Canada part 3

Day 5, we made use of my pass to Radium Hot Springs which just in the the Kootenay Park. Originally, the springs had a different name. I am much to lazy to go check my literature for what it was. The current name is courtesy of some scientific person discovering a small amount of radioactive particles in the water. Rest assured there are is not enough to harm anyone. The pool was quite comfy running about 100 degrees F.


Soaking in Hot Springs is a good way to relax. When we returned to our 'villa', Dad took a two hour nap. I chatted with Mom and we worked on our knitting. Mom choose not take a dip so she didn't get hit with the sleepy effects of hot water.

In the evening we headed over to Invermere for dinner taking the back road which provides a lovely view of the Canadian Rockies but very few places to stop and take pictures. We were trying to not jam the road and get called tourists. Although driving the speed limit with Idaho plates probably did result in few comment about us being tourists. I am sure everyone who works for the Royal Canadian Police are very nice but we didn't want to verify this.

Quviuk

Here is one of the promised pictures of a yarn picture. This is the Qivuit or Qiviuk from Jacques Cartier. Each ball is 100% Quviuk, size: 3/14 (Not sure what the means, I think sport weight) 28 grams with 144 yards and the color is exciting 3003. Obviously, no one has provided names for this line. It is a nice bright navy blue. I believe 288 yards should make a narrow scarf. I am thinking about a half width skeleton scarf out of Arctic Lace. Just in the consideration stage. All suggestions will be considered.

Also, I added a couple pictures to the previous post and fixed a few creative grammar choices. It truly is amazing how those sneak into a quick post.

Canada continued

Day 4 started with rain. The rain stopped by the time we loaded up to head over to Banff. Banff is in Banff Park which was east of Kootenay Park from our lodging. Guess, I hadn't looked a map closely. Turns out no one in Banff owns the land, they lease it for the park system.

When we entered Kootenay Park, I got a pleasant surprise. In Canada a day pass for a national park is good for all of the national parks. I assumed we would have to buy two passes. Starting out, there were clouds around the peaks. When we could see the tops there was a light dusting of snow on the top of the peaks.
Our visit to Banff started with a stop at a gift shop. We then went past the recommended restaurant and decided the parking was taken. Dad proceed to drive down a street while I tried to find restaurants in my guide and locate where we were. As usual, locating items while moving didn't work well. We ended up back tracking to a Chilis. I saw the sign after we passed. We were able to park near a church.


The last planned stop in Banff, I can blame on a fellow knitter. She told me there was a Qiviut store in Banff. It is near the Sunnyside Mall, about 1.5 blocks away along a street that was under construction. Walking in uneven gravel was a bit tough and wore Mom out. The employees at Jacques Cartier Clothier are very nice. After we made our purchase, we we let out by the back door so Mom could walk on pavement back to the car. Pictures of my yarn purchases will be featured in a future post. Yes, some qiviuk followed me home. We did fondle a few sweaters and scarves while in the store. Definitely worth doing if you get the chance.

Since we were parked across from Canada House, an art gallery for Canadian artists, Dad and I toured it. The themes were mostly outdoors and gorgeous. Beautiful carved rock animals and oil paints were every where. I am sure the gallery employees realized we weren't planning to buy anything, yet they were friendly.

By the time, we headed back, it was mostly sunny. Which provide a lovely contrast to our trip over.

Where to Start

I wandered off for almost two weeks. I could have taken my Mac with me. But why take a chance of discussing where it was purchased with the border guard. I hear that they do such things if you are select for a search. I still have no idea if the stories are true. Honestly, missing the opportunity to find out suites me.

I started out by flying up to Spokane, Washington which is the closest airport to my parents. Overall not a very eventful day. Just the way I like my flights. I did bump into two knitters courtesy of my sock knitting. One was knitting a vest and the other sat next to me on the plane. I doubt if I would have found out about her knitting without the handy dandy sock. I Have decided I really like taking socks for air travel. With books, I zone in on the book and have almost missed the boarding announcement. Being oblivious when traveling doesn't seem like a good idea.

Day Two, we drove up to Fairmont Hot Springs in B.C. Canada. On the way we stop at rest area-scenic overlook of Columbia Lake. Turns out it really is the headwaters of the Columbia River. The river meanders North from the lake drifting to the West. Then to heads down to Washington state. The original European settlers didn't realize this for several years. Everyone thought they were different rivers for a while.

Day Three: We wondered around Fairmont Hot Springs and figured out what we wanted to do. Saw the biggest wildlife of the trip in town. The buck was feeding under the trees by a parking lot. He was throughly shot by the time we were done. I took four pictures and have no idea how many my parents have.



Fairmont Hot Spring is located between the Purcell Mountains and the Rocky Mountains in a glacial valley. The scenery is gorgeous and I understand the local hot springs are odorless unlike most of ours.





This is one of the first dragonflies I saw. Turns out there are ton of them in the valley. They are every where including bouncing of the windshield. It reminded me of the opening scene to 'Men In Black' a couple of times.

The day ended with a social where we were staying. It is the first time I had Gelati. If Gerri's Gelati is any indicator, I have been missing something. Turns out, he is a real entrepreneur. He started the business at 21 and was on the Invermere town council.

The other hi-light of the social was winning a door prize, a pass to Radium Hot Springs.

The dryer is calling. More details on the trip will follow later including yarn.

New Bookcases

We went shopping for bookshelves last weekend. A replacement for what is currently in the bedroom, laminated boxes with laminated shelves. The laminate is the fake golden oak commonly found on desktops in many office places. Another item would be a comfortable chair. After much looking, I decided I wanted another glider rocker like the one we have downstairs because I didn't care for the options we were seeing. Found out glider rockers are now in the domain of baby stores. Who knew. Not us, we don't have children and our current one came from a regular furniture store. Turns out nice regular 30 inch wide 3 shelf unit shelves are hard to find too. We did buy something. When shopping for regular shelves, we end up with a very nice enlaid wood cabinet. So much for meeting our objectives.

In our defense, we did debate about and go back during the week before blowing the budget on a gorgeous item. Officially, it is an early Christmas present to ourselves. So, nothing fancy under the tree this year.

Soxy Alpaca

Sock number one of pair two is done for the 5280 Socks. And here are all those details that only thrill knitters. The yarn is Lions Brand Magic Stripes, 75% wool and 25% nylon. I followed the pattern on the label until I got to the toe. For some reason the star toe works really well with my feet so I used it instead of a more traditional toe. Also, size 4 BrySpun double points rather than the recommended size 3 needles. Sock number two is cast on with the ribbing done. Yup these are cuff down. Some day, I will try toe up.
Here is the final product of my recent spinning. Approximately, 345 yards of alpaca. It is a two ply and probably a light worsted. Looks like about 14 wraps to an inch but with just a tape measure who knows for sure. It is still some of my most expensive yarn just because of the spinning wheel.