Blogs from Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, North America - page 68

One of our favourite places to go on sunny Bamfield days is the lovely Brady's Beach. Located on West Bamfield, getting there involves a short boat trip from Burlo Island and then a half-hour walk over to the ocean side of the peninsula. The beach is actually made up of a series of beaches separated by rocky outcrops. At low tide, it is possible to climb over these and walk a fair way along the coastline, looking out over the magnificent Barkley Sound. Quin gets to engage in his favourite activity of falling off slippery, dangerous rock faces and I get to indulge my unhealthy fascination with my old friend, the bull kelp. Much to Quin's relief, though, I no longer insist in taking it back with us and living with it in close quarters until ... read more

I thought it was high time I posted some photos of the wildlife we see around Burlo. Just to give you some idea, most of these were taken from the front porch of our house. We are pretty lucky to have such close encounters on almost a daily basis. I particularly like the bear cubs - they are unbelievably cute. Their Mum takes them for afternoon strolls along the shore - she is very protective of them, you can tell she loves them very much. The eagles are regular visitors to the tall tree behind our house. Actually I think they might live on the island. There are at least five of them that frequent our bay and, sometimes, you see them teaming up and swooping on prey in the water. They also often fly over ... read more

August 28th Strike camp and load the boot. We are off to Vancouver Island today. Stop at Bridal Falls for breakfast. The main diner is full so we have to sit in the Gallery which is a room full of ornaments and mineral specimens. As we approach Vancouver the weather steadily worsens. Finally we drive through heavy rain with the wipers non-stop. Arrive at Horseshoe Bay and there is quite a queue. A ferry on another route has broken down and so there are far more people than usual using this crossing. Wait was only 90 mins and the weather changed to brilliant sunshine. Modern ferry, comfy seats and lots of cafe outlets. Also a business centre where there are desks and sockets. No internet though. The short drive from the terminal to our hostel, The ... read more

Ok, I admit, this is mostly to try out an entry with photos, but I really did go to Hornby Island this weekend! I was there for my friend'd wedding, which was a great little ceremony on the beach, near Helliwell Provincial Park. Although I've spent time in the area over the past 3 summers, I have never managed to make it out to Helliwell. Hard to believe. The family managed to book accommodation for myself and other "younger" folks at the Hornby Island Dive Lodge. We weren't diving, but it was one of the few remaining accommodations on the island, despite booking several months in advance (welcome to Hornby, where the population increases at least 500% during the summer). The lodge is very comfortable, lots of neat diving-related paraphernalia and humorous fridge postings. The resident ... read more

Today, Dad has been giving us boating lessons since it will be our only way of getting on and off the island once they leave. Although I've had my boat driver's licence for several years, anyone who has taken the course will remember that the one thing they do not teach you is how to actually drive a boat - a rather critical oversight, you would think. So Dad has bravely taken on the task - his expression in the photos says it all. If his hair wasn't already white, it would be after today ;-). But I think I've gotten the hang of it now, even the docking part - in fact, it comes much more naturally to me than driving a car. Maybe I should have been a sea captain :-).... read more