Dear Friends,

Time moves us forward and it’s been another busy year at our Read Island homestead! We are at the
43-year mark, best part of a lifetime, though not long in the grand scheme of things. We notice changes
in the forest and Nature’s regenerative powers – but even though the now visibly abundant giant
stumps are testament to what-was, they are also a measure of how very long it will take these logged
ecosystems to recover.

In 2023, we’ve been blessed with long and short visits from special friends and loved ones. Lannie’s
brother Chris has just arrived for 6 weeks, while we (his sibs) are still searching for a supportive home. A
short and very sweet visit from far-away sister and her kids also graced this month. In November, we
seized a week of good weather for a road-trip to Nelson and another short-sweet visit that included lots
of playtimes with grandsons Koda (4) and Shiloh (2), who are miracles of fun and joy. Our other big
happiness is that our daughter Emily is settled on Quadra Island and has plans for a summer wedding!
Albert organized, and we supported another busy season of Coast Mountain Expeditions kayaking trips.
We continue to enjoy our reduced roles, aided by wonderful staff and guides. We like meeting new
people and are also grateful for returning guests and friendships developed over many years of kayak
tripping. Although this business has a lot of behind-the-scenes challenges, we all (basically 🙂 love what
we do, and seems like we still have wind on our sails.

This past summer we had water challenges, but overall, the year blessed us with less extreme weather
than in many other places. Our “systems” continue to improve, sometimes based on need: Lannie is
thrilled with the new water tank that supplies the garden via a solar electric pump! And some change
just because shouldn’t, or we can: Ralph has mostly given up working in high places, but this was the
year he bought a small/used excavator and he has been satisfied learning to build small trails – and

challenged to add hydraulics and tracks to his mechanical repertoire. He’s also reviving some distant
past skills as he plants 1000 purchased fir seedlings – in addition to little trees we’ve grown from seeds,
and others that he regularly rescues from various roadbeds.

Our island community has a new opportunity to acquire Read Island logging tenure(s) that are now for
sale – with a hope to partner with the local First Nation and manage for forest recovery and carbon
value as opposed to maximum-possible logging. This is a complex effort.

Even though our challenges are small compared to human-caused suffering and chaos in other places,
we know that our small blue planet is in peril and we carry giant concerns every day. It’s sometimes
difficult to feel really hopeful because so many parts of what we believe is important have come
undone, and its hard to imagine the future. We carry on, sustained with the knowledge that we aren’t
alone and that many people are putting heart and soul into change for good. We balance trepidation
with appreciation for all the small-big joys of life – love and friendships, wonderful children and
grandkids, healthy abundance from the garden, the rain, the creek, our dear Cedar dog, each other…
and this place we call home.

Love from Lannie & Ralph