Greece - 22nd Aug 2008 - Day 6

We now had 2 days to ourselves before heading of on the Flotilla.

We had booked a trip on an old yacht called the St Christina. It was a very large boat which took 50 people, but we all had loads of space and a sun bed each. The hostess was a British girl who we think was involved with the captain of the ship, but she was a great narrator of all the local places of interest.

The first place we stopped at was a large limestone cave which was very impressive, then we motored to a small island and anchored up in a bay where we spent time snorkeling, the water was very clear but the fish life some what limited compared to places like the Maldives.

We visited two other ports and had buffet lunch aboard. We then had several other stops to swim and eventually worked our way back to Nidri via an Island called Scorpios which was owned by Aristotle Onassis. Our Hostess gave us a very interesting commentary on the history of the Onassis family, full of intrigue, greed and murder.

We arrived back at Nidri and 18:00. We went out for another meal which was really awful - John had wanted grilled sardines which were advertised on the Menu - but when they arrived hours later they were covered in batter and had been deep fried.

We went back via the tree bar and there was a couple of singers performing various songs including many Abba hits. The girl had a great voice and could sing with no musical backing. They were so good they became a regular turn at the bar.

Greece - 21st Aug 2008 - Day 5

Today we put our plan into practise and sailed to another Meganisi bay. We had purchased food for a picnic and the weather was looking calm.


Unfortunately, Jon had eaten a mussel risotto the previous night and it was now beginning to cause problems!! As the trip wore on he felt progressively worse. By lunch time, he was off his food and looking very pale. We moored off the bay using our bow anchor and a stern rope which John had to swim out to a rock on the beach. A bowlan knot was required which John managed after a wee while!!





We had a very nice lunch and swim in the bay.


In the afternoon, Rae changed our agreed route so we could find some wind. By this time, Jon was down in the galley feeling very poorly indeed.


We practised tacking, jibbing and then a new sail configuration called Goose Winging. This allows you to catch as much wind in the sails as possible when travelling down wind. Very impressive!!


By the end of the day Jon came back up on deck to sail but still looked rough!!


We all met back at the bar and Rae announced that we had all passed our weeks training program and the handed out our certificates!! At which point, Jon ran to the loo and was very, very sick. He then went to bed to sleep it off!!




In the evening, Jane, Fiona and John took Rae out to a lovely beach front restaurant called Toms. We had a very nice meal and then Jane went off to look after Jon. The rest of us went to another bar where Rae had cocktails and John & Fiona had an ice cream. We then went of to the Hotel and off to bed.

Greece - 20th Aug 2008 - Day 4

Today was our introduction to yachting navigation. We spent at least a couple of hours sitting at the bar with maps and plotters etc. working out how to find positions, bearings etc.

We then spent time on the boat, learning how to moor up on our own using the ropes and anchor. This was not as easy for Jon and Jane as expected!! In fact, we all found it quite challenging as there are a lot of tasks for just two people to complete.

We set sail for Meganisi again, but this time a different bay. We moored up using a lazy line for the first time, which was yet another way to anchor in a harbour.

We stopped at a really quaint taverna, where Jon and John had excellent fresh fish, Fiona had prawns and Jane had spaghetti bolognaise. The owner had a very cute bunny running around. we just hoped it would not end up on the menu!!

After lunch the wind strengthened to a force 4, so we had to reef in the sails again. Once under control, Rae had us all practise the "Man Over Board" manoeuvres. This again was more involved than first thought. Jon & Jane managed to retrieve Gerald (the fake man made off a fender and bucket) in one attempt (pure luck). Fiona took 2 attempts and John 3!!

That evening we were given homework by Rae. This involved choosing a destination for the next days sailing and then plotting our trip using the chart. Jon ended up getting over excited about all the options available to us and confused us all, even Jane!! However, we managed to agree a cunning plan for the next day.

After a long days training, we had a very good meal at one of the Italian restaurants in Nidri.

