RV CLUB NEWS:
Happy Islanders Enjoy a Vancouver Island Gem
BY LYNDA DANIEL
On Tuesday, June 14th, twenty rigs brought 37 members of the “Happy Islanders RV Club” to Living Forest Campground in Nanaimo, British Columbia. Living Forest is located on Vancouver Island south of downtown Nanaimo and offers over 300 campsites set among towering fir and cedar trees. Many sites face the ocean with views of downtown, the cruise ship dock, as well as Gabriola, Protection and Newcastle Islands. Ferries between Vancouver Island and the Mainland can regularly be seen on our marine highway along with many privately owned sailboats and powerboats large and small. Oceanside walking trails with cliff viewpoints and more trails that curve inland along the Nanaimo River allow you to experience the natural beauty, the many water and shore birds, and if you are lucky some of the smaller forest animals. Mounds of coal slag and black dust remind us that the white man colonized Nanaimo in the 1850’s to mine the vast coal seams to fuel the growing industrial revolution in Europe. Troughout the campsite forest and along the trails are a few huge tree stumps, reminders of a much grander forest that once covered Vancouver Island. Our fun began with a happy hour welcome by the president, Lynda,
and the introduction of our Happy Islander hosts for this campout: Di and Lary, and Fop and Bill. A chance to catch up on news from friends we hadn’t seen for a month and a very sizeable 50/50 draw kept everyone talking and visiting. Pot-luck dinner followed and as usual did not disappoint. Our club is very fortunate in the diversity of its members. Most of us have roots or were born in either the British Isles or one of the many European countries and our pot-luck dinners feature favourite entrees and desserts from many of these places. Unfortunately cool winds and rain discouraged us from sitting around an evening campfire. Wednesday morning dawned much brighter and chatter about
the seventh and final Stanley Cup hockey game greeted everyone at morning coffee. Te tide was out so Egon led us on a lengthy beach walk, then along the Nanaimo River where we saw several very fluffy newborn ducks following mom to find breakfast. If you looked carefully at the large boulders along the way you will find petroglyphs, one particularly good one of an eagle at rest. Aſter lunch we chose sides for a couple of heated games of beanbag
baseball. Rick, who slammed in a home run at every up last month didn’t quite live up to his reputation, but his wife, Lynn, hit the hole every time. Being champion lawn bowlers gives them a slight advantage. Many club members were in good form and scores of four and five runs an inning led to high scoring games. At happy hour our president gave a report on the current extended
stay regulations for snowbirds wintering in the United States. Any snowbirds planning on staying in the U.S. for more than four months in any calendar year should make themselves aware of the new regulations and the possibility you may have to complete and submit a “Closer Connection” Form 8840 to the Internal Revenue Service. Failure to know and understand the current regulations could result in a nasty surprise. We must remember we are guests in a foreign country and the opportunity to visit can be revoked at anytime by any border guard with no reason given. Te Canadian Snowbird Association is a good resource and these forms can be downloaded from their website:
www.snowbirds.org and click on the 8840 link.
Wednesday evening Walter set up a TV in the picnic shelter and we
gathered to watch the Vancouver Canucks play the Boston Bruins for Lord Stanley’s Cup. Pierce kept us well supplied with popcorn to help ease the frustration of the pounding we were taking. Our Vancouver boys looked tired and unfocused, unable to score. Boston played better and with a final game shutout, goalie Tim Tomas was awarded the Con Smythe trophy as most valuable player and Boston team captain, Zdeno Chara, hoisted the Stanley Cup high. Being good sports the Vancouver fans cheered the winners loud and long. Somewhat sadly we headed off to bed with hopes of better luck next year. Te anticipation of the “sawblade breakfast” had all of us up early
Tursday morning. Tis outdoor breakfast over an open fire is a long time tradition with our club. Lary, Bill V, Nick, Bill H., Pierce and
Bill Huff & Nick Rosman, head cooks for our sumptuous breakfast!
Len had a good campfire going in a large metal wheel rim. Over this they placed a very large circular saw blade that had been polished and oiled. Te meal they prepared was an outstanding selection of fresh fruit, bacon, sausages, fried onions and potato patties. Eggs cooked to your liking by Gunther and Egon, a mountain of toast and jam, plus good hot coffee rounded out our feast. Aſter such a big breakfast we had to go for another hike. Tis time
Egon led us to the trails along the cliffs to a viewpoint high above the receding tide. Joop had to carry his large German Sheppard up the open metal staircase, no small feat with a 70 to 80 pound dog in your arms. Te morning was beautiful and we all counted our blessings to be sharing it with good friends. Egon led us back to camp and some fun with games of cribbage, a favourite with many club members. Tursday aſternoon saw us parting with our quarters to bet on the
horseraces. Te dice were tossed many times and poor number five just could not keep up with the pack, so Pierce placed an apple at the finished line and low and behold number five won a race. Happy hour allowed us time to discuss our next campout at
Salmon Point near Campbell River. Te evening was spent around the campfire and watching some of our dogs enjoy a game of chase around us. It was a lovely ending to a really fun get-to-gether. Te Happy Islanders RV Club is a local Vancouver Island club now
15 years old. Our members range from their mid 50’s to a wonderfully active 94 years young. We plan six campouts each year, all of them on the Island. Any size or type of RV is welcome, and members are asked to attend at least three campouts per season. Members take turns acting as hosts for each campout and plan activities they think will interest the group in general. Anyone interested in finding out more about our club should
contact Lynda Daniel at: 250-758-5393 or
danielden@shaw.ca. 4 RVT 143 • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2011 49
Photo by Keith Daniel
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