the-puntledge-river-is-ideal-for-tubing.html).  It works best if you can go with another couple or group since then you can leave a car at either end but you can also leave a bike at the take out and cycle back to your car if you have one car. Tubing is alot of fun and a great way to spend time with friends or family. Here are several pictures from the river this summer.  

Dan (right) , Heather and Juliana on a warm summer day

Steve (left) snd Christy tried tubing for the first time this year

Heather finishing a set of rapids

The Parksville Sand Sculptures are well worth visiting

By Keith and Heather Nicol

Participants come from all over Europe and North America

      Parksville, B.C. near Nanaimo is well known for its summer sand sculpting competition and exhibition but since we moved to Courtenay 2.5 years ago we somehow have not been down to check it out. So we decided to see this year’s sculptures while enroute to Nanaimo to drop our daughter off at the ferry. She had enjoyed Filberg Festival in Comox for the last few days and since we had to pass by Parksville we thought this was the ideal opportunity to pop in and have a look. And we certainly recommend it. 

This creation took the best 2 person sand sculpture

   The 24 sculptures are at the community beach in Parksville and although they were built in mid July they have been treated to withstand wind and rain and so still look very good. The sculptors built their masterpieces from July 14-16, 2017 and they use special sand with no impurities. Once they were finished , the sculptures were sprayed with an environmentally friendly glue-water mixture to help keep the sculpture together. We were impressed not only by the detail in the art work but also the size of some of the pieces. The artists have come from all over North America and Europe to compete for the prize money awarded to the top sand creations.  The exhibit is on until August 20 so if you are traveling to or through Parksville this summer pop in and have a look at this impressive display. Visitation has been steadily rising and last year more than 130,000 people saw the sand creations. For more info see:  http://www.parksvillebeachfest.ca

You can also enjoy the huge beach next to the exhibit

 

Day 2 of the Filberg Festival featured some great music

Heather (left) and daughter Kristie admire some glass creations

By Keith and Heather Nicol

      Based on our experience on Friday we knew that heading to the Filberg Festival for the 10 am opening was a smart thing to do. First of all the parking is easier to find-we were able to park within 1 block of the festival grounds on Saturday, August 5.Secondly it is cooler so you don’t have to worry about getting overheated and thirdly it is easier to get around since there are fewer people. We had already seen most of the booths on the day before so we knew what ones we wanted to revisit and what we wanted to purchase.  We also wanted to catch some of the music and we weren’t disappointed. It was also fun showing off the festival to our daughter Kristie who was visiting from Vancouver.

Jim Byrnes was a real crowd favourite

  The highlight was Jim Byrnes who played before a full house on the Comox Rotary stage. He played a variety of bluesy-rock music and had some great stories to tell about Ray Charles and other people he has shared the stage with over the years. But we also enjoyed hearing the soulful voice of Claire Coupland from Toronto on the Peninsula Co-op Stage.  Nearby we liked seeing the large driftwood sculpture of an eagle on display. We had seen it being created the day before and on Saturday artist Alex Witcombe put it on a driftwood perch. 

Alex Witcombe created a driftwood eagle at the Festival

Remember there is lots more music to come at the Filberg Festival so if you haven’t come out you still have Sunday, August 6 and Monday, August 7 to come and check it out. Also it is a great place to get that unique or special gift. With over 100 exhibitors there is something for just about everyone. Remember the Filberg Festival is a valuable fundraiser for the Filberg Heritage Lodge and Park in Comox, B.C. For more information on the complete festival schedule see: filbergfestival.com 

The festival is a fundraiser for the lodge (behind) and grounds at Filberg Park

 

The 2017 Filberg Festival celebrates Arts, Crafts and Music

 by Keith and Heather Nicol 

      When we first moved to Courtenay, B.C. 2 years ago we took in the Filberg Festival and loved the combination of music and arts. And since it is a fundraiser for the lovely Filberg Heritage Lodge and Park ,it means you are contributing to a good cause at the same time. At just $15 per day or only $50 for a 4 day pass at the gate , it is one of the best deals in town. We headed down for the opening at 10:00 am on  Friday, August 4^th .There were already many people buying tickets but the lines were short and the grounds seem to handle crowds easily. We decided to tour the exhibits first and then sit down and hear some music. 

 

Daughter Kristie admiring one of Linda Skalenda's paintings

       Be sure to see the fine landscapes paintings of featured artist Linda Skalenda. Her display is front and centre as you come through the main gates. We liked her paintings of colourful arbutus trees along the shore as well as her scenes of coastal marshes. Overall,  there are over 100 artists from across Western Canada displaying all kinds of very good crafts and artistic creations. And when you get hungry you have a choice of 18 different vendors. 

 

There is an amazing variety of quality crafts

    There are 2 musical stages and during the 4 days, they have over 20 groups playing a variety of music. We had time to sample just a couple of groups but really liked the energetic show put on by Lion, Bear and Fox on the Comox Rotary stage. We can’t wait to hear some more great music tomorrow (Saturday, August 5) and we are looking forward to catching Jim Byrnes on the Rotary Stage. The festival runs until Monday, August 7 so be sure to catch at least one day.  For more information on the complete festival schedule see: filbergfestival.com 

Lion, Bear and Fox put on an energetic performance

Checking out the birds by sea kayak at Pt Holmes, Comox, B.C.

By Keith and Heather Nicol

Bonaparte Gulls allow you to get close

      On a recent sea kayak trip to Pt Holmes  and the Lazo Bluffs (July 30) we encountered a large number of Harlequin ducks as well as Bonaparte gulls. Although we have seen a few Bonaparte gulls on earlier trips this summer we have not seen any Harlequin ducks and so that was a real bonus. These ducks are common here at some times of the years and tend to leave earlier in the spring for breeding. These ducks like the rocky wavy conditions so the tip of Cape Lazo is a good place to find them. These colourful ducks sport  very distinctive breeding plumage through the fall and winter. 

Harlequin Ducks like rocky shorelines

     We also saw lots of Bonaparte gulls and we like these small graceful gulls since they seem more  elegant than normal gulls. They were apparently were named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte, a relative of Napoleon Bonaparte and are the only gull to nest in trees. They also let you get very close to them so getting a good photo is not too much of a problem. We paddled this section at a relatively high tide which tends to push the birds onto narrower swaths shoreline. If readers see other returning birds let us know since we always look forward to the return of the ducks in the late summer and fall.

 

Bonaparte Gulls near Cape Lazo