Friday 30 August - NWT day 3

We had a late breakfast at the hotel again today, then headed to the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. We did a one-and-a-half hour tour first then went back and looked at the galleries we were most interested in. There was one on the Special Constables in the RCMP who helped with working with the huskies and the language and traditions of the local people. They had a huge area to cover and -40C temperatures in the winter (and had no idea).

We then had a walk along the shore of Frame Lake before heading back to the hotel to attempt an afternoon nap. We are finding it a bit strange, we aren’t used to intentional naps!  

We decided to try the Ethiopian restaurant for dinner tonight. Haven’t been to one before, it was a nice change. I had a combination platter with about 9 small servings of different dishes. 

Sean picked us up at 9:35 p.m. for our last night of viewing and we headed east on the Ingraham Trail for about 40km. As soon as he got parked we got set up quickly as the lights had started. They were very bright tonight.

It’s amazing how different the three nights have been. We were lucky to see the lights all three nights. We saw the Milky Way only on our first night. Four shooting stars on first night only. Mosquitoes on first night only, too cold for them on the other nights (we didn’t miss them). The temperature was down to 1C tonight so a bit chilly. We got back to the hotel around 1:30 a.m., we must be getting used to this schedule, I wasn’t even tired!

Thursday 29 August - NWT day 2

We enjoyed a lie-in this morning. First look at the clock was 6 a.m. but no way was I moving! Managed to sleep in until 7:30, we will strive to do better tomorrow. We had a leisurely breakfast in the hotel before heading off to the NWT Legislative Assembly building, a short walk from the hotel. It is a lovely modern building on the shore of Frame Lake, where we had a great one-hour tour. They have 19 MP’s, who don’t belong to a party, but make decisions on their own based on what is best for their community, then they vote to see if there is a consensus. Sounds better than our awkward politicians never getting anything done! We continued into town for some lunch then visited a few shops and galleries, before going to the Old Town to climb up to The Bush Pilots Monument. You can see for miles from up here, lakes, small communities and float planes galore. Sean picked us up about 10 p.m. again and we headed a bit further out of town. We parked at the side of a small lake and waited patiently for the aurora to appear. She gradually came out, from a different direction than the previous night. The energy kept building, starting at our right and then also covering above us and to the left, almost like an arc around us. The dancing started and she put on a show, quite different from the night before. After a while she seemed to run out of steam and Sean said that would be it for the night, so we headed back to town and got to bed just before 2a.m.

Wednesday 28 August - Yellowknife, NWT

We were up before the crack of dawn. Red Car Airport service picked us up at 3:55 a.m. Didn’t bother with breakfast - who can eat at that time?

First flight left Toronto at 7, west to Calgary, just over four hours. Second flight was north to Yellowknife, about 2:20 hours. Two hours time difference- you forget how big Canada is!

Checked into hotel and rooms were ready early yay!!!  We walked around town a bit (it is very small, pop. 21,000, NWT - North West Territories pop 43,000) and had some lunch.

Our guide for three nights, Sean, picked us up at 10 p.m., then picked up 4 other people visiting from South Korea. We drove out to Hwy 3 and parked down a small lane to wait for the Aurora to show herself. For the weather, this was the best choice, we were here about four hours. Like Mother Nature, the Aurora comes and goes. The temperature dipped to about 9C but felt colder when you are hanging around. My semi-winter (Ontario) clothing wasn’t quite warm enough - hopefully we are better prepared tonight! I’ve uploaded a few photos Sean took of us (he has a better camera than mine). He also provided home baked cookies and hot chocolate - a good guy in my books! It was about 2:30 when our frozen bodies climbed into bed.

Lake District - Day 2

We dropped in at a few places for dog walking and coffee breaks. Then headed into Keswick for the remainder of the day. It was quite busy as it was market day so lots of stalls and shops to see. If you want outdoor gear, this is the place, I’ve never seen so many outdoor clothing shops in one place before! The dogs enjoyed being out today, walking and socializing with other dogs they passed. We dropped in a pub on the way back, that wasn’t too far from where we are staying - dog friendly so everyone had a good time. We had some dinner at the cottage before we headed out to a sports bar in Keswick to catch the European Championship League Final game, which was kicking off at 8 p.m. It was a very exciting evening, as my team (Liverpool) won. There were lots of ooh’s and aaah’s, cheering the guys on and drinking beer to keep lubricated! We managed to get a taxi back to the cottage before it got too late.

Duxford Air Show.

I had traveled down to Chilcote the day before, not far from Tamworth, to spend a few days with Angie and Jim. We spent a lovely day at Duxford (International War Museum) in Cambridgeshire, where there was a Daks (Dakotas) over Duxford event to celebrate the 75th anniversary of D-day. There were lots of vintage aircraft, from numerous countries at the air show. It was a little tricky to take photos when the planes were flying by but I managed better when they were on the ground.

Lake District - Day 3

We set off and followed the shores of the Derwent Water today, we stopped for a walk with the dogs, but there was some rain, we ended up going into a pub for morning coffee. We continued on and over Honister pass, had it been sunny it would have been beautiful. There was a slate mine with a tour, cafe and a gift shop selling products, from place mats to house numbers. We stopped en route for a few photos but the blustery wind nearly took you off your feet!

