Paisley, Ontario - August 7 - 11, 2015

Paisley, Ontario - August 7 - 11, 2015

August 7, 2015

We got back on the road heading to see our friends, Cathy & Gary Lund.  It is 300 miles from Sturgeon Falls to Paisley, so a big driving day for us.  Also, the roads are two lane so a little slower going.  

Also, we had a bit of a hitch, since Stan needed to use the facility (or wiz as he calls it), so pulled into a parking lot.  The bad part was that the turnaround in the parking lot was a little tight, so we had to unhook the car, get the motorhome around the bend and hook up again.  Not a big deal, just takes time.

Finally, we arrived at Cathy & Gary’s – Gary was starting to wonder where we were, since it was after 5:00 p.m. when we got there.   The house address that Bev had in her records was one digit off, so we had to call to confirm the address, and Cathy & Gary were waiting in the driveway for us.  It was so good to see them again.

They took us down to the Paisley Rotary RV Park that is just a few blocks from their house.  It was a perfect place to stay, right along the river.  We didn’t even have to unhook the car for a day or two.

Next we went to dinner at Marty’s, a restaurant in Paisley.  It was a good thing that they had made reservations, because the place was packed.  Not a wonder as the food was good and plentiful.

Back to Cathy & Gary’s for more chit chat. 

 

 August 8, 2015

We had such a great dinner at Marty’s that we decided to go there for breakfast too.   They opened at 9:00 a.m.  We got there a few minutes early, so we walked down the block to the Back Eddie’s Coffee Shop to get coffee.  The breakfast was just as good as the dinner.  Real down home cooking.

From there we decided to go to the Paisley Farmer’s Market.  They have baked goods, fresh produce, homemade fritters.   We bought some maple syrup and maple sugar from one of the Amish families there.  Cathy & Gary actually have a booth there from time to time, so know all of the vendors.  Actually, Cathy & Gary know about everyone in town.

We went back to Cathy & Gary’s, since their friends, Ross & Diane, were coming over for coffee.  Stan had met them when he was in Paisley for Cathy & Gary’s wedding.  Bev met them for the first time.  Ross & Diane were celebrating their 45^th Wedding Anniversary.   We had such a good time and lots of laughs.  We found out that Ross had been Cathy & Diane’s teacher when they were in High School.  It was early in his teaching career.  Cathy told about Ross passing her over for the Glee Club, and she kiddingly said that she had been scarred for life. 

In the afternoon, we went for a ride around area.  There are so many little communities near Paisley.  With the large Amish & Mennonite population, It was fun to see the buggies out on the road. 

Ross, Gary, Cathy & Diane
 

While we were out and about, we just happened to visit the MacLean Brewery, with a tour and samples.  That was so much fun we continued on to the Neustadt Springs Brewery, again with samples.

Since we were in the area, we stopped by to see Cathy’s brother, Wayne and his wife Lynn.  Stan had met them before, but this was the first time for Bev to meet them.  Upon Gary’s request, Wayne took Gary & Stan out to see his truck.  The boys were in their glory.   Lynn, Cathy and Bev stayed inside and visited about families.

Stan had gone to a burger joint in Paisley, when he was at Gary & Cathy’s wedding, so he wanted to try going there again.  We picked up the hamburgers and headed back to Cathy & Gary’s.

Boy kayaking in river by the RV Park

Mennonite Buggy
 

 

 

August 9, 2015

Gary & Bev started out the morning by taking a walk along the dike in Paisley.  Gary walks four miles a day and Bev was happy to get some exercise.  We walked out and back on the dike, then Gary continued the rest of his four miles, and Bev headed back to the RV Park.  The only problem is that Bev was talking on the phone to Shannon, so missed her turn to the park and had to double back.  The good news is that she probably got in four miles as well.

After a shower we went to Gary & Cathy’s for breakfast on the patio.  Bacon, pancakes, the works.

Gary surprised Stan with a gift of prints that he had acquired over the years at Olympia Brewery and Anheuser-Busch.  They are wonderful pieces that will look great in the bar.  Also, Cathy gave Bev two prints of her water colors, to add to the Cathy Lund gallery in the dining room at home.

We brought some lobsters from out trip to Canada, so we had a wonderful  Steak & Lobster dinner at Cathy & Gary’s. 

In the evening, we drove to Port Elgin to listen to the music in the park.  It was cute to see the families enjoying the music and the kids dancing.   The music finished at sunset.  We got some great pictures.

Stan had been fighting a cold, so we decided to turn in early since we have more plans for tomorrow.




Sweet Bella  - Gary & Cathy's Cat




 

Cathy & Gary's Koi Pont

 

 

Bank at Port Elgin, Ontario

 

Sunset at Port Elgin

 

 

Sunset at Port Elgin

 





 

August 10, 2015

Gary & Bev went for a walk again to start the morning.  This time Bev did not get lost.

After showering, we are brought Irish Bacon over to Cathy & Gary’s for breakfast.  They are nice enough to do the cooking, since the kitchen in the motorhome is a bit limited.

Bev asked Gary if he had any interest in learning more about his family tree.  When he said that would be good, Bev was more than happy to dig in.  Of course, we all know that she can spend hours.  That led to Cathy’s family tree too. 

From there we went to pick up Pat, Cathy’s Mom.  Stan & Bev took Cathy, Gary & Pat for dinner at the Chinese Restaurant, in Owen Sound, Ontario.   We had a great time.

Stan, Gary, Pat, Cathy & Bev

Cathy and Mom, Pat

Stan & Bev

Cathy & Gary 

 

August 11, 2015

Gary & Cathy told us about the Farmers Market in Keaty, Ontario.  We wanted to go see all the produce and other items that are available.   The Amish and the Mennonite’s are wonderful farmers.  The produce that they have available is absolutely beautiful.  Unfortunately, we didn’t feel that we would be able to take produce over the border so we didn’t buy any. 

After the market, we went to visit a Mennonite farm where Cathy & Gary buy their eggs.  The eggs cannot be sold at the market.   Again, we would have loved to buy eggs, but couldn’t take it over the border.  The twin daughters of the farmer were so cute. 

Again, we went back and worked on Genealogy.

 

 

August 12, 2015

When we got ready to leave the park, we went by to say goodbye and thanks again to Cathy & Gary.  They were such incredible host & hostess for our visit.  My, oh my.

We were just going to stop by, but true to the Cathy & Gary style, they had “made from scratch” Banana Muffins, fruit, juice & coffee. 

It was hard to tell them goodbye as we had such a wonderful time, but needed to get on the road.