Activity Group News Posts are like blog or FaceBook posts and cover the entire history of the Glacier Probus Club, you can scroll down and all the way back to our beginnings in September 2013.
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Boyle Point Provincial Park on the south tip of Denman Island has been fairly well know for it's short trail to the top of a cliff overlooking Chrome Island and the Straight of Georgia. In recent years other trails have been established or improved. A dozen adventurous hikers explored trails that were new to all of us. One of the trails followed the top edge of shoreline bluffs with many views across Baynes Sound. We were almost always under a high forest canopy. We discovered a beautiful sandy beach and wetlands. We hiked 10 kilometers through almost constantly undulating terrain. Those of us without overflowing social calendars relaxed by the fire on the Roy's Towne Pub patio after our adventure. Thank you Cheryl, Patti, Katie and Dawn for the photographs. Check back here in a few days for a link to pictures by Bill J. Nearly mid-October and having had a weekend of near non-stop rain, it was the exact opposite for our walk today, with clear blue skies and enough warmth in the sun that we were removing outer layers as the walk progressed. Bill Jorgensen suggested a change to the signposted route, which lengthened the walk to the usual one-and-a-half-hour length. Coffee and chat at Quality foods on their upstairs patio in the sunshine made it feel like early September, not October. To access all Bill’s photos click on this LINK  Fresh mountain air, beautiful fall colours, great company and mostly sunny skies were our rewards for venturing up to Paradise Meadows. We hiked the long loop through the meadows. Then we hiked up to Battleship Lake where Karen led us to our private deck and chairs for our first break. We stopped at Lake Helen Mackenzie for more snacks before returning to our vehicles. Thank you to Patti Spearman and Steve Hill for the photos.  Mary Goes Round - Comox Valley Art Gallery Film Series associated with the Toronto International Film Festival followed by Drinks and Dinner at Avenue The Movie Group saw a wonderful, challenging movie on Sunday night. "Mary Goes Round" follows a young addictions counsellor as she is faced with a life altering decision to get sober herself. On her very rough journey to find her sobriety, she rediscovers her father and begins a difficult relationship with her sister. There were a lot of issues packed into this relatively short, Canadian made, movie. It was a very good film, with very good performances by the Canadian actors. The audience was wrapped up in the movie, as they witnessed a couple of very tough realties being play out before them. We took a breath as we travelled to the Avenue in Comox, and a wonderful, raucous dinner provided to 14 of us with plenty of laughs and camaraderie, much needed after such difficult subjects. The food was, as always, excellent! The next movie is "Anthopocene: The Human Epoch", in two weeks. Having had our end of season outing two weeks ago, it was impossible to ignore the blue skies, mild temperatures and the return of green fairways at Mulligans! 22 players signed up, and 18 made it to the 1st tee, and to the 10th. The usual number of balls made it to the bottom of the various ponds, but Garth found one that was marked from the US Congress. It was suggested that even golf balls want to leave the US. Thanks to Dave for organising. If the weather allows another outing will be organised. This report kindly supplied by Heather as Tony and Tricia were having an adventure in Gold River. “We had a lovely walk on Tuesday, there were 10 of us: Karen, Carol & Dave, Bill, Debbie, Rosa, Sandy, Darlene, Ranan, and myself. Bill Jorgensen knows Seal Bay really well and took us on a different route, it was good to wander around somewhere different. And he timed it perfectly, 1 hour 40 minutes. Or so. Pretty darn good estimate of the route. Coffee afterwards at Country Market.” The rest of Bill’s photos are available if you click on this LINK Thank you Bill for the photos and the new route!  Our September Wine and Appies evening took place at the lovely beachside home of Ann and Joe Zanbilowicz on Friday, September 21. It was great to see some new members attending this event and everyone had a lovely evening of conversation, food and favourite beverages. Thanks again for hosting, Ann and Joe! After a week of thinking summer had gone it raised its head for us again on Tuesday and 16 of the walking group took advantage doing the Pub to Pub walk from Salmon Point. The photos taken by Bill clearly show the beauty of that walk and the lovely weather we enjoyed. Click on this LINK to see photos. After the walk we adjourned to the Country Market for coffee and chat.   The movie group set a record having 20 members attending dinner after seeing "Unarmed Verses" on Sunday night.!!! This was the first film of the Comox Valley Art Gallery's Film Series fall season. Most of the group liked the movie very much, while some were not fans of the more impressionistic approach of the film maker. "Unarmed Verses" is a very intimate documentary of Francine Valentine, a 13 year old girl struggling with issues of self-confidence and longing for a sense of belonging, in a world where she feels about to uprooted at any time. She finds her confidence through a community of poets who are putting their work to music, with the encouragement of a young musician. Francine eventually succeeds at her project and, with that, launches herself into a more assured existence. She learns to hold her head up. This documentary was present to TIFF by the National Film Board of Canada.