We are off out for a pub meal tonight, Andy will drive, we’re a bit remote and the narrow road isn’t lit - Dave’s birthday meal.

Lake District - Day 1

I headed off to the Lake District today, for a long weekend with my brother Dave and his family. They picked me up in Sheffield, on their way by, and then we had several hours driving to get to a 3-bedroom cottage they had rented. It was a lovely upside down barn conversion (bedrooms downstairs, and living area upstairs to fully appreciate the views), about 9 km from Keswick. It was located on a narrow road, away from it all, with a few other properties near by. We managed to get some fish and chips for dinner once we’d settled in.

Not far from High Green

We had another day out in the countryside with Linda today. It was overcast and the sun was coming and going, unfortunately ‘going’ whenever I got my camera out 🙁.
We went to Yummy Yorkshire, which was located on a farm - they had everything, for different times of day - ice cream parlour, coffee, snacks and meals, and a bar and gin tasting in the evening. It was before 11 a.m. so we decided to try the coffee this visit!
We continued on to a large garden centre located in the village of Shelley, where you can see for miles. The countryside is beautiful. We shopped a while, had lunch, and mum bought a few plants.
We took a different route on the way back, through Penistone, and popped in another lovely garden centre for a cold drink. There were some swans there with six cute and fluffy little ones.
They really should have cafe’s in the garden centre’s back in Canada, I would visit them more often.

Day out from Sheffield

We travelled back up north from Ipswich to Mums at Sheffield yesterday.

Jon and Michele came for us about 10 this morning. We headed out to the High Peak District via Rivelin Valley to Ladybower Dam. It was a perfect day for visiting Derbyshire, sunny and 17C, and stayed that way all day. We had coffee in a Ladybower pub then went further up the Derwent Valley to see the dam where they practiced for the Dambuster raids during WWII. From there we moved on to Castleton and walked around some of the little shops. We then went in for a pub lunch - I had sausage and cheesy mash, Mum had fish and chips, and Jon and Michele had a Derbyshire Ploughmans lunch (pork pie, cheese, bread and salad) - all very English. After that Mum and Michele continued looking in the shops and Jon and I climbed up to Peveril Castle, where we could see the countryside for miles around. Just a forty minute drive and we were back at Mums for a cuppa.

Family reunion day 3

Most of us went to Woodbridge today, where Steve’s sailing club is located. It is about 10 miles from Ipswich. Mum went to Simon and Zoe’s to spend the day with them and Lydia.

Some chose to go sailing and some of us watched from the clubhouse. The club is located on the Deben River, which is tidal, so we had to time it correctly. The guys had to help get the boat out of the lot and put up the sail, then pull it to the dock, before launching. They went out as two separate parties, one at a time. The first group had some wind so it was ‘plain sailing’ but the wind had dropped by the time the second group went out. Everyone had a good time, it was something different for a lot of us. After that we were getting hungry so we went for lunch to an old English pub. Lots of good food and drinks to wash it down. Dave and his family then headed home, Jon’s group went to Felixstone to visit the seaside, and Steve and I went back to his place to put our feet up.

Family reunion day 2

We all met at Steve and Sue’s for a lovely lunch today. The weather was fine and we managed to spread out onto the deck. Lots of food, drink and chatting again. An extra guest today - Mums great grand daughter Lydia, who is now four years old.

Family reunion day 1

Our family reunion finally arrived and we started a busy three days.

On the Friday morning we sat around at Steve’s, having a lazy morning, and Mum still had no idea what we’d planned. Jon and his family (wife Michele, son Josh and soon to be daughter in law Nicole) were the first to arrive about 11 a.m. Mum was both surprised and moved to tears. They had traveled from Charlotte, North Carolina and Hamilton, Ontario. Lots of hugs. We sat around and chatted, and had a bite to eat. 

Dave and his family (wife Anne, and kids Andy and Charlie) arrived about 3:30. Mum was very pleased to see them too - though not as surprised as the North American gang! 

We all went out for dinner at 7, at The Swan, Westerfield. Also meeting us there were Simon (Steve’s son) and Zoe, and Kay (cousin) and Jim. We were now 16 and the restaurant had us seated in the conservatory, separated a little from other diners. 

It was a long day, lots of talking, and laughter, but everyone had a good time.

Arrived in Jolly old England

I arrived in England for my annual visit, it was a bit cool and raining!
Easy journey on the train and then a taxi and I was at Mums. Second day I went out for a pub lunch with Jean and Martin, some old friends, and we had a good catchup. Saturday was spent with my cousin Kay, we lunched and shopped . . . first visit to Marks and Spencer under my belt already. Sunday was a quieter day, I watched my team play their last game of the premier league season . . . we won . . . yeah! And also had a nice visit from cousin Linda.
Monday already. Had another great day. It was lovely and sunny and Linda took us for a drive to Castleton in Derbyshire. The scenery was gorgeous, little lambs in the fields, dry stone walls, small villages and the Ladybower reservoir. We had some great fish and chips in the Rose Cottage restaurant and we stopped for coffee at a garden centre on the way back. We all had a lovely day and attempted to catch up.