globetrotting OAP's in Canada no 3


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North America » Canada » British Columbia
October 7th 2009
Published: October 8th 2009
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ARB & DWS 2009 Canadian Adventure (number 3)


Hello all from DWS.

It is some days since our travel blog number 2 was published when we were still on the Sunshine coast, and with only two days remaining this will be our final edition for this trip.

We were sad to leave the Sunshine Coast which had been reduced from 10 to 5 days for our 5 day exchange on Pender Island. It started with a ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo, where Noelle ( our home exchange host in Victoria) met us in pouring rain. Then a long drive down the Vancouver Island to Swartz Bay where we took another ferry to Pender Island. About a half hour later, we were passing deer on the roadside just as the sun was setting, we arrived @ our next splendid new home exchange where Chuck & Stephanie greeted us.

It was a breathtaking place, (only recently completed and all in timber) high ceilings, windows overlooking the bay way down below us.. 5 days passed quickly; with Noelle’s knowledge of trails & favourite little bays we soon became enchanted with the island. There is no public transport but ‘car stops’ where one can wait for a lift. There is no obligation for a driver to stop, nor for one to accept a lift. No money changes hands, it is a ’gift’ .We had a surprise one day when a mother & baby deer were sitting on a rock close to our dining-out table on the deck. Apparently they are regulars & very tame.

Names to conjure with were Thieves’ bay, Medicine Beach, Port Washington, Smugglers’ Nook, Desolation Point, Hope Bay, Gowlland Point, all memorable. We saw the beach where chocolate lilies grow in the spring; they survive only because the deer dislike them..

From Pender Island we took another ferry to Swartz Bay where Noelle (bless her for her kindness whenever needed) took us to lunch @ Mill Bay on the ocean edge. The famous Butchart Gardens are nearby, but we had both visited these on a previous visit. Noelle then left us in her lovely ‘town house’ for 2 lovely weeks… whoopee.

The harbour in Victoria must be one of my favourite locations; so much activity, 1st Nations selling their crafts along the harbour wall, jewellery, art, carvings, etc..; Seaplanes taking off, ferries to USA, flights to various places., pleasure cruises, whale watching trips. We did well on our whale watch, seeing orcas, humpbacks, & many sea lions; photographs are not impressive, much too distant to identify anything.

Megan’s godmother, Patti who lives in Victoria invited us for a meal with her family. As they live very near to Mount Douglas, we arrived early enough to give us time to climb this look-out. Dressed for an evening out (except for sensible footwear) we tackled the steep hills up, very soon struggling on all fours. Some French guys offered help when they saw this old lady in her little black dress hanging on to rocks & branches. We made it, but vowed not to descend by the same precipitous path. We found the ‘corkscrew’ road down where the cars drive. We arrived rather hot & dusty for our meal out..

We loved the drive up to the north of the island to Campbell River where we stayed with my nephew Mike & his family on the water’s edge. A steep path from his garden led us down to the beach, a favourite place for Charlie, the Labrador. Stops en route included Chermainus, famous for its many murals painted on the walls of homes & shops; Comox, Qualicum Bay, Parksville and many other waterside bays. We only used the main highway when there was no alternative; the old route is so much more scenic.

On Friday 25th we left Victoria for a week end in the US aboard a huge ferry going over to Port Angeles in Washington State. Getting into the USA can be tricky; they need to know all about our espionage exploits & the state of our moral turpitude.( not too sure what it is, never mind do we have any? )

We were met off the ferry by AB’s Odyssey 2000 friend and companion Len Beil. Following a short trip up to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park and some shopping plus an ATM to pick up some US $, it was then a 2 hour drive to the home of Len & Stell on Bainbridge Island. It was fabulous week end, having spent my 1st few days on USA soil.

Len & Stell entertained us royally in their beautiful home on the water facing Seattle. We went into Seattle by ferry on Saturday, enjoying the hot sunshine. The 600ft Space Needle gave us splendid views over the area. The world famous Pike Place market was enormous, lively, famous for salmon throwing @ one of the fish stalls. We found ourselves in the famous Macys store, more staff than customers. Several guys trying to sell furniture chatted to us & offered us both a job. We had to decline in view of our joint ages being 150.

