Canada - Day Eight - Friday 11th October

Our last breakfast at 6.30am, before our last estuary tour and our long journey home.  There was a kind of sadness in everyone’s faces this morning – this has been such a lovely trip, and one that you don’t get to go on very often.  Seeing wildlife in its own habitat gives such a different dimension to an experience.  We got jacketed up – the Manager, Brian, commented that it seemed warmer this morning.  We go on the boat with Kris, and set off in search of that last bear.  The tide was fairly high this morning, with the water level covering a lot of the poles that usually stand proud.  It was not to be!  We saw plenty of eagles soaring high in the sky, as well as sitting looking at us.  They are quite photogenic.  We searched the banks high and low, but the bears were being elusive this morning.  Kris did comment that she had been on the estuary tour straight after the tracking tour that we did yesterday, and there were a couple of bears on one of the tracks that we had been using.  I wonder if they were watching us all along!  It was freezing.  Not sure where Brian had woken up this morning, but it certainly was not warm in any shape or form.  After an hour and a half on the water most of our extremities had turned into a block of ice.  Just before we got back to the lodge, we did see a mink for a couple minutes running along a log at the bottom of the shoreline.  Funny little animal that looks a bit like a weasel.  Not sure who saw that first and decided it would make a good coat – certainly wouldn’t have entered my mind!

We got back to the lodge, and had to check out by 9.30am.  Our time here had come to an end.  The float plane was back, and after a quick coffee we boarded for the thirty minute flight back to Campbell River.  The flight again was really– the views above the rivers and forests absolutely phenomenal.  A quick change from plane to bus, and we are on our way.  After about an hour or we stopped for lunch at a town called Coombes.  This is famous for its goats on the roof.  The rooves have grass growing on them, and the tourists come here to see these in their hundreds – but just not all at this time of the year.  The season is really coming to an end this far north – Edison had said that it was 14 degrees when he left Victoria that morning, and by the time he had arrived into Campbell River it was one degree.  We had a lovely lunch in a restaurant called Cuckoo with Helen from Vancouver Island Tourism, and then it was time to go again.  We drove through a town called Chemainus, which is the worlds largest outdoor art gallery.  Many, many of the sides of houses and walls had been painted with murals over the years.

After another hour or so we arrived at Victoria National Airport, and the flight to go from here to Vancouver, and then Vancouver home.  All too soon for a wonderful, wonderful experience!

Canada - Day Seven - Thursday 10th October

Another early morning – breakfast at 6.30am in the main dining hall and then activities start for the day.  Breakfast here is fairly simple, but substantial enough.  By 7.30am we have got the jackets and wellies on – they provide all the outerwear that you will need – and have boarded the boat to get to the other side of the estuary.  On the way across one of the Finnish gentleman – I later get to know that he is Jari Peltomaki, a world famous wildlife photographer – spots a brown bear on the shores about one hundred metres from the lodge.  We swing round to get a few photographs, as well as the thirty or so harbour seals that are lying on the top of a couple of logs in the water.  They just look up to see who we are, and don’t seem bothered at all.  We needed wellies on today as the tide is very low, so the boat can only get so far.  We have to jump in to ankle deep water and go across seaweed and mud and rocks to get to the bank.

After the bus ride, we get to the hides and today I am in “Finger” – probably because it is at the end of a piece of land that sticks out like a finger.  This overlooks the same piece of water we overlooked yesterday, as well as another river at the back of the hide.  We are not disappointed yet again.  The river is full of bears.  There is a mother and her two cubs and are foraging for eggs in the shingle, another mother and two older cubs that are playing with fish and several other “singles”.  The two hours just whiz by.  Jari is in this hide – and his camera, which is about two feet long and all his equipment - looks as if he has got some superb shots.  It sounds like a machine gun – I think he might even be taking more shots that I did.  One of the bears actually walked up the bank and right beside the hide, giving us a sideways glance as he went.  Surely I must have at least one good shot now!!

After the two hours we go back by bus and boat, and get coffee and cake before the next trip, which is another estuary cruise.  The weather is just amazing for this time of year – it is cold, but very bright.  It makes the mountains and forests look magical.  We see heron, goldeneye and heaps of bald eagles amongst the huge display of bird life, but no more bears.  There are also wolverine and cougar in these parts, but they don’t make an appearance either.

After another lovely lunch – everything here is homemade, and really tasty, we have to get the jackets on again as we are going bear tracking. 
That isn’t actually following the bears, it is just looking out for where they have been.  Although we are warned what to do if we come across one – and the signs along the road say “Extreme Danger – Grizzly Bears” where we get out.  We are shown where and why they have “rub trees” and the cameras and equipment that they have out here for dna testing and other research.  There is an awful lot of research going on by various people studying for their phd’s – it is an ongoing process over many years and for many years to come.  Bears sense of smell is apparently around seventy times that of humans – that is why we have been asked not to use perfume or any other scented toiletries before going out to bear viewing.  How could they not like Oscar de la Renta??  After learning about where the bears sleep in their day beds, what their poo looks like and various other things about the rainforest we are in, an hour and a half has gone and it is time to head back across the estuary.  Another coffee and cake – I could get used to this!  The Nanaimo Cake is so nice I might just have to get the recipe.

