Sept 24th:Day 36

The weather turned foul again for our ferry to Salt Spring island. We spent the two hour trip slouched in our seats reading magazines and sipping tea. Didn't take any pictures.

Had a nice lunch in Ganges the drove to our cabin near Fulford harbour.

Elfies' place cabin.

Sept 23rd:Day 35

After a sunny breakfast outside the hotel cafe we drove into Vancouver on an errand. Our destination turned out to be down near Granville market so we had some take out fish chowder sitting outside listening to the ubiquitous peruvian band playing strange pan flute versions of Beatles and Carpenters songs. After lunch we did some recreational food shopping. Needless to say, I frigging love that place.  We bought some mushroom stuffed ravioli and some sage for a simple dinner as well as some fresh fruit and museli for breakfast. The ravioli was delicious. 

Sept 22nd:Day 34

Vinnie got his first taste of sea water during his morning ramble. The tide was way out so we took him out onto the tidal flats. There were a lot of locals out there with their dogs as well. It was a bright, sparkley morning.

He likes it.

We spent the day poking around White Rock and had a late lunch of fresh oysters, salad and pinot gris. Then back to the suite for a nap.

By the time we had decided to get dinner, most of the restaurants had closed so we took what we could get which turned out to be some pretty good indian takeout.

Sept 21st:Day 33

A big day as we planned to finally reach the coast at White Rock. We had breakfast in the room and drove out of Kelowna in the rain. The drive would probably be a stunner in fair weather but the clouds were low and the rain was constant.

 We couldn't see the peaks except for the occasional glimpse but there many small waterfalls tumbling down the green mountainsides.

 At some point we drove out of the rain and by the time we reached White Rock the sun was shining.

Holy shit, the ocean!!

I must have used my sexy voice when I made the reservation because we were given an enormous suite with a full kitchen, living room, two bathrooms and a balcony with an ocean view.

We were finally able to sit outside and enjoy some of that fine Okanagan wine.

We went to Moby Dick's fish and chips for dinner. Their fish and chips are freshly made and awesome. Lorraine ordered them but for some reason I didn't. Instead, I had the fried oysters which had obviously come from a box in the freezer. Lorraine pitied me.

We decided to stay for two more days.

Sept 20th:Day 32

Another rainy day of wine touring. I don't remember the order but these are the wineries we visited:

Therapy. Great wines. Great packaging.

Laughing Stock. Great wines and super clever packaging. We really liked the Blind Trust blends.

Township 7. Didn't like the wines at the time but in retrospect we think our palates were kinda dead. We haven't seen them in stores yet but if we do we'll give them another chance.

Heading north along the western shore of the lake we passed through the towns of Summerland and Peachland. They sound cute and they were.

We stopped for a leg stretch and a swim at a little campground that would be awesome in nice weather.

The clouds were very low and the colours were muted.

The final stop on the day's wine tour was Quails Gate which is basically in Kelowna. 

The skies cleared briefly before a thunder storm rolled in.

Good wine.

 The affordable, pet friendly, free WiFi accommodations that we found on line turned out to be kind of seedy and located in the armpit of Kelowna.

We did find a good Chinese restaurant for dinner. 

Sept 19th:Day 31

The day begins with me walking Vinnie on the beach in a light rain while Lorraine fixes fruit and yoghurt bowls for breakfast. We bought some Oso Negro coffee for our bodum and it's friggin delicious.

The rain continued off and on for our day of wine touring.

Our first stop was Burrowing Owl. The tasting bar was lined up so we just bought a bottle of merlot and left.

Next was Silver Sage. These people make awful, awful wine. Possibly worse than the wine we occasionally received from our neighbour who bought it in plastic buckets and decanted it into old Baccardi rum bottles.

Next was Church and State winery. This was the discovery of the trip. Great wines and a super cool modern winery. Their Syrah, Meritage blend and Pinot Noir are all excellent.

They also have a nice dog exercising area.

Next up was Road 13 winery. Good wine.

Then Tinhorn Creek. Excellent wine, especially the merlot.

Then up to a little vineyard and winery called Fairview where we tasted with the owner and wine maker. Excellent straight forward wine. Bought the cabernet sauvignon and the Madcap blend.

There was a little trail out into the scrub so we stopped and took a walk.

Every plant seemed to be some kind of fragrant, woody herb. The damp air smelled of sage and lavender. These herby notes seemed to be present in the local wines as well.

We drove into Penticton in the rain and stayed at a Super 8.

There was a Whole Foods next door so we did some shopping and had some take out salads for dinner.