Another Crappy Day Weatherwise!

Some scenes from around the campground

It wasn’t raining this morning when I got up but about half way through my walk it started, not very hard so was able to finish my 20 minutes.

This morning I got the freezer defrosted, some gluten-free cornflakes put through the cuisinart for making coating for chicken for dinner tonight, watched TV, read and did some surfing.

It remained cloudy all day with a bit of hazy sunshine here and there along with a few sprinkles of rain. We’ve definitely not had good weather here so we’ve decided we’re not going to the Gaspé this time but will have to come back and take the fifth wheel somewhere closer. It’s quite a distance to go from here all the way around the Gaspé.

Today we decided to do something we’ve never done before and use the pay showers at the campground. It costs a quarter for 3 minutes. We thought that was probably cheaper than heating our water with propane. Gordon’s shower took 2 quarters and mine took 3 (I have more hair on my head, that is). All in all, it wasn’t wonderful. The water wasn’t that hot and the pressure wasn’t that good. Our own shower is probably better but it was different being in the shower with shampoo on your head and the water stops, then trying to get the quarter to work. Definitely easier at home!

Gordon had planned to go into the city tonight for night photos but the rain has foiled his plans again. Thursday, Friday and Saturday are supposed to be nicer.

We also have to decide on a campground at Montreal for next week. They recommend Camping Alouette here and have brochures. I emailed them and they want $200 plus tax for the week so definitely more expensive than here! It’s on the south side of the St. Lawrence and looks like a fairly easy drive into Montreal from there so maybe we’ll give it a try. Camping Transit is a really nice campground so if they recommend Camping Alouette, we hope it is as well.

Housework

I thought I heard rain on the roof when I woke up this morning but it was only wind so away I went on my walk. It felt good to get out again. I’m really starting to miss walking if it’s nasty weather. Walking in the mall yesterday just didn’t do it. I have to walk first thing in the morning while my back is rested.

After breakfast, I got the laundry ready and went over to the laundry room. No one else there. BONUS! After that and lunch, I did the vacuuming and cleaning, then cleaned out the storage area under the bed and in my closet and disposed of a few things and rearranged other items.

The sun started to come out around 1:30 p.m. but was very short-lived.

Nothing much happened today.

The photo today is one that Gordon took this morning of one of the ducks in the park.

More Rain and What A Difference Another Day Makes!

Rain again today and from the looks of the forecast for the foreseeable future! Sure glad we got out and did something yesterday.

Around noon I got up the energy to go into town to pick up some groceries. While I was there I did a tour of their local WalMart and their shopping mall. I didn’t see much that I wanted or needed but it put in the afternoon for me. I thought it was going to stop raining at one point but it didn’t and as the day progressed it just rained harder.

I don’t expect much else to happen today other than rain, rain and more rain so I’m posting early!

No photos taken today so I’m including some I took yesterday.

The scenes below were taken in Canyon Ste Anne

This guy instead of crossing the bridge over the gorge on foot was taking a more exhilarating route

The scene below was taken westbound on Hwy 138 of the St. Lawrence River

The scenes below were taken along Hwy 138 east of Quebec City

What A Difference A Day Makes!

Today dawned bright and sunny although cold. It was about 6C (43F) when I went for my walk.

Since it was a nice day we decided to head out for Jacques Cartier Park which is north of the city. As we drove north it got cloudy and as we got into the mountains there wasn’t much colour as the trees are mostly evergreens. We were going into the park but there was a long lineup so decided it wasn’t worthwhile since the sun had left us so we decided to head east of the city again. We went through Ste Anne de Beaupre and then headed northeast on Hwy 360 for a while. We went through some little towns and obviously quite a few ski hills in the area. We saw a sign for Sept Chutes so drove there and were told it would be $19.72 for the two of us. Since we had no idea what to expect we decided not to go in.

We met up again with Hwy 138 so headed west again and came upon Canyon Ste Anne which Gordon had read about somewhere. We decided to spend the $19.00 to see what was there. It was very pretty with a beautiful falls complete with rainbow, beautiful scenery and not an over abundance of people even though it was a Saturday. There are a lot of stairs so we got our exercise. Two of the bridges over the falls are suspension bridges. I went out part way on the high one, then changed my mind with kids running back and forth and the bridge swaying, it didn’t seem like something I wanted to do. To get to the lower bridge you go down 187 steps. There’s no other way back than to climb those 187 steps so we got our exercise too! All in all, I think we got our money’s worth there.

