Into Ottawa to Bushtukah

 Sunday, Oct. 17th

JB needed some new hiking boots. He walks over an hour each day to get some exercise, relieve stress, and to get outdoors. It has been incredibly dewy, especially in the mornings and his feet always get wet. He did some research, tried to order waterproof boots online, but that did not work. He liked the ones he had, and simply needed to replace the old boots. We were off to Bushtukah, where they'd set aside a pair for him.

It's a great time of year to drive. There is lots of decor up, the trees are still beautiful, and it is good to get out of the house.

There are cyclists soaking up the rest of the season.

There is lots to see. The new rugby building is complete, and the season begins. 

The puddling in the fields is amazing. We've had quite a bit of water.

There were geese in the fields from here to there, as well as many flybys! 

The crows, grackles and starlings are in their respective groups. I spotted a large group of crows.

Hockey season is in full force!

Okay, back to our trek into the city. We went in via the new road and driving circles along Richmond Rd. Driving past the quarry, it is a busy spot weekdays, it was fairly quiet on Sunday.

Let me vent about drivers, again. This dude was driving beside us in the right lane on Richmond Rd at Dumaurier, the lanes merge, and JB let him by into our lane. He was turning right in about 50 m! He could have let us by.

We passed this interesting place. The building used to be a senior's home, as I recall. I noticed the sign and recognized the word Baffin.  It is now Larga Baffin, a residential centre for Inuit coming to Ottawa for healthcare treatments. It is a long way from the Baffin Region of Nunavut, 3000+ km. "Qikiqtaaluk is the traditional Inuktitut name for Baffin Island." It must be terribly difficult being that far from home when you are ill.

What a brilliant idea for people requiring healthcare far from home. It's 20 minutes from the airport, and they provide meals, accomodation, and transportation to and from appointments. It must be an awful cultural shock for them. 

We made it! JB needed extra wide boots, only available in Ottawa. They'd put aside the wrong pair:  shoes instead of boots. Jesse worked here back during high school. He's 38 now, and living in Vancouver. I just spotted a photo of him selling something to his stepfather in the store, but cannot find it. JB bought the original boots in 2018: Hubby has new boots!. 

The plan was to visit with the girls afterwards, so I sent Caitlin a text message and photo showing our progress.

We spotted a tall apartment buildings! We are in the city, now!

We used to eat here a lot. They had the best fresh bread with dinner. I remember taking our youngest there for dinner one day. He was deciding whether to go to university or not. He did, happily, and works for Statistics Canada.

There were some really interesting condos in Ottawa. What I love are their balconies, they have TWO. They are huge! You can put a whole table on them. They are in Lincoln Heights, and run $600,000. Wowsers.

They are working on the light rail transit (LRT) extension in Ottawa. These green thingies are supposed to be sound baffles. I wonder how well they work.

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From there we headed back to Bells Corners, where the kids live. Lots of decor, and interesting homes. The kids have lived here since 2004 or so. It's a great neighbourhood.

Burning bushes everywhere!

We brought in a Subway sandwich, and a wrap for JB, and ate with the family. It was a lovely visit. They had eased into the morning, and weren't quite ready for lunch. We chatted.

Hydro crews were out working. The kids had a power outage in Bells Corners last night. They read by torch light!

Papa was canoe camping with a friend in Algonquin Park! He is a hardy camper. It's been cold at night.

The kids had a busy Saturday afternoon, in between the rainfall. Caitlin, Josephine and Isabelle went to the Lone Star Ranch. There was a fabulous inaugural event. The Tagwàgi (Autumn) Festival.  They came home, after petting the critters, and seeing the Ghost Horses, with harvest bounty! This four acted out the three sisters First Nations legend of corn, beans and squash. 

BSaying our goodbyes, we were back on the road, through Nepean and Bridlewood.

I liked this back deck/sunroom!

I love this backyard!

The clouds were rolling in to the south.

Home safe! What a day.