Here and Now

Well, it's been seven long months since I last posted in here. I left off with a few of our adventures in South Dakota and I plan on finishing the documentation of everything that we saw in 2016. After all, it was the most exciting and adventure filled year of our lives. For now I wanted to get back into blogging by sharing a little bit about our new life and our new home.

West Mabou Beach, Cape Breton, September 2016

I imagine most people who read our posts are coming from Facebook, but I'll share some background on where we are and how we got here, just incase. 

Our little family did indeed end up on the east coast of Canada, however in a completely different province than we had initially anticipated. Over the Labour Day long weekend we found out that the house we had put an offer on in Prince Edward Island had sold to another buyer. That same evening I saw a story on CBC about a country market in Cape Breton that was looking for people to work there, and if we stayed for five years we would receive 2 acres of land. We knew we had nothing to lose so we sent in our resumes, along with a short cover letter detailing who we are and what we were searching for. After a few days of emails and our Skype interview I was offered a position with the store and we began to pack up and head east from Ontario to start our new life. 

West Mabou Beach, Cape Breton, September 2016

We arrived here in mid September and it has honestly been a whirlwind. Settling into our rental home and a routine with work, meeting new friends and exploring this beautiful island have all taken time but we're doing our best to enjoy absolutely every second of it. There was a lot of media attention when we got here. The job offer, as well as the new employees received attention from local news outlets, CBC Nova Scotia, CTV (Nova Scotia and BC), Vice News Tonight, CNBC, and even The New York Times!

Life moves at a different pace here, and it's not for everyone, but I do know that there has to be more people like us out there who want the same things we do. A slower pace of life, fresh air, green grass and trees. A chance to grow their own food and contribute to a small community. Friendly people, who are happy to hang out at home with friends and don't need to be busy to be happy. I know they are out there, but I think the people who could come and help repopulate this little island don't know enough about it or are too afraid to leave their "stable life" to find this.

Along the Cabot Trail - October 2016

We are enjoying the outdoor lifestyle here during every season, and learning to love winter again has been much easier than we imagined. On Brett's birthday the two of us drove to the Cape Breton Highlands to take part in a snowshoe hike on the Skyline Trail. It was a wonderful day and a beautiful hike. We can't wait to see more of the park this year!

At the top of the Skyline Trail - February 2017

Enjoying the snow - January 2017

When we left our suburban home in BC, we didn't know exactly what our life would look like a year later. Now we have most of what we were looking for, we just need to find the perfect spot to build our forever home and begin growing our own food - hopefully for us as well as this community. We have big dreams and hopes for all four of us, as well as this great little business we have become a part of. I can't wait to continue to share this journey we are on, as well as the remainder of our adventures from 2016. Keep your eyes here for more updates soon!

Wednesday Wanderings: Summer Camping

This time of year, during these warm summer days I love to think back on all of the beautiful places that we camped and visited during our summers in BC. There was so much to see and do there, that we both know we'll inevitably be back one day - whether it's to live or just to visit.

One thing I loved about last summer was our little Boler travel trailer that Brett had purchased for us to camp in. It was by no means luxurious, but it made it so much easier to camp comfortably with a preschooler and a baby. We made two trips last summer to Ross Lake, and Nolan was only 6 weeks old during our first visit. 

The campsite is located just outside of Hope, BC on the border of the United States. There are actually campsites located on the American side, which are only accessible by car if you drive through Canada. Last summer we camped in both the Canadian and American campgrounds, and had great experiences both times.

The campgrounds are nestled within the North Cascades mountains, placing the American side within the National Park. I never realized this last summer, and was one of the things I learned using our National Geographic Road Atlas.  

Our first trip we stayed in the Canadian campground and the second time we camped on the American side. Both campgrounds are on a first come, first served basis and we had great sites during both trips. The only difficult part about making the journey to Ross Lake is the hour long drive along a dirt road. If something happens (which it did to our friends son), you have a long drive to any sort of medical care. It's also not a great spot to camp if you can't handle mosquitos, there can be quite a lot, especially during the late summer.

However, it's quiet and a great family camping spot. The water is great for swimming and it's also perfect for recreation like hitting the water in a canoe or kayak.

Despite having a small travel trailer, camping with a baby was not always easy but we had a great time during both of our visits to Ross Lake last summer. Great memories were made with great friends, and we are so glad we had the chance to make both trips with them during our last summer on the west coast. 

Our Adventures in Yellowstone

What words can I possibly use to describe Yellowstone? The most incredible place I have ever seen. An absolute wonderland of mountains, plains, hydro-thermal features and wildlife. I feel like there is so much that could be said about this natural Wonderland. I could talk about the debate on conservation (I can see both sides after visiting this park and experiencing both the wonders of the earth and the restrictions on visitors), I could talk about the absurdity of those who choose to endanger their lives to get an up close encounter with a wild animal or get too close to a hydro thermal feature. Really, I could say an awful lot about Yellowstone, but I will mostly say that we loved it.

Setting up camp at Madison campground

We spent three nights camping there, one on the West side of the park at Madison Campground and two in the east at Fishing Bridge RV campground. The second spot was restricted solely to hard-sided camping vehicles (no tents or tent trailers) as the area is frequented by bears. Did I luck out to see a bear? Nope... still no bears. 

After setting up camp on our first day we headed straight south to see Old Faithful. Our timing was pretty impeccable and we only had to wait about 20 minutes to see the geyser erupt. I think it was a little anti-climactic for Halle who of course doesn't understand all of the science behind it, or the fact that they can predict it's eruptions to within 20 minutes. For us, I felt pretty thankful to be there as we were sat next to a couple in their 80's who were just visiting the park together for the very first time. If we hadn't taken this opportunity to travel, who knows if or when we would have witnessed this majestic place.