After the movie the 20 of us went to dinner at the White Spot. Dinner was great, and there was a lot of chatter about the movie as well as life in general. This is a very dynamic group! oh, Ye of little faith! An Intrepid Trio were the only people making an appearance for today's hike, due to the rain forecast - the rest backed out. I'd refer to the 'wimps', but since I didn't appear either, I'd better be careful of what I say! The hike destination was changed from Ripple Rock to Seal Bay Park and the Hardy Hikers report - no rain at all. Since they were all in good shape, the pace was brisk and the report is that the hike was very enjoyable. It was good to get out for some exercise between rain drops. Way to go!  The formal end to the Probus golf season took place at Mulligans, with 18 players taking part. The weather Gods relented and allowed us to play without rain, but also to sit outside and enjoy a BBQ. Thanks to Dave for being chef, and to Ken for organising. This event is not necessarily the last of the season, as if the weather remains fair we will continue to arrange further outings.  Random Readers meets tomorrow, Wednesday, but here is a sneak preview, a review from Genevieve. More news will follow...
“Growing Pains – The future of democracy (and work)” by Gwynne Dyer For those of you who have been somewhat mystified and concerned about the rise of populism and ultra-nationalism in the U.S., Britain, Italy, Germany, France and other places, this book may bring you some clarity as it did with me. Gwynne Dyer writes in a very simple and clear style with a touch of humour. He points to the enormous impact of automation and job loss, leading to inequality, poverty, and joblessness which ultimately provide fuel to the rise of populism. But the book leaves you with a positive message that we can overcome this trend with innovative ideas and by embracing some radical solutions. An easy read but with deeply thoughtful insights. 5 stars With rain in the forecast, heading toward higher ground is never a good idea, so as soon as we neared Nymph falls the rain started. However it held off apart from a sprinkle now and then, and we were able to enjoy a good walk. With 18 in the group, it was quite a crocodile along the narrower paths, but the Country Market benefited from higher than average coffee sales for a Tuesday morning. Thanks to Bill for the photos (except for the snail?!) Another lovely day for a hike, this time up to Cumberland for a circuit around Allen Lake. We 'did' the trek in the reverse direction to previous outings and okayed this new routing as an acceptable alternative. In both directions, one has to contend with short, steep inclines (both up and down), but with care, they are maneuverable. We will, however, continue to check out other trails in the mountain-biking trail system for better routing for hikers who prefer descents that are less slippery underfoot. The outing was approximately 9km and (including a lunch break) took about 3.5 hours to complete. Cool drinks at the Cumberland Brewing Company were welcome post-hike. As once again Tony and I were unable to walk Dawn kindly sent the attached note and photos. "There were plenty of smiles on the faces of today's Walkers, as they traversed the boardwalks over Paradise Meadows amid sunshine and cooler temperatures. The fall colouring isn't obvious yet, but the first signs of what is to come were evident everywhere. As usual, the scenery was beautiful and the company enjoyable - a very pleasant morning, which ended over coffee in the Resort's Eagleview Bistro." As a result of a suggestion by Edna Fraser, Tricia Nicol contacted Jim Palmer of Morrison Creek Streamkeepers and Comox Valley Land Trust, and our walk this week was led by him through the Morrison Creek headwater area. This is a unique area in both its topography, geology and flora and fauna. Jim gave a most interesting commentary as we walked through the forest, and the 14 Probus members who took part are a lot better informed on the value of this area. The Comox Valley Land Trust intend to purchase a 55 acre parcel of the Headwater area from the current owners as part of a larger conservation plan and need to raise $870,000 by March 19th 2019. Currently about half that amount has been raised, so if anyone has any spare cash or wins the Lotto, it will be gratefully received! Thanks