Our View From The Road

Sharing where we've been and what we've seen

Tag: BC

British Columbia

  • BC tourists

    BC tourists

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    The early morning hours of Monday, June 2nd found Barb driving Kyra and myself to the Ottawa airport for our flight to British Columbia. We have a quick 4 day trip planned to visit my parents and do something touristy.

    Our plane ready for departure

    We were flying with Porter Airlines this time, taking advantage of their newly offered Ottawa – Victoria direct flight. Our seats were upgraded by the gate agent to exit-row seats which gave us a tonne of legroom during the 5 1/2 hour flight, which was wonderful and arrived on time at 11:00am PDT.

    I like Victoria airport. It’s small and easy to move through. I got the rental car while waiting for our bags to arrive at the carousel. The timing was perfect and we only waited a few minutes for our bags after which a quick walk to the rental car lot had us out of the airport and on our way.

    The Hyundai Kona would prove to be a great little runabout serving us well during the time we had it. Not flashy or overly powerful, it’s a simple people mover that does its job. The only missing feature was navigation meaning that we had to rely on our phones for not getting lost.

    We picked up a few grocery items to take with us to my parent’s house and then got in-line for the ferry to Galiano Island. The almost 2 hour wait was enjoyed with a quick nap and time reading books. The 90min ferry ride allowed us to enjoy the Coastal BC scenery, something that I always enjoy. The ferry docked at Sturdies Bay at 6:00pm PDT as scheduled. It’s been a long day!

    A short drive on the island from the ferry had us arriving at my parents home. Kyra had last visited 8yrs prior and noticed many changes about the garden.

    The next 2 days were spent catching up and helping about the house. We grabbed a few photos of the many flowering plants and shrubs before saying our farewells and heading back to the ferry on Wednesday at noon.

    Arriving back at the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal we disembarked and made our way to the world-famous Butchart Gardens. Time to be tourists and walkabout the beautiful gardens the climate here permits.

    We are lucky, the gardens are not too busy today and we are able to take some wonderful pictures in an effort to capture the beauty of this place.

    Completing our walkabout we grabbed an ice cream which we enjoyed in the shade. For both of us, this was our first time visiting and we both agreed that we’d return again.

    We enjoyed a pub dinner before checking into a hotel for the night ahead of our return flight the next morning.

    Departing for Victoria airport was as easy as arriving. Our flight departed on time and got us uneventfully back to Ottawa as scheduled in the evening where Barb was waiting for us to drive us home. It was a quick trip but one that we both really enjoyed.

  • Day 39: Mountains, Foothills, Prairies

    Day 39: Mountains, Foothills, Prairies

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    We awake at 6:00am and find that we were joined last night by two other campers in our secluded ‘wild camping’ spot behind the Independent grocery store in Fernie, BC. A few townies kept Barb awake for a while, but in general terms this was a wonderfully quiet place to spend the night. Also close to Starbucks, McDonald’s, etc. if you need/want breakfast take away in the morning before heading out. We had our usual coffee, banana & yogurt before heading out at 7:00am.

    Wild camping in Fernie, BC
    Early start
    Big truck in Sparwood, BC
    Train pulling uphill in Crowsnest canyon
    A view
    Majestic mountains

    We had decided to stop at the top of Crowsnest Pass for a cooked breakfast and take the time to really start our day. The road up the pass was not as steep or arduous as some of the passes we had driven yesterday, which surprised us and as such we arrived at the top fairly quickly. Time for quiche. Yummy!

    Crowsnest Pass, BC/AB

    Once fed and ready for the day we headed further into the mountains and arrived at Frank, BC the site of Canada’s most deadly rock slide. In 1904 the side of Turtle mountain collapsed and slid into the valley below. 100 lives were lost in the town of Frank and the valley was changed for ever. The debris pile is huge and from the interpretation center you can imagine the noise and dust that would have been produced that day.

