The hot springs are only accessed by boat or seaplane and are 26 miles from Tofino BC. Tofino is located on the Pacific Ocean (west coast) of Vancouver Island. We took the boat over which took 90 minutes and the airplane back for a short 15 minute flight. First time in a seaplane, which was a 1947 Beaver, loaded with 7 passengers and lots of … Continue reading Hot Springs Cove – September 5, 2012
We left the RV in Nanaimo and took a 4 day mini vacation and drove 135 miles west to the Pacific side of Vancouver Island to a town called Ucluelet. We stayed in a lovely cottage where the road ends at the Pacific Ocean. Being on the west side of the island we had great sunsets while hiking the wild pacific trail. The weather typically … Continue reading Ucluelet and Tofino, BC – September 4 – 7, 2012
Put in point was Brechin Boat Launch adjacent to the BC Ferries operation in Departure Bay and where seaplanes take off and land. We first tried kayaking around the island during the day only to find wind and white caps on the open water side of the island. As we kayaked back into the bay close to the town of Nanaimo we heard music, we pedaled in … Continue reading Full Moon Kayaking – August 31, 2012
After exiting the Weir (lock) we floated down the Cowichan river. This was a 2 hour slow and relaxing float. Continue reading Cowichan River Float – August 30, 2012
We love Kayaking Lakes and Rivers, today we kayaked Cowichan Lake. This lake is one of the largest bodies of fresh water on Vancouver Island, BC. The lake has a boat lock (weir) between the lake and river, where the lake is approximately 3 feet higher than the river. To enter the lock, you pull on a cord on each side which rings a bell to … Continue reading Cowichan Lake, BC – August 30, 2012
We took the ferry from Horseshoe Bay, about 15 miles north and west of Vancouver, to Departure Bay, Nanaimo on the east side of Vancouver Island. The ferry was huge with many commercial tractor trailers making our 38 foot 5th wheel and dually one tone truck small in comparison. The ferry ride was Just under two hours. We drove off the ferry and arrived at … Continue reading Ferry to Vancouver Island – August 22, 2012
We took Chase on a whale watching tour on the 14th from Richmond BC SW of Vancouver. The company guarantee seeing Whales but after 5 hours riding on the water there were no whales to be seen. The guarantee was if you did not see any whales you can repeat the trip as many times until whales have been sighted. Well we went on the … Continue reading Whale Watching Tour – August 14 and August 21, 2012
We had a great 12 days with Chase. He concludes his trip by taking him to Seattle for an early Saturday morning flight back to Denver. On Friday, after a two hour drive from Seattle and spending nearly 2 hours at the US border, we visited Boeing’s Future of Flight Museum and took a factory tour. This is where Boeing builds their jumbo jets such … Continue reading Seattle – August 17 – 18, 2012
We made it to Vancouver!!!!! That was the goal so many months ago, wow, so many memories and miles since we started. You can’t come to Vancouver without spending time in Stanley Park, perhaps the greatest bike ride in the city. A one way, paved and dedicated circuit around the park, has everyone going in the same circular fashion. The entire ride is about 7 … Continue reading Vancouver’s Stanley Park by bicycle, August 12, 2012
The best of the best, USAF Thunderbirds and Canadian Snowbirds in one show. This was Abbottsfords’ 50th Anniversary of the Airshow. Continue reading Abbottsford Air Show, August 11, 2012
Small town Canada. The kind of place you can ride your bike to the town park, sit on the park bench and visit with your new neighbors, or get an ice cream and look at the view. That’s just what we did — with a little kayaking thrown it. Harrison Hot Springs is a wonderful place, two streets. The kind of place that Vancouver folk … Continue reading Harrison Hot Springs, August 9, 2012
The Kettle Valley Recreation Area is the perfect place to float. The section of the river we floated was between two campgrounds: park at one, shuttle driver takes you back to the other…. and in between was 5 miles (11 kilometers) of slow moving, crystal clear water. The water was 18 inches deep, so if you really needed to reposition your place in the river, … Continue reading Kettle River Float – August 7, 2012
We rented mountain bikes and rode 25km on a ‘rails to trails’ which included 18 trestles and 2 tunnels in Myra Canyon above Kelowna BC. Continue reading Rails to Trails Bicycle Ride – July 15, 2012
The greatest show on earth! 100 years old! Yaaaaa hooooo! We saw the commercials on television and all the written hype in the newspaper. We thought these Calgary people really like their annual party. But now that we have come and gone there is a lot to like. It was a stand out event, especially if you are passionate about horses. The grounds are well … Continue reading Calgary Stampede – July 6 – 7, 2012
National Geographic ranks the drive between Banff and Jasper National Park on the Ice fields Parkway as one of the best 10 drives in the world. It could have been easily labeled highway to heaven, it is so filled with spectacular scenery. There are 22 ice fields (glaciers) along the 79 miles of the Canadian Rockies, and you can see more than half of them … Continue reading Icefields Parkway – July 4, 2012
We spent three weeks in a small town called Canmore, 12 miles outside Banff, and used it as the base for the central mountain day trips. Banff National Park is Canada’s first National Park. Unlike the US, the Canadian parks hold entire towns within their boundaries. Banff is a spectacular town (A destination in its own right) and has a spectacular setting. It has … Continue reading Banff and Surrounding Area – June 15 – July 9, 2012
The rocky mountains are omnipresent, you really drive down the road from one park into the next. They are all beautiful, I have not experienced this much jaw dropping vistas in a very long time. Water is everywhere, either in lakes or streams, a consequence of the snow melt and glacial retraction. We spent hours going up and down roads saying, “wow, look at that … Continue reading Kootenay, Kananaskis, Yoho and Canadian Glacier Narional Parks – June 23 – 26, 2012
Took a day trip to this wonderful lake inside Banff National park. Continue reading Lake Louise, Canadian Rockies – June 22, 2012
As we enter Alberta, Canada our first stop takes to the Canadian side of Glacier National Park. Dreams come true. our first stop, was Waterton Lakes National Park, the Canadian side of Glacier National Park. In Canada, the national parks are the best place to stay because the township is completely encompassed by the park, so it is a double header, you get both the … Continue reading Waterton Lakes National Park, Canada – June 13 – 15, 2012
Photos from West Glacier and East Glacier. Going to the Sun Road was closed during our visit to the park. Continue reading Glacier National Park, Montana – June 7 – 13, 2012
Home of Flathead Lake, National Bison Range and Kerr Dam. Continue reading Polson Montana – June 2 – 6, 2012
Memorial Day Weekend. After emptying out our House in Aurora, we visited Shadowcliff and our Son’s family in Battlement Mesa. On our journey back to Beaver Utah where we had stored the RV we stopped at Capital Reef National Park. Continue reading Capitol Reef National Park, Utah – May 29, 2012
Highway I-15 is a long road, it stretches from San Diego, California to someplace in Montana. Thank goodness it also has excellent cell service. During our 3,000 miles of driving we discovered the house sold, on the first day – in a bidding war, and subsequently passed inspection. Luckily, I-15 also intersects with I-70. We parked the 5th wheel and went back to Denver, deliver … Continue reading The Great Transition – May 22 – 28, 2012