Tofino - Al and the Oysters

For the benefit of non-believers - Al really did consume two oysters. We have proof! He smothered them with seafood sauce and down they went! Good job Al.

Wrong Way Al

July 20^th, 2010 (Kathy) We were first to leave Tofino so that we could visit with our nephew and family in Port Alberni. We were to meet up with the rest of the COKE group at Wal Mart in P.A., but Al missed the road so we carried on. We had lunch on the side of the road by Cameron Lake while waiting for the others. T&E came along and we followed them all the way into Saanich. I won’t say who, but someone decided he really needed to get fuel before carrying on the last few kms to our campsite. Ted was so gracious to wait on the side of the freeway to show everyone where to turn off, but after successfully making this turn, this certain driver then made a wrong turn (again) and ended up going down a

“ONE-WAY ROAD” the WRONG WAY!! This road turned out to be an EXIT off the freeway! Needless to say, his wife was very upset with him, got out of the truck and directed traffic around this 51 foot truck/trailer while her husband backed up this “WRONG WAY” road for 2 kms until finding a spot to turn around. “Al” is well that ended well....his wife got over being upset when they arrived at their beautiful destination – Oceanside RV Resort. And to everyone’s delight, Will and Anne arrived to join us for a few days.

Heading to Saanich - Martin Mars

20 July - Day 11 to Saanich & Mars Tanker Base

We left cool Tofino separately in our

RVs and headed east toward

warmer inland Port Alberni - our meeting spot (Walmart parking lot again). We (Bruce & Gerry) stopped at the Coulson Martin

Mars

Tanker Base on Sprout Lake just before

Port

Alberni - we had time for a brief tour and picked up some souvenirs and photos.

www.martinmars.com. After a quick McD lunch we continued

towards Saanich and our next

campsite. Part of the fun on this journey is never knowing exactly how to get to the next site and what it has in store for us. Oceanside RV resort was another unknown. Each of us carefully

plotted our courses using our GPS and online Google Maps (if available) and deftly made our way. What a pleasant surprise we had when we arrived. All sites were spacious and gravel with new

tables and new clean washrooms. And it was warm! The ocean was close but our view was just a glimpse. B & G arrived first with Dave & Yvonne then Ted & Elaine. None had major problems finding the place. So we waited for Al & Kathy - we called on cell phones and

our 2-way radios. Nothing. We were getting worried but A & K tended to run on a different track than us old timers so we gave them some leeway. I will let Kathy tell the tale of Wrong Way Al.

Bella Pacifica - Tofino

Bella Pacifica (by Yvonne) - 15-20 July - Tofino

Weather - cool, misty, 14-18 degrees C. the clouds seem to clear at about 4:00 pm for about 5 min to 2 hrs later. Happy hours are warm to cool -depending on the sun. Campsite is very crowded and sites are small. Elaine & Ted and Al & Kathy have a lovely seaview (but are on a busy path). We are on the other side of the road because of the size of our rigs (Dave & Yvonne and Bruce & Gerry). Bruce just drove in and kept the truck attached

so they would have a view. Power was a problem and three of us tripped the breaker at least once.

Saturday we went to Tofino, a quaint little town with lots of gift and art shops. We toured the Roy Vickers gallery and all of us left with some art and gifts. That night we put our three propane campfires together and had a singsong. It has been very cool at night so this was our first. Kathy and Yvonne have 'snugglies' to bundle up in. The rest of us used blankets. Now we know why there were lots of campfires. (too smoky for me - Gerry)

We found a great bike path and went on excursions for groceries. The same little shopping centre had a great place for fish and chips which we all enjoyed for dinner one night. BC sure has great fresh seafood. We are so fortunate! The rest of the time we enjoyed 'Saundering' on the beach and even found time for a golf game. The course was rough and long. Most holes were 300 - 450 yards. Dave, Gerry and Yvonne played 9 holes together and Bruce, Al and Kathy did 18. We all slept very well that night.