    Frank slide, Frank, AB

    We traveled on to Fort Macleod in the Alberta foothills where we visited the “Head Smashed-In Buffalo Jump” museum. This is a World Heritage Site and goes into amazing detail of how the Blackfoot people used the cliffs as a killing ground for herds of buffalo (bison) for thousands of years until the 1800’s. Built into the cliff, the museum building is worth the visit by itself; however, the stories of the people are the real captivating reason to visit. Highly Recommended.

    Head Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

    Continuing East on Hwy-3 we head to Lethbridge, AB where we stop under the railway viaduct in a park for a picnic lunch in the van. No trains passed over the viaduct while we were there unfortunately.

    Railway viaduct, Lethbridge, AB

    The day was heating up into the low 20’s as we headed further away from the mountains. Shortly before Medicine Hat we stopped in Seven Persons, AB for ice cream! Yummy, again.

    Ice cream break!

    We drove around Medicine Hat and headed toward the Saskatchewan border on Hwy-1, the Trans-Canada Highway. Shortly after crossing into Saskatchewan we stopped at the “Cypress Hills Winery” in Maple Creek, SK. This is another Harvest Host destination and we enjoyed a fruit wine tasting and had a glass of Rhubarb Wine with pizza for dinner. A couple of bottles might also have found their way back to the van as well.

    Cypress Hills Winery, Maple Creek, SK

    Tonight we are hoping to see the Aurora Borealis that so many saw last evening but we missed due to cloud cover. Fingers crossed!

  • Day 38: The Crowsnest Highway

    Day 38: The Crowsnest Highway

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    Another early start to the day. I blame it on the early rising of the sun. Away from our wonderfully quiet campsite in the vineyard by 7:30am. Today we will spend the day traveling along Hwy-3, also known as “The Crowsnest Highway” towards Fernie, BC.

    Leaving Osoyoos you immediately begin to gain elevation and the views across the valley are stunning.

    Overlooking Lake Osoyoos, BC

    Of course, what goes up must come down and sure enough it not long until we are descending at a rapid pace into another valley in Southern BC. This is repeated several times today with the climbs being just long enough to allow the brakes to cool from the last descent before being called on again. Utilizing the lower gears in the gearbox helps on these descents, as does having an eight-speed gearbox.

    One of today’s descents
    A variety of views from today

    We stopped for a quick break in Grand Forks, BC and then again in Cranbrook, BC. Between Cranbrook and Fernie we crossed into the Mountain time zone and as such are now just two hours behind Ontario. Our final destination is the town of Fernie, BC where we are ‘wild camping’ for the night.

    Further variety of views

    Tomorrow we enter Alberta and will leave the Rocky Mountains behind us.

  • Day 37: & so Eastward we are bound

    Day 37: & so Eastward we are bound

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    5:30am rise & shine to get ready to depart Galiano Island. The ferry leaves at 8:30am but we have no reservation and so need to arrive at the dock early to have the best chance of boarding.

    After a very nice and relaxing six days visiting my parents we say our goodbyes and head toward the ferry at 7:00am. 7:25am and we’re first in-line. A coffee, yogurt & banana while we wait. Turns out that that there was no issue of space and we could have probably slept in for an extra hour or so. Oh well, better safe than sorry.

    As we cross the Strait of Georgia towards Vancouver, we think back on where we have been so far on this adventure and the varied weather that we have seen. This morning it was around 10°C when we woke, it will be 27°C when we stop later this afternoon!

    Looking towards the Southern Gulf Islands, BC
    Looking towards Vancouver, BC
    Bridge 1
    Bridge 2
    Bridge 3
    Heading towards the mountains
    Passing a waterfall

    Our drive across the Fraser River valley is uneventful and after a couple of hours we pull into Hope, BC for fuel & to dump our tanks at a municipal Sani-dump ($free).

    For those that don’t know, Hope, BC was the filming location for “Rambo: First Blood”. The town has embraced this notoriety and there are several landmarks about the town that you can visit from the movie. The bridge, across which Rambo walks at the beginning of the movie is gone (2011) but a new bridge has replaced it and there are still signs, but it’s not quite the same knowing that it’s not the same bridge.