At 3.00pm we set off for our last bear viewing of the trip.  It is quite sad knowing that we aren’t going to be seeing them any more after this.  Along the road there is a black tailed deer and a baby deer just walking and minding their own business.  They take a look at the bus, and then carry on in the middle of the road.  Very good at keeping speed restrictions – perhaps we ought to adopt this method in the UK.  We get to the hides, and again we are in “Finger”.  There is another mother and two cubs, about ten bears up by the weir and a couple inbetween.  Again, the two hours just fly by watching how they react together – or ignore each other.  We start back, and there are two large bears in the road.  They eventually pull over to let us pass, and then another two appear.  It is as if they are all coming out to say goodbye and one of them was Gary!

After dinner tonight we have a presentation by Jari, the Finnish photographer.  He has a slide show of some of his bird shots – they are amazing!  If only mine were to come out as good as that – I wish!

Canada - Day Six - Wednesday 9th October

Today was another early start.  When I pulled back the curtains at just gone six o’clock there was the most amazing colours in the sky.  I quickly got dressed and went downstairs and across the road to the edge of the sea, and took some pictures with the mountains in the background.  The sky was going from pink to red to orange – it was one of the loveliest sunrises I have seen.  As soon as it came it had gone, and the sky was back to normal.  What a great way to start the day.

Heron’s Landing is the hotel used for the first night of a three night package to Knights Inlet.  Because the float plane leaves early in the morning, this hotel is used to pick customers up from and take them to the float plane.  It describes itself as a boutique hotel – I would call it more like a second hand shop.  Whereas the hotel is clean and quite sufficient for a one nights stay, it is rather odd.  It describes the rooms as penthouse suites – there is a separate bedroom and another bed in a cabinet in the lounge, but you would not get what you were expecting for a penthouse suite.  Looks rather more like your grandmother’s house.  Breakfast, although continental, was also quite sufficient.  The shuttle came at 8.30am to collect us, so we didn’t spend long here at all.  Our luggage had to be split into two here also, as we can only take a small bag on the float plane.  The main luggage is stored at the float plane terminal.

There are two float planes – one a nine seater and one a thirteen seater.  There were two groups of us going to Knight Inlet today, so both were being utilised.  The luggage was taken, and the check in consisted of writing your name on a sheet of paper.  Suppose they need to know who they lose along the way.  The larger plane took off first, and whilst they were loading the luggage onto ours we had a brief talk about the lodge.  This time last year there was a fire at the lodge, and the whole thing burned down.  By the time it opened again at the beginning of June this year, they had bought another lodge from the west side of Vancouver Island and towed it around to where the old one was, and a complete new Knight Inlet was born.  Everyone got off the lodge safely – one of the young guides that was instrumental in evacuating everyone, Moira, was the head guide this year.  We were shown a few photos of the old lodge – suppose we will see the new one for ourselves, so didn’t need to see them.

Our plane was then ready, so we got onboard.  After the safety demonstration, a rather bizarre run through of safety hatches and life vests by the pilot hanging out of the door, the door was shut and the propellers started.  We taxied around this part of the river, and then took off over the ocean.  We had to head northwards for forty nine miles – around a thirty minute journey, and land at the lodge which is actually back on the mainland of Canada rather than Vancouver Island.  The journey was very smooth, and very picturesque.  Apart from a few low clouds that appeared every now and then, the views were of mountains, forests and water.  Very little else, and the further north we went the less we saw of any buildings.  Apart from Knight Inlet, there are no other buildings anywhere near here.  We landed on the waterway outside of the lodge, having had a fantastic aerial view as we flew in.  The luggage was quickly taken off the plane, as were we, and we did a very quick check in.  We had to sign a disclaimer – not sure what it was for as I didn’t read it, but were told that it was for feeding us to the bears.  Were they joking??

