When I got back to the cabin last week, Wayne had a surprise for me. Our float cabin on Powell Lake, was featured twice in a new book called Our Canada: Picture Perfect. What an exciting surprise! Of course, our off the grid cabin is a prominent feature in Wayne's Coastal BC Stories, but being included in a book published by someone else is very exciting.
Two summers ago, Wayne wrote an article for Our Canada Magazine called "On the Lake". It was the first story in a series called "Our Dream Home." 
We were proud to start it off for them, and got lots of great feedback from the magazine's readers.
The article included two pictures of our cabin. The first was a summer scene with my floating garden in the foreground and our floating wood shed tied to the log boom. This is one of my favourite shots. You'll now find it in the British Columbia section of Our Canada: Picture Perfect.
The other picture they chose to include in the book was a winter scene. Because our Campion runabout was tied to the cabin deck, it was placed in the boating section.
Our Canada: Picture Perfect was just published in May 2010. It is 160 pages with 250 photos and illustrations. The stories and pictures show our great country in all of its glory. It's available online at Reader's Digest, Amazon.ca, or chapters.indigo.ca. You can also purchase it in bookstores throughout Canada including our own Coles in Powell River. Thanks Wayne for a great present! -- Margy
You Are Invited
Powell River
Mark your calendars! The Texada Island (Gillies Bay) Airport Fly-In will be returning on Sunday, July 25, and yours truly, my husband Wayne, will be participating for the third year in a row. To start things off, he will be giving presentations as a part of the Aerospace Camp from July 21-24 for Powell River and Texada Island youths aged 10-18. Then, during the airshow on Sunday, he will have a book signing booth set up.
The fly-in will have lots of activities for pilots and non-pilots alike. Pilots can come and stay at the airport campground for a weekend of fun. Everyone is invited for the festivities on Sunday. Just looking at the planes and talking to the pilots is well worth a visit. With all the hard work by Doby and the other planning committee members, it's going to be another outstanding year!
On Saturday night, July 24, there's a Fly-in Fling at the Royal Canadian Legion. Then on Sunday morning, the gates open at 8:45 and a pancake breakfast will kick things off at 9:00 am. That will be followed by displays, presentations, live entertainment, games for kids and a lunch BBQ at 12:30. Bring a folding chair or grab a place on the grass for aerial demonstrations. The highlight of the afternoon will be the Fraser Blues Flight Team.
If you are flying in, please e-mail ahead to reserve one of the 70 available airplane parking or camping spots at texadaannualflyin@gmail.com. For more details about the event and runway, click here. It's a bit early for details, so check back periodically. Wayne and I hope to see you there. -- Margy
We are heading up the lake today for a few days rest. I have some great stories to share when we return.
In the meantime, come to www.PowellRiverBooks.com and take a look inside these six exciting books in Wayne's Coastal BC Stories series. They're popular with locals and visitors to the Sunshine Coast because they're all about our Powell River region. Each book focuses on a different perspective.
Up the Main focuses on getting into the backcountry by bike, quad and hiking. Come ride along with on a quad to places like Theodosia Inlet, the head of Powell Lake and on logging roads near and far.
Up the Winter Trail takes the reader snowshoeing, hiking and biking during the winter months. This would be a good book if you are planning on coming to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Up the Strait cruises the Strait of Georgia to uncrowded and pristine anchorages. Follow our 24' Bayliner Halcyon Days into Desolation Sound, to unique Mittlenatch Island and the Gulf Islands.
Up the Airway wings you across Canada to show off our beautiful country from up above. Fly along with us in our Piper Arrow, land to camp at remote strips with gorgeous scenery, and meet unique animals like the muskox.
Farther Up the Lake is the newest book in the series. It follows in the footsteps of Wayne's most popular book, Up the Lake. Read about living off the grid in a float cabin and about the beauties of Powell Lake.
All of Wayne's books are available online through www.PowellRiverBooks.com.
For Kindle format go to www.Amazon.com and for iPads and other ebook formats go to www.Smashwords.com.
And of course, they are available locally in Powell River at Marine Traders, Coles or Breakwater Books. Happy reading! -- Margy
For the pilot and adventurer at heart. Fly high over beautiful Canadian lakes, forests and inlets. Land at remote strips and camp under starry skies. In addition to BC, travel to the Arctic Ocean, Hudson Bay, Canadian prairies and Pacific Northwest for a unique travel experience. Read Up the Airway by Wayne J. Lutz and see how much fun flying can be.
Powell River Books strives to keep up with changes in the publishing industry. Apple has released their long awaited iPad and among its many uses is as an ebook reader.