    Not the ‘Rambo’ bridge in the same location as the original ‘Rambo’ bridge

    Everyone’s favorite stop is downtown near where the Police station was in the movie. In the park there are a number of chainsaw carvings of the characters from the movie. We snapped a picture of Rambo (below).

    Rambo chainsaw sculpture

    We head East on Hwy-3 towards the Okanagon valley. The road, although windy and hilly as it passes through the mountains, is really very good and well maintained. There are lots of passing lanes on the hills (including one that is 38km long!).

    Random scenery shots

    Eventually we notice the trees thinning and the flora around us changing to be more desert-like as we approach Osoyoos, BC. It reminds us of the Southern California desert in some ways with the slope of the hills and the sagebrush. It’s also now quite warm and the A/C in the van is very welcome.

    Approaching & arriving in Osoyoos, BC

    Pulling into Osoyoos, we stopped at a roadside produce stand which happened to have a Mexican food truck next door. Lunch time!

    Lunch was delicious and we both highly recommend “Sofia’s Mexican Food”. I enjoyed a chimichanga and Barb had 3 chicken tacos. Barb also picked up a few treats for another time from the roadside produce stand.

    Our stay tonight is at a vineyard just north of Osoyoos called Mythology vineyard. The wine is very good and our camping spot is amongst the grapevines behind the tasting room. Our view is West towards the mountains and we look forward to enjoying a glass of wine as the sun sets.

    Campsite view
    Campsite
    Sunset

  • Days 32 to 36: …

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  • Day 31: Nothing to declare

    Day 31: Nothing to declare

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    Oooof…. 5:30am. We’re up & heading for a shower (which gets 4/10 because of very small size & clingy shower curtain). Why so early you ask? We have an early reservation for the Port Angeles, WA to Victoria, BC ferry. Yep, we are leaving the U.S. after almost a month of travel, it’s time to head back into Canada.

    Showered we get the van ready for the day and are driving off site by 6:45am. Traffic is fairly light and this makes our drive back into town to the wharf easy and quick. Black Ball Ferries require us to check-in a minimum of one hour before the ferry “Coho” departs at 8:20am, we make it with a few minutes to spare.

    A cup of coffee and a banana are enjoyed while we wait to board which begins shortly before 8:00am. We make our way up to the top deck in order to have the best views back across town to the Olympic mountains.

    “Coho” ferry
    Departing the U.S.
    & away we go
    View aft
    Another view aft
    Olympic mountains
    Container ship
    Calm waters of Salish Sea

    The ferry is relatively full with most passengers having walked-on. The Salish Sea is mill pond calm and we see a few seabirds fishing for breakfast but no whales or seals today while crossing. Arriving in the Victoria inner harbour, our departure and clearance through Canada Customs takes about 30min. We head towards Langford, BC where we enjoy breakfast at a White Spot restaurant before getting groceries for the week.

    Arriving in Victoria harbour
    Departing the “Coho” ferry
    Canada customs
    Flowering trees in Victoria
    Totem
    Horses and carriages
    BC Parliament
    Empress Hotel

    The weather for today is predicted to go from sunny this morning to rain later in the afternoon. As such we have changed our plans to try to avoid the heaviest rains and are now heading to my parents home a day ahead of schedule for a few days of rest and relaxation.

    Arriving – Galiano, BC

    We’ll catch-up with you again when we resume our journey next week. All the best and thanks for following our adventures.

  • Day 35: June 23 – Yoho National Park, BC to Jasper National Park, AB

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    Today will not be what we expect. Although we slept really well and neither of us heard any trains overnight, the day would bring just a few surprises.

    We started off with our usual morning preparations and then because the driving would only consist of about 3 hours, we thought we’d hike the “Walk in the past” trail which was documented at just 1.2km each way before we left the campground this morning.

