Camping with Horses.

Camping with Horses.
Click above to watch on YouTube. 

We went camping for a week near Limestone mountain. Alberta. The first few days we had a heatwave and lots of wind, but the evenings were lovely. When it cooled down we had, rain, then hail and eventually snow.

TOKELOSHE ©

Smokeless Camping.

Erik loves camping.

Click above for more

 

For our first camp of the season, we camped at one of our favorite spots, which we call Fallen Tree.

Wild camping near Limestone Mountain, Alberta, Canada.

"Also called dry, free, or freedom camping, wild camping is overnighting away from organized campsites, and their noise and crowds, to set up camp among the wilds of nature instead."- Matador 

Network.

 

 As usual the place was spotless, except someone had left a table, which we didn't mind.

 

A perfect view.

The table was quite sturdy.

Our parked camper, truck and quad.

Getting comfortable.

Our closest neighbors

We had a huge area for ourselves.

Erik had a ball as usual.

Collecting firewood which we didn't use.

The area is beautiful with many birds.

There were still a few small patches of snow left.

 

Me crossing small streams. I am wearing fleece lined denim pants, fleece cap, a camouflage Jacket long-sleeve shirt, wool socks and Sorel boots. I have bear-spray in one pocket and a knife in the other pocket. ;-)

 

I wonder what caused the holes.

There were many fallen trees.

Relaxing in the hammock.

Erik on guard. 

This hammock is 11 foot long and 7 1/2 foot wide, so that you can lay across it.
Our hammocks are made from Taffeta material (banquet table-cloths.)
Sourced from Tablecloths.com.

 

We tried out our old portable stainless steel charcoal barbecue, which we bought years ago at Ikea. It came with a Metal white Mesh Food Screen Dome Cover for Bugs.

 

I don't think Ikea sells them anymore. This small, all-round stainless steel barbecue is easy to carry with the handle it is equipped with. It can be used on a balcony, on the beach or even on a boat. (Diam: 35 cm and H.50cm). Designer Mikael Warnhammar.

It comes with a grill and worked very well. We call it Sputnik ;-)

We also used our portable propane fire pit for heat.
We used the charcoal barbecue's grill and made toasted cheese and tomato sandwiches in foil for breakfast.
They were ready in less than 5 minutes.

It got quite cold in the evening, one night it dropped below freezing, but the smokeless fire kept us warm and only cost about $5 in gas for 4 nights. Not bad considering we have spent $4 on firewood per night. It comes with a lid and is easy to move around. It was great not to smell of and keep out of the way of smoke.

 

There were a few other campers, but we have been there when there were  more.
Despite that, it was still very peaceful.

As usual we saw many wild horses, you can see and read more about them here.

“Wild horses” or “feral horses”? The debate rages on in Alberta, Canada. The provincial government believes that the wild horses west of Sundre, Alberta are the descendants of domestic horses used in logging and guiding/outfitting operations in the early 1900’s. The Wild Horse Society of Alberta (WHOAS) believes that they are of Spanish descent. WHOAS is so sure of this that they have sent away DNA samples to the University of Texas, Equine Genetics Lab for testing.” – Wild Horses Of Alberta

Meet the Neigh-bours.

Straight from the horse’s mouth.

It’s pasture bedtime.

I foal as though you don’t care about me.

C’mon, quit foaling around, will you?

It’s late. We better hit the hay.

He's such a stud! What a mane man.

Sorry, it was a NIGHTMARE!

Quit horsing around.

MagNEIGHficent.

 

We'll try to rein it in a bit now and quit horsing around, before we make a foal of ourselves.

 

For more Horse Puns – Punpedia.

This Duck stood on the fallen tree for a long time.

I think it is a Harlequin duck.

  Histrionicus histrionicus

Harlequin ducks are named for the ornate, clown-like appearance of the males. Appearance Basically slate-blue, males are highlighted in black-outlined white striping and accented by daubs of rust-brown on the lower body and brownish black at the wing-tips.Females are well-camouflaged in basic brown.Habitat: Favours rocky shorelines of rapid streams, frequents coastal estuaries and islands. - Ducks.

