July 13,2024 Sonora Resort
I cannot resist the French Toast
Another late breakfast…it’s such a joy to sleep in, work on our puzzles (Wordle, Connections and On the Record) and then mosey on down to the main lodge.
So this morning new guests arrived via boat…no float planes yet.
The boats leave from somewhere on the Campbell River…near Vancouver …so if you are not okay with the float plane or helicopter…there is another option.
…something awaits at the end of the bar…
…Just in case you don’t want to walk down to the Snack Shack…
We were late booking our fishing excursion… so the concierge arranged for the Owner’s private guide to take us out on his boat. Here’s an instance where procrastination paid off. So freaking lucky.
We stopped by the Gear Room for life jackets, snacks and …
…our fishing licenses
This is Wes Takahashi…owner of FM Guiding Services… AKA the “Fish Whisperer”
Millie helping push us off.
Leaving the resort…blessed with perfect weather…high 60s…super warm bright sunshine.
Wes setting us up.
Wes is the most patient guide. He could tell I was nervous, so he gave me a detailed, hands on tutorial …let me practice reeling and setting the pole into my hip. Although I love accompanying Timmy when we fish in the Caribbean…I have actually never “fished”…I’m good for posing in the chairs..then handing the rod to Timmy. And I was kind of leaning that way, but Wes instilled confidence…so when I got a bite…I reeled it in…it wasn’t quite big enough to keep…but let me tell you – I was hooked.
This is my first ever catch…Wes was going to immediately cut him free…but I said “Wait! Can’t we take a photo?” There were several other “non-keepers”…but then …the keeper.
Below is a shortened video of my “keeper”…a 28 inch, 10 pound Chinook Salmon. I’ve been struggling with uploading videos…but it seems that if I keep them under 60 seconds, they go. I really wanted to upload the entire 3 minutes…it was beyond exciting…I’ve watched the entire clip many, many times. You probably really only need to see this little bit to catch the excitement.
My heart was pounding out of my chest
Best day ever…
Here’s a screenshot from one of the videos of Tim’s catches …all non keepers…but one was soooo close…the fish must be 24 inches in order to keep it.
Below is a clip of a non keeper…for some reason it was easy to upload and gives a sense of how much fun we were having.
Until recently this camp belonged to Michelle Pfeiffer and David E. Kelley .
We saw two black bears..here’s one…
My keeper
The glacial water is the greenest green
Wes with my fish
Can you actually believe it?
The four hours flew by…after we returned to our lodge, I took my salad out on our deck with a glass of that Okanagan Sauvignon Blanc …but I was so keyed up, I went for a walk.
You can hardly see him, but there’s an adorable bird with an orange beak…singing on the log.
These photos were taken between 6:45pm and 8:00pm…still so much sunlight
I took a very leisurely walk towards the blue trail
Hard to tell but I climbed a bit to take this photo…so worth it.
Okay, so the second best moment of the day…I rounded a corner and came upon this beauty. I couldn’t believe it…he never moved…I began to film him…thinking he would fly off …nope…he held his ground.
I hope I’ve been able to convey just how special this resort is…magical is the word that most often comes to mind.
We arrived for dinner around 8:30…and oh my…another wonderful experience.
I think this was sourdough with chili butter.
Traditional Margarita for me and Spicy Mezcal Passionfruit Marg for Timmy.
Someone said I should create a separate blog just for our drink pics…
Braised Prairie Ranchers Pork Cheeks with sunchoke risotto, sea buckthorn, Manchego and elderflower jus.
Legends Haul Dry Aged Pork Chop with white bean, pulled pork, Swiss chard and smoked ham broth
Timmy had the Prairie Ranchers aged Ribeye, potato Rossi, mushrooms and red wine jus.
First time we declined dessert…even with the heater…it was a bit chilly.
…and then we found these waiting for us when we returned to our lodge.
So now all I want to do is fish…kind of like when you are playing golf, and you make that one perfick long putt… anyway, thanks for following along…this day was everything ♥️