Wayne's books are already available on Amazon.com for the Kindle. And yes, there is a free Kindle app for the iPad, but many users will want to make their ebook purchases at the iBook store. Consequently, all of Wayne's books are now available through Smashwords.
Smashwords is a free ebook publishing and distribution platform. Authors prepare a Microsoft Word .doc file of their book and upload it to the Smashwords website. The author maintains all rights to his or her work, but Smashwords helps them distribute their books to online sellers such as Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Sony, Amazon and Apple. They also sell ebooks in a variety of formats at their own website. Check it out for more information or to browse the many books they have to offer.
One drawback to Smashwords ebooks is that they do not include pictures, they are text only. For this reason, Wayne has maintained his complete text and picture Kindle versions at Amazon. So if you are an iPad user and want the Coastal BC Stories in their original format, you can download the free Kindle app for your iPad and have the best of both worlds. -- Margy
A Great Book2009 was a great year for Wayne, me, and Powell River Books. Here are a few exciting moments:
January - After the holidays at our beloved float cabin on Powell Lake, we returned to Los Angeles to finally sell our condo and pull up stakes. Driving a rented U-Haul we took our remaining possessions north.
February - February 11 was the first anniversary of our Canadian permanent residency. We may be Americans by birth, but we're Canadians by choice. An extended visit with my mom in Bellingham included some fun flying trips in 997.
March - March brought some pretty rough storms with the CCGC Cape Caution on full alert. Our float cabin was highlighted on Kent Griswold's Tiny House Blog and we shared the "Top 10 Reasons to Visit Powell River" in the spring.
April - Spring is a good time to go quad riding and for garden planting. My most popular blog post was about planting potatoes in a barrel. Wayne is in "Nirvana" playing with his new remote control sailboat.
May - Plants, animals and insects are reveling in the warming weather. Small brown bats arrive to live under our roof. We move our Bayliner from it's winter lake home to raft up in Lund for the cruising season. Wayne's first science fiction book Echo of a Distant Planet is released.
June - My floating garden starts to produce lots of tasty veggies. John and Mr. Hat come to visit us and we share the "Top 10 Reasons to Visit Powell River" in the summer. We take the Bayliner for a cruise and back in the States we go airplane camping on Orcas Island.
July - Mom joins us to enjoy the warm summer sun at our cabin. Wayne helps with Aerospace Camp, we host a Star Party and PRB has a booth at the Texada Airport Fly-in. Wayne and I embark on our first Canadian trip since discovering Powell River in 2000.
August - Our camping by airliner trip takes us by rental car from Montreal through New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and by ferry to Newfoundland. Back home I try canning for the first time, we host a Star Party and move the Bayliner back up the lake for a cruise to the Head.
September - We stuff our woodshed while everything is dry. Wayne helps John with his new cabin and lets everyone know the "Top 10 Reasons to Visit Powell River" in the fall. Coastal BC Stories are ready for Kindle and science fiction Inbound to Earth is released.
October - Our tin boat gets a much needed replacement engine. It's bread baking time and I try canning spiced apples. We're both going to get fat if I'm not careful. Fall colours make Powell Lake beautiful and Wayne continues to help John with his new cabin.
November - Off to Oregon for USC football. The wood stove is going and we get ready to install our new thermoelectric generator. Heavy winds make us appreciate our chimney cap and anchor cable shock absorbers. PRB is again honoured at the Horizon Business Awards in the tourism category.
December - The "Top 10 Reasons to Visit Powell River" in winter was aimed at Olympics visitors, but I hope my favourite sign along the Sunshine Coast wasn't a victim to the "say nothing negative" campaign. Mom joined us for the holidays and we got to spend some cherished time up the lake.
The PRB blog had over 27,500 visitors this year. Thank you for being one of them. It's been great and I've had fun sharing it with you. Wayne and I wish you and your family a happy new year. May it bring you peace, love and contentment. -- Margy
Head up Powell Lake to experience life in an off the grid float cabin, take a boat to world famous Desolation Sound, ride a quad into the back country and fly overhead for a unique view of this incredible place. Read Up the Lake and discover how exciting life can be on the Sunshine Coast. Special sale price at Amazon.com for only $.99*Jump in the boat and head up the Strait of Georgia to magnificent anchorages and exciting adventures. Drop your hook in world famous Desolation Sound, discover hidden coves and meet some of the locals. Read Up the Strait and then join us for the cruise of a lifetime. You may never want to leave. On sale at Amazon.com for $5.99For the pilot and adventurer at heart. Fly high over beautiful Canadian lakes, forests and inlets. Land at remote strips and camp under starry skies. In addition to BC, travel to the Arctic Ocean, Hudson Bay, Canadian prairies and Pacific Northwest for a unique travel experience. Read Up the Airway and see how much fun flying can be. On sale at Amazon.com for $5.99
I'm dreaming of a lake Christmas
Today I met my good friend Betty for a day of shopping (mostly window style) and camaraderie. Betty and I met through my blog. In fact, she is my most faithful reader! We discovered we lived in the same town, so decided to get together in real life. It has been great fun. If you want to meet Betty too, she is known as Mud Creek Mama here on Blogger.