The baggage was taken to our rooms very quickly – there are only 18, so it didn’t take long.  The rooms as fairly basic, no TV’s, internet, phone signal or any other modern device including hair driers.  Good job I knew that, and bought one in Victoria before we came up here.  There is hot water from 5.30am to 10.00pm – the generator is shut down after those hours, but they go to battery power so there is still electricity.  The beds are really comfortable though.  This was an old fishing lodge before it was towed here, and I think because of the quick turnaround they had to do to get it open for the beginning of the season there are still little niceities that will be done after the lodge shuts mid October for the winter.  After a quick orientation, there really isn’t much else to the lodge apart from the rooms, dining room, lounge and a couple of other rooms for clothing, we were off on our first trip. All the outdoor gear is already here.  Everyone has to have a floatation device on – it is in the jackets and all-in-ones, or if it is the summer there are normal life jackets.  As we are going on the water, it has been suggested that we use their jackets instead of ours.  This was an hours boat ride in and around the estuary of the lodge.  The boat was so comfortable – everyone had a lovely seat that did a 360 degree swivel.  Fantastic for taking photos at every angle.  The tide was out – low tide was at 10.00am this morning.  There is apparently up to an eighteen feet difference in water levels between low and high tides.  There is so much bird life around the estuary.  We first found a mating pair of bald eagles on top of an old pole sticking out of the water.  We quietly went towards it until we were right underneath it, and they didn’t move.  There were so many eagles around in all the trees – they looked like golf balls dotted amongst the forest.  There were also seals swimming with their heads out of the water everywhere, but unlike the eagles as soon as you got near them they dived.  One juvenile eagle had caught a salmon and was minding his own business eating it on a rock, when a full grown one came down and pushed him off and took his breakfast.  Nothing like seniority!

We were out on the water for about an hour, and then came back for lunch.  We had a beautiful squash soup, toasted sandwiches and salad, and homemade cakes.  The food here is really good – no choice unless you have dietary needs, or you really don’t like what is served.  Coffee, tea and hot chocolate are on tap, as are soft drinks.  All in the dining room whenever you want.  After that quick lunch, we were off on the water again in another boat.  A faster boat this time, in the onesies, where we all stood outside at the back with the guide.  We went further round into the waterways this time, looking at the spectacular cliff faces and wildlife along the way.  There were a couple of seals sunning themselves on rocks – a couple watched us go by, but the majority dived into the water never to be seen again.  There were several waterfalls, and sheer granite sheets soaring high into the sky.  Parts were very much like the Norwegian Fjords.  We looked for bears along the shoreline, but there were none here today.  It is mostly black bears that are in this part, but we didn’t see any.  Perhaps this was going to be another one of those places where we only get to see footprints and not the real thing!

After a couple of hours out on the water we make our way back to the lodge for the main show of the day – a trip out to the viewing platforms to see the Grizzlies.  We kept our onesies on, as we are in a hide for two hours being very still and very quiet.  We get in another boat – they have several! – to get across to the other side of the estuary.  We then get in a bus for about fifteen minutes and travel down an old logging road to the two hides.  The one we are going to today is called “Weir” – probably because it overlooks a weir.  There is a steel wire gate that opens up to a corridor going up to the hide of steel wire – they take safety very seriously.  The hides have camouflage around them – I presume to make them seem as if they should be there, but when we are in them we stand out in our red jackets.  Hmm, not quite turning in with the landscape with those on!  Makes the camouflage seem a bit irrelevant. There are bears in the river!  Hooray.  At first it is a mother and her two yearling cubs.  Salmon are still running up the river, and it is easy food for the bears.  They catch salmon after salmon and eat one after the other.  They apparently need around 22,000 calories a day.  Another couple of bears are outside the other hide – and one is asleep on the bank.  At the other side of the hide – it is open all the way round for 360 degree views of the area – a couple of bears are swimming away, side to side as if they are in the swimming pool.  Some more are in the distance – there must have been twelve or more altogether.  All of them female and their cubs – apparently the males don’t come out until all of the humans have gone.  The bear viewing hours are from 8.00am until we leave at 5.30pm tonight.  I could have watched for hours more – just seeing the big furry animals swiping salmon out of the river, and the mothers putting their heads under the water for minutes at a time scooping up all the salmon eggs was fascinating.  5.30pm came all too quickly – as did the bus to take us back.  As soon as we were reversing out a huge male crossed the road to get to the river – he must have set his alarm as he was bang on time!

We did the trip in reverse – bus and then boat – and got back to the lodge to have a quick change and then choose the trips we want to do tomorrow whilst appetisers were being served.  Bears, bears and more bears please!  Dinner was self service, but very nice.  Meat or fish, and as much as you wanted.  Wine was on the table, and is included with dinner.  After dinner one of the guides always gives a talk on something or other, and this time it was a British guide called John whose talk was on “Gary the Bear”.  Perhaps this one drives a Subaru!  No, he doesn’t.  But he was a bear cub that John came across a year and a half ago when he was first here, and he has documented his first two years of life.  It was rather touching to see how he has grown up, rather like looking at a photo album of your children.  Not sure how he knows it is the same bear, because nearly all bears look the same to me.  I’m sure it is.  Perhaps we will see Gary tomorrow!

