Our cruise with Linda was a great time for all. Debra met her at the ferry terminal at Swartz Bay and the two of them rode the bus back to downtown Sidney and walked the few blocks to the marina where I was anxiously awaiting their arrival. We left the dock promptly at 11am and cruised the short distance across to the Sidney Spit where we set the anchor in the area where I had anchored in the past on my own. We launched the dinghy and rode to the public dock. From there, we had a very pleasant walk out the spit.

We returned to Lion's Paw and began our competition of three way cribbage for the weekend. Debra started off with a strong showing, skunking both Linda and me in the first round and then proceeding to have back-to-back wins. We had contemplated taking the dinghy back across to downtown Sidney for the weekly, evening street market, but the winds created a little too much chop, so it was dinner aboard and an early evening.

We arose on Friday morning in hopes of grabbing one of the mooring balls at Butchart Gardens which was our ultimate destination of this weekend. We weighed anchor and journeyed for a couple of hours, managing to squeeze in a bit of sailing when the winds filled in. We arrived at Butchart Cove only to find that the mooring balls were all occupied, so we continued into Tod Inlet where there were already numerous boats at anchor. Nevertheless, we were able to find a nice anchoring spot without the need for stern tying. We continued our cribbage competition, and Debra maintained her first place position, but things tightened up a bit. We culminated the day with dinner aboard where Debra and Linda were treated to rack of lamb on the grill.

We awoke Saturday to yet another day of clear skies and pleasant temperatures. Debra has only experienced one overnight rain through her entire cruising season this year, the rest of the days filled with sunshine. Word is that this may set a record for the driest spring/summer for the Pacific Northwest. We spent the day relaxing in anticipation of our evening visit to Butchart Gardens. We continued the cribbage competition, and I managed to get in a bit of kayaking in this beautiful cove. We launched the dinghy and headed for the Garden's dinghy dock where we entered and headed for our dinner reservation at the restaurant in the Garden.

After a pleasant dinner, it was off to the amphitheater for a classic rock concert by a local band

before we headed for the culmination of the evening-the Saturday fireworks display, sitting on the lawn amongst a few thousand of our closest friends.

When it finally became dark enough, the display began with accompanying music and was easily the best fireworks display that we have experienced with both ground and aerial displays.



It was back to Lion's Paw in the pitch black of night, so with the use of a flashlight and the fact that we put our cockpit lighting on when we left earlier, we returned to Lion's Paw without incident.

Linda was scheduled to catch the noon ferry back to Vancouver on Sunday, and it was another beautiful cruise where Linda enjoyed sitting on the foredeck for most of the journey.

We timed our return to Sidney where we docked at Van Isle Marina. Debra walked Linda to the office where we had arranged for a taxi to take her to the ferry terminal. Debra returned to Lion's Paw, and we departed for our final destination of the week-Otter Bay on North Pender Island. There is a very nice marina in the bay, but we decided just to anchor offshore for the evening. We had another dinner and quiet night aboard.