On our way back we stopped again at Ste Anne de Beaupre and took some more shots of the shrine.

We left around 10:00 a.m. and got home about 6:00 p.m. so it was a long day and we’re both pooped!

Since this is the last day of the month, here are September’s expenses:

1. Campground Fees - $672.30
2. Groceries - $351.07
3. Laundry - $28.00
4. Wine/Spirits - $41.90
5. Entertainment - $43.15
6. Snacks - $8.52
7. Eating Out - $75.60
8. Fuel for Truck - $368.25
9. Propane - $21.20
10. RV/Truck Repair/Service - $109.00
11. Misc - $854.17
12. Insurance - $1203.30
13. Internet/TV - $53.57
14. Phones - $107.85
15. Medical/Dental - $221.22
16. Gifts - $34.20
17. Total - $4193.30

Campground Fees weren’t bad even though we were using weekly or daily this month rather than monthly as we’ve been doing most of the summer.

Misc was high this month as we made a few purchases like the tripod for the TV dish and the satellite finder, the chair massager, the new hard drive and card for PDA, We also purchased our US travel insurance which is why the insurance category is so high.

RV/Truck Repair/Service is actually the plates for the truck.

They didn’t charge us for internet again this month so that will be double next month.

So even with paying over $1100.00 for our travel insurance for the winter, we didn’t do too badly this month.

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Today I woke up to rain on the roof, lots of rain, so no walk. No walk all day. No going outside all day.

It poured all day. No let ups. The campground is starting to look like a lake. I feel like we’re back in the west last winter.

The photo was taken from the living room window so you can see raindrops on the window and the water in the campground.

This morning we had some sun, not bright sun but since I was expecting rain it was great. It was 11C (52F) compared to the low single digits C (40sF) it’s been for the last few days.

It turned into a beautiful day so I sat outside from about 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Lots of RVs started pulling in early this afternoon and I met some people from Ohio who are here to visit the Old City and then heading back to Ohio through Maine. They had just come from the Maritimes. It started to cloud over mid-afternoon. Too bad we were too tired to do any sightseeing today as tomorrow sounds like a write-off!

I haven’t done a ‘view from my lawnchair’ for a while so here it is!

I’m also tired of dreaming up titles for my blogs so today’s doesn’t have one.

We 'Ferried' to Old Quebec

This morning was bright, sunny and cold. Gordon left to go and take photos at dawn. His plan was to go to the Old City on the ferry but instead he just went to the Terrace (park overlooking the St. Lawrence and Old Quebec) and took his photos from there. I went on my walk but there wasn’t anything interesting around to look at as most of the RV’s have gone.

We went into town to get groceries this morning and after putting them away with the sun shining, I sat outside and read for a while. After we had naps, we decided to go into Old Quebec for a while so we took the ferry over and went our separate ways as Gordon wanted to take photos and I wanted to take a tour of the shops. There were still lots of people around even though the cruise ship was gone. The weather was beautiful and it was warmer today than it has been in some time. We stayed for about 2 ½ hours then took the 6:30 p.m. ferry back.

Shown are a couple of photos of Chateau Frontenac. The one taken from the ferry shows the wall that surrounds Old Quebec.

We Play Tourist!

This morning when I woke up I heard pouring rain on the roof so I stayed in bed until 8:30 a.m. I think I could have slept all day but I got up and went for a walk around the new campground. The rain had stopped by then. There are people here from all over, 2 from California, 2 from North Carolina, 1 from Florida and 1 from Tennessee. There is also 1 each from Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Alberta and Nova Scotia as well as 3 from m Ontario. I was quite surprised. People must be up here to see the autumn leaves.

