Today is August 3rd and we have found our way back to Friday Harbor. Since our trip began....officially on the 16th of July (not counting the days of boat work while it was sitting in the boat yard). We have traveled many hours through the beautiful waters of the Pacific that flows around the beautiful San Juan and Gulf Islands. Once we left San Juan Island, we traveled west toward Vancouver Island. Always stopping in Sidney first to check in with Customs, we were then on our way to check out some new spots on Vancouver Island. The details of sights and experiences are too many to include now....but here are a few highlights.  First stop Mill Bay: a beautiful new resort is underway here.  Soon townhouses or Condos will be along the shoreline. We are grateful we explored this place before the construction of these started.  Currently, there are beautiful new docks and a marina office.  It is just a short walk to shopping.  Here we found a lovely bakery, grocery and many other services. There will soon be a bistro and a small marina store, marina bathrooms (we hope with showers) and eventually the condos.  We learned that supplies and services are more costly in Canada, but the people are so friendly. When we were in the bakery we discovered they would not take bank cards and we were low on cash. We scrounged up about $4. Our purchases totaled $5 something. We started to talk about putting the choc. chip scones back when the nice lady exclaimed "Close enough!" Next stop Genoa Bay. This place is my favorite. A peaceful little cove surrounded by high hills; it is truly a step back in time! There are lovely little house floats with flowers in the window boxes and friendly dock dogs. Two brothers operate this marina: Ben takes care of the docks and Will runs the little marina store. They have a great morning breakfast on the docks for $10. All the locals come for morning coffee and nourishment and to shoot the breeze.  There is also a little cafe; small but known for miles for its incredible food. We had the best halibut we have ever eaten here. This is a  friendly and clean marina you will not want to miss if you ever explore by boat in these waters. We moved on to Maple Bay and then to Chemainus where we met up with friends Terry and Dev.  This is a busy marina. We were literally blown in by high winds and rough water but landed safely and just at the right time. This marina is right next to the fery dock and to the 2nd largest lumber mill in North America.  It is not quiet by any means, but it has clean facilities and a great harbor master.  We crusised and sailed east then to Galiano Island...to Montague.  Again a beautiful protected cove where the water gets glassy. We rented a row boat since our dinghy began losing air and taking on water (not a good sign) and rowed to a nearby state park for a hike with Cisco.  Oops, I guess we rented a canoe, not a row boat. To our dismay Cisco does not understand the concept of staying still and centered while underway.  So to say the least our experience was a little eyebrow lifting and stressful until we were able to get him on land. Once back at the docks, we cleaned up quickly to catch the hippie bus to Humming Bird Cafe.  We have done this once before and it has lost none of its charm.  As a matter of fact it was better with the new driver "Tommy Transit"...quite the character (check him out on the Internet; he has written his own book). We rocked out and shook the tambourines, etc. while we sang through the dips and turns of the journey. The cafe is deep in the woods....words that come to mind: eccentric, colorful locals, green, organic and just refreshing! From there we traveled on to Pender Island to Pt. Browning. Everyone knows if you are going to Pender you need to hit this spot for "Turkey Tuesday" where they cook up a full spread just like Thanksgiving. People fly or boat in from the surrounding islands just for this wonderful meal once a week.  To be continued.....