Saturday, July 4, 2009

Canada Day - the Way it was Meant to Be!

Hola bloggies:

Sorry for the unexpected absence in the last couple of days. I got back to work after my wonderful day off (O' Canada) and immediately got slammed with work. In fact on Thursday I worked all day and most of the night. I barely slept. Then yesterday I went to work and kept on writing my appeal. Filed it and then headed off to do interviews for a two day trial next week. I didn't get home until 11:30pm (!). Eek!!!

I don't know about you - but I think I earned my weekend. Big time. :o)


I bet you're all wondering how my Canada Day went - it was GLORIOUS!!!

I don't know that I have enough superlatives to tell you how absolutely wonderful it was and how much fun I had! I now have the answer to the question "What do people do in the Rockies for fun?"

I have to admit being a city girl through and through I sometimes miss the conveniences of my big city life. But my Canada Day outing made me want to give up my city slicker ways and become outdoorsy! lol

It all started as we made our way to a local mountain lake to inflate our raft. We were greeted by stunning scenery (my picture doesn't do the place justice):


Amazing.

We got in the raft and proceeded to make our way down to the river. But first one of the people on our trip did a quick bit of fly fishing. And he caught a fish!!! In no time at all!!

He then gave it a kiss and let it go. lol Turns out he does it just for sport. He wouldn't eat the fish but likes playing around. In fact he has in the past been a fly fishing guide down that very river. It was amazing to see how he knew every twist and turn of that wonderful river. Like the back of his hand.


We rafted for hours down some gorgeous scenery. The river wasn't too high and consequently not too crazy but I wasn't bothered too much. I still paddled and paddled. I wanted to make sure I got my workout in. :oP And boy did I ever!!! In fact it hurt to hold my files the next day. Hahahah! I loved it!!!

Eventually we stopped in a beach area and unpacked a glorious picnic. Everyone contributed something - whether it be homemade beer using maple syrup (I don't even like beer and I can say it was great), freshly baked breads, hummus, olives, cold cuts, desserts, more beer. lol

It was awesome! Check out the spread!

First here we are getting ready to unpack things:


Oooo la la! Here's everything out and about (or as much as I could capture in one shot):


It was truly a gourmet spread! And see that salmon? It was probably my favourite part! lol Although I will admit that for a second I wondered if a grizzly would smell it and pay us a visit. Thankfully no grizzlies came a calling.

And here is my plate:


Picture the plate above a couple of times over (but without the salami). The follow ups were mostly veggies, olives, and smoked salmon. Perfection.

Oh and I took care of dessert. I was going to bake but it was REALLY hot so I decided to pick something up instead. I'd say it still worked out pretty well.


Canada Day cupcakes!


Maple fudge!


And fresh local cherries!!!

Frankly it was too hot for me to have sweets so I just ate a handful of cherries. Then we were off! For a couple of more hours of rafting before it was time to head home.


I loved every moment of my adventure bloggies. I couldn't think of a better way to enjoy Canada Day than to be out in the glorious outdoors. And I had so much fun on the water I'm considering getting a kayak (one of my co-workers has volunteered to teach me)!

O' Canada indeed!!!!

Now I'm off bloggies - I'm heading on an impromptu overnight trip to the Calgary Stampede!!!!!!!! Yee-haw! LOL

It's not my usual type of thing but I figure when in (or near) Rome . . . :oP Besides it's probably the only time I'll attend in my life. Tonight we're heading to the chuck wagon races and then sticking around for the grandstand show featuring performers, singers, fireworks, and the winner of SYTYCD Canada. Then tomorrow it's Rodeo time. I'll make sure to take lots of pics!!!

I've scheduled a post for tonight and I'll write again when I get back tomorrow. Time to go find my cowboy and head on out of town! :o)

But before I go - A Very Happy 4th of July to all my American friends! Have a wonderful weekend!!!!

4 comments:

Erin said...

Yay for a fun Canada Day celebration! I cannot believe that is your local lake! Gorgeous.

Marlene said...

Sounds like a fantastic way to spend the day!

Marianne (frenchfriestoflaxseeds) said...

Fun rafting trip - too bad there we no rapids, they are pretty fun, although you end up soaking wet. I need to try out rafting here in BC.

And you should totally get into kayaking - it's great!

A Toronto girl out West said...

Erin,

It is gorgeous. :o) It's part of the great thing about living in the Rockies (lakes like that)! Having said that all of British Columbia is pretty spectacular.

And I say that as a completely unbiased Toronto girl!

Marlene,

It was a fantabulous way to spend the day!!!


Marianne,

There were some rapids but they weren't as hard core as they usually are. It's okay though - I've done hard core whitewater rafting before. And don't you worry - I still managed to get kind of soaked! lol