Ucluelet - Wickaninnish Inn -19 July

Last Day at Tofino - (by Yvonne) Today we learned how to spell and say "Ucluelet". It seems all these years we've been leaving out one of the l's (U-clue-let). Another pretty little village - a lot of townhouses and houses are being built and the town is expanding. We went to see the lighthouse - a pretty area with lots of rocks. (Al was walking on the beach and what was to become our 'Talking Stick' found him).On the way back to McKenzie Beach, we stopped and had a drink at the "Wickaninnish Inn". What a resort - beautiful, right on the ocean. I was there about 34 years ago and it's sure built up. The native art in the place is wonderful!

15 JULY Tofino - Bella Pacifica RV Park

We are a little behind in our postings (thanks to our many followers for that observation). The total blame for this can be traced back to this: Bruce & Gerry arrived at Tofino with 2 bags of Fanny Bay oysters (120 count). We had no choice but to consume them since they must be eaten fresh. We roasted them on the BBQ until they popped open then drenched them with homemade garlic butter and/or seafood sauce. EVERYONE tried at least one - some consumed too many! We are so proud of Al who tried TWO! & Dave who seemed to like them & Elaine and Kathy who did their share. The remainder of us just enjoyed until they were gone (Ted, Bruce, Yvonne & Gerry). So we place the blame on the oysters. Read into this what you like... (Gerry)

Oysters - (by Yvonne)

I must mention the oysters! Bruce & Gerry bought a ton of them and put them on the BBQ. They pop open when they're done and you smother them with seafood sauce. they were unbelievably delicious and huge! The first night we ate so many that we had to skip super. Of course, some of us ate more of them than others. Even Dave enjoyed them and the next night, even Al had two!

Quadra - Whale & Ship Watch

Tsa-Kwa-Luten - Quadra Island 12-14 July (by Yvonne)

Cape Mudge - Beautiful, right on the water! Weather - perfect - afternoons to about 24 degrees. The first day we relaxed and took a walk to the village - just a few houses and a cultural centre. The second day we (Dave & Yvonne, Al & Kathy, Ted & Elaine - all crammed into one truck) toured the island and had lunch at Heriot Bay, a beautiful, picturesque spot, overlooking a

pristine harbour. We also visited Rebecca Spit Park (provincial).

We met up with Bruce & Gerry at the Tsa-Kwa-Luten Lodge for a drink and we sat on their spectacular deck overlooking the ocean. There was a wedding with a lovely young couple. We came back to our campsite for supper and watched seals and a whale and a beautiful sunset. We're off tomorrow to Tofino.

Cape Mudge, Quadra Island 13 July

TUESDAY, JULY 13, 2010

We woke late to beautiful blue skies and the urge to explore this corner of the island. We took the trail from our RV park to the little village just 45 min north where the Cultural Centre was located. I say 'we' but again it was only 7 - Al decided he had to finish his TV installation before he could enjoy himself. The path was unstable so we took to the pebbled beach and just took our time. It was a little longer than the predicted 45 min but we made it safely without any falls or injuries. The village was very quiet. We found a shopkeeper just heading off to catch the ferry and looked over what she had. Everything was half price but nothing caught our eye. We then stopped on the beach at a native 'meeting place' with 4 small totems supporting a roof. The two beach-side totems had wings and were supporting miniature carved wooden boats. Someone had placed 2 dimes in one so we did the same and made a wish. We stopped in at the Cultural Centre and decided to just visit the gift shop. The display was the same as the one at Alert Bay since the contents were from the same collection - split between the two

museums. We asked about totems and we were directed to a controversial totem a little down the road. We scrutinized it carefully with our collective trained eyes and could find nothing rude about it. We decided we needed to do more research on

totems. We took the same route back to the RV park and took our time picking our way along the rocky beach.
Our suppers were interrupted by the excited announcement that there were two cruise ships on the way through the channel. The barbeques were turned way down and away we went with binoculars and cameras in hand. This was a first for all of us and

we were not disappointed. It was spectacular to see such big ships so close to us.

