Six weeks ago today John had his triple hernia operation and suffice to say his recovery has been exemplary - and surprisingly, so too has his mental state - given that kayaking was totally off limits. All that changed last evening.
It's not that spending part of the summer in Ottawa was a hardship - far from it. There was always something to see and do and this past weekend the Gatineau Hot Air Balloon Festival took place. Although we didn't attend, we were delighted to see the balloons float past both Friday evening and again on Saturday morning.
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| Friday Evening |
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| Saturday morning |
Most of the remainder of Saturday was spent in the van for the seven-hour drive from Ottawa to Elliot Lake. Just west of North Bay we stopped for a picnic lunch that featured a gorgeous view of Lake Nipissing.
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| Lake Nipissing |
We'd barely sat down when an unexpected guest joined us - landing on John's wrist no less.
On closer inspection John realized the dragonfly was also eating. After he'd devoured what John thought was a flying ant, he flew off - no doubt looking for seconds!
I suspect the highlight of the Labour Day long weekend for John, however, was when we launched the kayaks on Esten Lake last night. John's six long weeks of waiting ended and for the first time in almost three years I got on the water as well.
It was a calm, serene evening and all I can say is that it's good to be back in the north!
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