Fortunately the weather was with us for the monumental 2 day haul-our-asses-over-the-mountains-and-get-back-to-the-flatlands travel days....but we paid the helluvest price with our compressed, mutilated, de-formed and tortured spinal cords. Long ride! #1 Trans Canada ... sho' is hard....on a man.
 
 Happily, we made it to Brooks, Alberta in record time. Passing the huge, state-of-the-art packing house XL Foods on the outskirts of town reminded us we were in beef country...and we were mighty hongry. We decide to forgo the many chain restaurants and picked Gus Steak and Pizza House...what could be better than "Family Dining"?

 I decided on the Hamburger Steak, and Doc chose the Hot Hamburger. When presented, I could easily see that the steak was very well done...and upon tasting it, was convinced that it had been cooked the day before, to insure that it was indeed well done and "safe" , for some reason the chef must have deemed necessary. Doc was presented with not a Hot Hamburger, but a Roast Beef sandwich, which he devoured anyway - as you recall, we were ravenous -  he plowed through the gristle with determination.

 Now for a relaxing evening at the Telstar Motel...dig the neon !

Cool Reviews- Check These Out

http://www.rodneywilson.ca/2012/11/02/national-steel-blues-emergency-tour/

http://music.cbc.ca/#/blogs/2012/11/Doc-MacLean-and-Morgan-Daviss-epic-blues-tour

Travel Day- Kamloops, BC to Brooks, AB

Island to High Land- Kamloops House Concert

Here we are waiting for the ferry to get off the Island. We're hoping for an easy ride through the mountains to tonight's show in Kamloops...

It's a pretty ride, the miles go by easily, and before we know it we have arrived in Kamloops for our house concert. We are met by our hosts Sabrina Weeks and her partner, Mike. Nice to hang out with another left handed guitar player- especially one with a collection of fine instruments!

The concert is great fun- well attended. Again, we really appreciate the hospitality- and it's so rewarding to see some of the key people from the local blues scene sitting in the front rows!

Host and jacket winner! Congrats, Mike- and thanks to you and Sabrina for a fabulous night. We love these house concerts! Sabrina is off to be a blues diva at Massey Hall in Toronto in just a couple of weeks time. Wow. Congrats. We wish you all the best! Take lots of pictures!

Victoria Folk Society- Blues at Norway House

Mile Zero of the road we ride so often across this great country. Terry Fox behind- to inspire us.

Victoria is still green, and it ought to be, given the rain we've seen.

 The gate to our wonderful digs here in Victoria, BC. A city of hedges!

The show at Norway House, presented by the Victoria Folk Society, ends up being filled to capacity. It is big fun. The crowd is with us from the beginning, and our encores run us into overtime. Ian, Jordy, Rockland- great Victoria musicians- can be seen standing in the back. Thanks very much for coming out everybody- much appreciated! Nice to see so many out for the Blues in Victoria!

Headliners, Nanaimo, BC

A quiet Saturday night is had at Headliners, Nanaimo, BC. We've had great shows here in the past. Maybe it was the rain? Anyway, we did have a great time with the folks who attended- they all read about the show in the newspapers. A shame there were not more bums in seats considering the amount of work Headliners does to present roots and blues shows in this town... Yes, we were pumped to play Nanaimo, so we are disappointed. But- on the good side- we came away with a bunch of new friends I'm sure we'll see again! And we had fun playing tonight. So there.

Duncan Garage Show Room, Duncan, BC

From Port Alberni to Victoria House Concert

     Well, as you can see from the photos, we are travelling constatntly. In Cumberland B.C. now, we have our first day of sunshine in a couple weeks. Don't get me wrong - I am happy we got through the mountains with no snow, but it has been very grey, and it is nice to see the sun. We play Port Alberni tonight, and I will see my two brothers-in-law, Scott and Mark. So....let's see....we left off in Nelson, a pretty how town with up so floating many bells down....had a small but mighty crowd at the Royal, with a few musicianers in attendance. Next day cruised into the high desert of Spence's Bridge, a mecca for steelhead fishermen who were lining the banks of the Thompson River. The gig (at the Packinghouse) was in a fantastic turn of the century  fruit warehouse -  a tiny líl warehouse that was jammed with 25 folks and we had a LARGE time. Steve, owner and host, was most accommodating and gracious, feeding us and giving us his farmhouse to stay in.

Next morning we had breakfast at the Packinghouse - fully half the diners were wearing chest waders!!!! Then off to Vancouver, following the mighty Fraser River in its' wild and rugged gorge. We made a stop in Hope, to try to find a venue to play, but seems like there is no hope in Hope... so if any of you resident blues fans wanna host a house party there, we "Hope" to snag a gig there one day....

It is always a strange feeling to re-enter a major urban area after motivating in the countryside for several weeks.... suddenly, the density and crush of humanity closes in.... concrete covers the earth, and the rushing around begins... we shop for cheap gas before entering Vancouver, then arrive at our digs to settle in.

The west coast - Spot Prawns, Wild Salmon, Dungeness Crab... YES! Also home of White Spots - the onliest restaurant in Canada that serves real hashbrowns with breakfast (well, yes, so does Denny's, but we do have a sense of pride here, and there are limits to our dining possibilities.

After a couple of house parties in the Vancouver area, we got on the ferry to Nanaimo, then headed to Cedar, where we played Yellow Point Lodge, an amazing resort dating from the 30's, with many long-time customers and a host - Richard Hill - who is also a wonderful bass player. I had played here last fall, and fell in love with the place.....the setting is dramatic, and the feeling in the lodge is comfortable and cozy, from the giant fireplace, to the log construction, to the staff and communal meals, it is unique - and the guests really loved the concert. Richard can sure play that ol'doghouse bass.....

Only seven more Doc and Morgan gigs to go on this Tour !
 

Port Alberni, BC- Char's Landing

Cumberland, BC is Good and a Fine Time is Had

Cedar, BC- Great Day, Great Night on the Island