again to Jim Palmer, and to Bill Jorgensen who has returned to take back his role as visual recorder. For all of Bill's photos please click on this LINK  Gil and Dawn were staying a few days on Quadra Island and invited interested hikers to join them for a hike yesterday. Due to busy summer schedules, only two were able to make it, but what the heck....any hike is a good hike! The day was cooperative for temperatures and somewhat cloudy skies kept walking conditions comfortable. Morte Lake was the hike destination; leaving from Walcan Rd, the route led to the loop around the lake and back again, covering just under 10km in 3 hours. A climb up to a bluff gave a bit of exercise and great views, while lakeside is always a good place for a lunch break. The Heriot Bay Inn Pub was a good venue for refreshments before returning the day-hikers to the ferry. Many of our group members gathered at Kin Beach Provincial Park for an enjoyable evening of wine and appies. The clear skies, beautiful beach scenes and warm propane fires added to the lovely late summer event.The group was very lucky with the weather for their hike up to the Cruikshank Canyon Lookout on Friday. After so much heat (not to mention the smoky skies) during the last weeks, the weather broke just in time for our excursion, so temperatures were cooler, with a fresh breeze popping up now and then. Another plus was the mainly cloudy sky, which meant limited sun rays beating down on us while we were in the alpine areas enroute to the lookout. Our route was around 21km in length, so we were happy to welcome anything that made the outing more pleasant! As usual, the effort of reaching the Lookout made the views that much more special to us all - it's a wonderful spot to enjoy a well-deserved lunch break. I must admit, some of us were drooping by the time we arrived back at the trailhead, but it was all worth it. My goodness, so it was! 12 members and one guest enjoyed 9 holes at Comox Golf Club with near smokeless skies and lower temperatures. Some scores were kept, and kept quiet, until one member said that he would only reveal scores of his playing partners if they were over 50!! Beverages were enjoyed by all, if not the quality of their golf. In spite of the smoky air and people still on holidays, yesterday eleven of us came out to walk the Pub to Pub from Salmon Point. We saw lots of fisherman along the shore but could see not much further out than that. Patti showed us some interesting ‘wild animals’ on our way back. We adjourned to the Salmon Point patio, where our Illustrious leader joined us for drinks and for some, lunch. Thanks to Patti for the photos. Guess this was one of those days when nearly all the hiking group was otherwise occupied. Too bad, as the three who ventured out to hike the Nile Creek trail system had a great time tackling the route in the shade of all the trees. The temperature was more moderate than what we have come to expect this past few weeks so we finished off our 11km+ route in great shape. Our route was as much an obstacle course as ever, due to muddy conditions (imagine....mud after this long interval of dry conditions!). It was drier than in the spring, but we still needed to negotiate around wet areas and we came across a number of burbling creeks. Drinks at the Roy's Towne Pub in Royston were very welcome at the conclusion of the outing. Nine of us (pursued by another two!) walked the North East Woods this week. Walking at between 9am and 10.30am avoids the hotter parts of the day, and being almost entirely protected by trees, the smoke seems less obvious. We welcomed a new member, Ranan Garfinkkle who joined the club earlier this month. Coffee at Quality Foods with photo courtesy of Dawn's camera/Steve's expertise. The route details are provided to those who like the detail, and realise that a shorter walk only sheds about 300 calories, which is about the calorific value of a donut, so bear that in mind!
This was a perfect day to enjoy music at The Gardens on Anderton, timed after the heat wave and before most of the smoke. We were entertained by a new trio called Blue Tonic. It featured our local crooner Ralph Barrat singing and on keys, Mike Berman on drums, and on Sunday Don McKay filled in for Bruce Jacobs on bass. In the garden setting it was truly a feast for our senses. Thank you Steve Ray for the photos. |