Greece - 19th Aug 2008 - Day 3

Today was another great days sailing and learning with Rae, Jon & Jane.

We practised a lot of Tacking and Jibing and also learned to reef the sails ourselves.

For lunch, visited the bay of Vathi on the Island of Meganisi. Having tied up, we dived off the boat and enjoyed the crystal clear waters. It was very hot and the cool water was very welcome.

We ate at a small taverna. We shared a Greek salad and John had squid and Fiona a local omelet.

The afternoon was spent learning to control the boat in lighter winds.

At night we visited a terrible Indian restaurant, where the food was a bright red colour and the wine awful.

After a small cocktail at the tree bar, we hit the sack!!

Greece - 18th Aug 2008 - Day 2

After a good nights sleep we woke refreshed and had breakfast. Not long after, we met with all the Nelson's team in the lobby and then with our Trainer, Rae, an energetic marine engineer and trainer to boot!!

We also met our fellow students Jon and Jane, a right couple of Pains (that's their surname) who were to be our training buddies for the next four days.

Rae immediately saw a problem, two Johns to teach. So, she gave us both nicknames. John was called Shorts, because he looked so dashing in his shorts and Jon became Cowboy, because in his cowboy hat he was a dead ringer for one of the chaps in the film Broke Back Mountain!!!

Rae took us through a few basics, handing out our knot ropes, training books and plenty of advise. We then headed off to the Neilson Yacht Pontoon (5 minutes walk away) to meet our training boat, Delos, a mature lady of the sea.

Rae took us all though the safety procedures including, flare usage, radio checks, life jackets and the daily checks we would need to use when leaving port, the acronym being SCREW standing for Sail Cover, Radio Check, Engine On and Wopes (ropes).

We were off on our first trip. We had plenty of wind, so much so we had to reef the sails (this means reducing the sail size to gain better control).

We had lunch back at Nidri as the wind was far too strong to allow us to moor at another location.

After lunch, we were able to put the mornings lessons into practise. It became obvious that Jon & Jane were struggling with the basics (not really). We had a great first day.

In the evening we visited the Tree Bar, having the first of many excellent cocktails to come. A meal had been arranged by Nelson's, but it did not materialise, so we had a very nice meal with Jon & Jane. Jon and Jane live in Woodford, East London, Jon is a primary teacher and Jane an admin officer in another local school. They have three children, Emily - 17, Laura - 18 and Rod - 20. Jon had just turned 40 (looks older) and this trip was part of his birthday celebrations.

We all shared a Greek Mixed Grill with Salad, yummy!!

Greece - 17th Aug 2008 - Day 1

We woke up early today to travel from Tim's (our mate in Hove) to Gatwick airport. We had been partying the night before so felt a little worse for wear!! The roads were quiet until we hit the airport. The terminal was very busy even though it was just past 7AM.

The take of was delayed a little, however, once off the ground, we managed to bad a couple of "extra leg room" seats and the flight went smoothly.

We landed at the military airport of Preveza. The weather was hot and the sky clear. We took a coach to the resort of Nidri where our hotel, The Athos, was located.

Check in was swift and our room was clean, cosy and air conditioned. We also met our yacht trainer, Rae, as she had helped to carry our luggage to our room.

After unpacking and showering we explored the hotel and the local town. The hotel has a good pool, garden bar and jacuzzi area. Very good for the price! See this link: http://www.lantisworld.com/athoshotel.htm

We found a small restaurant, ate a typical Greek dinner of salad and fish and went to bed exhausted, ready for our first days training.

Canada - Day 24 - 14th July

Well today marks he end of our epic journey around Canada. The time has flown by but when we look back we realise just how mush we have seen, how many places we have visited and how many interesting and friendly fellow travellers we have met.

Today was another great weather day with blue skies and high temperatures.




We went to our favourite Italian Coffee shop for breakfast, a wonderful breakfast pizza with a tea and coffee.



