Just last Sunday, Paulette and I happened to take our very first hike on a trail that led us to the Cowichan River Estuary. It was one of the nicest trails we’ve been on in this area and we vowed to make it a regular addition to our list of local favourites. It was a cloudy day yesterday with a constant threat of showers so we opted for a place close to home to take Molly and Rylie for their afternoon walk and ended up at the same Estuary.
Cowichan Estuary Trail Map produced by Motion X GPS App
The trail pic below is about the spot marked by the red star above
In my post last Sunday about the estuary I wrote that I thought it was about a mile walk from the parking area to the mouth of the river. Yesterday, I turned my iPhone’s Motion X GPS app on to measure the distance exactly and found out I was pretty darned close – it was .9 of a mile. So, walking both ways is about a 2 mile hike which isn’t bad for a nice leisurely afternoon.
About the only blue skies we saw were reflected in this pool
As all RV’ers know, there are always hidden dangers to watch out for while driving our rigs along an Interstate or highway. Numerous blow-outs have caused damage to rigs, deer are always a danger while we all have to watch out for low bridges and underpasses. Another hazard is objects flying off of the big semi-trailers whizzing by.
Hole in the windshield where the rock flew killing the driver
This message was driven home again for us just this week when a man was killed when a rock flew off a logging truck and crashed through the windshield of his truck near Skutz Falls. We travel on this highway a fair bit and huge logging trucks barrelling down the road are common. In this case, the logging truck was headed in the opposite direction when the thrown rock became a deadly bullet.
A logging truck barrelling along the same Cowichan Lake Hi-way
The rock that went through his windshield, hitting the drive in the head, was about the size of a standard building brick. A witness told the RCMP the rock fell from the first of two eastbound logging trucks, bounced off the road, then through the driver's side windshield of the westbound GMC pickup truck. The logging-truck driver did not stop at the scene. It's likely, police say, that rig's driver, nor the one following, was aware the accident had happened.
Every one of us who drives a rig down the highway, whether it be a MH or a truck and 5’er knows that there’s really no defense against flying objects. What can we do? It simply comes down to a matter of luck. I know I’ve had several windshields chipped and/or replaced due to flying rocks but luckily that’s all the damage that was done. Next time I get a rock chip, I should just thank my lucky stars that’s all it is as this accident really shows how bad it could have been.
Have a great Friday, and thanks again for visiting!
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