Canada - Day Five - Tuesday 8th October

Quite a leisurely start to the day today – breakfast was at 8.30am.  We met Michelle from Victoria Tourism in the Café of the Parkside Hotel, and had a very informal breakfast and excellent coffee.  After storing the luggage with the hotel, we walked to the Robert Bateman Centre, ten minutes or so from the hotel on the harbour.  Robert Bateman is an artist who lives on Saltspring Island – just off of Vancouver Island.  This centre is new, but in a beautiful old building.  It only opened in May, and although the galleries are finished the gift shop isn’t.  Oh what a shame – can’t go shopping!  I had never heard of him, but his art work is fantastic.  Most of it is wildlife, and it is so good you actually feel as if you are in the picture.  He is 83 years old – and to be honest looks younger than I do.  Perhaps I ought to move to Saltspring Island if that’s what the air does out there.

The assistant curator gave us an insight into what the centre is all about – so much more than just the art.  He wants to educate children into the great outdoors again, and get them to appreciate nature rather than TV’s and computers.  His philosophy is that if children grow up to love nature, they will want to help preserve what we have.  Sounds good to me.  Saying that, they have embraced technology in the galleries, with his full complement of circa two and a half thousand paintings on a ipad thing that you can scroll through and transfer onto large flat screens on the wall.  That way, you can see any and all of his paintings instead of just the hundred or so that they have room for to hang on the walls.  One of his loves is birds, and several of his bird paintings have a plaque next to it that you can wave in front of and hear the call of that particular bird.  You can also pick up a smartphone, or download an app on your own, to wave in front of a QR code on the plaque and it will instantly bring up all the information you would ever need to know about that particular painting.  Technology and nature working in harmony.

From here we walked to the Coast Harbourside Hotel, right next door to where the Orca Spirit Adventures have their office and dock.  Their lovely sales manager, Charlene, met us and said we would instantly forget the rooms that she was going to show us, but we would not forget the lunch.  Optimistic words!  The rooms were all the same, the only difference being the view.  Harbour view or not.  There was nothing wrong with the rooms, they looked very comfortable but not spectacular.  She was right about them being forgettable.  We then went to lunch in the Blue Crab Bar and Grill, which is part of the hotel and has views out over the harbour.  Wow, and was she right about the lunch.  After goats cheese salad, scallops in a chilli and lemon butter sauce with couscous the size of pearl barley and white chocolate bread pudding I felt I was only able to waddle out of my seat.  I would say that meal was the best I have had on this trip so far.  Apparently even the Fairmont send people to this restaurant as it is known as one of the best seafood establishments in Victoria.  I couldn’t agree more.  I tried, but unsuccessfully, to get the recipe for that sauce!

We then met the LA Limousines minibus that took us back to the Parkside Hotel to collect our luggage, and head out on the journey to Campbell River.  The driver Edison, think light bulb or lighthouse to remember his name, also found it difficult to draw breath on the three hour or so journey.  He had lots of stories to tell, and lots of information to give.  As we headed out of Victoria the scenery changed into quite a mountainous one.  We headed up the mountains (think hills rather than hairpin bends) until we got to a lookout at the top.  This overlooked Victoria beyond the strip of ocean that we had just gone around.  We could see the airport and Butchart Gardens.  It was such a lovely day again – the sun was shining.  Edison pointed out that the mountain range we could see in the distance was actually in the USA (Mount Baker, the volcano was not in sight today) and were part of the Olympic Ranges.  The clouds came up to that point, and usually got no further leaving Vancouver Island in sunlight.  Nice.

We travelled for around an hour and a half, and then stopped at a local vineyard at Lake Cowichan.  Averill Creek Wineries was owned and run by a Welsh Doctor.  Are there are locals here??  He has thirty odd acres of vines, that they were actually going to start harvesting tomorrow.  Anyone looking for a job?  Every grape is picked by hand – there should be around sixty five tonnes of them.  We had a very good explanation as why their wine is better than everyone elses.  No stomping or crushing grapes here – they all have to be treated very carefully to retain their flavour.  We then went into the shop to have a tasting of six different wines.  They were all good – BC wine has a very good reputation, but they don’t make enough of it to export so it rarely goes outside of Canada.  This part of Vancouver Island apparently has a Mediterranean climate, so is ideal for grape growing.  After six glasses, albeit small glasses, of wine we all got back in the minibus for the further two hours to get to Campbell River.  I heard Edison telling Denise that there used to be lots of wildlife on the highway until they put fences up either side except for places where they naturally crossed.  Then I heard him telling Denise that they couldn’t stop that unless they made a bridge for them to cross.  Perhaps it was the wine, but I can’t see how you can tell an Elk to go over a bridge rather than cross a road.  I must have fell asleep at that point, but when I woke up he was still talking.  Wonder what I missed!  He was very good at name dropping celebrities that he had driven, and how discreet their company was.  Wonder why he was telling us then?

We arrived at Heron’s Landing in Campbell River just in time to drop our bags and then go out for dinner.  Today seems all about food.  We were driven ten minutes down the road to the Rip Tide Pub, where we met the sales manage for Knights Inlet – where we are off to tomorrow.  I had a Bison Burger – first Bison for me.  I really wasn’t hungry, so feel I didn’t do it justice.  During the meal the couple that own Knights Inlet popped in to say hello- lovely couple.  I hope the lodge is as good as the perceptions that I now have!  We will see tomorrow.

