Sailing Gromit

26 March 2016
26 March 2016
26 March 2016
26 March 2016
26 March 2016
26 March 2016
26 March 2016
26 March 2016
26 March 2016
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Winter Wonderland in Canada

26 March 2016
Yes, it's winter in Canada and we are in the thick of it.

There has been a hint of spring, but mother nature can be fickle at this time of year. Two weeks ago we had temperatures in the mid teens (mid 70s for you Fahrenheit folks), then a huge snow storm that gave the kids two days off of school and now heavy freezing rain that coated everything to the point of tree branches bending to the ground and snapping like toothpicks.

Where are the palm trees and beaches?

This is the house we are currently living in. We'll be here until our house is rebuilt....we don't know when. We'd hoped to start rebuilding in spring....which is now....but progress is slow, because the process is slow.
We can't complain because this house is spacious and comfortable, though quite dark. We've talked about lightening it up with some brighter paint. Just haven't gotten there yet. Still too much to do regarding the fire.

Winter in Canada

26 March 2016
Maia, Liam, Zoe, Jaya

Loving the snow.
Building snow buddies.
Make snow angels.

But.....also looking forward to spring!!!

Snow Buddies

26 March 2016
.

Winter Wonderland

26 March 2016
Patterns in nature.

Winter Wonderland

26 March 2016
Freezing rain.

Winter Wonderland

26 March 2016
Geometry
Vessel Name: Gromit
Vessel Make/Model: Olympic Adventure
Hailing Port: Toronto
Crew: Michael, Cornelia, Zoe, Maia, Liam. Photo: At Tilloo Bank, Elbow Cay, Bahamas (photo by Frank Taylor)
About: Michael: The technical/mechanical/all about the boat and systems guy. Cornelia: The lists/house and land details gal. Zoe, Maia and Liam: Gromit's Skippers in Training!
Extra: Departure date: Summer 2008 email us at: sailinggromit@gmail.com
Gromit's Photos - Camel Trekking
Photos 1 to 90 of 90 | Main
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The first challenge is to stay on the camel when he gets up.
He raises his hind quarters first, causing a 45 degree shift in angle and if your don
First to the water trough.
And we
Lots of the desert is farmed. The flat lands seem to have a mix of sand and soil and are able to sustain crops.
Zoe
A little adjustment. The saddle felt loose.
Sandscapes, patterns and textures.
Cheeky!
Stopping for lunch. All gear and saddles are removed from the camels
They are then hobbled and let go to roam and eat from the sparse offering in the desert.
Fire wood is gathered.
Water is heated for chai and rice.
Maia helps prepare the vegetables.
Our lunches and dinners consisted of potatoes, onions and cabbage spiced with cumin and curry and rice and chapati (roti).
One of the boys makes the dough for the chapati.
He put heaps of flour into the high sided plater, added water and kneaded. Simple.
Maia gets a lesson in chapati making.
The chapati are then cooked on a curved pan over the open fire. It takes only 1-2 minutes to cook one.
Buddies!
Sunset on our first night.
Our beds and heavy blankets.
Beds and blankets being taken away.
Loading up the bed frames.
They just rode away with them and we wondered where they were being stored.
What?
What?
We travelled a few hours on the second morning and arrived at a village.
The walls that lead into the courtyard were made do smoothed mud.
Chilling with his camel buddy.
Bringing in firewood.
Camel trailer. Look at the height!
It was this camel that had been pulling the trailer and when he untied it, I commented on how tail his camel was. It was huge! 
He promptly made his camel lie down and insisted I come feel his hump!?! It was very awkward. It was very obvious that he was exceptionally proud of his camel and it
On day two, moments after we we got set up for lunch, in a dresser tend area, out of what seemed like nowhere, came the following people-pretty much to check us out....
.......a shepherd and his herd.......
.....a girl , who was accompanying him.....
......and a bunch of boys.
"Need some help with those bugs crawling on your fur?"
On the second night, the boys cooked dinner for us, while the guide went out in search of the wandering camels. Their legs hadn
Morning sunrise.
We had mattresses on the sand.
Camels have very interesting and superbly adapted bodies for the desert.
They are so flexible.
Michael named this guy
Bare back. Hard to hang on.
 
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Sailinggromit

Who: Michael, Cornelia, Zoe, Maia, Liam. Photo: At Tilloo Bank, Elbow Cay, Bahamas (photo by Frank Taylor)
Port: Toronto