Beach-Squared

I don't think Glen or I have ever done two beaches in one day but Thursday, July 21st was the day I did just that.

Glen had to spend the morning in the condo waiting for a Fedex delivery (see he does work when he's here) so Geoff drove the van to Willows Beach. We were heading to Cattle Point so Melissa could find a letterbox. The tide was down so we also did beach combing and tidal pool discovery. Turns out Miles loves beach combing. At one point, he had his fist full of sand to take back with him. He soon realized sand was everywhere so not something worth saving. Shells on the other hand were fair game.

Cattle Point is a rocky outcrop where barges would moor off the coast, push their cattle overboard, and have them swim to shore. The Uplands Farm's cowboys would then round them up. Today, it is a boat launch and has many interesting tidal pools. Miles and Elijah learned about barnacles, crabs, sea anemones, hermit crabs, seaweed 'popping' (something I did as a kid on the east coast), and shell collecting. Melissa found her letterbox and I did my first stamping. I had an old stamp of ballet shoes which I used to sign in as 'Ballet Mom'.

After lunch we drove along Dallas Drive to look for another letterbox but were unsuccessful. A recent weed abatement program had probably dislodged the box and it either fell down the cliff or was thrown into the garbage. We then drove to Gonzales beach. We had our beach chairs, towels, pails and shovels so spent a couple of hours playing in the sand and surf. Well, the kids played while Grampy and Nana watched. Several sand castles were made and decorated before we headed to the Chinese Cemetery for another letterbox.

I must say the allure of letterboxing other than recording a find, is to discover new places. Little did we know the Chinese Cemetery was within walking distance of Gonzales beach. It is a windswept hillside dotted with greying grave-markers. An eerie place but strangely peaceful. The cemetery opened in 1903 to replace the Chinese section of Ross Bay Cemetery (the sea often washed away these graves). Chinese from across Canada were temporarily buried here (tradition says seven years) before being shipped 'home' to be interred in China. This practice was halted in 1933 and by 1950, the graveyard was closed. Now, the burial ground, dominated by the twin towers of a ceremonial altar, is a tourist attraction.

It was here we found another letterbox which we believe was done by the same person who planted the one at Cattle Point. While Glen enjoyed the sea views, Melissa and I stamped our books. (I have since bought a West-Coast Bear stamp so hope to use that as my letterboxing alias).