So very exciting, having our own house. For that matter, I'm currently enjoying a sunset in my new office while posting this.

Here's Barb putting stuff away. She likes putting stuff away. I try to oblige her as much as possible by leaving stuff lying around.



Our very classy fridge and contents. If it ain't liquor, it ain't in here...



Ooops, should have parked the van BEFORE I got into the fridge.



The next day, somehow the van was parked on the sign from the other end...



Oh well, time to make it official. We live here now.

After doing some chores around Mom's house, we did some exploring around Trout Creek today.



This is right outside the parents pad. All XC access, so we took the hardtails. Honestly, the trails are so smooth here I can't see a lot of use for any suspension. I know, we'll find some use for the shocks soon enough, but after the Shore this is something else altogether.





I need about a 300mm lens to get the right shot of this trail, but we're on a thin spine of volcanic rock above a canyon here. The only problem is the angle. Perhaps another time....



A short afternoon of bliss.

Barb gets her weekend mid-week, so it was up to a few misplaced locals to provide the entertainment.



That's Dave Diplock, another former North Shore bike type (now hailing from Rossland) in the orange.



Not much to say today. Just another great little ride on the Rusty Muffler. Hi Barb....

This is a good way to get this party started. A little known singletrack called Rock Oven. You can work out for yourself why it's best to ride this one early. Only 2000' vert., but you gotta pedal up and the descents are a bit burly for your average XC guy. About 3/4's steep and sandy doubletrack, the rest is wicked technical climbing. The descent is ...well, you can see for yourself.
The top looking north. Ole' Chuck D. Railer is lookin' stylin' in the Team Pepsi garb.



..and west. Those snowy slopes over there are the ski area. Besides Chuck D., local shop proprietor Dirt dropout and random Frenchie Pancho Campagnolo were along for the ride.



They sure have funny names around here.



In between these puckering drop off sections are some rowdy rock filled steeps, and the occasional high speed zoomer section.



You don't stop for pics on those zoomer sections though, so you'll just have to check out some more epic vistas.



Heading down towards Skaha Lake.



Post card shot. Check out that lycra. That's why they call him Al Naturale I guess. I really didn't need that lapdance, Al. I owe you one for that.



I sure am outta shape compared to the long term locals, but there's no lack of inspiration to get out there. I think I'm going to be OK up here.

It's only an honourable mention, but I got at least I got some recognition in the NSMB.com Moneyshot contest.

Always shoot the girl on the pink bike. It always turns out.



You can read about the judges decision here.

We found ourselves in strange surroundings today. Welcome to the Iguana Ranch.



That's Paul there giving the tour. He's got an 8 acre spread for the biking enthusiast to enjoy. Much of it is covered with some interactive "sculptures" which look mighty tasty to say the least. We never really got around to those, as we were busy relaxing in the wood fired sauna.

The Ranch is also really close to the Cowichan River, and I'm looking forward to getting some tube time in on those rapids later this summer.



In the afternoon we went back to Prevost to check out some more of those high speed steeps. We ran into the Collective crew filming Stevie Smith. I sort of got in their way like a bit of a gaper at one point when I thought I was lining up Dan for a pic. Oh well, they need more comic relief in their shows anyway.



Back to the riding. I think I already mentioned the words "Steep" and "Fast," didn't I?



There's also "Huge" and "Burly" out here. This drops you straight into a 30 foot gap.



When we did find time to catch our breath, there were cool things all around. Here's a cliff we traversed under with some rare Trilliums in bloom.



All in all, it was a nice (if sort of short) trip. If you're going to ride in Duncan, better give the Iguana Ranch a call. I leave you with this shot of the sculpture.

Since I was already over visiting Mitch on his birthday, I figured I'd get some trails in. To that end I hooked up with an acquaintance from the old Cove Bike Shop days and hit up the Island stuff.

You will note that the Island lifestyle is not one of advanced edumacation.



Our good buddy Dan also came out to test the waters so to speak. He was testing out the latest STD proto from the Cove.



Some of the shuttle routes we got onto were a bit dicey. Didn't want to miss any corners, because the local tow trucks were on island time.



These Nanaimo trails were good fun, and we got into a bit of a dj session at the end. Dan got a bit sideways in there.



Some random loc's showed us the lines.





What we like to call a "Gaper."



After we rode the Dumont (Nanaimo) trails, we headed south to Duncan for a lap of Tzouhalem. It was a nice little ride, but we were running out of day so not many pics for you. We ran across the Transition guys again. Funny how often they've been turning up out there.



We also managed a high speed lap at sunset on Prevost, but no possible way could we take pics then. Have to wait until tomorrow for those.

It's official. When you turn 50, you're old. No escaping it. You can rationalize it any way you like, but you can't escape it. Laura even ran out of candles, so we settled on a single one as a symbol.



Great party though. First beach fire of the year for me.



We weren't the only ones, either. These folks are some random revellers from just down the beach. No idea who they are, but they get their pics up on Bush Pilot.



Just about last man standing.....Mitch heads off to bed at around 4:30 am.



Oh yeah, feeling every minute of those 50 years, aintcha Mitch?