Concert, Canoeing, and Carnivorous Mozzies

Just a quick one today. Went to the concert last night. Bedouin Soundclash was the band. I hadn't heard much of them before the concert, but looked them up a few months ago online in Scotland and heard a few of their songs. I guess those songs weren't really indicative of their true, live style, but still really good. So to classify the band into a genre, I guess you would call it reggae but with some great techno, acoustic, and vocal sounds. There were about 7 of us from work who went together and then met up with some more people at the show. The band that opened for them were called Haley Sales. The lead female singer sounded like a funkier, rough in a good way Norah Jones. She was really good. It bothered me through their whole 8? song set that she reminded me of someone other than Norah Jones, and it wasn't until after they finished and said their band name, that I realized they were the group I had been hearing on the radio in town recently. I knew they sounded like them, because they were.

Back on the Bow

Bedouin didn't get on stage until friggin 11:30 (we arrived at 8 for doors open at 9) and I had to work at 7am too. The concert was awesome though. Not stuff I normally listen to or seek out in a music store, but I might just have to now. It was the perfect music had we been on a beach on some tropical island on a balmy night. Mostly because it was about 40C inside the bar where the band was playing with a couple hundred people all crammed in. It was nuts, but a totally great vibe with all that energy just vibrating off of everyone else. Reggae is so cool, especially the way they funked it up. Definitely recommend checking them out. (Try their Myspace page - where I heard them first). They played the only song I knew totally at the very end of the concert and had the whole crowd singing alone. Sweet show, if not for the fact that your clothes were stuck to you and you felt like dying in the heat. Finished finally at 1:00am.

Bald Eagle

I keep saying I can't handle these crazy nights of staying up so late and then working the next morning, but I seem to be doing well enough. Had a little nap before the concert, couple hours sleep tonight, and then after work today at 3pm, I stopped in at the other hotel and picked up the staff canoe pass. I don't care how dead I am or whether or not I could sleep 15 hours straight if I had the chance, the weather was absolutely gorgeous, I am still white as a sheet, and I have been dying to go canoeing since the river flooded and you couldn't go canoeing anymore. So off I went. Contribute $15.00 to the staff canoe pass, and I can sign it out whenever I want and go as much as I want. AWESOME! Grabbed a single kayak instead of a massive canoe once I got there and I was good to go. Ready to tan and ready to get my arms in shape and do some form of physical activity aside from speedwalking from home to job to job to home. Paddled up 40 mile creek just off the Bow towards Vermillion Lakes. The river was so so clear and running enough that you actually had to put some effort into getting anywhere. Finally branched off the creek which is clear blue glacial water like the Bow River and then into the creek that leads to the Vermillion Lakes. Totally different water immediately. Everything just turned brown underwater with all the dead branches and crap so that you couldn't see anything. I don't know why but it all of a sudden scared the crap out of me. I HATE water that I can't see things in. I seriously got all panicky about not having my life jacket on, about running in to something below the boat, sinking in 3 feet of water and all these other irrational thoughts. Water I can't see through scares the SHIT out of me. I had to talk myself out of it and just look straight ahead rather than at the water. I got over it after a bit and then made it onto the 1st Vermillion Lake. Really shallow with lots of stuff growing up from the bottom. It was nice because the lakes are pretty stagnant, no currents, no real directed flow, so you are basically paddling on still water. There was a slight breeze and beautifully sunny. I decided to just kick my legs up on top of the boat and paddle leisurely to the 2nd Vermillion Lake.

Dan

About a month or so ago when I had been sitting on the banks between the first and second lakes, a canoer passed me a told me of this bald eagle he's seen on the island of the second lake, so I decided to head in that direction to see if I could spot him. Just at the entrance to the second lake, connected to the first by a small shallow creek, about two hundred meters to my left was the bald eagle. I could see him sitting there regally atop this huge dead tree. I paddled over as close as I could to the edge of the water where the reeds get really thick, and lodged the boat right in so I wouldn't drift along in the wind. I took a ton of snaps of him from the boat. He was HUGE!! Pretty darn cool because you don't get to see them that often. He must have a nest there or something because he seems to have been there for some time now. After about on an hour on the boat, catching some rays, and lounging in the boat, I decided to turn her around and head slowly back to the docks. (The pass is good for two hours at a time). I made my way across the first lake, through the creek, and then eventually back on to 40 mile creek leading to the Bow. Between the Bow and the 1st Vermillion Lake I was savagely attacked my enormous mosquitos. Unrelenting little buggers. I got about 4 bites on my back, no my knee, my neck, numerous on my arms, and my feet and ankles (though those are from work....go figure). You think 27C weather would deter the little suckers. Aside from that it was perfect. I got back on the the 40 Mile Creek and just let the current drift me back towards the dock, and around the gentle bends while I hung my feet over the sides of the kayak into the water and took some pics of the scenery. It doesn't take long to get the hang of it.

Group Shot

And that was my last two days. Think I will try and get out kayaking at least once a week from now on. I think I'll go on Friday too. After I wake up from Thursdays double shift and Friday morning sleep-in. Supposed to get even warmer, so I should think about some sunscreen maybe. Anyone know a good mozzie deterent other than smelling like chemical??

Promise to post some pics tomorrow as I have a few hours in between jobs then. Take care everyone. Cheers!

Guess which Mountain

Josh & I

Kayaking

Lake Shot

Lake Shot 2

Poser

Poser Take 2

Posing Again

Rundle Mountain

Rundle Mt.

Silly Boys

The Boys

The Boys After

The Boys Before

Vermillion Lake

View

Waterfall