September 25, 2012

Men's Walking Group

Eight guys walked from McGhee Creek Trestle up hillside from Butler Rd - 8 Km - perfect weather.

Trying to get glimpse of forest fire but no luck.

Halfway up the steep part.

A couple guys took the low road.

A big crater dug - but for what?

A view of Shawnigan Lake.

We all enjoyed the view.

Energy recharge.

September 24, 2012

men's walking group

Hi Gang

    Well we had a good walk and workout today, Starting at Mc Gee creak on west side of Shawnigan. We could only see the smoke from, the fire off to the north of us, But we did have a good view of Shawnigan Lake. Jim didn't tell me how meny steps we took, ha

Next week we will leave the Legion at the normal time 8:30 and hike Cable Bay this side of Naniamo and have lunch at the Crow & Gate getting back to the Legion by 2pm. Tks

September 18, 2012

Womens Walking Group

Eleven walkers did 6K in the Mill Bay area from Frayne
Centre through Sentinel Ridge.We had a few hills to climb but
spectacular views when we reached the top.We also saw
some beautiful landscaping done with flowers,shrubs,and
trees.A stop at Serious Coffee was made before returning.
Next monday the 24th. the walk will be at Spectacle Lake.
Come join us and enjoy some of the last rays of summer.V.M.

Womens Walking Group

We made it to the top

A dwarf Mountain Ash

View from Sentinel Ridge to Whisky Point

Easy care landscaping

Unless the weeds take over !
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September 17, 2012

men's walking group

Today there were only 5 of us so we forwent the big tree's walk and went to Burned bridge, Interesting walk along the other side of the river. Starting down the stair's on the way to the Kinsol trestle, 4 and 1/2 kilometers for all the walker's except me, When I got home Helen wanted to walk down to Tim's for a coffee so I put on  another 4 k for a total of 8 & 1/2 k for the day. ha ha. Anyway we will try for the Big trees next week, Bill will check and see if the gate is open, If not we will do a different local walk okay? And  the week after we will hike Cabble Bay with lunch at the Crow & Gate the 1st of October. Tks

September 12, 2012

Womens Walking Group

Six walkers did 8.1K, 2 did 6.4K starting from Briarwood
and through the woods around the Mill Springs area.It is
now difficult to follow local trails without going by a sub-
division.Coffee and goodies were appreciated before the
walk back.Next monday the 17th we meet at the Legion
at 9:30 am. A thank you to Joyce and Marianne for
driving.
The following photos were taken by Joan Stone. V.M.

Womens Walking Group

Some pebbles at a construction site

An eight-spotted Skimmer

Attractive fungi

Heres lookin' atcha !
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September 11, 2012

Computer/Photography grp.

Hi All,
First of all, some minor changes to be aware of.
1) We will change our meeting times on Tuesdays to 10:30 - 12:30 to accomodate the members that also want to do the Joomba execise program.
2) The way it looks right now, I will be away for 2 weeks. That doesn't mean you hava a holiday though. I'm giving you homework with assignments to discuss points in the meetings.
Just so you know - we will have pop quizzes when I come back!
I have included in the emails sent to the group members, by attachment a PDF file called "Internet Safety". It is a many page document from "Ask Leo" who I have talked about before. I think it is a very informative document that provides reasonable suggestions about how to protect yourself on the Internet without becoming paranoid about it.
My suggestion for next Tuesday is for everyone to look at this document and even if you don't read it all, look at what Leo is suggesting and be prepared to talk about some of his suggestions - pro and/or con.
Ed

September 10, 2012

Tai Chi group

Tai Chi s a good exercise for the body, mind & spirit.  It improves your breathing, circulation, balance and strengthens your muscles.  It is a very low impact exercise with slow stretching movements.  It is challenging learning the movements but with patience and consistency, it is a healthy way of feeling good and it is fun.  You do this for yourself and there is no competing with anyone.  This class is a fun class, so come and join us.  Tai Chi classes start on Friday Sept. 14th.  Beginners:  9:00 AM - 9: 45 AM and Intermediates 10:00 - 11:00 AM.   