Me standing in front of mural featuring prominent people in Quebec City's history

One of the streets in Old Quebec

Late this morning we decided to go into Quebec City. I thought we would take the ferry but we were on our way west on Hwy 20 in the truck when I realized we were driving instead. We found a place to park on the street and walked around Old Quebec and took some photos. Old Quebec is a really interesting place with cobblestone streets and lots of quaint buildings and little shops. Quebec's Old Town (Vieux-Québec) is the only North American fortified city north of Mexico whose walls still exist. There were lots of people there and we wondered why until we looked down at the St. Lawrence River and there was the Queen Elizabeth II sitting majestically in the harbour.

QEII in the harbour

Gate to Old Quebec

Ceiling in Ste Anne de Beaupre Basilica

Another ceiling in Ste Anne de Beaupre

Ste Anne de Beaupre Basilica

Front doors to the Basilica

After we left Old Quebec we drove around in circles for a while trying to get east of the city to go to Ste. Anne de Beaupre to visit the Shrine of Ste. Anne de Beaupre. Saint Anne is proclaimed patroness of the province of Québec and is also supposed to be that grandmother of Jesus. The present Basilica was built in 1923 after a fire destroyed the fourth church. The first one was built in 1658. This is a beautiful church. I would say it’s even nicer than Winchester Cathedral in Winchester, England. I wasn’t terribly impressed with it. We spent some time at Ste Anne de Beaupre, took photos inside and out and then headed west to go home but stopped at Montmorency Falls on the way. We went in at the base of the falls and took some photos, looked at the prices for the cable car, decided not to take it (I’m not much for heights anyway) so drove to the top of the Falls and walked along the walkway. Gordon walked part way over the bridge that goes over the top of the falls but I declined. While there we had a really pretty rainbow.

Montmorency Falls

Gordon waving to me from the bridge over Montmorency Falls

Rainbow over the Falls

We started to head home about 4:30 p.m. thinking we were probably going to get tied up in rush hour traffic but it wasn’t bad even going south on Hwy 73 and we arrived home around 5:30 p.m.

It’s been a long day but we saw a lot!

Now Near Levis, Quebec

Our site at Camping Transit

Photos I took this morning on my walk

This morning when I got up it was cold but bright and sunny. I went for a little walk around the park and looked at the beautiful views over Lac St-Augustin. It really is a beautiful setting, just too bad us techno folks can’t do without our communications gear. After breakfast both of us walked up to the office and got our refund for the rest of the week, then back and packed up. We left Camping Juneau shortly after 10:00 a.m. and with very little traffic on Hwy 73 proceeded to cross the St. Lawrence and arrived at Camping Transit within ½ hr or so. We were set up by about 12:30 p.m. complete with internet and TV so we’re here for a week at least. The good thing about this campground is that it’s $99.00 plus tax for a week. There are no scenic views but it’s a nice clean open campground with a nice laundry room.

Thanks to Carolyn for putting us in touch with this campground.

I got the laundry and vacuuming done and made a pot of stew. It’s supposed to rain tonight and except for this morning, its been mostly cloudy with some sunny breaks. Sure hope it’s a nice week. We’ve got a lot to see here!

We’re hoping to take a side trip to the Gaspé so will probably stay a couple of days there. It will be different to stay in a motel for a change. We were in the Gaspé in 1994 and wanted to go back so since we’re so close we may as well go. This is something we wouldn’t have been able to do with Bib.

We Arrived in Quebec City

We left Ottawa Municipal Campground at 8:15 a.m. Sunday morning, crossed the border into Quebec at 9:55 a.m. and were through the worst of Montreal around 11:00 a.m. We arrived at Camping Juneau near Quebec City at about 1:45 p.m. We checked in but it didn’t look like the site she had allotted to us would access the internet so she said she had one down by the lake and we should be able to get internet there as it was south-facing. NOT! This was a tight squeeze and not easy to get into but Gordon did a good job backing into it. He tried to site in the internet satellite but there was no way, just too many trees. We were mostly set up at this point however back to the office we went and told her that we couldn’t get our internet signal so she suggested other sites but the place is surrounded by trees so I asked her if she would refund our money and she said she would. We told her we would stay tonight and look for another campground. It’s really too bad as the view is very pretty from our back window which overlooks Lac St-Augustin. I would say that next to Double M in Lindsay this is the best view we’ve had from right out our back window.

