Couple more photos.

Couple more photos here.
Skunk man came today to evict - my only fear is that I saw a family of racoons looking at the des res one evening this week - just what we need - there'll be bleedin bears moving in next......

Long weekend

OD mercifully dragged me away from DIY - I have to say, digging up and double-bagging asbestos tiles wearing a full face mask in mid-80's heat was proving a little tedious.
We took a risk and headed up the squamish river valley - a risk because the whole of Vancouver seems to go camping on the early August long weekend, and we were heading up on Sunday night.
Ended up at quite a cool campsite, camped on the banks of the Squamish River (temp approx freezing - isn't ice only because it somehow manages to keep moving....), watched the sun set over mountains, glaciers etc and listened to the distant sound of rednecks partying....
Next day, went for a drive up the valley - about 40ks on dirt roads, and found some genius spots to camp for the future - also sparked the idea that we might need to buy a 4x4 - oh yes.
Outrageous scenery - even after a year and a half, still can't believe this stuff is just up the road.

Folk Fest

Somehow, OD managed to trick me into attending a folk festival.
Was actually tres jolly, especially 'cos of the nalgene filled with Rioja (curiously puritanical views re alcohol at public occasions in BC, so meant to be an ethanol free zone).
Hols ran around like a hippy child, the sun sat over the ocean, bonkers music played and everyone had a fun time - I'd even do it again. Imagine that.

Skunks!

So, one of the unexpected joys of living in BC is the fascinating parade of different wildlife we get exposed to - we knew that an old, blind-looking skunk lived in the area, but OD was surprised to see a gaggle of junior skunks playing around on the side deck one afternoon - even worse, they appeared to be living under the back of the house......
One 'skunk-expert', a quick look under the side deck, and a phase of demolition later, we're now in a position to evict our unwanted Pepe LePeu guests - lets see if the trap-door works.....

Demolishing the deck revealed a whole new realm of building nightmares, so I'm currently in a phase of reconstructing the drainage behind the house - we filled a 20yd skip in a weekend and removed a load of junk that the previous owners kindly left for us - the work will never stop.