    The trail has interpretive stops that tell the story of the building of the railway into Kicking Horse Pass. Little did we imagine that the 1.2km trail (actually 1.6km) would rise by 100 meters through the trees from the campground up and across the Trans-Canada railway to the original 4.5% grade ‘Big hill’ that the trains had to negotiate before the spiral tunnels were built in the early 1900’s. Phew, this was quite a hike, but we had some amazing views across the valley.

    Leaving the campground, we had a short drive to Hwy-93 that would take us up to Jasper. Having the Park Pass allowed us to just drive into the park and the road then began its long slope upwards. Shortly into the drive we drove over the Bow mountain summit at 2,098m. Continuing North, the road rose and fell through various passes, the sky darkened and rail began to fall. The rain soon changed to snow, yes snow in late June. No probs we thought, a few flurries in the air, nothing to worry about here. 20 minutes later the snow was accumulating on the windshield wipers, the campervan accident avoidance sensors were covered and resulted in multiple messages within the dash for Tony to clear. Soon enough the snow was accumulating on the road, not much but enough to make driving a 10,000lb vehicle an adventure.

    We arrived safely at the Columbia Icefield center but due to the snow and the low clouds could not see any mountains or the Athabaska glacier. We are soon to learn that glacier tours have been canceled for the day as 2m of snow had fallen overnight on the glacier preventing even their large busses from venturing there.

    We also had tickets for the Skywalk and so took the coach to that and went for a walk on the wild side (see pictures below). Walking on a glass platform over 900ft above the canyon floor was an interesting experience. The glass is 36mm thick and the cantilevered structure is supposedly designed to support 400,000lbs. Tell that to your brain as you first step onto the glass.

    Leaving the zero degree Celsius temperatures at the Icefield, we drove to Jasper where it was a balmy 9C. We treated ourselves to a nice meal ‘out’ this evening before heading to our campsite at the Whistlers campground just outside of town. It was still raining.

    We settled in for the evening and watched a movie before saying good night. Tomorrow we cross Alberta.

    Kicking Horse Pass
    Indian Paintbrush
    Trans-Canada highway passing over Trans-Canada railway in Kicking Horse Pass
    Snow on the Icefields parkway heading to Jasper, AB
    More snow…
    Barb braving the Columbia Icefield Skywalk
    It’s over 900’ to the gorge bottom
    Looking down between Tony’s feet
    Usie time!
    Looking down at the canyon far below
    Another look down
    Approaching the Skywalk
    Campsite at Jasper National Park, Whistlers campground

  • Day 34: June 22 – Tappen, BC to Yoho National Park, BC

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    After a restful night at the winery, we enjoyed a quiet breakfast and headed out. Destination today, Yoho National park.

    Our first stop was in Revelstoke where we enjoyed a Tim Horton’s bagel BELT and coffee before filling up with fuel. Starting to reacclimatize ourselves to CDN prices for fuel, Yikes!

    We visited the Revelstoke Railway Museum and learned more about the history of the railway through Revelstoke and the Canadian Rockies. Definitely worth the stop if you’re in the area.

    Continuing our journey we headed towards Roger’s Pass. It was raining. By the time we arrived at the Roger’s Pass information center it was raining, a lot. We learned that needed a Parks Canada park pass to drive up the Icefields parkway (tomorrow) and so purchased this here as it also provided us access to sites in Glacier, Yoho, Banff and Jasper National Parks.

    At Golden, BC the highway is undergoing some rather major reconstruction East of the town. The section of the highway that descends into the valley is being widened to four lanes. Now as the existing two lanes were carved into the mountain sides you’re probably wondering where the new lanes are being built. Well, from our perspective it appears that they are building in thin air above the valley; however, in reality the lanes are being built as bridges clinging to the side of the mountains. The workers appear to work in very perilous conditions daily to build these new lanes. The heights and where this is being done made our heads spin.

