Leavin' on a Jet Plane

It's not easy to say goodbye to such great travel companions and friends as Hildegard and Matthias.  I am a bit weepy as we part.

The day started with a walking tour of Nanaimo, where the ferry picks us up from Vancouver Island.  The locals are history buffs and shoot a cannon daily from this spot at noon.

We take the history walk and look at old buildings and learn about the bustling coal mining economy that was Nanaimo's heyday.  Coal beat out gold for ensuring wealth and jobs.  

The Presbyterian Church was prominent back in the day.  Architecture is very Presby-like.

We have to finally try a Nanaimo bar.  These rich treats are very Canadian, and served everywhere we have been.  The origins are shrouded in mystery with many locales claiming ownership.  Nanaimo has the name locked in, so they win by default.

None of us slept too well and perhaps it is a little end-of-the-trip blues.  Matthias finds a warm spot on the ferry deck for a nap in the sun.  I drink way too much coffee to try to summon some good cheer.  Hilda has a humorous book she picked up at Fraserway when we dropped off the Adventurer 4.  The bookcase there of donated books is telling - there are four times more German books than any other language. The smallest section is the English books!

Last night we had our finale dinner at a highly rated restaurant, Bistro at Westwood.  We were a little doubtful by the location in an out-of-the-way Country Club, but the ambiance was cosy and be food excellent.  We enjoyed recounting our favorite adventures and camp spots.

Today is our travel day, but Ben and I spend our morning strolling through the UBC Botanical Garden in a rainy mist. In addition to beautiful gardens and a woodland with exotic and indigenous trees, we also enjoy canopy walk tour.  

The system of securing the swinging bridges and canopy platforms is engineered to not damage the trees or inhibit their growth.  A system of pressure I s used that tightens the harnesses against the tree under the weight of people.  They call it "tree hugging and tree kissing."

We meet a super nice couple from Toronto, Tam and Theresa.  They are headed to Ucluelet and Tofino, so we share our favorite spots.  They love the California central coast, so we tell them  to call us if they get over our way.

We spend our last Canadian dollars at the Fairmont Hotel bar at YVR.  Here's a toast to you, Matthias and Hildegard.  We look forward to seeing you next year in Germany.  Danke und viel Liebe.

Swimming Upstream

Here's a real Giving Tree - Cathedral Grove Provincial Park has a clever way get a little more public support.  We are all admiration for the Provincial Parks in BC - they are so well managed and have great interpretive signs.

Perhaps, dear readers, you have seen enough trees.  We cannot get enough of them, so bear with us.  This grove of virgin trees is truly like walking the hushed interior of the greatest cathedrals.

On New Year's Day in1997 a huge wind storm tore through the forest. Hundreds of majestic trees were knocked over and thrown around Lincoln Logs.  The fallen giants now sprawl across the forest floor providing habitat for new trees, plants and fungus.

Hilda and I like the hideyholes that remind us of childhood fantasies of making little homes in the trees.  She had such a tree cave near her Rhineland home. 

A friendly lady from the Port Alberni Visitor Center has a mobile unit at the park and tells me about Stamp Falls. Right now is an opportunity to see thousands of salmon swimming upstream to spawn.  Though it means backtracking 30 minutes, our group is convinced to go.  It is really something to see!  My iphone camera is hardly up to the task, but you can see a 3 foot salmon leaping UP the falls in this picture.

Thousands wait in the waters below to rest before attempting the climb up the rushing falls.  Fish ladders have been installed along side the falls to improve their chances.  We are all gratified that we invested a couple hours to see their amazing journey.

We head on to Nanaimo where we will catch the ferry back to Vancouver at tomorrow at noon.  The Canadian Adventure 4 trip is coming to a close. 

Hunter Gatherers

Tofino is bountiful, as we will fully discover today.

There is this rainforest trail in Pacific Rim National Park, just a mile or two from the cottage.  It is dark and cool and green.

The forest hangs with moss, and ferns grow underfoot and in the trees. The ground is spongy with layers of soft red peat.

500 year old Hemlock trees tower over the understory.  

Just like that, we step from dense forest to the wide beach.

The wind whips up waves and ruffles the sand.  After an hour, Hilda and Matthias propose walking the beach to the Visitor Center.  On the map it looks like we are halfway there.  Ben and I head back to fetch the car and meet them later.  The wind is now howling on the beach, so we cut through forest to the road.  

We find a blackberry bush full of ripe berries.  Score!  Meanwhile, Hilda and Matthias are finding out after an hour of walking that the map was very misleading.  Just as we arrive at the Visitor Center, we get a Mayday call from Matthias.  We head back to look for them, stopping at each parking area on the way back.  We circle through the Greenpoint campground and just miss them.  Finally we see Matthias on the road and Hilda scouting for us.

Reunited, we head to Ucluelet to buy a whole salmon to BBQ for dinner.  Alex at Fishful Thinking not only sells us a beautiful fish but a pound of fresh Chanterelles he collects from the forest (1000 pounds a year).

Ben could not resist this beer.  We have to define the word "naughty," (such as "naughty and nice children at Christmas time) which then leads Hilda and Matthias to tell us about St. Nikolaus's comrade,

dark Knecht Ruprecht, who accompanies St Nikolaus and stuffs naughty children in a sack and beats them, while St Nikolaus rewards the good children with presents.  Whoa, I think I prefer lumps of coal.