We spent the rest of the day taking in Vancouver in the sun, walking the entire circumference of the park and city before lunch.




We stopped off at a very nice cafe for a snack and then headed back to the park where we visited the Rose gardens (beautifully kept for almost 100 years) and then onto Beaver Lake which had the largest collection of water lillies we have ever seen.

On the way round the park we came across children playing in the water features and a few fluffy friends.




By the end of our exploration we had walked approximately 18 miles in hot sun and enjoyed every minute. We even met a very friendly but greedy gull who had bitten off more than he could swallow!!




We noticed that many road lights were out and were told that a large underground fire had been ragging all day causing havoc in the city!!

We arrived back in our hotel for about 3PM. They allowed us to use the showers in the fitness area, which was just as well, as after so much walking in high temperatures were were smelling a little ripe!!

We then jumped in the car, filled up the hire car with petrol, drove to the airport (which is beautiful with great green areas and a very impressive aquarium).

We checked in and made our way to the BA lounge for a a little bubbly and to update this web log, which is exactly what l am doing right now!! Here we are looking a bit glum at the prospect of returning to rain soaked Britain. Still, at least we will get to see Heather our grumpy Springer Spaniel!





We fly back to the UK in an hour. We have both loved Canada and with a little luck, plan to revisit next year by popping back with our ski buddies to ski Banff.

We will be home now for approx 4 weeks, before our next trip to Greece, where we will be taking our Royal Yachting Association exams then spending a week putting our newly acquired skills into practise. Greece, you have been warned!!

Canada - Day 23 - 13th July

Today started with partly cloudy skies which cleared during breakfast. We were off by ferry back to Vancouver today, but we managed to squeeze just one more event out of the lodge.

We went kayaking with the German family, Sarah and Sabatini. We both opted to have single kayaks this time, which was a first for Fiona.

After ten minutes of practice, we were off across the lake to see some more bears. We came a cross the Mother and Baby again but were able to get very close due to the maneuverability of the Kayaks.

After savouring an hour of close bear watching, we headed back to base, seeing a lovely blue king fisher on the way.

Once back on dry land we packed up, checked out and boarded our float plane with the German family for our trip back to Campbell River. We said a breif goodbye to the staff, especially, Bob, Al and Kris (see Bob & Al below).





The weather was just perfect and we had a very gentle trip back, probably helped by the fact that Fiona was co pilot, and a very good one to boot!!



We drove back to the Ferry where we had to queue to check in. We ended up having to wait a couple of hours, eventually catching the 3:10PM ferry back to Vancouver. Again the weather was fantastic for the whole trip. We listened to the on board marine biologist which made the one and a half hour trip fly by. The views of the city from the ferry were stunning!!





We arrived back in Vancouver, on time, drove back to the city and into our hotel.

Tomorrow we fly back to the UK where we hear it has been raining a great deal. We will have most of the day in Vancouver, flying back at 8:30PM.

Canada has been a great place to visit, with just about every kind of kind of geography and experience we could have wanted.

It's hard to single out any one part of the trip. Emerald Lake was amazing but so was everything else. we both want to come back some day. If plans work out, we may be skiing in Banff next March!!

Canada - Day 22 - 12th July

Today started early, 6.30AM. We were up early, as we had three events to enjoy. After a good breakfast, we popped into a boat with Bob, our host, and four other fellow punters.

Bob headed North to the other side of the inlet, where we walked across a small beach and into the forest. This is where our very tame hike began.

We walked through the forest for approximately two hours with Bob pointing out anything and everything that may be of interest. He explained that a couple has actually lived in this area for almost 40 years, living off the land and amongst the bears!! A book has been written about their experiences called "Grizzlies In Their Backyard" by Beth Day (You can buy it on Amazon).

We crossed some very unsteady bridges which they have to rebuild every year as the rain's destroy then every winter. We also came across some very white topped fungi.





