Bob Arseneault and myself headed off to horseshoe Bay at the crack of dawn, and caught the 830 ferry across to Nanaimo. The ride over was perfectly smooth, and it was an absolute delight to be at sea once again.
BC Ferrie
We arrived at 1030 and rented a budget rent a car. We selected a red Toyota Yaris, and headed North on Hwy. 19. Bob told me he figured it was time to buy a digital camera so we stopped in a Future Shop. Now Bob has a Pentax Optio, 10 megapixel point-and-shoot camera. Immediately, he started shooting everything in sight.
On Board the Queen of Cowichan
BC is just full of spectacular scenery
We headed across the Island on Hwy., #4, and stopped at QUALCOMM falls. The scenery was beautiful with a roaring mountain river going under the foot bridge. Next we stopped at coombs, where we saw various shops with thatched roofs with grass on top.
Coombs
The next stop was the spectacular Cathedral Grove where 7 to 900-year-old Douglas firs grow. We hiked about a kilometer into the woods taking pictures of these magnificent giants. It was about 10° and raining off and on. Everything was green with firs and mosque running everywhere. It sure makes you look small beside these massive trucks.
Bob is wondering how high this Douglas fir is
After about three hours of driving we reach the far side and stopped at Long Beach. Bob calls this his happy place, because it reminds him of the various camp outs and bonfires he had when he lived in this area. The tide was going out at the time that we were able to walk about 100 feet out across the sand to the Pacific Ocean. For me it is almost a ceremony to be able to walk to the water’s edge on the far side of the continent.
Finally arrived at Long Beach on the west coast of Vancouver Island
We arrived at the Weigh West marine resort at about five o’clock and checked in. Bob used to work in the restaurant here about 25 years ago. They had a great deal on which included two dinners and two breakfasts. Our hotel room overlooks the marina and is on the top floor facing the ocean. The blue Heron restaurant where we had supper is built on stilts and extends over the inlet. Our meal was free because of our hotel discount, and so we ordered Dungeness crab. The meat was sweet and was probably the best meal I’ve had in ages. We put the flesh into separated butter, which made it even better.
Dungeness crab dinner. Life is good!
After a drive around Bob’s old town, we retired to the hotel room, and I taught Bob to publish his first blog.
What a way to spend our days off!