The finished project

Just finished preparing the trailer for winter. The animals are fat and ready for winter too. The park is almost full again this weekend. Lots of winter warriors preparing for the snow season as well. Many new campers here this winter wandering around asking lots of questions of past winter campers. We also had a little excitement this morning. A Class C motorhome burned to the ground on site 26 in Ash Woods. Basically by the time the fire department arrived it was too late. The occupants of the borrowed unit had just left for a hike.

The Big Erection Day 1

Day one of preparing our trailer for the oncoming arrival of winter in port Elgin which as some of you know is just south of "The Hamptons". Today's high was hovering around 3° C with intermittent snow showers, that's right I said the S word. Had the help of Jen and her boyfriend Mike. Tomorrow we hope to get the tarp covering on and then winterize the plumbing system. Lots of campers arrived in the park yesterday and today. The park was a hive of activity today with the sounds of sawing and hammering. Took Jen and Mike out to dinner at Allan's Fireside Grill before they headed back to Hamilton.

Getting ready for winter

Our winter camping is set to begin this week with our arrival in MacGregor Point PP. We had originally planned on arriving on Tuesday October 30th to begin the setup and help our friends prepare their rig for winter as well. However, hurricane sandy has changed our plans as it is now supposed to rain until Friday and with our past history I am not working on a wet rubber roof 12 ft above the ground in the rain, call me chicken if you must, but I don't bounce well anymore. Our new plan is to arrive Thursday and begin the setup of our rig Friday and Saturday with the help of our kids and friends then help our friends the next weekend. This is all contingent on the weather of course. We will keep you posted as we go.

Algonquin Park Rendezvous

Well it has been a long time since our last post, but we have been in a very poor reception area and unable to get a good signal. That changed yesterday when we purchased a Bell hub. We now have a very good signal and should be able to post from most locations as Bell has the widest coverage area in Ontario and especially in rural areas. Kerry and I have been busy this past week with hiking and other outdoor activities here. The weather has been perfect for hiking and boating and biking cool and not too humid. We have enjoyed many meals with friends both in our new trailer and at others trailers as well. We have had our children and grand kids with us for a weekend early in September.

Moose on Mizzy Lake trail

View from lake of two rivers trail early september

Hwy 60 view

Tom and Hugh paddling zodiac with broken motor

Canoe lake reflection

Heading west on Hwy 60 early last friday

View from Opeongo road lookout

Opeongo Lake road lookout

Tree roots around large rock on old lookout trail

View from old lookout trail October 3rd

New Toys for Tommy

Here are the newest acquisitions to the Blunt camping family

Algonquin July 22,2012

Arrived in Algonquin on Sunday July 22,2012 after a long and uneventful drive from our storage site near hamilton. The park had just upgraded the fire restriction to a total ban as of the day before. We are really looking forward to being "home" for a couple weeks.
Monday:      Returned to Hamilton for emergency root canal for Kerry.
Tuesday:      Kerry in a great deal of pain with tooth, Tylenol 3 not helping
Wednesday   Pain still high no relief. Kerry still thinks it will get better
Thursday:     No relief from pain, does not want to go into town to see Dentist or call our own
Friday:        After a week of complete bed rest and lots of pills still no relief.
Saturday:     Finally, Kerry relents and we go into Huntsville to seek medical attention. The Dr. we
                    saw suggests an abcessed root canal and prescribes better pain meds and more        antibiotics.
                    The new meds work almost immediately and for the first time Kerry is pain free.
Sunday:       Despite feeling better tooth is now draining and we have decided to cut short our trip
                    and return home.
Monday:     Today we saw our own Dentist and hopefully Kerry is on the mend. 

 

 

 

Highlight of trip.

Pictured above is a nice buck with antlers still in velvet. We saw this on Monday on our way back into the park after root canal. In addition we saw Female Moose with 2 calves, Doe, fawn and another deer. It was quite a day.