I make pastry for a free-form berry-pear tart.  No rolling pin is available, so I put a hefty roll of plastic wrap to work.  Before dinner we eat buttery local cold-smoked tuna on excellent crackers and sip local wine and the Naughty Hildegard beer.

Ben barbecues the salmon to perfection. We cook the Chantrelles just as Alex instructed.

Matthias expertly serves us our lovely fish.

The finale is the berry tart (the crust recipe found online is a winner).  We have hunted and gathered a wonderful meal.

Tofino Bellissimo

We catch the early ferry to Nanaimo and drink coffee at a table right in the front of the ferry.  We have a complete view of the islands as we pass by, and the captain points out a submarine surfaced ahead.

We drive west across Vancouver Island towards Tofino, instantly in beautiful forests crowded right to the road's edge, and past blue lakes and bays.  We have some map haggling.  Ben, the driver, stays calm til the rest of us finally realize he is right.  That settled, we are in a hurry, so lunch is on the asphalt at a turn-out.  We make do with hard-boiled eggs and peanut butter sandwiches.

Our rented cottage is tucked into a secluded lot surrounded by trees and a lush garden.  We have a hot tub on the edge of the deck.

The interior is airy and welcoming.  We will soon learn that the owners should add some rugs and fabrics (there are not even place mats for the table) because noise reverberates through the house.  It looks very stylish, but you hear the harsh  clink of every dish.  The views from all the windows and the outdoor shower make up for it, though.

We head to the beach.  Just a 5 minute walk from the cottage, Chesterman Beach is wide and curves with a deep forest border.

See the strip of beach that curves like the inside of the letter "B" to a small island?  The upper beach is Chesterman and we walk onto that narrow strip of sand and watch the waves crash towards each other on both sides!

There are rocky outcroppings covered with barnacles and mussels.

Hilda is in her favorite walking environment - on a beach.  We have learned that Matthias also chooses a walk along the water's edge whenever possible.

I am delighted to find shallow waters warmed by the sun.

There are lots of people playing at the beach - but it is still uncrowded.

Para-sailing and surfing are popular.  Tofino is famous for high surf.

Tonight we go out for seafood - and all order a Cajun style boil loaded with crab, salmon, clams, corn, etc.  We enjoy a Pinor Gris from the Okanagan Valley wine region in BC. 

Matthias picked the Ice House Oyster Bar because it is in an historic ice house and perched right over a fishing port.  The sun sets on a day of delighted discovery in Tofino.

Ancient Man to Party Animal

Today we spend a thrilling afternoon at the UBC Museum of Anthropology.  Their collection covers the seven continents, so where to begin?  Wisely, we opt for two tours.

Our docent, Marilyn, speaks clearly and gives us excellent information.  First correction to common assumption is that totems are not story boards, but are unique "family crests."  Their meanings are private family business and not shared with outsiders.  What the museum know about the totems in their collection has been shared with them byFirst  Nation people.

We are also astounded to learn that these bentwood boxes, created to store important ceremonial treasures, like elaborate masks, were made from a single piece of cedar plank.  The long plank was scored vertically in three places and then the wood soaked in hot water and slowly bent along the score lines into a box.  The one side and bottom were carefully lashed together.

MOA has dozens of totems from different First Nation tribes.  There are 34 different linguistic groups in BC alone.  Marilyn tells us their languages can be as different from each other as English is from Chinese.

We learn about the Potlatch tradition banned by the Canadian government from 1880 to 1950.  Wealthy Chiefs worked a lifetime to gain enough means to give a Potlatch: a party lasting days to weeks, including ceremonies, stories, dances and feasts.  So many guests had to be fed that large serving containers were created in fanciful designs, like this alligator set.  The giant wooden spoon that looks like a tongue was used by the Chief to distribute gifts of a valuable commodity, perhaps sugar, to the most important guests.  Everyone received gifts, and by the end of the potlatch, the Chief might be bankrupt.  As Marilyn points out, this is one way to redistribute wealth!

Ben recognized Nancy Drinkard on our second tour.  Nancy was a Cal-Fire Unit Forester in Santa Cruz who retired in 2003.  It was a great surprise for them to meet at the MOA in Vancouver.

Our tour ends gathered around this sculpture created from golden beech wood by famed local artist, Bill Reid.  His mother kept secret from her children that she was a Haike Indian.  Like most native children of her era, she was sent off to Indian Boarding School by the government and indoctrinated to be ashamed of her race and heritage.  Bill fully embraced his lost culture (90% of Haike were wiped out by foreign diseases) and researched and learned the dying arts of his mother's people.  This scupture tells the story of the creation of Man.

Party down!  In the evening we head to the Shipyards Night Market - a vibrant event of food trucks, beer, music and family fun.

It takes some bold action by me and Hilda to score 4 chairs and a table in the crowded beer garden.  The band plays raucous standards like Steely Dan to a happy crowd.  We've all found something good to eat at various food trucks catering to all tastes.

We walk out on the pier and look back at the Night Market as dark settles.

Kids are having a fun time bouncing on the "trampoline."

The Vancouver skyline glistens across the bay as music, laughter and conversation drifts all around us.