We stopped at asmall clearing by the river where Bob handed out Cookies and Sabatini waded into the ice cold river. On the way back to the lodge, we came a cross a huge log boom being dragged by a tug. These log booms are HUGE and quite a sight.





After a very nice lunch in the sun, we headed off for another bear watching trip with Kris. This time we were spoilt by seeming both grizzly and black bears. The grizzly bears were a Mum and Baby again, very cute!!

After a tea and coffee stop (with great cookies), we headed back out to the other side of the inlet to embark on a bear tracking afternoon. This whole trip was quite comical, as every time we stopped the guide got out of the bus, called for bears, clapped her hands, and then gave us the all clear. Our guide took us to a man made, Salmon spawning ground but not before stopping to bag up some bear poo with which she makes paper!!

We saw bear trails, bear pits, where they rest up, very large, fresh, bear prints as well as the man made salmon run where they can encourage spawning and take visitors to see the bears eating the salmon later in the year.

That evening we met up with John, Mary, Sarah, Sabatini and Roydon. Roydon is from New Zealand. They served up some very good ribs and sweet and sour chicken with much improved Canadian wines.

After dinner, we went into the lounge to see a presentation about winter dog sledging in Canada, presented by Kris. He runs these in the winter months and they did look fantastic!!

It was a very enjoyable evening. Most people went off to bed soon after, but John stayed up to watch the sun sink and the moon rise over the inlet. He boiled himself in the Jacuzzi for almost an hour listening to Pink Floyd on his iPod!!

Canada - Day 21 - 11th July

Today began with sparking blue skies and calm winds. We had a quick breakfast and then met the chap who was leading us to the float plane office just out of town.

We arrived at the office and hanger and put most of our clothing in storage. The rest was loaded onto the single engine plane and we were soon on board and ready to go.

The wind was a tad gusty, so the flight to Knight Inlet Lodge was a wee bit bumpy. A small German boy who was next to John began to turn pale and grabbed for the sick bag. The views from the plane were amazing (see pic).



Luckily, we landed just in time!! The Lodge looked amazing in the sunshine and as we landed we saw some bears on the inlet banks.

We were shown to our rooms, quite basic but very in keeping with this "out of the way" place. Each lodge has three bedrooms with a shared lounge which has plenty of seating and a good size log burning fire. Our lodge also had the large hot tub outside, very handy!! They have designed each lodge so that they all have fantastic views of the inlet which enables you to fully appreciate the wonderful sunsets.




We were taken on a wee tour of the resort, given tea/coffee and then given a wee orientation presentation by Bob, a very nice guy. If your interested in this amazing place see: http://www.grizzlytours.com/

The lodge had 2 live in dogs who were really adorable and liked to sit by your table just in case you wanted to part with some of your food. There were also families of swifts and there were 5 babies who left the nest just as we arrived - they were so tame again got some great pic's.




We had not been in the Lodge any longer than half an hour, before we put on our water jackets got into a small boat and went into the inlet to do some bear watching with Al.


The first morning we saw 2 bears brother and sister called Bonnie and Clyde, they are 3 years old but still pretty big. We got pretty close to them, but they don't seem to really notice we are there.

Apparently when the owners of the lodge started they got in bear specialists to advise on the best way for bear and humans to co-exist together and it seems to work - there are now loads of bears in the area.

The 2 bears suddenly became spooked and ran very fast to the other side of the inlet - there was another bear and cub near by, bears don't like to be too close to each other.


When we arrived back for lunch there was a seal sunning itself on the harbour.

We had lunch and then headed off for some more bear watching. This time we saw the mother and baby who had spooked the other bears in the morning. We watched them for about an hour and the small cub came out of the sage grass to play in the water with mum. These grasses are a great source of food at this time of year which is later replaced by adundant berries and Salmon.


We got some fab photo's and video - they just look so cute as the photo's show. Then we saw another bear in the distance who had 3 cubs with her - the guys at the lodge were very excited because this is the first time they had seen the bear and cubs. We also saw a pine martin, deer and blue kingfisher and numerous other birds.