We spent an hour at a farmers’ market in the town of Bainbridge near our host’s home it was all that a local market should be;( no tat), home made bread, pickles, cheeses, clothes, weaving, art, glass, flowers, plants, etc. A Harvest fair took place on the Sunday on a much larger scale, a little like our agricultural show. Children of all ages enjoyed pony rides, a hand built slide balanced on straw bales, marshmallow toasting over a log fire, stalls producing food of all descriptions, local wine, apple juice freshly squeezed in a press all, to the sound of local singers & musicians. Horse-drawn carriages ferried people around the huge, hilly site. The good warm sunshine & dry ground made it a very happy family day out for hundreds of people. Apart from their own dollar system USA measure in miles & still use Fahrenheit for temperatures.

On Tuesday, we packed up our Victoria home & drove up to Swartz Bay to catch the 11am ferry to Tswwassen . This huge ferry takes approx 300 vehicles. & over 1500 passengers. I was so enthralled in the shop listening to a cd that I missed seeing Pender Island as we sailed around the Gulf Islands. Our brief stay there overlooked the ferry route.

Rain was off & on that day & much cooler. Noelle met us & drove us to Vancouver airport from where we flew to Penticton (400 kms in 50 minutes) in the beautiful Okanagan region. We were delighted to find John & Monica waiting for us at the airport, they are our next home exchange hosts who live in Summerland just a 20 kms drive from the airport. John drove us to their lovely hilltop house overlooking lake Okanagan. Not only were we taken to our exchange home but we had supper with our hosts before they set off in their RV. This was yet another splendid ad. for the ’homelink’ exchange system.

Today was spent getting the feel of Summerland, a small town bordering the huge lake Okanagan which is 150Kms long and must be one of the largest lakes in Canada. As expected in this famous fruit & wine area, it is so good to buy really fresh, local food. The autumn (fall) wine festival starts this weekend with lots of events & wine tours.

One day we visited some nearby ornamental gardens; fine examples of plants that can survive with very little or no water. ( eg Beth Chatto’s garden in the Uk) Flowers were still amazing for Oct, most colourful. The season here is so much longer than @ home. One of the nearby vineyards is named the ’dirty laundry’ vineyard; sounds really appetising, I don’t think!

Time now to pack away the shorts & don the gloves, hats & woolly vests; summer has gone so quickly. A drive north along the shore of lake Okanagan to Kelowna was interesting tho’ wet & cool. We sheltered for a time in a superb library. I was most impressed & told a friendly assistant that I would be happy to work in such lovely surroundings. They were understaffed, she told me; maybe they would not be desperate enough to take on a 73 year old.

Because of the weather we drove rather than walked up the Knox mountain. Perhaps we’ll walk it another day . We planned a walk on part of the Trans Canada Trail this morning & drove to the Kettle valley Station. When the steam train came chuffing in we chose to ride on the only surviving 10km of track. This KVR was built between 1910 & 1915. Views were over many vineyards (they call them wineries) and apple orchards weighted down with lovely red fruits. We sat on old leather seats, no heating, commentary along the route were so good. They supplied hand crocheted blankets which we hugged around our knees & shivering shoulders to stop our teeth from chattering .

On the luggage racks were samples of old battered leather suitcases. To add to the atmosphere, a guy named Felix sang along with his banjo. He was so good & sang our requests; but I thought Jingle Bells in October was a little premature. If only they had sold coffees or hot soup that trip would have been perfect.

This script was meant to be complete but several amazing walks in the last few days rank in my top ten walks ever, & that’s saying something! Myra Canyon takes in the route of the old KVR spanning a gorge 300ft above the lake level. The forest fires of 2003 destroyed 12 of the 18 huge wooden trestles supporting the railway. With millions of dollars and voluntary help this track is now open to cyclists & walkers, even wheelchairs. On Sunday there were out in force, dogs, babies, families. Snow had fallen overnight & was still crisp on the bridges. Even with the lovely sun it was cool.