Canada - Day Four - Monday 7th October

Met Meisha from Victoria Tourism in the lobby at 6.55am this morning for our “ten” minute walk to the Oswego Hotel to go for a site inspection and breakfast.  The ten minutes were true to form, and we walked for about twenty minutes to the left of the inner harbour and a couple of blocks back to the hotel.  This is a boutique style hotel, with either studios, one or two bedroom apartments, all with full kitchens.  This is ideal if you are on a two or three week tour and need to do a bit of washing.  It is only a five minute walk to the harbour,  and ten minutes to the Empress Hotel, where many of the tours leave from.  The breakfast was made to order – the omelette of the day was roasted tomato, caramelised onions and goats cheese.  Sold!  It was the best omelette I have ever had (and I have had a few).  Many of the guests have breakfast in their rooms, so the restaurant is not huge.  The hotel has around 80 rooms, so not that big either.

From here we walked five minutes to the hotel next door where we said goodbye to George, the British Airways host.  He was having to go home – and very sad he was not being able to go in search for the bears with us!  We were collected here by a CVS CruiseVictoria tour bus that was taking us to Butchart Gardens.  The journey was just over half an hour, and I don’t think the driver drew breath from the start to the finish.  He knew everything about everything.  He told us some of the history of Victoria – much of it involving British people including Captain Cook, Queen Victoria and James Douglas, the first Governor here.  He apparently didn’t last a year as people weren’t very nice to him, and Captain Cook didn’t even set foot on the island as he was on his way to Hawaii.  I think he realised he had rather a large contingency of British people on the bus, so maybe didn’t comment as much as he may have done if we weren’t present.

He also knew the full history of the Butchart family, who were originally from Scotland.  It was the son that started the gardens – but only because his wife told him to.  He started Portland Cement, and dug quarries in the rich limestone ground that was in the area.  This left rather large unsightly holes in the ground.  After his first attempt at filling one as a lake and putting trout in it, his wife then had the idea to make them into gardens.  She started with the “Sunken Garden” and then the “Japanese Garden”.  This was a very popular place to go, and was soon serving 18,000 cups of tea a year to patrons.  Not sure when it went from being a place to go for free and get a cup of tea to a chargeable option, but another three gardens have been added at various points along the way.  There is now an “Italian Garden” a “Mediterranean Garden” and a “Rose Garden”.  The gardens are still in the hands of the same family, albeit a few descendents down.  Each descendent has put their own stamp on the property, and now there is a carousel, fireworks every Saturday night in July and August, and a permanent stage for concerts.  None of these attract any extra charge other than that to get in. We all had to have a go on the carousel – a rather bizarre sight of ten travel agents riding frogs and dogs to the melody of singing in the rain!  We were extremely lucky to have David Clarke give us a guided tour.  Originally from the UK, he actually married into the family.  He did divorce, and ended up working for his ex wife.  He has been here forty six years, so it couldn’t have been so bad.  There was nothing he didn’t know about the history, the plants, or any bit about the gardens.  They are open from morning to night every single day of the year – summer months opening until much later at night than in the winter.  There is always fifty five gardeners working every day, with extras being drafted in during the summer.  I have never seen such beautiful gardens as these – even now in October they are so colourful.  They are replanted four times a year, so that there is always colour whatever time you go.

Then came the icing on the cake so to speak.  We were invited to have High Tea in the Dining Room – this is in the original house Robert Butchart built for his family to live in whilst the gardens were in their infancy.  Lovely white linen tablecloths are on the tables, and the tea is served in white china with proper tea leaf strainers – no PG tips here!  We are then served the most delicious warm ginger scones with jam and cream.  I thought that was it – but then came a three tiered serving tray with pastries, sandwiches and cakes on the top.  Not just any old sandwiches either – turkey and cranberry and sage, carrot and ginger and I can’t remember the others.  There was a mushroom and turkey vol au vent, a Cornish pasty and a cheddar cheese tart, and then – believe it or not – I could not manage any of the cakes!  We had had a scone for starter (weird!) so I decided that was my pudding back to front.  I passed on the lemon tart, chocolate mouse, chocolate layer cake and battenburg.  They gave us a box to put the leftovers in, and Meisha was taking them back for the rest of the staff in her office.  The boxes even had little bags in that fit the box so that they could easily be carried.  Attention to detail!

On our way out there was a seeds shop, where you could buy most of the plants.  There was also a huge tray of little buds of every single flower that was in flower in the garden at this moment in time, with their names on, so if you wanted one of something that you didn’t know the name of, you could have a look and see what it is and then buy it.  Very good marketing!  There was a fantastic gift shop as well – but no time for that as the bus was due to leave and it would have gone with or without us.  We travelled back to Victoria a slightly different way, and the driver only spoke half of the time.  After that lovely High Tea I think a few may have nodded off on the way back. 