We headed back to the lodge and had afternoon tea, then headed out again on a 3 hour trip much further up the inlet with Bob and Al, our guides. We saw a black bear eating mussels and cockles on the rocks just by the water - the black bears have much smoother and silkier hair than the grizzly's we saw on the previous trips.



The views up the inlet were stunning - the rocks are granite and the colours in the sun were like something from an art gallery. We stopped at an area where logging had taken place and the logs were all piled up in stacks on the water ready to be taken to the mills - about $2million Canadian dollars worth.

We then got taken to a very spectacular water fall and the boat went under the main flow so we all got extremely wet but all good fun.

During the trip we saw dolphins which loved to follow the wake of the boat - there were loads of them and we were the first boat trip to see them that day.



We got back at 18:00 for pre-dinner drinks. The weather was brill so we sat on the restaurant outside deck admiring the amazing views. We met some really nice people on the trip - John and Mary from Esher and Sarah and her son Sabotini, who live in Sunningdale, near Windsor. Sarah is a publisher for a wine magazine. The magazine, called Fine Wines, is known for it's excellent advise about everything winey!!


We had a really nice meal (the food here is good and wholesome), then one of the guides gives a presentation on a subject of his choice - this night Al (he was in the Canadian Air force for 25 years doing search and rescue) did his pitch on search and rescue which was very interesting.

After that we headed back to our cabin and there on our balcony were 3 otters playing - again the camera and video were required to capture all this.



A great day in a very special place.

Canada - Day 20 - 10th July

Today began early and sunny as we had a three hour drive ahead of us.

We grabbed some food from breakfast and jumped in the car. The drive over to Campbell River was fine and we had arrived by 12:00PM.

We were, as always, too early to check in (Herons’s Landing – looks very alpine in style), so we went down town to find a café. We found a great Italian place where we shared an enormous hot ham and cheese sandwich, which was enough for three but very tasty indeed.

We then drove the car to Elk Falls provincial park – there was a walk marked which took you up to the falls – it was a lovely walk along Campbell River – which is a pretty fats flowing and wide river – it took us past a hydro plant which supplies power for a local paper making company. We walked over a metal bridge which had fast moving water under it which is part of the plant – a bit spooky. We then made our way up to the falls – it took us through more rain forest type terrain and then we got to the falls – they were really impressive – see the attached photo’s.

We then made out way back to the hydro plant and then crossed over the river to walk back on the opposite side. The bridge taking us over the river was very high and you could see through the metal slats below to see the gorge – all a bit scary. We then made our way down the other side and came across 3 fisherman in a small boat who had stopped to do a bit of salmon fishing. The water was really fast moving so I think they were quite brave to fish there. Eventually we got down to another bridge which took us back across the river to where we had started and again we came across 2 fisherman who had managed to catch a salmon but it was too small so they through it back. We then drove back to our hotel and checked in – the room is great has a kitchen, lounge and large bedroom.

We are going to eat at Dick’s fish and chip restaurant this evening – apparently is a recommendation of lonely plant and our hotel.

Tomorrow we are flying by float plane to Knights Inlet Lodge – sounds a very interesting place – renound for grizzly bears and Orca so we are really looking forward to this.

Canada - Day 19 - 9th July

Today started with a whimper, as we had a later night than was expected sue to the poor service in the restaurant!!

We were supposed to be on the early boat to see the Whales, however, we phoned the office, arranged to go on the thee thirty boat and went back to sleep.

Breakfast was a bit of a disaster, due to our new server having a poor memory. we had asked for Tea and coffee on two occasions, by the time we had finished our breakfast, neither had arrived. So, we gave up and went into town for some beverage.

The sun was up and getting hot. We found a map in a local cafe that had some little known routs up into the forest. We eventually found the route which was also no the way to the local refuse dump. Nice!!