This is our site

This is our view

One of my internet friends who reads my blog had suggested a campground at Levis, QC so off we went in search of it. We found it and Gordon thinks we shouldn’t have any problem accessing the internet and TV satellites from there. It is quite a ways outside of Levis and the only road across the river is under construction and backed up forever but there is a ferry that runs from downtown Levis to Old Quebec so we’ll probably use that to get across the river while we’re here. We’re scheduled to head to Camping Transit tomorrow.

We drove around Levis and found the ferry terminal but were unable to find any open wifi networks to post our location so everyone will have to wait with baited breath for tomorrow.

So no internet tonight and we’re using the aerial for TV and they don’t get CTV so I miss the season premiere of Desperate Housewives! We get CBC and Global in English only. I’m tired anyway so will probably have an early night. I kept waking up last night every hour as I wanted to get up early so we could get on the road early. I did get up at 6:30 a.m. which is why we got away so early today.

Getting Ready to Leave Ottawa

Yuck! I got up this morning to rain although it wasn’t cold. It was raining hard enough that I decided to forego my walk. Around 10:30 a.m. the rain stopped for a while so I took a short walk making sure I wasn’t far from the RV in case a downpour started.

I have had a minor medical problem this week and couldn’t decide what to do about it so this morning I decided to go to our doctor’s after hours replacement clinic just to have a check so I called this morning and made an appointment for 1:30 p.m. I left here at 11:00 a.m. and headed over as the clinic is in the Carlingwood Shopping Centre so I walked around there, bought Gordon some splash pants, he’ll probably need them tomorrow. The doctor checked me out, told me it was nothing to worry about and sent me on my way. The problem with having medical attention before you leave is with travelers medical insurance your pre-existing condition has to be stable for six months. If you have a recurrence of the pre-existing condition while away, it isn’t covered. I think this is terrible. It makes people afraid to seek medical help in case they should have a recurrence while away and it wouldn’t be covered. That could be financially devastating! They should just charge extra for pre-existing conditions. I expect this would also make payment for claims quicker as the claims department wouldn't have to contact your doctor to verify that the condition is pre-existing. Oh well, I guess that might make travel insurance too expensive for most people.

After I got back, I watched TV for a while and read, tried to take a nap and then the sun came out so away I went on a walk and took a few photos. The sun wasn’t out long nor was it very strong.

Tomorrow is not supposed to be a very nice day but we’ve made the commitment to leave so leave we will. Forecast is for rain following us east and thunderstorms. We really hate travelling in rain but we've made a reservation, another thing we hate to do for just this reason. Anyway, we went out tonight to get fueled up. Diesel has gone down to 82.9. It was 87.9 a week ago. That’s always nice to see. We hope to get started early tomorrow morning but we’ll see!

I took today's photo in the campground.

Friday's Happenings

It was sunny and cool this morning for my walk. Our electric blanket worked really well last night, maybe too well. I had it turned down as low as it would go and wound up turning it off but it did it's job warming the bed before I got in!

I had asked Gordon last night if he wanted meat loaf or chili for dinner and he chose chili. It’s probably been well over a year since I made it. I used to have the recipe in my head so this morning I made chili and I guessed at the recipe. I could have looked one up on the internet but decided to wing it and it turned out pretty well.

Late this morning I headed out to do more errands. I had to go and pick up a prescription for Gordon that they will only give him month to month. They didn’t want to give it to me. I can’t imagine what will happen next month when I ask for six months’ worth.

This afternoon we relaxed and watched some TV as it had mostly clouded over outside although it wasn’t cold. Around 5:00 p.m. Gordon told me that one of the hard drives in the Desktop PC had died so he removed it and we headed out to buy a new one. We wound up at PC Cyber in Bells Corners where we got the hard drive as well as extra memory for his PDA so I inherit his old card that was in his PDA. I have been getting a window telling me that I’m running out of memory on my PDA for quite a while now so it appears we’re all set up and upgraded.

I was supposed to hear from our US travel medical insurance today about my excess hospital account that they didn't pay but no phone call. Hopefully I'll hear at the beginning of the week or I'll be back on the phone again.