One of our favourite places to meet is Historic Fairhaven. In 1889, the railroad was coming, and Fairhaven grew rapidly, hoping to become the west coast terminus. The railroad connection never worked out, so the new town turned to the sea and fishing for its economic base. In its heyday, Fairhaven was a bustling town of hotels, shops, saloons and brothels. Today, the brothels are gone, but the rich heritage of hotels, shops, restaurants and nightlife remains. And Fairhaven has achieved its original goal of becoming a tranportation center with its Alaska Ferry, Amtrak and bus terminal.
One stop in Fairhaven that we love to make is the Eclipse Bookstore at 1104 11th Street. The Eclipse Bookstore is amazing with its vast variety of books covering the two floors of the establishment. Because it's a used book store, the prices are also amazingly low. Today, I got three books by R.D. Lawrence, a renowned Canadian author.
To fortify ourselves before wandering the shelves, we stopped in at Avenue Bread at 1135 11th Street. Avenue Bread is across the street and within easy walking distance. In addition to their wonderful fresh breads (I chose the sourdough with rosemary - YUM), they have a small cafe. We could have chosen soup, salad or sandwiches to go with our coffee, but opted for some of the fresh baked treats. Betty had the ham and cheese croissant and I got the cinnamon twist (double YUM).
A trip to Fairhaven wouldn't be complete without a visit to Village Books at 1200 11th Street. They have mostly new books, but you will also find good used books among the collection. They even handle books on consignment. If you are looking for a place to purchase books from Wayne's Coastal BC Stories series you can find them at Village Books. They currently carry Up the Lake, Up the Strait, Up the Airway and Up the Winter Trail. Stop by and check them out while you are shopping in Historic Fairhaven. -- Margy
You've read about some of our flying adventures here on the blog. Our Piper Arrow 997 has taken us from Cancun to the Arctic and the Pacific to the Atlantic, but flying in Canada has always been our favourite.
Up the Airway, the fifth book the Coastal BC Stories series, will give the pilot and adventurer at heart a bird's eye view of some of the most beautiful country in the world.
Want a preview? There are free audio chapters available from Powell River Books. Click on the Podcast Index and you can chose from iTunes, podcasts, RSS feeds or direct downloads. Enjoy! It's all free!!
If you fly a small airplane, you know that things don't always go as planned. The chapter "Unexpected Destinations" is about several flights that took us to places like Anglemont with a runway that goes right up the side of a hill or Lutselk'e on the shores of Great Slave Lake.
We flew to "Bella Bella" for an overnight camping adventure including a tour of the village and Campbell Island. If you want to learn about a new place, take a taxi. The drivers have a lot of local knowledge and are happy to share the wealth.
Come fly with us "up the airway" to unique destinations. Come to www.PowellRiverBooks.com for book ordering information. -- Margy
Tonight was the second Star Party hosted by Powell River Books at the Town Centre Hotel in Powell River, BC. Wayne (with a little help from me) set up two telescopes in the hotel's courtyard. The goal was to introduce people to astronomy and the availability of affordable telescopes. The Star Party was part of our contribution to the International Year of Astronomy. Around the world, amateur and professional astronomers have been hosting similar events.
The moon slipped below the horizon before darkness set in, so we set up Wayne's more powerful Meade LX90 to focus on Jupiter. Jupiter is currently as close as it gets to the earth, and viewing is excellent. The four largest moons were lined up in a row, and the bands were quite evident. Thanks to the computer driven controllers on today's modern scopes, we were able to easily find and track the evenings best celestial objects.
Participants of all ages had a good time, and they especially enjoyed their free commemorative hand painted constellation paper weights. Wayne and I want to thank Shelly, the manager of the Town Centre Hotel, for her ongoing support of events like these and Powell River Books.
Wayne is an enthusiastic amateur astronomer. He has three telescopes, a Meade ETX125 (125 millimeter) Maksutov-Cassegrain, a Meade LX90 8-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain, and a Edmond Astroscan (for fun). For newbie amateurs astronomers, here are a few of his recommendations:
I am amazed at how dark and clear the sky can be here in Powell River. It's a perfect location for night sky exploration, even from the corner of our float cabin up Powell Lake.
