Vancouver Island

We’d booked our trip through the Rockies and Alaska well in advance, but waited late until we decided what to do with the last 2 weeks of our trip. We tentatively thought about a road trip through western Canada, but after so much travelling, opted instead for a tranquil 2 weeks on Vancouver Island. All this travelling is exhausting, so we needed a rest. I can feel the sympathy pouring in. This was a bit of a tactical error as the start of this period coincided with Canada Day on July 1st. We struggled to find anywhere available, and so predictably, the places left free had something wrong with them. We ended up in a self-catering ‘cottage’ in a small resort 10 miles north of Qualicum Beach about half way up the eastern coast of Vancouver Island. At least the location is fabulous, facing the ocean just a few metres away. Unfortunately, the accommodation is a little basic and needs some attention. The whole property is for sale and the owners obviously haven’t spent any money on the place since the ‘70s.

Getting here was a mini adventure as the ferry to Nanaimo, the closest city, was full, so we had to get the ferry to Victoria which added another couple of hours to the drive, and there were plenty of traffic jams on the highway. Naively I thought the place would be deserted, but the island supports a pretty large resident population swollen with summer holidaymakers. The island has what the tourist board describes as ‘an enviable climate’, which in Canadian terms means its not snowing all the time. In fact, the weather has been fine with long sunny days around 20 Celcius.

Not much to report as we’ve spent much of our time reading novels by the beach, occasionally meeting up with the other guests in the evening around the fire on the beach that Canadians feel compelled to make, toasting marshmallows for the kids (although the adults seem to eat most of them.) We have a blue Heron that visits frequently, perching on one of the rocks breaking through the water. It stands on its Peter Crouch legs, watching the sea surface with the patience of Job.
We’ve managed the odd hike in the parks, including one by Rosewall Creek that attracted Mags in deference to the legendary Aussie tennis player. This turned out to be a fairly gentle hike upstream for an hour through old forest terminating at a small waterfall.

We’re well rested for our next stop, New York, where we expect the pace to pick up slightly.