PEI 2015 - Yippee! Road Trip 4

Future Grand Tours

"Somewhere from along the long highway"

One week ago today I was bombing home from PEI. Tuesday, October 20 - 1,000 kilometers. From Auberge du LouLou in Charny (opposite Quebec City, south side of the St. Lawrence) to London. Since that time I've been looking at my photos (90% were taken while on the highway, 40% while driving) and thinking about future trips to the East Coast.

 "Somewhere else from along the long highway"

 "Picaroons Yippee IPA, brewed in Fredericton, is worth the search"

"Auberge du LouLou, 6AM. Sweet stop. I shall return"

I believe I have the time and energy for one more grand motorcycle adventure to Halifax and back, with a pit stop on PEI. And I surely have the motivation to drive East by car or travel by rail, and spread the travel over four - five days in order to soak in the magnificent scenery and visit friends, family, and several familiar hostels along the way. 'Go slow and enjoy the view' will be my motto on each future grand tour.

See you then.

Link to Road Trip 3

Photos GH

PEI 2015 - Yippee! Road Trip 3

Driving and Walking

"Everything in the mirror is smaller than New Brunswick"

Undoubtedly, I did more driving than walking during a recent trip to PEI. The camera came in handy during long stretches on the highway (approx. 1,000 km. per day for four of the eight-day-long trip) and while wandering around Lannie (my sister) and Jim's homestead south of Montague, PEI's 2nd largest city, I believe,

 "Lannie and Jim live at the cozy Cranberry Cottage"

 "Old outhouse speaks of a forgotten time"

 "I check out the outdoor plumbing"

 "Lannie and Jane"

"Warm leggings on the llamas that live just down the road"

Link to Road Trip 2

Photos GH

PEI 2015 - Yippee! Road Trip 2

Boats and Birdhouses on the Island

If I spot a boat I usually think the following:

I want that boat. And here's what I'd do with it. I'd park it somewhere on the water (say, Big Otter Creek in Port Burwell, not far from the town's Red and White Grocery Store) and I'd turn it into my summer retreat. I'd BBQ a steak now and again and dream about faraway places, like Long Point.

 "Perfect combo. A summer retreat and a workshop!"

If I spot a good-looking birdhouse (oh, they're everywhere), I usually snap a picture with plans to modify the design a wee bit and produce one or two myself. Over the years I've produced a thousand or more birdhouses, and I'm not done yet. I sure like that middle one!

 "Admittedly, this one needs a few repairs"

Link to Yippee! Road Trip 1

Photos GH

PEI 2015 - Yippee! Road Trip 1

Yippee! Road Trip

"This is the label on Picaroons Yippee IPA, from Fredericton"

My youngest sister Jane and I recently drove a truck to PEI (a 4,000 km.-long round trip) to visit our oldest sister and pick up a wee bit of furniture. We enjoyed morning gabs around the kitchen table, long walks through beautiful farmland, fantastic scenery beside the Trans-Canada Highway, stopping for gas  and bathroom breaks in charming small towns and rediscovering classic photos of significant family members.

 "On the road from Oct. 13 - 20. My bum is still sore"

 "A storm brews on the east coast of PEI. Snow fell the next day"

 "View of the Saint John River in New Brunswick"

 "My younger son Paul sports a distinctive hair style, early 1990s"

"We gassed up in Nackawic, N.B. Clean bathrooms!"

All in all, the mini-vacation in PEI was one fine road trip.

Photos GH

Motorcycle Miles

Port Bruce

So, I paid my motorcycle insurance bill and on a nice day during this past week I warmed up my bike and headed toward a very familiar destination, Port Bruce, on the north shore of Lake Erie about 60 kilometres SE of London.

I don't know if this will be my last year to own a motorcycle (downsizing is on my mind) but I am hoping to ride a lot this year, maybe even to the East Coast of Canada again. I sure like that long ride.

Please link to more Motorcycle Miles

Please link to 'We Were As Two Ships', my latest entry on a new blog entitled FAINT FOOTSTEPS, WW2

Photo by GH

My Morning Smile - Pulitzer Prize Winner?

Box O' Books

I like getting mail, especially if it signals the end result of a lengthy project and the beginning of becoming a milionaire.

I will set them up at Gathering on the Green in June.

Note to self: Build one small birdhouse-style bookcase.

Link to My Morning Smile

Photos GH

Halifax Trip 13 - Better Photos

Bridge the Gap

["High resolution pic of PEI's long Confederation Bridge"]

I have been reading the proof of my book (it proves I wrote some stories, thus the name) and have spotted a few photos in low resolution.

Be it resolved that I will turn 'low' photos to 'high' wherever possible.

Then what do I do?

Regular readers already know that I will order one million copies.

Link to Halifax Trip

Photos GH

Halifax Trip 12 - Here's Proof

Tonight's Reading

I have not caught any spelling mistakes yet - the day is young - but I notice that one or two photos in the 'proof' need to be at a higher resolution. So, I have some work to do before ordering a million copies.

Link to Halifax Trip 11

Photo GH

Halifax Trip 11 - Some Fav Photos

Photos From Along the Way

["Women's hockey team - photo in Riviere du Loup hostel"]

My first trip to Halifax via motorcycle took place in June, 2010 and the second four years later. While I'm waiting for the first copy of Halifax and Another Hard Promise to arrive by mail I will look back to some favourite photos taken on those trips.