We’re getting excited about heading to Quebec City. Gordon thinks we may be there for two weeks depending on the weather. If next week doesn’t bring good weather maybe the following week will. Good weather to him means good photographing weather.

Season premieres tonight of Ghost Whisperer, Close to Home and Law & Order!

I didn’t take any photos today so you’ll have to make do with my mundane drivel.

Errands and A Walk in the Woods

Me at the campground in my new green vest

Photos below from our walk in the woods

Today was sunny and cold when I got up 3C (37F). I decided to walk within the campground hoping again to see some wildlife. This time I lucked out and saw three deer but they were too quick for me to get my camera ready. There was a lady from Germany walking behind me and I stopped to talk with her for a while. She spoke some English but we managed to communicate. Her English was definitely better than my German. They had rented an RV on the internet last November and she said it was much cheaper than renting it before they came. They were enjoying their trip and really liked Ottawa.

After breakfast and Regis and Kelly Live I went out to pick up some things. I stopped at WalMart and found an electric blanket for $99.92. I didn’t buy it but we are wanting one to replace our electric mattress pad which isn’t working that well. When it’s cold I like my bed to be warm when I get into it and the mattress pad just isn’t cutting it.

We have decided to stay here till Sunday and then leave for Quebec City. We like to travel through large cities on Sundays so that’s why we’ve elected to stay here till Sunday. We may be traveling in the rain but we’ll have to deal with that.

It was a really beautiful Fall afternoon so we went out and did some errands. First stop was to book our time here in October at Rideau Heights from October 16^th to 25^th, then on to WalMart and bought our electric blanket. Then we headed back toward the campground and parked in the parking area for the P3 trail on Corkstown Road. We walked quite a ways on the trail. It was quite pretty and reminded me of walking in the forest in my childhood. We took some photos there then headed back to the RV and packed up some of the outside stuff and put up the awning as after today it’s supposed to be rainy so probably won’t be spending much time outside. We also like to put the awning up when it’s dry so it doesn’t smell mildewy. Then we came inside and put the new electric blanket on the bed and disconnected our electric mattress pad. We want to be sure it works before we leave Ottawa and it seems to be fine. We’ll know tonight. It’s supposed to get down to 4C (39F)!

Cloudy, Cool and a Visit

This morning was cloudy and cool but at least there was no rain so got in my 20 minute walk. It remained cloudy all morning so we watched TV and did internet stuff. Gordon’s friend, Leroy was talking to him via internet so he went to Leroy’s for 11:30 a.m.

I hung around the RV, watched TV, had a shower, called One World Assist, the insurance carrier for our US travel medical insurance as the hospital is indicating that they have no contract with our insurer and therefore they can bill us for the amount over and above what the insurance paid. This time I got to speak to a really nice lady who indicated that their group doing the negotiations was contacting the hospital again to get this straightened out. She is to contact me on Friday with an update. Sure hope we are both healthy this winter when we’re away. We have gone with the same insurer for the winter and I know having worked in Auto Claims for 26 years that these things don’t happen over night but I would really like to see the end of this! I think other than the hospital all the other carriers have accepted the negotiated amounts as I haven’t heard from anyone else.

Since I didn’t take any photos today I’m featuring a few that Gordon has taken lately while we’ve been here in Ottawa. A couple were taken here in the park and the others are Ottawa scenes taken at night.

The Alexandra Bridge

The Museum of Civilization with Parliament Hill in the background

Tonight we went to Margie and John’s for a visit before we leave Ottawa for some short trips. We haven’t decided exactly where yet but are thinking of Quebec City and then Montreal. If so, we’ll probably leave Sunday morning so we can get through Montreal on Sunday when the traffic will hopefully be better. The only problem is it’s supposed to rain on Sunday. Unfortunately Danica had just left so we missed her but while we were there, Nick dropped in on his way back from Pembroke with the ambulance so it was good to see him especially since he was in uniform. I also got a beautiful bright green vest which was an exchange gift from one I got on my birthday that didn’t fit. Thanks again to Margie, John and Danica.

Margie was on vacation last week and she and John took a couple of days and went to Quebec City. They brought us a whole bunch of literature and brochures which is one of the reasons we are probably going there and also because it’s a place Gordon has wanted to go back to with his camera.

