Whistler to Tofino, BC, Canada
Wow! I haven’t blogged for such a long time and I can feel it. I’ve got a lot on my mind that needs to get out. I always “feel” better when I write; even if it’s about mundane everyday stuff. I guess it’s a bit therapeutic. Unfortunately, we have had spotty internet access over the last month, therefore making it impossible to make our YouTube videos, blog, email and pay the bills. Paying the bills usually takes priority when I finally get Wifi access.
So, we are heading into our 10th week of travel. Currently, we are in Vernon, BC and I’m getting a good “feel”. I’ve travelled enough to know when I like or don’t like a place. I usually trust my first intuition about these things. Unlike people, cities and towns can’t really bullshit you. Everything is out in the open to see. Anyway, it’s got good potential for a future rental. If Brent and I can’t continue travelling, the plan is to stay in the interior and ski the winter. Our son and girlfriend are coming mid-October so he can finish his schooling. They will stay with us while they are here. We are looking forward to it for sure. I miss our family.
Anyway, getting here was an adventure. We changed course when we left Prince George. Our original plan was to keep going on Hwy 16 to Prince Rupert. From there, we were going to take a 22 hour ferry ride to Port Hardy on the Island. Unfortunately, we could’t get the ferry we wanted, so we decided to head down the 97 to Whistler. Wow! Part of 97 is referred to from the locals as “The Duffy”. They warned us not to take it for granted. When the signs say “20 km” around the hairpin turn, they mean it! We stopped at all the pull offs just to cool our smoking breaks! I will be okay if we never take that highway again. But we were quite impressed with our little minivan and trailer. They pulled through for us.
We spent a week in Whistler with friends joining us for August long weekend. We did some hiking, biking and an ATV tour through the mountains. Quite honestly, we really like the area, but it was almost too crowded. Parking is impossible and going into the village was too much; way too many people. The only reason we went in was to watch the damn Toronto Maple Leafs play the wildcard round - which they lost! Poor Brent! He’s such a solid fan and he just keeps coming back every season.
We left Whistler and took the BC ferry to the Island. After landing in Nanaimo, we drove to Tofino and spent the next two weeks in Bella Pacifica Campground. Quite honestly, we haven’t made a reservation for any of our accommodations yet and we’ve been lucky. We’re pretty flexible so we are okay with moving camp sites or getting a hotel for a night if we can’t get the site right away. Bella Pacifica is a great campground that is located right on the beach and totally dog-friendly.
In Tofino, we basically played in the water, had campfires right on the beach and went whale watching. Tofino is well-known for surfing, whale and bear watching tours and the local Hot Springs. Unfortunately, the Springs were closed because of Covid; that’s been the case right across the country. Brent’s sister, Tricia, and our niece, Isabel, joined us for a few days too. It was great seeing them. I miss our family and friends.
After leaving Tofino, we drove to Victoria to spend more time with Tricia and her husband, Tristan. We actually stayed in their basement apartment and parked our little mobile home at the neighbours. We caught up on laundry and did some additional sightseeing. Victoria is a quaint city, with a New England/New Orleans feel to it; that’s quite a mix. I’ll be posting that video on our channel soon.
Meanwhile, check our YouTube Channel to see our journey through Whistler and Tofino!
Cheers!