Another very special walk today was Bear Creek; short steep, lots of steps & precarious edges but so beautiful. Hardy Falls was an interesting salmon run; approx 20 waterfalls for the salmon to negotiate .Hundreds of them were attempting it; many already floating & dead. Life must be so tricky for these poor creatures trying to return to their spawning grounds. We came across a Polish lady knee deep in the water trying to recover a $400 pair of Dior sunglasses which she had dropped the previous day leaning over the bridge. With AB hanging on to her & a magnet to hook the said specs, she recovered them. I would have claimed for them on my insurance! That is it from DWS

Closing comments from ARB

Just in case anyone is still reading this epistle I felt it was time I made few comments on our 7 weeks adventure in Canada which will end when we board our flight from Vancouver on Friday 9th October. Following 4 years of joint travel (13 years for yours truly ) we are agreed that this trip has been one of the best, coming close to New Zealand and much nearer to home.. We feel that a return trip is a must.

My thanks to a dear companion, DWS who has been responsible for 95% of the text and 40% of the pictures on this our travel blog.

Our thanks to Graham & Gretchen, exchange visitors to Settle from New Zealand last June, who introduced us to the travel blog (see their blog under the nickname of whiskers). A big thank you to each of our 4 Exchange hosts who have helped to make this trip possible from Sheila on the Sunshine Coast, to Chuck & Steph on Pender Island. (We look forward to that joint birthday celebration in Settle on 5th June next.) ; our dear friend Noelle in Victoria for whom nothing was too much trouble, and last but not least John & Monica in your beautiful Summerland home. To the two of you who have yet to visit Settle and the Yorkshire Dales we hope your visit will be as enjoyable and comfortable as our stays in your homes.

Just a few personal reflections on this trip which has increased my list of things I must do before I get too old. The trans Canada trail must be near the top of my list; it is the world’s longest recreational trail at 16,000 kilometres (10,000 miles) From Victoria on Vancouver Island in the west to St John’s in Newfoundland on the east coast. The trail was first created in 1993 to celebrate 125 years since confederation.

It has been designed to cater for 4 main activities from walking, cycling, horseback riding and cross country skiing, and 75 % of Canada’s population live within a 15 minute drive of access to the trail. Work is still going on to improve the trail facilities, and over the 16 years in excess of 8 million dollars have been raised from public and commercial donations this figure is ongoing. See www.tctrail.ca

So you may ask, how, and when, does that old fool plan such a trip ?? Well health permitting, I am looking at cycling / walking the first stage covering the 3rd largest province ie British Columbia which is no more than the end to end ride in the UK. OK so the terrain over 1,604 Kms (1002 miles) in BC will not compare with the end to end but, what an experience !!

I therefore extend an invitation/ challenge to any of my cycling friends who happen to read this to join me on this 3 to 5 weeks adventure in the next 2 to 3 years. I have numerous ideas which I intend to explore and if any of our Canadian friends wish to offer any advice I will be pleased to hear from them. More info on this trip can be seen at www.backroadmapbooks.com

Another aspect of life in British Columbia in general and the Gulf Islands in particular is the friendly and laid- back attitude of all you come into contact with, plus the many we have met who were born in the UK and have lived here for the last 30 or 50 years.

Have to admit that I had no idea of the extent of the Gulf Islands of which there are many off the west coast. There are around 15 main Islands of which we spent a brief 5 days on one ie Pender Island, where we found the climate mild, and life very relaxed. So with increasing demands for property and tourism how do folks commute ? Well for the folks who have not been to the west coast of Canada, the BC Ferries have fleet of 37 ships covering 25 different routes with an average of 21 million passengers per year we used 6 of those ferries during our 7 weeks here.

My final contribution about this little bit of Heaven is that this province of British Columbia has 620 National Perks, and 7,000 kilometres of hiking trails all of which attract an average of 19 million visitors per year.

On that little bit of useless ? info we will wish you all well and hope to catch with all our family and friends before we take off again on 16th January. So look out for the next Blog in 2010.

Dorothy & Arthur



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