Good Sunday morning. I received a call for a short job while we were in Ontario, but I was unable to accept it because we were in Owen Sound and I couldn't make it to the ship in time. Although I couldn't accept the job, it was exciting to receive the call. We are back home from our trip to Georgian College, where Lorraine completed her Marine Emergency Duties course, a requirement for her to sail again. She passed the course and has two more steps (first aid and security course) before she can join her first ship.

I waited in the College Library and then moved over to the cafeteria to wait for Lorraine while she wrote her exam. I knew she would pass, but it’s always nice to see it in writing and especially when there is a nice shiny sticker.

We stayed at such a lovely Airbnb in Owen Sound. It was perfect, and it added to our experience. The other people taking the course with Lorraine shared that they wished they had considered staying at an Airbnb as well. We enjoyed preparing our own meals, the extra space, and the beautiful backyard. I took the course in 2019 and shared with Lorraine what I thought was most difficult. Interestingly, she disagreed after completing her own course. It was a three-day course. I found the pool work the most difficult, with the final task of flipping an overturned 12-man life raft almost impossible. Flipping the raft was a pass-or-fail situation, so I was grateful that I was able to do it in the end. Lorraine found the firefighting more challenging. It wasn't the usual challenges, depending upon the breathing apparatus or the intense heat in the mock-up, where you have to put out a fire. She found the weight of the canister on her back to be cumbersome, making it difficult to maneuver. Neither of us is claustrophobic, which is a challenge for some.

This was the part of the pool work. Lorraine and the other 11 students had to complete different tasks wearing the survival suit. Getting these suits on in less than 2 minutes. It used to be 3 minutes to pass but Transport Canada changed it to 2 minutes. . I watched and she was the first one dressed. She had the advantage that she had worn them before.

Lorraine is the one waving on the right. I looked at the group from a distance and could not make out Lorraine until I got up close and read her name that was taped to the helmet. They had to have all their firefighting gear on in less than five minutes. This included the breathing aparatus.

All 12 of the students had to get into the raft and after learning about what they would find in the life raft, they each had a turn in righting a flipped over raft. I found that was the hardest part of the course when I took it.

I invited a friend whom I met while sailing in 1983 to meet us in Owen Sound. He doesn't live too far away, and it was fun to have a visit while Lorraine was in school. My friend is a retired Captain, and I invited him to share some of his sailing stories in my premiere e-magazine. I look forward to sharing that with you. He has kept a journal for years, so I sometimes find myself asking him to help me remember dates, times, and events from when we sailed together. We met Lorraine during her lunch break and had a picnic outdoors. Through a conversation with him and one of the instructors who sat down with us, a name was mentioned, and my ears remembered that name. He was the Captain on the Peter Misener when I was there. I mentioned that I would love to see him. We found him in the school; he is retired but happened to be there that day, helping out. (Timing is everything.) I recognized him immediately, even though it had been about 37 years since we last saw each other. I started with "I was there when the pilot made an error, and we hit the mountain in the Saguenay River." It was so interesting to hear him fill in the details for me. I invited him to tell his story in a future e-magazine, and he agreed. I took down his contact information and look forward to speaking with him myself.

I was delighted to find out that the Captain who was on the Peter Misener when I was there about 37 years ago was helping out at the college that day. I had not seen him since my time there when the pilot made an error and we hit a mountain in the Saguenay River. It was so interesting to hear him fill in some of the blanks for me, the behind the scenes and I invited him to share his story in a future Ship to Shore Chef e-magazine publication.

The person in charge of the course was very kind and allowed me to take photos and videos, which I will share in the future as well. One of the primary instructors mentioned to Lorraine that he had sailed with me on the Thunder Bay. I watched as Lorraine went through all the tasks and was grateful that I had already taken and completed the course. On the first day, one of the instructors suggested that we visit Harrison Park. The weather was spectacular, and a drive to the park was exactly what Lorraine needed after a busy day of pool work and filling that 12-man raft. Lorraine likes to sit in the sun, and I like to sit in the shade. I had taken my laptop with me so that I could work on my e-magazine. I am almost finished and will make it available to you soon. There is a small river running through the park, and I heard the sound of water splashing. I was thinking maybe somebody's dog jumped in for a quick swim. When Lorraine came over to join me and suggest we go back to our Airbnb. She asked if I had heard the fish? I said I heard loud splashing, and she explained that it was the fish. On our way to the car, we saw a sign about the Salmon run and walked over to the bridge to watch the Salmon try to swim against the current. We found ourselves rooting for the Salmon, encouraging them not to give up. They would get a few feet ahead, and then the current would push them back. It was so interesting and watching them was exhausting. It was fascinating, and we went back each day.

We were so pleased that the instructor from Lorraine’s course recommended we visit the Harrison Park at the end of our first day. We went back every day. It is so beautiful and we loved watching the Salmon swim up the little river.

Our end of September visit was perfect timing to see this annual event!

Harrison Park was the perfect place to go after Lorraine spent the day at her course.

This is the little bridge behind our Airbnb. I tried to send it to you last week but it didn’t load fast enough. It was such a beautiful spot to sit. Between the backyard and Harrison park we were surrounded by green.

On the afternoon of the final day of the course, Lorraine had an exam. I went to the college library to wait for her. I never attended college or university, so it was special to sit in the library among the students, an experience I never thought I would have. Lorraine is a good student and, as instructed, read through her manual the week before her course and each night after attending school. I was excited when she found me and held up the paper with the shiny seal confirming she had passed the course. She was happy it was over. We left Owen Sound and made our way on the country roads to Orillia. We had friends there and planned to visit for a few days before heading back to Mont Tremblant.

The drive from Owen Sound to Orillia was beautiful. In the distance is Georgian Bay.

We had such a nice visit. Our friend had to work during the day, and Lorraine and I said we would make supper one night. I made something that Lorraine had never had before: the Flan Kuchen from the first book. I make it on the ship, and it is always popular. We had a great time, and another friend joined us on another night. I asked our friend if she would like to review my e-magazine and share her opinion. I was delighted to see the surprise on her face when she realized it was interactive with videos throughout. I was so pleased that she liked it.

I made the Flan Kuchen from the first cookbook for our friends. It was a hit. We served it with a salad.

I love to experiment and when I saw the microwave/ slash pizza drawer appliance in their kitchen I asked if I could bake my Flan Kuchen in the drawer and the rest in the oven. I wanted to see the difference. Both came out perfect. If I need to replace my microware, i would definitely look into that particular appliance.

This is the model that our friends had. It is perfect for cooking for one or two. We were five so I used the stove but it was fun to try the pizza drawer out and see the results.

Our friend treated us to ice ream after our supper. This was the small ice cream. It was huge! The Kawartha ice cream is popular in the area and I was excited to find my favorite, Tiger Tail.

We left yesterday morning, finding it hard to pull ourselves away from the beautiful morning, but knowing we had a bit of a drive ahead of us. We took a route that was a little longer, just over 7 hours, but we wanted to stop in a couple of little towns along the way and knew that we would see more fall colors taking the southern country roads route. We stopped in a little town called Stirling, and then we stopped in Perth. We took a beautiful walk in Perth, and if we hadn't had another three hours or more of driving, we would have stayed longer. It is such a pretty little town. We love a road trip, and this one was a success!