    We soon arrived in Yoho National Park where we would stay at the Kicking Horse campground just West of the CP spiral tunnels. Our campsite is wonderfully level and close to brand new showers & washroom facilities. The view is amazing and we walked around the campground taking it all in before dinner. If your a light sleeper the sound of squealing brakes from the trains descending the hill into Kicking Horse pass might put you off of camping here, luckily we tend to be sound sleepers but will let you know in the morning. Good night.

    Salmon Arm, BC
    Railway museum behind passing train, Revelstoke, BC
    Revelstoke Railway Museum
    Revelstoke Railway Museum interior
    Roger’s Pass, BC
    Hwy-1, Golden, BC – construction
    Hwy-1, Golden, BC – construction
    Hwy-1, Golden, BC – construction
    Yoho National Park, BC
    Yoho National Park, BC – Kicking Horse pass campground – our campsite
    Yoho National Park, BC – River near our campsite
    View from our campsite

  • Day 33: June 21 – Galiano Island, BC to Tappen, BC

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    We have booked travel on the 8:25am ferry to Tsawwassen as our drive is looking to be about 5 1/2 hours for the day. This meant an early rise so that we can load the bikes, enjoy a quick breakfast and say our goodbyes before leaving for the ferry terminal at 7:00am. After a week of being lazy and sleeping in more than a little, the early morning was a little trying but we did it and managed to be on our way shortly before 7.

    We’ve had a great time visiting and catching up on ‘life’ over the past seven days and the island has been a perfect place in which to recharge ourselves ahead of the drive home across the country. We can’t thank Tony’s parents enough for their hospitality.

    Back on the mainland our first stop was a Walmart to top-off our provisions and remount the bikes onto the rack. I kept them in the van for the ferry ride as the ramps can be notoriously bumpy and I was afraid of dragging the rack while embarking or disembarking. Wouldn’t you know it though, on this crossing the ramps were almost level and bump free.

    We drove from Tsawwassen to Surrey via Hwy-17 in order to join the Trans-Canada highway. From there we headed towards Hope, BC and enjoyed an ever thinning traffic volume as we went. By the time we had reached Hope, the traffic was quite light.

    We drove up the Coquihalla highway (Highway thru Hell) and have a completely new appreciation for the truck drivers that take this route in the Winter months.

    The scenery changed as we approached Kamloops to something similar to what we had seen in Utah/Nevada, mountain grassland meadows and scrubland.

    From Kamloops we turned and headed East further into the mountains. Our stop for the night is a charming winery in Tappen, BC. Only a few kilometers from the highway, but peaceful and serene. Good night one and all, enjoy the pictures from today.

    Ferry arriving to take us away
    Vancouver, BC
    Fraser river at Hope, BC
    Jamie Davis’ yard, Hope, BC
    Starting our climb up the ‘Coquihalla highway’
    Coquihalla snowshed
    View from up on the ‘Coque’
    Approaching Merritt, BC
    Recline Ridge Vineyards & Winery, Tappen, BC
    Our evening view

  • Days 26 – 32: June 14 to 20 – Galiano Island, BC

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    We spent 7 days relaxing on Galiano Island while visiting Tony’s parents. Rather than detail each day we’ve included a few of our favorite photos from this week below. Activities included walking, cycling and reading. Enjoy, we most certainly did.

    ‘Campsite’
    Rex
    Retreat cove at low tide
    Tony & Barb
    Retreat cove at high tide (opposite view from above)
    Rex, again
    Foxglove
    View from ‘Lovers leap’
    Guess where we were on the island.

    The island is as peaceful and laid back as the photos portray. There are only a few options for accommodations or you could try tent camping (Montague Harbour provincial park). There are no camping facilities for RVs anywhere on the island, as such unless you are staying with a resident options are few.

    Dining options are also limited and no ‘fast food’ chains have outlets anywhere on the island, this has resulted in fewer tourists and visitors in general making the island a destination meaning that it is an ideal place to come for peace and quiet. Let’s hope that places like this stay just as they are.