However, this turned out to be a blessing, as it had the effect of putting people off. we had a fantastic walk in the forest and saw, amongst others, a group of bald eagles (Bald in this context means white), a snake, a Golden Eagle, frogs, huge slugs (about 6 inches long) and a group of people camping deep in the forest. we also saw a lot of bear poop. They only have black bears in this area, which are quite nervous of humans and not known to attack.





After a couple of hours the temperature was high, so we turned back a retraced our steps back to the car. On the was back, we stopped at one of the local beaches for a quick photo. We came back to the car to find a permit fine. John tried to barter with the attendant who was not interested. The fine was $40, so John managed to track down the main office (15 minutes drive away) and told the lady in charge what had happened. she apologised and cancelled the fine. RESULT!!

We then rushed back to town for our Whale watching trip. We arrived at Jamie's Whale station and began the arduous task of "kitting up". This entailed getting into a huge red buoyancy and protection suit, followed by a protective poncho. After a few minutes, we both became very hot.






After a quick safety check, we headed down to the dock and loaded ourselves onto the Zodiac boat, securing the front seat which the captain warned us was more bumpy but less wet.

He wasn't wrong, as we sped out of the harbour the waves quickly grew until they were huge. we flew over them, slapping the waves in front each time. After 45 minutes of theme park ride (very enjoyable), we arrived at the Whale site.

Yes, there was a Grey Whale, spouting water into the air. Most of the time the Whale stayed well under the water, only it's spray showing above. Still, it came up a few times and we managed to get some video and a few distant photo's which we were happy about. The boats stayed at a respectful distance, which was good.





By the time we headed back the waves had become even bigger. The ride back was pure action film stuff. At one time, the captain had to stop the boat and turn to face the waves as their sheer size had become, well, a problem!!

Half was back we suddenly turned into a bay, and there on rocks in front of us were a family of local seals. They were chilling out on the rocks. Apparently, these seals are the biggest in the world. Just after, when flying home, some small sea birds flew right in front of the boat with beaks full of fish. They were flying just above the sea and were much faster than us.





We raced back to the dock, where the captain completed a couple of very tight circles which was great fun.

We docked back by 6 and then raced back to the hotel to shower and change in time for our 7 PM reservation at the Shelter restaurant, which has quickly become our favourite. The meal was very enjoyable, we shared a crispy squid tempura then Fiona had local Chicken and John a Thai Seafood Curry which was half the price of the previous evening and ten times as enjoyable.






If you are reading this and fancy a great meal, take a look at the following link, which can take some time to load, but it's worth it!! http://www.shelterrestaurant.com/welcome.htm

Tomorrow we are off to our next destination, Campbell River, take a look at:
http://www.campbellriver.travel

Canada - Day 18 - 8th July

Today began foggy, which is a first on this trip. The weather here is very changeable and quite cool first and last thing. The wind is definitely a plus here as it keeps the fog at bay when high pressure dominates.

After a continental breakfast, we headed off to the light house point at Ucluelet. Take a look at this link for more info: http://www.ucluelet.com/

We took the marked trail which takes you through a variety of rain forest terrain. There were aerie sections of forest with moss laden trees,



sections of plants with bright yellow raspberries,



haunting views of the foggy coast (with the fog horn blowing in the background) and endless stretches of coast with hundreds of washed up trees.



Whilst walking towards the end of a path we heard screeching. Suddenly there were two large bald eagles flying above the trees. We darted into the open and there, sitting in a tree, was a huge bald eagle.






He was quite happy to sit in his tree and watch us, whilst we snapped away.



The trail continued until we hit a circular board walk section. We then began the walk back and, low and behold, we came across a second Bald Eagle (or was the same one in a different place).

On the way back towards Tofino, we stopped off at the Wickaninnish Interpreter Centre, where they have some small hikes, a great beach and an large nature information centre. We will pop back and see this place tomorrow, when we have more time.