More tomorrow on this fabulous day...

Quadra Island 12 July

Today we packed up our rigs and headed south from Alder Bay to Campbell River and caught the Quadra Island Ferry over to the Tsa-Kwa-Luten RV Resort. After a little confusion with the Quadra Island road signs, we eventually found our well-hidden destination with the guidance of one of the hotel desk clerks. We were expected and the sight of three huge rigs blocking traffic on the narrow roads attracted some attention. We are discovering that these resorts just do not want to be found. They do not post an address on their websites and they do not exist on the GPS or even worse the GPS indicates the location is totally wrong. Three of us made it on the first ferry but Al and Kathy spent time shopping in Campbell River and had to make the next ferry. They got lost of course and explored a lot of the island before they called for help. I am sure the islanders will be relating the tale of the big RV that had to do a U turn on the dead end road long after we have departed Quadra. The sites are right on the ocean and we have just watched a beautiful sunset. Apparently the cruise ships come so close you have to look up at them. We'll see...

Alert Bay

We should have known that travelling to Alert Bay on a Sunday when the final game of the World Cup Soccer was playing would be a challenge. Our guide didn't show up, there were no restaurants open, the dancers were not dancing and all the little shops were closed. We had to take a picture of a shop with the OPEN sign on with a note on the door saying they were closed. We managed to find lunch in a little deli - we desperately needed coffee. The pub was so dark we did an about face. The 25 minute walk on the newly constructed boardwalk to the Cultural Centre was quite pleasant. We had time to look around and chose to buy the video they were showing to save time. We watched it later that evening. It was a damp cool typical west coast day and we were glad to get home to warm up.

Telegraph Cove

We travelled to nearby Telegraph Cove and were surprised at the busy little resort with groups of kayaks just setting out. The picturesque boardwalk on stilts over the foreshore had many old wooden cottages for rent or one could stay at the lodge. There was a whale interpretive centre with an entire blue whale skeleton. There were no sightings so far that morning. This would be a great place to set out on a kayaking adventure. The Dodge boys found a rusted out old Dodge on the boardwalk that didn't quite make it.

Next seven of us caught the ferry to

Alert Bay.

Port Hardy

We briefly stopped in Port Hardy after Port Alice. Bruce flew for Alert Bay Air Services and has not been back for 40 some years. We drove to the airport and saw the Wall of Pilots - names of pilots from this area and some he has flown with. Brad Nixon's name was there along with some other familiar ones. His office is now deserted. We drove to the end of the Port Hardy Public Wharf and met with some locals. Al picked up some local humor from an old Native gentleman who was there with his wife, daughter and granddaughter.

Day 2 Port Hardy Port Alice

We Drove to Picturesque Port Alice on Day 2. we started out from Alder Bay Resort with a foggy view and ended up in brilliant sunshine. Kathy wanted to see the golf club at Port Alice and some friends had lived there so we went. Luckily they were holding a competition for lumbermen so we got some entertainment with our lunch.Axe throwing:

View from the Golf Club steps (above) - Pulp mill Golf Club below.

We were sent off at the gate by a waving Union Jack courtesy of Bill. We arrived at the ferry exactly on time. The vessel Coastal Inspiration loaded our four rigs skillfully between huge transport trucks. After safely arriving at Duke Point we drove to Campbell River for a lunch break then on to Port McNeill and the Alder Bay Resort. We stopped on the way out of Campbell River at the Ripple Rock Viewpoint. We have a view across the bay of the settlement of Alert Bay and have witnessed two cruise ships carefully navigating their way back South to Vancouver or Seattle. We are anxious to explore Telegraph Cove, Port McNeill and Port Hardy today (Saturday). Tomorrow we have arranged a guide to meet us in Alert Bay for a tour.