["Diner found near Perth-Andover, off Trans-Canada Highway"]

["I say, best cheeseburgers in The Maritimes"]

["First photo taken during first walk-about in Halifax, 2010"]

Yeah, I could live there.

Link to Halifax Trip 10

Photos GH

Halifax Trip 10 - Proof!

Almost Ready

["Thumbs up," I say]

There are many steps one must take to get a brilliant book self-published. One must write and write (brilliantly), then create a wee book, save a file, mail it to a publisher and order a proof.

So, I have ordered a proof and if it passes inspection I will order a million copies because, odds are, that's how many I'll need to sell to become a millionaire. I'd better start savin' up for a book order.

: )

Link to Halifax Trip

Photo from createspace.com

My Morning Smile - About PEI Snowstorms

Proper Use of an Anchor

If you live in PEI, like my sister, here's an old Navy trick for you to use during the current storm - tie the chain attached to a sturdy anchor around one leg.

Here are photos of an anchor or two that ought to do the job, from Irvine, Scotland.

And if that don't work I say, "Grow yer finger nails really long, in case you need to dig into the ice as the wind blows you out to the mailbox."

: )

Link to My Morning Smile

Photos GH

Halifax Trip 9 - Book Cover

Choices

Black and White version of Halifax and Another Hard Promise almost finished. Just gotta pick a lovely cover photo. Down to three choices. Rocks. Me on the Rocks. Sackville St. Sailor.

Hmmmm.

Link to Halifax Trip 8

Photos GH

Dad's Navy Days - D-Day North Africa

Details in B & W

["Norwich boys. Doug Harrison, left. Buryl McIntyre, right"]

If I study some of my Dad's black and white photos from WW2 long enough - and dig - I sometimes come up with interesting discoveries. Take the one above.

Details: 1941. Halifax. On the grounds of HMCS Stadacona (a Naval base my dad mentions in his WW2 memoirs). Outside Wellington barracks, Mess A (Mess B was a separate building for officers, and it still remains). Some of the details are written on the photo or in Dad's memoirs and some I discovered the hard way, e.g., after motorcycling to Halifax twice and digging deeper.

Side Bar: I can tell Dad is standing outside Mess A because of the round arch over the entrance. Mess B does not (and did not) have the same type of entrance according to many photos housed in a museum file on the grounds of HMCS Stadacona. Details, details.

 ["Wellington Barracks, Mess B (Officers), at HMCS Stadacona, Halifax"]

 ["Mess B has no curved arches over any doorways"]

["Mess A is now gone. Replaced by new quarters and Tim Hortons. Ugh"]

Yesterday I posted a rare photo (from Assault Landing Craft) of men in landing crafts on the beaches outside of Arzeu, North Africa. D-Day. November, 1942. At that time I said I was 95% sure the man in the dark navy uniform is my father.

["I am now 96% certain the man in Navy blue is my father"] 

In his memoirs he writes:

     On November 11, 1942 the Derwentdale dropped anchor off
     Arzew (sic) in North Africa... Our Coxswain was LS (Leading
     Seaman) Jack Dean of Toronto and our officer was Lt. McDonald
     RNR (Royal Navy Reserve). After the 92 hours (an afore-
     mentioned first shift) my officer said, Well done. An excellent
     job, Harrison. Go to Reina Del Pacific and rest."

His memoirs do not provide, of course, enough information to positively identify the sailor as my dad, so yesterday I checked with my sibs. One sister agreed, 100%, that the man is our dad. She mentioned many similarities, including the way he wore his hat. Another saw similarities in the side profile of the face. But three sibs also raised some questions about his stature, the ring on his right hand, the shape of his hand.

["Many details appear here to lead me on a fruitful search"]

The man seems too lean, said one. I replied that Dad's Navy records reveal he weighed under 130 pounds at entry. Did Dad wear a ring on his right hand? I don't know, but I did for many years, during my teens and twenties. And so on.

However, like any good detective I will follow the crumbs. I will look for a picture of the Derwentdale and compare it with the ship in the photo. I will look for links to the other members of Combined Operations aboard the landing craft. I will search for the roll of film that has the above photo upon it.

But thanks to what one sister said about his hat, I now stand at 96%. I mean, look at that jaunty angle!

["Dad didn't want to mess with his wavy red hair"]

Oh yeah, Dad was 'cock of the walk', all right.

Link to Recommended Reading

Photos GH

Dad's Navy Days

Deeper into Combined Operations

 ["Combined Ops shoulder patch. Am I thinking of a tattoo? Naw."]

Oh oh. I feel I am getting in pretty deep here. Not only am I a certified supporter of a website dedicated to veterans of and information related to Combined Operations, but I just sent 10 Great Britain Pounds (GBPs) off to Scotland to become a member of the Combined Operations Association.

["I found this Scottish cartoon via microfiche last October"] 

["By following Dad's footsteps, laid down during WW2, I see the world"]

Dad would get a kick out of the cartoon above. I don't know if he liked OXO cubes but he would fondly remember his rough training days in Irvine and Inveraray with British Commandos, 1942, in preparation for the raid on Dieppe and invasion of North Africa.

Link to Dad's Navy Days

Photos GH