men's walking group

Hi Gang
 Well its nice to be back in our regular walking routine again. Thanks for the picture of today's walk Ed. 8 of us did 7 km mostly on path's in the woods. Thanks for driving Ed & Denis. Next week we plan on hiking out to the Big Trees .Regular times, leave the Legion at 8:30 am returning by 12 noon, any new walker are welcome to join us  TKS

Men's Walking Group

The men walked on trails and back roads close to Mill Bay and took a coffee time out at A&W. It was a relaxed walk(we didn't want to stress ourselves too much at the beginning of the season). Also, it is tough to walk and talk at the same time.
Below are some of the things we saw.
Ed

Let's see - 7 supervisors to one worker on the roof - that's a good ratio!
That big culvert was washed out about 3 years ago.
Hmmm - I like this photographer!
Yes! and I like Bill more for feeding me.
I want some attention too!

September 9, 2012

Photography Group

Hello Photographers,
This Tuesday we will start the photography season discussing amera flash and how to use it.
Please bring your cameras, manual and a tripod if you have one. We will do some hands on practice with discussion.
In addition here is something to think about
This article makes one think about photography in a quite different (light?). We have always been told that photography is all about light. It turns out it really is all about dark. The camera spews out dark and the amount of dark escaping is controlled by the aperture and shutter speed. When too much dark escapes, a white image is recorded. There is an exception to this rule of course. If you consider "red eye", the red colour is sucked back from the person's eyes. This can make the person in the image quite unhappy.
Many camera flash units are actually dark sippers in that their sucking action is affective only for short distances. This needs to be kept in mind when using you flash.

September 4, 2012

Womens Walking Group

Eight walked 6.6 K at the Kinsol Trestle and beyond. We
noticed some changes and improvements.The Trestle looked
quite majestic in the sunlight with all its new timber.We saw
beaver dams and damaged debarked trees on the pond.
Thank you to the drivers.Next monday the 10th we will meet
at the Legion for the walk.Everyone is welcome to join the
walkers.Learn more about our local areas,enjoy some
exercise and some chatting.      V.M.

Womens Walking Group

A debarked tree beside the beaver dam

The base of a tree destroyed by the beavers

The lineup for the horse ride

Kinsol Trestle
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Womens Walking Group

Ten walkers did 6.4K on the Cable Bay Trail.Thanks to Carol
and Trevor for directions.Interesting viewpoints where we saw
the Gabriola and Departure Bay ferries.Lunch at the Crow
and Gate was delicious when we were finally served. Thanks
to the walkers who carried tables, chairs, and cutlery outdoors
so that we were able to have lunch.Also a thank you to our
drivers.   V.M.

Womens Walking Group

Viewpoint with Harmac,Duke Point and Departure Bay in background

Wonder if a critter lives here

Lunch at the Crow and Gate

A lovely flower garden - By Joan Stone
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September 3, 2012

Men's Walking Group

Panoramic shot of the Quarry. 
And from the other side.

 

It was quite peaceful until the Canada Geese arrived.

Jim, Robert and myself had a leisurely stroll around the Quarry today - still about 5 Km.

September 2, 2012


Hello Computer/Photography group,
Well, that was a short summer, wasn't it? It is time for us to again get serious about computers and their weird and mysterious workings. An example of this is the problem of how to get to post on this Blog from Picasa. Vera sent me an email about not being able to do it and I just tried and it does not work for me either.
So, the first order of business on Tuesday, Sept.4 is to see what is happening and hopefully get it working again.
On Sept. 11 we will focus on Photography.

Here are 2 pictures from our recent camping trip to Horne Lake Caves. We did the self guided tour and really enjoyed it. The guided tour was $24 per person, so for 4 people just about $100(we did not do that). I will explain on Tuesday how I got them into this post from Picasa.

Some of the interesting formations in the cave.
Here is Alice, Mark(son) and Ashton(grandson).