Post Paris Test

Tom with an old wooden clock

Winged Victory

A Sphynx

Moulin Rouge

Winter Program 2012/2013

Kerry and I are happy to report that we will be returning to Macgregor for the winter again on site 44. We are looking forward to meeting both old friends and make new acquaintances. We will be holding the coffee and goodies party in April again so mark your calendars. Kerry and I are also looking for some help in organizing the welcome potluck dinner as well.

Day 22 Home sweet home

Hi all. I can't begin to tell you all just how good it feels to be back home. We had a lovely flight home on Air Canada today leaving Paris at 1100hrs local time and we arrived in Toronto at 1325 hrs. Yes we were a day late but in the long run it was probably safer for Kerry to fly as she did. As a medical patient on a flight home we received the royal treatment. Met at the airport terminal by an airport rep who ushered us around from station to station jumping in front of lines and then ushered to the first class lounge to wait for the flight. About half an hour before the flight another rep showd up with a wheel chair and pushed us right to the plane again past all the lines and almost right to out first class seats, which turned into beds. Kerry slept the whole way home except for a fabulous meal served on china with real silverware. Then she went back to sleep for the rest of the flight. All in all we had a great time on our travels and even the last 5 days in Paris although were very stressful for us we met some really nice people and enjoyed everything we could. Now back to camping and fishing and golf.

Day 18 Just a perfect end to our time in Paris

Today was to be our third of 6 days in Paris. It started off well then went downhill rapidly. Despite our best efforts we became lost many times while trying to find our way around. We don't know if it's us or the maps. Probably us though. Next up we lost our transit pass and we were able to replace it but that was our 2nd strike so we returned home and prepared for our dinner at the Eiffel Tower. On our way out of the apartment Kerry fell down some stairs and broke her left leg. We spent several hours in ER then home by taxi after sightseeing around Paris trying to find a pharmacy that was open on a holiday day so we could buy the meds, crutches (believe it or not) and a zimmer splint. Now we are waiting for the insurance company to arrange our flight home. This time in Paris has really opened my eyes to traveling in a foreign country and not being able to communicate with the local people. I know now what others have felt in Canada when traveling to us. This will be my last post until we are home.

Day 17 Paris and the Louvre

Day 2 in Paris found us walking to the Eiffel Tower from our apartment and then off to the Louvre on foot. This proved to be a big mistake as it took us nearly 2hrs to get there and we were already tired. If you have ever been there you know it is massive. We arrived at 1100 and left at 6 and still need to go back again to see the main things we missed and really wanted to see. We really should have taken the bus there but live and learn. We have decided to go some where else tomorrow, I think Montmartre. We also have a wine tasting at three and dinner at the Eiffel tower at 1830 hrs. On a positive note we were only approached by two pickpockets but escaped unscathed thanks to a local who clued us in to the first type. Two young girls and ask you for a signature to support the poor children and as for a donation. If you give it to them then they try to relieve you of other things. We have decided that anyone who approaches us is probably a pickpocket so we are just going to tell them all to SOD off.

Entrance to the Louvre. Thank goodness we have our paris pass.

Of course we had to see the Mona Lisa.

Day 16 Off to Paris we go.

Today we left the ship and flew to Paris arriving at 1230hrs. Paris shuttle picked us up and delivered us to our home in Paris. The apartment is a typical small walk up in Paris. It is about 800 square feet. We spent most of the afternoon shopping for groceries for the week and doing some laundry.

Day 14 Budapest

This is our last port of call. We arrived in Budapest late on thursday night just around the time we were off to bed. On Friday we took the guided hike again in the morning followed by lunch and then we set out on our own for the afternoon taking a very long and well needed walk to an indoor market of food and souvenirs. Most of the guided walks we have taken have been slow and deliberate as there have been several handicapped people on these walks and they tend to slow you down a bit. Of note today was the memorial to the Jewish people that were executed at the edge of the Danube in mid winter. They were required to remove their shoes before being shot and falling in the river to die. Tomorrow we leave the ship at 0730 hrs and take a shuttle to the airport to fly to Paris.

