Trip to Saltspring Island, BC

We just came back from a three day trip up to Ganges on Saltspring Island in British Columbia. This is a trip we had talked about doing ever since we bought our new boat almost two years ago. So last week we looked at the calendar and realized that if we didn't just go right then we wouldn't have an open weekend until the end of next October. So in spite of the fact that the weather wasn't the best, we went. Just out of Waldron we ran into our first snow squall. That's a picture of it coming over Orcas island just before it hit us. It was cold and wet and windy.

We spent the first night in Sidney, on Vancouver Island where we had to go through customs and took off the next morning in more snow squalls for Ganges on Saltspring Island.
As we tied up the boat at Ganges marina it started to snow in earnest and by the time we went for a walk up town there was a couple of inches of snow and slush on the ground. We had a great time slogging around town and going out to dinner and laughing at our choice of weekend for a holiday. (Sorry about the snowflakes on the camera lens).
This morning we discovered that the Ganges Market was open. They traditionally start on Easter weekend and well, with Easter so early, they started early. The vendors were all bundled up with delicious bread and cheese and goodies and pretty crafts in the snow. There weren't any vegetable vendors out yet. We'd love to figure out to go back in the summer when we are told they have about 150 vendors. But we're always at our market on Saturdays. We did hear later that there is also a Tuesday market and so we may try to get there for that some time this summer. It isn't all that far. Even with going through customs both ways, we can go up in a day and come back in a day.

We had a really lovely time. The weather didn't matter a hoot. It was fun to travel through new islands in the boat and fun to talk to the vendors at the market. Now we're home and it's cold, but all the plants in the greenhouse appear to have survived. And we came home with 6 jars of marmalade and 6 bottles of hard cider. The marmalade and cider you get in the states is too sweet for me. I like the marmalade made with bitter Seville oranges and a good dry cider.