This looks kind of dangerous, but I'm leaning against a secure railing
Youbou is a former sawmill town, and in fact, that is where Paulette's Father and Brother both worked for many years. However, the Youbou Sawmill closed in January 2001, thereby ending 73 years of continuous production. Youbou was the last of the sawmills to close on Lake Cowichan and it severely impacted the economy of the region and the livelihood of families that had depended on the mill for generations.
The Cowichan River - not a great spot for 'tubers' at this part of the river
After a few down years, the entire Lake Cowichan area is booming again with new homes being built all along the shores of the lake. These are not just small cabins either, the houses we saw are very high end and probably run in the plus $1 million range for the homes with waterfront property. New businesses are opening with tourism and recreational activities replacing logging as the major industries.
Mikayla enjoying the sights and sounds of the rapids and the falls
We drove up to the site of the old sawmill, or what is left of it, at the north end of Youbou, to find it is just acres of empty space now. The machinery has all been sold at auction and the sawmill buildings have all been destroyed. The property has been the subject of several development proposals and much speculation but nothing definite has emerged. It is, however, a prime piece of real estate sitting right on the north side of the lake and whatever eventually is built there, the citizens of the area hope, and are demanding, that a significant part of it be set aside as a public recreation area.
A short video clip of rapids along the Cowichan River
We left Youbou and took the "old road" along the lake back into the town of Lake Cowichan, 15 minutes from Youbou. We stopped at the A & W to pick up some lunch as it is the only fast-food restaurant in town and its been that way for over 40 years now. It was so old that I half-expected to see 'car-hops' coming out to take our order! We ended up going across the street to a park on the edge of the lake to eat our lunch.
The river narrows and then gets quite wide at different spots
As we left Lake Cowichan, we crossed over the bridge where the Cowichan River begins it's 29 mile journey east and downward from the mountains, through the city of Duncan, before emptying into the ocean at Cowichan Bay. The river itself has become a major recreational attraction with 'tubing' emerging as a huge business. Tubers, with a few small detours due to rapids and waterfalls, can pretty much float down the river from Lake Cowichan all the way to Duncan and beyond.
A few 'tubers' floating down the river on a beautiful summer afternoon
We decided to follow the riverfront road for part of the way home and we stopped at a few of the parks along the way to take a look at some of the interesting spots along the river and to take a few pictures of course!
In the fall and winter, these fish ladders are completely under the river's flow
We had a great time, including Molly and Rylie of course, visiting Youbou and Lake Cowichan again. It was a perfect day with sunny skies and temps in the mid 70's. By the time we got home just after 4:00, we were all beat and everyone laid down for a short nap before dinner.
Last night was pretty normal - watch a bit of TV, a bit of computer stuff and early to bed around 10:00. Today's big adventure is for Molly - she has to go see Paulette's niece, Heather, this this morning to get groomed. Her fur is pretty long and scraggly and she'll feel !00% better once it's all cut shorter. Other than that, we have no plans, but who knows what the day will bring.
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