When we arrived at the Empress and were dropped off, we then headed over to the Royal BC Museum.  We were left to wander around on our own here to look around the history of the First Nations People.  There was also a large temporary exhibit of the “Race to the Pole” with Scott and Amundsen.  It was really interesting.  There was also a room full of non totem poles, as I now know.  They were all labelled House Poles,  History Poles etc.  Capilano’s descendent was right there then. Not a totem amongst them.

We had a couple of hours free time, so I decided to do a quick walking tour of a few bits of Victoria.  I went in the old part of the city, Chinatown (the oldest in Canada) down by the harbour, and then back to the hotel.  The wind had got up, and it was threatening rain, although the morning that we had walking around the gardens was mostly sunny and warm.  Another quick change and we are out again for a site inspection at The Inn at Laurel Point.  This is a hotel of two halves – literally.  Rooms in the first half are very nice, nothing spectacular but have a lovely friendly feel.  Going back down, and then up to rooms in the second half are as if you are in different hotel.  They are very spacious, contemporary and the bathrooms are huge.  Both rooms have a balcony – the first a small stand on balcony, the second a full size with furniture.  Every room in this hotel, whatever the side, has a harbour view.  They overlook the private gardens and the water, and from where it is maybe even the sunset.  Not sure about that.  A bit further down the side of the harbour from the town, but probably a fifteen minute or so walk to get to the restaurants and bars in the town.  We are at their restaurant, the Aura Waterfront.  The chef is Japanese, and the menu has a slight Japanese feel.  The food is lovely – seafood is prevalent in the menu and everything is so well presented.  A beautiful dinner with Michelle from Victoria Tourism and Kyla-Rae from the hotel.  Might have to go back on that diet when I get home!

Canada - Day Three - Sunday 6th October

Another early morning call – this may be a perk of our job, but it is not a holiday!  Down and checked out by 7.30am, and breakfast in the Giovane Café that is part of the hotel.  This is a really good idea – a café type restaurant that you can buy as little or as much as you like for breakfast.  If all you want is coffee and toast, then that is all you pay for.  We had a voucher for a yoghurt fruit pot, a fresh fruit pot, coffee and a pasty.  It was delicious, and very healthy!  We pulled our luggage from the hotel to outside the Pan Pacific Hotel ready for the Pacific Coach Lines coach to collect us.  It was a beautiful day – the sun is shining, and already the temperature allows the coats to come off.  Not what we were expecting at all.  The temperature is meant to get up to 18 degrees today – lovely! 

The luggage is loaded onto the coach, and we then have another couple of pick ups at other hotels before we get to the Pacific Lines Terminal in Vancouver – about thirty minutes away.  The bus is scheduled to leave the terminal at 09.45am, and will be the same one that goes all the way across to Victoria.  The bus was packed.  Every seat was taken.  It was about an hour to get to Tsawwassen, which is where the ferry was leaving from to go over to Swartz Bay on Vancouver Island.  This really is a good service.  After getting on downtown, you don’t actually have to touch your luggage again until you get off the other end.

It could not have been a better day to do this ferry.  After the bus drove onto the ferry, the Spirit of British Colombia, it was scheduled and departed at 11.00am.  We all got off the bus and headed up to the sundeck.  It was saying on the overhead electronic boards on the motorway to the ferry terminal that this ferry was 61% full.  Not sure how accurate that was, but there was plenty of room.  The sun was beating down and the sea was so calm there was hardly a ripple.  After about thirty minutes of crossing the sea, we then started to weave inbetween islands for another hour or so.  It really is a beautiful crossing.  In the south, you can see the snow capped Mount Baker in the USA – in fact the border between Canada and the USA is not far from here at all.

Ten minutes before we were due to dock we had to make our way back to the bus.  As we were queuing up to get back on, and the bus being the first vehicle on and its nose next to the front bow doors, I commented that I hoped they weren’t going to open them before we docked, bearing in mind the Towsend Thorensen Herald of Free Enterprise.  Sitting on the seat behind the front seat I had an excellent view of the bow doors opening five minutes before we made it to the dock.  Oh well – hopefully it is either a different design, the water is different, or something along those lines.  We made it anyway without any mishap.  Once we left the ferry, we had around forty minutes drive to get to Victoria.  The bus made several stops along the way, so it is quite a handy service if you are staying anywhere along the route.  We were heading right to the very end, which is the Victoria Terminal right behind the Fairmont Empress Hotel – but unfortunately not where we are staying.  I quite like Fairmonts!  We are actually staying at the Parkside Hotel & Spa, which is about a ten minute walk from the terminal.  It is still hot, and ten minutes pulling my case was quite enough.  No need to go to the gym today then!