  • Day 25: June 13 – Tsawwassen, BC to Galiano Island, BC

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    7:00am and we’re awake. The ferry isn’t until 10:25am but we want to be in line early to ensure we don’t get bumped. BC Ferries in the Summer are almost always full and reservations, even mid-week are a must. We arrive at the terminal by before 8:30am and are at the front of a line of cars. Phew. Now to wait. Time for breakfast.

    A short wait passes quickly and before we know it we’re being loaded onto the ferry “Salish Eagle”. As our stop is the first of several for this route, we get loaded so that we’re near the front on the top car deck. The photo below shows us about to enter the ‘belly of the whale’.

    Above you can see us all tucked away for the voyage, and below a shot from the passenger deck above the car decks.

    The sun came out for our crossing but as you can tell from Barbs attire above, it was not warm. We went to the other end of the ferry deck out of the wind and it was much more enjoyable.

    After about 45 minutes we arrived at Sturdies Bay on Galiano Island and drove off of the ferry and back onto land. I was very happy to have purchased and installed the hitch mounted skid wheel because (as expected) the skid wheel did hit the deck of the ferry as we drove onto the ramp at the dock.

    The 30 minute drive ‘up’ the island took us through some wonderfully lush West coast forests as the Summer heat has yet to arrive in Southern BC. We arrived at my parents home and parked up in their laneway. This will be our ‘campsite’ for the next week.

    We spent the remainder of the day catching up and sharing the story of our trip so far. The next week has been planned to be completely downtime for us, time to recharge and enjoy our visit. Stay tuned for another blog update when we leave the island.

  • Day 24: June 12 – Abbotsford, BC to Tsawwassen, BC

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    We slept until 9:00am, that was a treat and a testament to how quiet our location is. As a treat, we headed to Tim Horton’s for breakfast and a coffee where we made plans for the day.

    Today has been set aside for reprovisioning before we head to Galiano Island for a week of downtime and complete relaxation.

    We decided to drive to White Rock as we’d not been before. The seaside of the town is very busy (Sunday morning) with folks going to their favorite cafes for breakfast. Parking was too tight even for a campervan and so we pressed on to Crescent Beach. What a nice little community tucked away on the shore just North of White Rock.

    We found a parking area at Blackie Spit park and went for a walk. It was cool and breezy and threatening to rain, but it felt good to walk about and breath that sea air.

    From Crescent Beach we headed to Tsawwassen where we visited the Tsawwassen Mills shopping center for the afternoon before enjoying an early dinner followed by a nap in the van.

    In the early evening we relocated to the Walmart parking lot where we joined several other campers who had chosen this as there overnight spot ahead of catching a BC Ferry this next morning. We stocked up on groceries for the week and settled down for the night. Hopefully a quiet one.

  • Day 23: June 11 – Lynden, WA to Abbotsford, BC

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    Knowing we only have about 20km to drive for our stay tonight, we got to sleep-in and take our time getting ready today. The campground here is very picturesque; however, the neighbors didn’t seem to have volume control of their voices and so that spoiled the site a little. We spent last evening at in the van (it was raining) watching Netflix and therefore didn’t have to listen to their entire conversation.

    We left at about 11:30 and went into town to get our last fill-up of fuel in the US before heading to the border crossing. A quick stop at the duty-free shop and onto Canada customs. 3 minutes later and we were wished well on the remainder of our trip. This was by far the quietest and easiest border crossing we’ve ever experienced.

    We drive into Abbotsford looking for a place to have lunch and settled on the Field House Brewing Co. on West Railway St. We each enjoyed one of their beers as well as a plate of bruschetta and an order of chicken tacos. Yummy, we highly recommend.

    Acre upon acre of raspberry bushes growing adjacent to the Abbotsford airport.

    That night we were staying at Campbell’s Gold Honey Farm and Meadery just outside of Aldergrove. They have a wonderful shop where they sell their wares and also locally made crafts. A quiet and secure location where we slept exceedingly well.