We got back in time to watch the season premiere of Criminal Minds.

I often find myself quoting my father or saying “Dad would have said this”. Here’s a little poem he used to recite when we were kids:

A wonderful bird is the pelican

His bill will hold more than his belican

He can take in his beak

Enough food for a week

But I’m damned if I know how the helican.

I always thought it was cute and true! The pelican was one of Dad’s favourite birds when he went to Florida. He came back with all sorts of pelican knickknacks and I’m sure we all had them in our houses.

A Visit and More Errands

I woke up to rain this morning so although I’m not a fair weather walker and if it’s just sprinkling I will go however this was rain, so no walk. It’s supposed to rain most of the week too so we may not be leaving here on Friday (unless our spot has been rented out to someone else).

We got an email yesterday from our friend from Ohio, Mel. He and Janice visited us here in June. Since then Janice has had some rather serious medical problems and has recently had surgery and is in the hospital. We are thinking of her and hoping she gets well soon! Pictured above is Mel and Janice at the Museum of Science and Technology that I took when we visited there in June.

I took my extra Nexium last night and my throat is already improving. I can swallow now without it hurting so I will take two per day for the next week. My body aches seem to be gone but I’m still not feeling 100% and I don’t think the rain helps.

Around 11:00 a.m. the rain stopped and the sun came out. YEAH! A friend of mine from my former employer, Breconridge dropped by to see us at lunch time. It was good to see John again and have a chat. I had seen him when I went into work in May but it’s not the same. He is envious of our lifestyle and has been checking out the Titanium since we went on the road in 2004. He needs an MPRV for his motorcycle though.

After John left, I went to take my sneakers back to Sears as they bother my back but the outlet for Sears in Bells Corners wouldn’t take them back as I had worn them. So off I went to WalMart in Barrhaven and got what I needed to get, stopped at our vet on Greenbank to tell him to close our file then went to the Sears Home Store where they did take back my sneakers. On my way to Barrhaven I was going south on Richmond Road and just before the Esso station there was a little fawn on the side of the road. He was so cute.

From there, home I went, then went out for my walk that I missed this morning. It was partly cloudy for most of my walk and the pictures above and below reflect that but it was very pleasant outside. I also stopped at the office to find out where you go when you go through the gate at the back of the property (like Alice through the looking glass?) They told me not to go back there as that’s where they throw brush and stuff but I’ve already been back there and there is a trail. One of the maintenance guys said it will take you right to Carling Avenue if you don’t get lost but they don’t recommend walking in there as it’s NCC property however there isn’t a NO TRESPASSING sign.

A Nothing Monday

It was cloudy and fairly warm on my walk this morning. I didn’t really feel like going as I’m still not feeling all that well but I went, then went out and got some errands done so this afternoon I’ve been resting. I still feel achy and my throat is sore which usually means my GERD is acting up so I’ll be increasing my Nexium today. Don’t think that has anything to do with the achy feeling though.

I have been keeping my fruit outside in a hanging basket but Gordon had to bring it in early this morning as there was a little raccoon that was trying to help himself in the wee hours. I guess I’ll have to keep it inside until we’re out of raccoon territory. In the southern US, you see RVs all the time with fruit hanging from them. I had put it outside as we were getting fruit flies and they are really annoying!

Nothing else to write about for today. Hope I feel better tomorrow.

Not Much Going On Today!

Today has been mostly cloudy with a few sunny breaks and some wind. When I walked this morning it was cloudy but fairly warm. I walked farther than usual. I guess that gave me the energy to do the vacuuming and wash the floors this morning.

Gordon tried his farm fresh eggs this morning but said he didn’t see much difference.

After lunch I sat outside for a while but it didn’t seem to be that kind of day. It was warm when the sun came out but cool with the wind when there was no sun so I came back inside and spent some time on the computer.

Late this afternoon I started feeling achy from the back of my neck, all down my back and into my legs. My doctor has always said for body aches, take Tylenol so I’ve done that and I think it’s a little better but I’m still feeling kind of yucky.

No photos today so I’ve borrowed one from Gordon again.