The afternoon had already been arranged by our travel company, FreshTracks. This company have dome a very good job in arranging our Canada trip. If anyone is looking for such a service please click on this link: http://www.freshtracks.ca/canada/index.php

By now the sun had burnt off the low cloud and flog, so we met our fellow guests at Jamie's. There was a large German lady and two young girls from the Tour office.





We almost flew to our first location as the driver of the boat, a young lad, was out to give us all a thrill. He went like a bat out of hell, turning the boat on a sixpence. During one part of the trip, we hit very large waves. He slowed a tad, but not much!!



We eventually hit dry land, where we paid our three dollars entrance and began the long board walk through the forest. This was, without doubt, the best forest walk to far. The trees etc. were just amazing, some so large you could fit inside the trunks with room to spare. We both let our selves go and hugged a few trees.



The forest life was simply amazing and we couldn't stop taking photo's.



After an hour and a half we emerged by the coast and could smell the sulphurous water of the hot pools. There were quite a few people already soaking up the minerals. We changed and made our way into the sulphur water fall. Wow, we it hot!! After a while we acclimatised and started to work our way down the pool system. The closer you got to the sea the cooler they were.




After half an hour, we returned to our dry clothes and then sat on the rocks watching the sea and taking some photo's for the large German.

The walk back through the forest was equally amazing as we experienced a whole new set of views.

We arrived back at the jetty for 6.30pm. The float plan, so called as it floats on the water with two large air tanks, arrived a little after seven. The pilot was very young and very quiet. John managed to get into co pilots seat, Fiona in the middle section but by the window. The entire plane only took six people.

We took off at full speed and enjoyed a very scenic flight back to Tofino. The sun was out and the air was not too turbulent. The landing was immaculate. We didn't see any Whales, but we are off on a Whale watching trip tomorrow, so fingers crossed.



We went to the poshest restaurant in town tonight. Not impressed!! Poor service, tasteless starters and an overcharged bill!! Dont' go here: http://www.wickinn.com/restaurant.html

Canada - Day 17 - 7th July

Our first full day in Tofino started with sparkling blue skies. However, the coast is chilly first thing in the morning and the waves were still very large. We went for a stroll along the beach before heading inland to the Botanical gardens - they were not quiet Kew Gardens standard but were worth a look and had a nice cafe to sit outside in the sun. For more info on Tofino see: http://www.my-tofino.com

In the afternoon we went for our organised kayak and hike adventure - there were 5 of us 2 other americans and a girl from Quebec who spoke mainly French. Our guide was yet again a brit who has put his roots down in Canada - we were in double kayaks, which we had never experienced before. The trip was organised by Jamies Whaling Station: http://www.jamies.com/

Our instructor did not seem at all bothered that we were novices, so we got in, pushed off, and paddled around the small dock area. Everything seemed fine and we managed to paddle in unison very well.




Once everyone was in, we paddled out into the sea channel (Calyoquot sound) where there were some quite strong currents. We paddled and paddled (for about an hour and a half) until we reached a small pebble beach, where we tied up the kayak's and made our way onto the island for our hike.

The hike turned out to be very tame, lasting about an hour. However, we walked over a maze of board walks, passing some of the largest Cedar's we havce ever seem. It would have taked five or six people to reach round one. Some were hollow but still alive and others had huge trees growing on them. The french girl was in love with the trees and wanted a photo taken of her and the trees at evey opportunity - nice girl but completly bonkers.

We then got back in the kayaks - by this time we had been paddling for about 3 hours and we were all really tired - the guide asked if we wanted to carry on until 19:00 - we had started at 14:30 - we politely said no thanks so we headed back to the harbour - it took us an hour and again we battled through some strong currents and had to avoid speed boats and float planes landing - all good fun. We saw a seal in the water which was great and also some really cute sand piper birds.

We went to a local restaurant in Tofino recommended to us - the food was very good. Tomorrow we are off to the hot springs.