One of our adventure days was spent exploring a small portion of Pacific Rim National Park. We began by walking the short 0.8 km boardwalk path at the the Bog Trail. The saturated soil has created an other-worldly landscape of stunted trees, mosses and interesting plants. We moved onto the Kwisitis Visitor Centre which provides an overview of the cultural and natural history of the region. Lunch was eaten at the Wickaninnish Restaurant located at the centre. If you can, wait for a window table. The ocean view is amazing; the fog rolled in and created the most incredible light while we were there. We also spent a bit of time on Wickaninnish Beach and South Beach, a smaller pebble beach accessed by a trail behind the centre.

http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/bc/pacificrim/natcul/natcul9.aspx

Wickaninnish Beach. The day we were there was a backhoe on the beach clearing invasive grasses.

The conditions at the Bog seem to create trees that grow in a twisted fashion. Many of these bark-less trees dot the landscape.

Another twisted tree.

We weren’t lucky enough to see any large wild creatures during our week in Tofino, but lots of smaller ones were plentiful. Especially birds! My favorites were the little sandpiper shorebirds which moved almost comically along the tideline. Our little yard at the cottage attracted a bunch of Steller’s Jays who liked to hang around in the mornings. They are highly inquisitive and very pretty. We also saw eagles, ravens and many varieties of gulls. Most of the sea life we saw had washed up on the beach, shells and such, but we did see one brilliant orange star waiting for the tide to come back.

A small bunch of Sandpipers.

Orange Starfish on Chesterman Beach.

What a lovely week on the west coast! We headed for Tofino last monday with dear friends K & R and enjoyed a perfect week together. We had every kind of weather and a seven-hour power outage, but even that couldn’t dampen our spirits.

K & R were kind enough to drive us all, and we took our time and enjoyed the scenery. A stop Coombs for a few groceries; sadly we saw no goats! We stopped at Cathedral Grove for a walk through the ancient forest and then onto Sproat Lake for a picnic lunch. We pulled into our delightful cottage at the Gold Coast Retreat late afternoon and headed straight for Chesterman Beach, accessed just across the road. The clouds had rolled in, but it was still very beautiful.

http://www.gotofino.com/sproatlakemarsbombers.html

http://www.goldcoasttofino.com/

The sand between our toes on Chesterman Beach, Tofino BC

A hot sunny day at Sproat Lake with a view of a Mars Bomber float plane.

No blogs for the next few days as we are off to Long Beach and Tofino. Will have lots of food, art and adventure to write about when we get back! Have a great week everyone!