Waiting patiently for Old Faithful to erupt

After leaving Old Faithful Village, we began driving back towards our campground stopping as often as we could to check out the different hydrothermal features. Though I had some idea of what to expect here after doing research on Yellowstone, no words could ever accurately prepare you to see everything first hand. The steaming pools of water and the vibrant colours created by different bacteria and organisms. As I said to Brett one afternoon, Yellowstone is a nature lover's amusement park!

We ambled along boardwalks staring into "stink water" as Halle liked to call it (many of the features smell of sulfur), but I was most taken by the colours that appeared in the hot pools of water. The sounds and the sites were like nothing I had ever experienced. What we were most in awe of was the fact that we were standing inside of a Volcano! If you're not familiar with the history of the park, Yellowstone was once a supervolcano that was transformed into a caldera over the course of three eruptions - the most recent taking place 630,000 years ago. Most of the southwestern area of the huge park is the massive caldera and we were constantly reminded that at any time that whole area could change drastically, taking us with it!

Some of the features Halle was more interested in than others. Of course, any that smelt of sulfur or other strong mineral odours were far less enjoyable. I totally understand, the smell of rotten eggs is not high on my list of things to endure even if a super cool hot spring or fumarole is involved. 

This picture of Halle gazing into one of the hot pools is one of my favourites from our time in Yellowstone. 

I'm so happy that we had bright blue skies for most of our time in the park. The brilliance of the sky made the most perfect back drop to the green hills and the striking hydro thermal features. As we've travelled I have found a passion for capturing nature and landscapes. It may have to do with my constant and growing love of nature and the outdoors, but either way capturing the perfect landscape photo has become my mission.

The textures and colours of everything make it that much more interesting. Especially once you learn that all of those shapes and colours inside of these ultra hot waters are actually living organisms. Science and Nature are surely the stars of the show in Yellowstone!

There is so much to see and do in this park that is over 2 million acres, that we barely scratched the surface. I have so much more to share, including our wildlife encounters and more of the unique features this park has to offer. 

Welcome to Big Sky Country

For some reason, Montana had been one of those states that I wanted to visit for so very long. I imagine it had something to do with the picture that had always been painted in my mind - rugged mountains, rolling grassy hills, rambling rivers, wildlife, fresh air. In my mind Montana was everything we had always hoped for in a place to call home, and as we approached the border I think we both thought to ourselves, "this could definitely be somewhere that we'd love to start a new life with our family". 

Arriving in Montana we got everything we had always imagined. Gorgeous mountains, green grass, fresh air and most definitely wildlife. Within moments of crossing the border we turned a corner to spot a mother Moose and her calf in the road ahead. They were too far away for us to capture a photo, and once they heard our truck roaring down the road they took off into the safety of the surrounding forest. It was a moment none of us will ever forget, including Halle who has proudly told the story to anyone who will listen.


Montana encompasses all of the things that we wanted to see and do when we set out on the road. Glacier National Park in particular makes you feel so close to nature and looking back on these photos, I am reminded of how much I truly loved our time in that park. 

When we arrived in St. Mary, Montana we sat down for lunch and began to plan our next move. Would we pop into Glacier quickly and move on to another entrance to the park? Or would we go and see if we could set up camp right there? We opted for the latter and when we rolled up to the park entrance in St. Mary, the ranger suggested that we purchase an annual pass for all of the National Parks, to save us some money. She also recommended which campground to stay in, which sold us on camping right in the park. We wanted to see as much as we possibly could during our one night stay.

The one thing that struck us the most about Glacier was the vast amount of the park that had been burnt in a recent fire. Halle mentioned that it looked so sad and not as pretty without all of the green trees. Brett and I explained to her that sometimes a fire can be good to help a forest continue to grow and thrive, but we agreed that it looked very different without all of the green trees.

Despite all of the burnt trees, the beauty of this majestic park still remained. The towering mountains with their snow capped peaks and the blue waters that swirled at their bases. Even with the sad bare trees, colour emerged in other ways! The bright green grass and wildflowers, the blue water and sky and even the needles and leaves that remained on a few of the trees made everything seem that much more alive. 

Though the "Going to the Sun Road" pass was closed (what many call the crowning jewel of the park), we made the most of our time there. We drove as far as we could and stopped as often as possible to get out of the vehicle and take in the hiking trails and breathtaking vistas. 

I now find myself wondering how I was so ignorant to the names and locations of so many of these incredible protected areas? Embarking on this journey, especially during this year while the National Parks Service celebrates its 100th birthday, has really opened my eyes to how many diverse and beautiful natural spaces there are on this continent. We are so very lucky to live in this wondrous area of this great big world. 

The only thing we missed in Glacier was the wildlife. When we were setting up camp the ranger on duty came around to chat with us and informed us that there was a small black bear who frequented the campsite. She let us know to just clap our hands and make some noise and it would scare off easily, unfortunately we never had the pleasure of seeing the small beast pass by. 

As always, one of the greatest parts for us was helping Halle to complete her Junior Park Ranger booklet and then see her earn her badge. She has learned so much completing the tasks at the parks and has even surprised us with some of the things she has been able to answer and do on her own. 

Life on the road has been treating us well. We've done our best to make the most of each day, and this trip really started on a high note! As we left Glacier National Park I had so much excitement about what was to come as we made our way towards Yellowstone...