Please forgive the upside down plague but the sun was behind me when i took the photo causing shadows. The sign reads 'to the victims that were shot by arrow cross militiamen 1944-45

Day 13 Bratislava

Thursday May 24. A very quick visit to this relatively new country of Slovakia since it split from Czecheslovkia in the 1990's and Bratislava became the capital of the country. Not going to bore you with how quaint the old part of the city was or how beautiful the castle is, but I will tell you that we only spent 3 hours ashore today as we have to hustle off to Hungary to arrive by midnight for some reason that eludes me. Anyhow here are some photos of the city.

The new bridge spanning the Danube. Looks a little Star trekish doesn't it.

Monument to the non worker of Bratislava. This was placed here to symbolise the joy the sewer workers took in looking up the skirts of young ladies. The shorter the skirt the broader the smile.

Cycling to no where on a penny farthing.

This brass ring shows the distance to the major cities in the world. We were only 6879kms from Toronto at that point.

Day 12 Beautiful Vienna

Well today we took an up close look at Vienna with a local guide using the subway system instead of the buses. I can't begin to guess at the speed these travel. But, Damm they were scary fast. As with many of the towns and cities we have visited on this trip Viienna retains its old world charm in the city centre while evolving into a modern metropolis every where else. We decided to stay in town after the tour was done and explore Vienna on our own this afternoon. We ate ate a local cafe and had wiener schnitzel and a very drinkable draft. Of course we also visited many many shops looking for just the stuff. Vienna is known for its composers such as Strauss, Mozart and many more. Tonight we are attending a concert featuring these and many more. It was an excellent time.

Ruins from 1400-1600 AD

Monument to victims who took refuse in shelter on this site from WWII bombing. Everyone was killed in shelter when it took a direct hit. All around no other casualties.

Monument to victims of several times of the plague.

Day 11 Melk Monestary and Durnstein

Today is Tuesday May 22nd. We left Germany behind last night and entered into Austria. This morning it was all about the Melk Abbey. Like so many of the other castles, fortresses, residences and palaces we have visited over the last 10 days it too was very interesting and full of history, beautiful artifacts and relics. The difference is that this is a working monestary. There are 33 monks in training in this facility and so we had to be careful where we went even with a guide. The Abbey used to make its income on crops and goods today it's income is derived from tourism, with over 500,000 tourists passing through the gates each year.. We returned to the ship after our visit and set sail for Durnstein also a small town along the river bank. We have a very short time to visit it this afternoon before dinner.

Welcome to Melk

Welcome to Melk Abbey

Ross, Kerry,Janice,Tom BJ and Wayne sitting around the fountain in Melk Abbey.

Fresco, one of many throughout the Abbey.

Tom standing beside working wooden clock dating back to the ?1700.

Rose garden within Melk Abbey grounds.

Day 10. Passau

This morning we arrived in Passau. The town of about 50,000 was started again by the Romans around 200 AD and ruled it for several hundred years before abandoning it around 700AD. Later the town became an important port of trade between the Black Sea and the town. The Danube continues from this town for almost 2100kms to the Black Sea. In the time before steam power horses were needed to pull the ships up the river but when the boat arrived in Passau it could travel no further up stream because of the way the bridge was constructed so most boats stopped there. In town there is a place that sells drei im wagel (three in a row) small little sausages with sauerkraut and a beer. This kitchen has operated for nearly 800 years. We took the walking tour in the morning, saw more churches, shops and castles before returning to the ship for lunch. In the afternoon we did an optional tour to a reclaimed Bavarian forest village with more than 150 buildings and shops dating back to the 1400's. It was very hot and muggy so luckily there was a restaurant that served ice cold beer and strudel. It was a good day.

This photo shows the high water marks and the dates of the Danube over the years

Kerry standing in front of a typical long straight Roman street. The tower in the background is the town hall.

Magnificent pipe organ inside Passau Cathedral. We were treated to a 1/2 hour concert.

Bavarian village. Typical house. Construction was of timber and pegs, no nails.

Original farming equipment from the period.

Me besides a working miller waterwheel. The mill is inactive but the water wheel still works.