We arrived at the hotel at 1.30pm – and needed to be back in the lobby for a 2.10pm departure for our whale watching tour.  Just enough time to get to the room – very nice room that has a kitchen and lounge area and a balcony.  It does look into a room of a hotel directly opposite though.  I am sure I am not going to be in the room long enough for that to bother me.  We were advised to take hats and scarves for this trip, but looking at the weather I thought better of it and only took a fleece.  The shuttle to take us to the Orca Spirit Adventures boat in the inner harbour.  Victoria seems to be made up of beautiful old buildings, interspersed with really ugly new ones.  Not sure who the town planners are here, but they ought to be shot.

It was only a few minutes down to the harbour.  The whale watching tours are actually coming to an end for the season, so there are only twenty three people on a forty seater boat.  Lots of room.  There are seats on the top deck – that is where the best view usually is.  It is slow going to get out of the harbour, with float planes taking off all the time.  It is actually known as an international airport in the harbour, as the float planes take people to Canada and the USA.  A few months ago there were whales that actually came right into the harbour area, and the planes were grounded for the day whilst they were there.  I think the only time that whales have caused an airport closure!

As soon as we round the harbour wall we pick up speed.  And then it gets cold, and then it is when I realise why everyone else has coats hats and gloves.  Oh well – I have far more natural insulation than they do.  We head left down to San Juan Island – which is actually part of the USA.  Hope they don’t want to see my ESTA!  There had been a pod of killer whales seen near here earlier in the day hunting for food.  As soon as we near the island we spot the whales.  There are around five of them, and they just keep moving along.  I think they have been to Seaworld – they actually seem to be swimming in formation at times.  Soon other little boats appear, and we have a flotilla.

We keep around 100 metres from the whales at all times – but they don’t seem to be bothered with the boats at all.  They are just making their way up the coast, breaking water every now and then, and then disappearing for a minute or two before coming up again.  They seem to be in Sunday afternoon drive mode though – not going too fast and certainly not doing anything spectacular.  There was a little bit of fin slapping at one point, and a tail fluke at another – neither of which I caught on camera.  One came out of the water slightly more than it had before – but I was taking a picture of a bird at that time as well.  I have got rather a lot of ocean with black fins sticking out though.  About five hundred of those.  I am sure I can find one or two pictures that are showing a bit more flesh.  We keep up with the pod for just over an hour, and then we leave them to it and head back to Victoria harbour.  We had been out on the water just about three hours by the time we had got back – slightly frozen but very happy with our find.  There was hot chocolate to help thaw out, but it was such a lovely cruise back into the harbour that I went and sat out on the top again.  Glutton for punishment.

We arrive back in the harbour, and the float planes are still taking off and landing.  The harbour has lots of floating homes at the side – a bit like house boats but more house than boat.  Very smart.  The shuttle takes us back to the hotel, where we have the usual just under an hour before having to be ready to head out again.

We are met by Miesha from Victoria Tourism, who is hosting our dinner tonight at a local pub called the Canoe Brewpub.  It is a fifteen minutes walk, which is actually a thirty minute walk.  Not sure if that is because everyone is as slow as me, or if it was one of those “if they put thirty minutes down they might not go” type of mistake.  It was a lovely walk though, past various shops and restaurants.  It is nice to see a bit of the local area by foot.  So often it is just in a bus.  The pub is famous locally for brewing its own ales – and we all get to have tasters of them.  I decline and ask for a campari – sorry to all those real ale lovers.  The food though is very good, and the actual building is very impressive.  An old building that has seen many different uses, including BMW repair shop and some sort of garbage place. By 9.45pm everyone is full and ready to fall asleep in their soup.  We set off for our “fifteen” minute walk back to the hotel, and fall into bed ready for another busy day tomorrow.

Canada - Day Two - Saturday 5th October

An early morning wake up call this morning – although I was awake before it went off, as I had slept with the curtains open all night so that I could see the wonderful view. Well, the lights of the wonderful view anyway until the sun came up. We met Krista from the Vancouver Tourism Department at 7.45am in the lobby and walked up and across the road to the Pan Pacific

