Last weekend, 1 July, was the Canada Day long weekend where we Canadians celebrated our 144 birthday as a country.  This year my family was invited to a friends cottage on an island near Halifax NS on one of the many lakes in the area.  The cottage has no electricity or running water and everything had to be packed in by boat.  So this weekend I got to use my VFF in ways that I hadn’t tried before and I got spend a long weekend with my family camping and enjoying the outdoors.

The Island

The island was actually really big, about 7 acres in size and heavily treed.  It took my son and I about 45 minutes to kayak around it.  The interior was treed with lots of trails crisscrossing it and the shore was covered with large rocks and water that rapidly dropped off into very deep water.

I used my VFFs for all the typical uses, lounging around (and answering the usual questions about them), using them for the 9 hole mini golf course and of course exploring the island.  The 9 hole mini golf was built by my friends family and was great and entertaining for everyone.  But this weekend I was able to use my VFFs in ways that I haven’t and realized that they are very versatile.

One of the first uses for VFFs was as a water shoe and for boating.  I wanted to make sure I had traction for each activity, and this gave me the opportunity to try them out in and on the water.  The first use was when swimming by both my daughter and myself.  The bottom of the lake had rocky areas and was not nice to bare feet.  There was also stuff that my daughter did not like walking through or touching while swimming with her bare feet; I agree, walking through lake grass is disconcerting.  My daughter said that at first she found it weird to wear them while swimming but after 15 minutes she said she didn’t notice them anymore.  I didn’t mind them swimming although I was worried that my Sprints might be coming off but it proved to be false, although I don’t think I would wear the Classic model swimming.

The next use was when I went kayaking.  I wore them in the boat and was glad I did as there was several other islands nearby and were surrounded by rocks.  It was nice being able to get out of the kayak and onto the rocks without worrying about my feet getting roughed up.   The grip was also great on the wet rocks although the algae covered rock I stepped on, I don’t think it would have mattered what I had on my feet, it was slippery.

I appreciate how nice it is wearing my Vibram’s camping and I’m amazed that, even after several years of wearing them, I can still find new ways to use them.   I am planning on a hiking trip in about 2 weeks and I am planning on wearing my VFFs for the hike which is about 50+km and carrying a pack.  Although I am undecided yet if I am going to take my time over 2 or 3 days or blast through it as fast as possible in a day.  Either way, I am looking forward to wearing my VFFs on a lengthy hike and carrying a full pack.

Canada

Here is some information about Canada for those who are not familiar with it.  As I mentioned, it was the 144th birthday for Canada this year.  Canada has the longest undefended border in the world with the USA.  We have two official languages, English and French (I am proud to say my children are bilingual).  The USA is Canada’s largest trading partner.  We are bordered by three oceans, the Pacific, the Atlantic and the Arctic.  Interestingly, I have been to all three oceans and have been to three of the four most extreme compass points in Canada, I only have the most southern point to get too.  And Canada is the best country in the world, although I may be biased.

That long weekend was excellent.  I spent it out doors sleeping in a tent, swimming, hiking, kayaking, and spending time with my family and friends.  It was great to be able to disconnect from the modern world for a bit and enjoy days with no schedule or plan.

I would also like to congratulate all you Americans for your 4th of July long weekend which you celebrated on the same weekend as we did.  I am looking forward to any comments you may have!