Range: East and west coasts of North America. Eastern range extends from Greenland and Labrador as far south as New Jersey. Western range is from Kamchatka Peninsula and Siberia north across the Bering Strait and back down through Alaska, inland throughout much of the Rockies, and as far south as the central California coast. The ranges are separate and populations are much higher in the west. Some southward migration takes place but most movement is inland for breeding and nesting and seaward for wintering. - Ducks.

Harlequin duck.

We saw two ducks flying over and trying to catch fish in this spot.

Can you imagine riding on a Horse through this beautiful area?

Related:

How to Find Free Camping in the US & Canada.

Fallen Tree.

Tokeloshe ©

 

Spring Salmon Place.

After we got off the ferry, we drove to Sooke, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, where we dry camped for four days at Spring Salmon Place (KWL-UCHUN) Campground at Sooke Potholes Provincial Park. We had a nice spot next to the river. Site #44 is not level enough for a camper, so we had to lift the camper quite a bit. There is no power, cell-phone reception or Wi-Fi. 

We have camped here before, you can see photos here and here. The staff were friendly, Cold water taps are located at the campground. Pit toilets with toilet paper is provided.  There are no showers available. There are fire-pits and firewood is for sale. 

We try to get into a campground before a long weekend, which was a good thing, because at the time we didn't know it but it was U.S.A. Memorial day long weekend. 

 Unfortunately there were people playing music, laughing and talking till late at night, as if the sound of the river and birds isn't music enough. :-(

Two handy tools around the fire-pit, a poker and tongs.

Erik on he's chair. The weather was cool and one day we had rain showers.

 

 A Wok with chopped bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, etc. on a Single Burner Cast Iron propane Stove. The stove stands on an aluminum tray to protect the table. A piece of wood under the stove also keeps the heat from damaging the table.

 

"Sooke Potholes Provincial Park provides access to the series of deep, polished rock pools and potholes carved naturally into the bedrock of the Sooke River. This area is a favourite day-use destination for many local and regional residents." -Sooke Potholes Provincial Park

Erik is wet.

Watch out for deer crossing the road on the way to Sooke Potholes Provincial Park. We did our shopping in the town of Sooke,

“Sooke is located on the south western tip of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It has a sheltered harbor, and is a scenic half hour drive from BC’s capital city Victoria. The Sooke region encompasses East Sooke and the District of Sooke, two communities which are joined across the Sooke Harbour and Basin. – Sooke©

 

We visited Whiffin Spit Park in Sooke again.

“A spit or sandspit is a deposition landform found off coasts. At one end, spits connect to land, while at the far end they exist in open water.^[1] A spit is a type of bar or beachthat develops where a re-entrant occurs, such as at cove’s headlands, by the process of longshore drift. Longshore drift (also called littoral drift) occurs due to waves meeting the beach at an oblique angle, and backwashing perpendicular to the shore, moving sediment down the beach in a zigzag pattern. Longshore drifting is complemented by longshore currents, which transport sediment through the water alongside the beach. These currents are set in motion by the same oblique angleof entering waves that causes littoral drift and transport sediment in a similar process.^{[2]” – Wikipedia}

Erik at Whiffin Spit Park in Sooke.

"Whiffin Spit Trail is a 2.7 kilometer moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Sooke, British Columbia, Canada that offers scenic views and is good for all skill levels. The trail is primarily used for walking, trail running, and nature trips and is best used from May until October. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash." - All Trails. 

While we were camping at Sooke, we visited Victoria for the day. COMING SOON.

RELATED:

The Official Sooke, British Columbia, Tourism Video

Sooke to Port Renfrew Tourism Association

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

Sooke Potholes Campground in 2012.

Whiffen Spit Park.

Sooke Harbour Boardwalk/Ed Macgregor Park. “From Ed Macgregor Park that hosts a number of festivals and events, take the zig-zagging boardwalk down to the harbour where you can follow the 1100 ft wooden boardwalk along the Sooke shoreline.” – Sooke harbour marina

Sooke Potholes Campground.2010

Sooke Potholes Provincial Park.2010

TOKELOSHE ©