Hotel for breakfast. This hotel is situated right in Canada Place, where the majority of the cruise ships dock. The hotel rooms start on floor 8 – apparently the cruise ship height comes up to floor 7. The last cruise ship was in the week before, so we didn’t get to see it for ourselves. An ideal hotel to stay before embarking on a cruise, as your luggage is taken from the room and the next time you see it is in your stateroom. From here we joined a bus that was going to take us on a faster than usual tour of the highlights of Vancouver. The driver was actually South African, although he had lived in Canada for many years and was extremely knowledgeable. We headed down Robson Street, one of the main shopping streets, and then out across the bridge and past Stanley Park to the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park. We spent an hour or so here, going across the suspension bridge (not for the feint hearted) and the treehouse walks and cliffwalk. Those that were glad to get to the other side had a nasty shock when they realised that they had to do it all again to get back to the bus! We had a descendent of Chief Capilano give us the history of the park, and some stories of the tribes. Pinch of salt comes to mind! He did say that totem poles aren’t actually totem poles though. Totem in not an Indian word, and it wouldn’t actually be used by Indians, so there are no such things as Indian totem poles. They call them house poles, or story poles etc. Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. From here we drove back over the bridge and through Stanley Park to Granville Island. Such a shame we did not have time to walk in the park – the leaves are turning colour, and there are miles of trails. Beautiful. But this is a whistle stop tour, and here we just whistled and didn’t stop. When we got to Granville Island we had an Edible Canada and Public Market Tour. One of the chefs took us around the market, which was huge, and we tasted odd little things as we went. We had a really spicy salmon at the fish stall – there were live crabs and lobsters in tanks ready to be bought, and row upon row of all sorts of shellfish and fish. The next stop was a funny fruit that looked like a green pepper, but tasted like kiwi fruit. This is apparently only found around here, and has a very short season. We then had pumpkin donuts, three types of charcuterie (preserved meats to you and me) and then a chocolate. This market has all sorts of unusual foods, as well as the normal. It was packed, so is obviously very popular with the locals. From here, we took the Aquabus to Yaletown. A lovely little boat that takes a maximum of 12 passengers, and is part of the public transport system of Vancouver. It has around six stops at various parts of the city, and operates from early morning to late night. We got off near the BC Place stadium that houses the football and soccer teams, and also any large concerts etc. Right next to the General Motors stadium which is home to the Vancouver Canucks Ice Hockey. It is their first home game of the season later on tonight, so there are several ice hockey shirts floating around. Bit like our football scarves I think. We then stopped in Gastown, where the famous steam clock plays a tune every fifteen minutes, and the gas lights are reminiscent of 19th century London. We then went over to the Vancouver Lookout, where we had great 360 degree views of the city. The guide here was Irish – a very multinational population! It gave a great overview of the whole city, and everything sort of fell into place. Great views of the city, the harbour and the mountains beyond. From here we zipped back over to Canada Place where the newest Vancouver attraction is located – Flyover Canada. This is a sort of Disney experience where you get a “pre” film on all four walls of a room before being strapped into seats and flying over Canada in 4D and experiencing mist and water vapour in all four seasons. Sounds a bit corny, but with the imax theatre surround it is actually quite good. This is the longest of its type at eight and a half minutes. We walked back to the hotel, changed, and then met the Fairmont sales lady in the lobby at 6pm for a tour of the Fairmont Waterfront, which has a lovely outdoor pool and vegetable garden up on the sixth floor. Back to the Fairmont Pacific Rim for dinner in the Oru Restaurant, which was excellent. I can recommend this hotel fully!

Canada - Day One – Friday 4th October

The flight to Vancouver from Heathrow is at 1730, so I decided to drive. The M25 on a Friday afternoon can make the journey anything from an hour and a half to four hours, but today was a good day and it took only two hours. The trouble with leaving at a sensible mid morning time just doesn’t give any urgency to packing, but even though I didn’t really start it until 9.30am I still left at just gone 11.00am. This got me to Heathrow Terminal 5 at just gone 1pm, an hour before we were supposed to meet. I had a meet and greet parking option, so drove into the short term car park and handed over the car. Easy. This is a “familiarisation” trip – which means we get to try out hotels and experiences to make our knowledge that much better to recommend to our customers. Hard life! I met the rest of the group, and went to check in. My boarding pass was a “standby” ticket, so this could have been the shortest trip ever. It was soon converted to confirmed – and in business class, so all the better. We made our way to the Business Class Lounge, where we had a couple of drinks and a bite to eat before the flight left. This is such a lovely way to start your holiday – we at Travel Stop can book customers into lounges at most airports throughout the world. We boarded the flight, where the champagne flowed and the food was good. After a short delay, we took off and had a smooth journey. The flight was absolutely packed. The flight of just over nine hours went relatively quickly, and we were soon getting ready to land the other side of the Atlantic. With watches being moved back eight hours, we landed at 7.30pm. It took around an hour to clear immigration, get the bags and go through customs. The journey to the hotel was about 40 minutes, so when we checked in my body clock was at around 5am. A bit like doing a nightshift. We were staying at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel. Our journey to the hotel took us through Gas Town, and down onto the Harbour. It is only a five minute walk from the Fairmont Waterfront, where I stayed last time I was in Vancouver. The room was on the 17th floor, and had an amazing view over Coal Harbour and Stanley Park – although it was hard to make out the park in the dark. The hotel is very contemporary – there was live music playing in a very vibrant lobby, and the rooms are very high tech. The curtains are opened and closed by pressing a button – or on the ipad provided. Hmm – now there’s a challenge I can set Paul for when I get home! There is a screen in the mirror in the bathroom with the weather channel playing, so I can decide what to wear for the day whilst cleaning my teeth. Amazing! The coffee maker makes good coffee – and after that I was just about ready to drop into the most comfortable bed in the world.