Of All the Campgrounds in All the Towns in All the North, They Walked into Mine

Today wasn’t a good day. I was tired, cranky, and grumpy from working every day for four weeks solid and I just wanted to be done with my day since I have most of tomorrow off. I’d just started the evening shift and was taking a reservation over the phone when I heard someone walk into the office. I turned around and my foul mood lifted as a big grin formed itself at the sight of someone I’d been hoping would make it to Dawson, but whom I never expected to see again: my roommate at the hostel in Tofino!!!

Unfortunately, she spent three days looking for me and is leaving tomorrow, but we still had a chance to go out tonight and catch up on where our last four months of travel have taken us. It was surreal to be sitting at Gerties with this gal I chatted with into the wee hours of the morning while overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

She went off to wash her car and next thing I knew some folks were coming to renew their stay. “Last name’s Church.” I felt a tingle and fumbled for their check-in card. It said Mike Church. I asked “Are you THE Mike Church?” They needed a bit more to say yay or nay, so I looked at his wife and said “Are you Terri?” Yes, indeed. I had the awesome pleasure of not only meeting Mike and Terri Church tonight, but also of making a complete fool of myself (according to a colleague) fawning over their wonderful book about RVing the north! 😀

I’d made plans with my friends G&F to meet them at Gerties tonight since they leave town tomorrow, but my heart hadn’t really been into it until M walked through that door and brightened my night. I’m not sure how it happened, but it wound up being a whole gang of us going to Gerties; two friends from Australia, G&F who are Chinese studying in Canada, J who is from Halifax, and M who is from Austria. I joked that had J not come, I would have had to use my French-Canadian accent to blend in with the other accents. 😀 We spent about an hour and a half talking and joking over drinks. I was ravenous so I decided to try the vegetarian lasagna, which was a very good deal at $12.95 since the generous portion included Caesar salad and garlic toast.

It seems that bad days have no shortage of good moments, or, perhaps, that good days can be infused with bad moments. 🙂

Traveling Away From the RV

While this past weekend in Tofino was awesome, there were several instances that reminded me of just why I love to have my RV parked wherever I explore.

Having everything I own on hand

I hadn’t planned on going to the hot springs and wanted to bring minimal baggage since hostel lockers are small. I therefore didn’t have an appropriate day pack, towel, footwear, or attire for the excursion. I ‘made do’ with what I had on hand, but would have enjoyed myself even more had I had my water shoes.

I also didn’t have quite the right clothes with me. I had brought tee-shirts with a light corduroy blouse to wear over top and my rain slicker as a coat. I would have been more comfortable with a three-quarter sleeve length top and the rain slicker only.

Sleeping in my own bed

Sharing a dorm room is something people need to try at least once in their lives so as to truly appreciate the solitude of a private bedroom. The three of us who were there my first two nights (a fourth added herself the third night) had different schedules. One lady was always napping during the day, went to bed early, and got up late. She was always cranky with me for waking her up and on the last night she actually stormed out of the room at 12:30, woke up the manager, and accused me of throwing rocks at her while she slept! I found this out the next morning, having missed the excitement since I was sound asleep.  The other gal also had a strange sleep pattern, but is used to hosteling and was super easy to get along with (she might even stay with me when she makes it up to Dawson this summer!).

Not having to ‘drive home’

I was tired yesterday and had an almost four hour drive ahead of me to get back to Campbell River. I did so at a pretty fast clip since I just wanted to get back to my stuff (thankfully, I’d done everything I wanted to do on the way there!). It made sense, however, to leave the RV in Campbell River since I had to come back there instead of being able to meander somewhere else. Taking Miranda to Tofino and back (never mind the road) would have cost $320 ($200 in gas and $120 in pad rent) while taking the car cost $120 ($60 in gas and $60 in accommodation).

Leaving the cats alone

I left Tabitha and Neelix with two big bowls of water and a big bowl of food, yet everything was empty when I got in. Neelix didn’t pounce on me, so I knew the empty dishes were a very recent phenomenon, but I still felt guilty. Two full days is definitely the longest I would ever leave them alone and I always miss them terribly. They apparently miss me, too, evidenced by all the cuddling I get upon returning!

Being able to cook

I am so glad that a) the hostel had a kitchen and b) that the kitchen was inviting to cook in. Cooking with three or four people in the room sometimes involved doing a bit of a jig, but it was better than the alternative since eating out in Tofino for every meal was just not an option.

There is one major perk to getting away from the RV a couple of times a year: it makes you appreciate home all the more. 🙂

Hiking Near Ucluelet

I checked out of the hostel this morning and headed to nearby Ucluelet to hike the Wild Pacific Trail. Here’s a map that shows the Tofino and Ucluelet peninsulas well, including some of the hiking stops I made on my trip:

http://www.tofinotime.com/maps/tofino-map-long-beach-ucluelet.gif

There was nothing else to do in Ucluelet, and this was confirmed by the visitors’ centre. The detour wasn’t a waste of time, however, seeing as the Wild Pacific Trail was one of the most beautiful trails I have ever seen! It takes you through rain forest and along the water front, past gorgeous beaches and rocky shore. The contrasts in landscapes were inspiring.

The trail is an easy 2.5km loop that I think could be considered ‘accessible’ as it is entirely on a gravel path. There are some steep uphill and downhill sections, but I’d consider the trail a ‘stroll’ rather than a ‘hike.’

I headed home around noon and pulled in around 3, driving straight through. It’s been a great weekend!

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Remains of a plank road; people actually drove vehicles on these!

Remains of a plank road; people actually drove vehicles on these!

Remains of a plank road; people actually drove vehicles on these!

Remains of a plank road; people actually drove vehicles on these!

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The 'Graveyard of the Pacific'

The ‘Graveyard of the Pacific’

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What's with the gate when...

What’s with the gate when…

anyone could just walk through the big hole?

anyone could just walk through the big hole?

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this has got to be the most gorgeous beach I have ever seen!

this has got to be the most gorgeous beach I have ever seen!

more remains of a plank road

more remains of a plank road

my car next to a palm tree :)

my car next to a palm tree 🙂

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The tiny Ucluelet Aquarium (opening for the summer season on March 6)

The tiny Ucluelet Aquarium (opening for the summer season on March 6)

Overkill computer system for guests to check their email at the Ucluelet Visitors' Centre.

Overkill computer system for guests to check their email at the Ucluelet Visitors’ Centre.

Hot Springs Cove

Well, I just had a completely unexpected amazing day. The wonders of this life never cease.

This morning, I slept in until 9:30 and was enjoying a leisurely breakfast when the manager of the hostel came to me and said that a tour company was trying to put together a trip to Hot Springs Cove and needed one more person to go. Would I be interested for the special rate of $84, taxes included?

Research about this day trip put the cost at close to $150, way out of my price range for this weekend. But $84? When else would I get to stay in Tofino for $20 a night and get to go to the Hot Springs for $84? Never.

So, my plans for the day changed very quickly!!! I only had a half hour to make a lunch (thankfully I had bought supplies last night) and come up with suitable attire since I hadn’t brought a bathing suit (I settled on pyjama shorts and a camisole!). I only had flip flops, which I was warned weren’t going to work out there, so I decided to just go barefoot. The hostel offered to lend me a towel so I wouldn’t have to dirty mine.

The hot springs are located on Vancouver Island, but are only accessible by boat and float plane. Here’s a map:

We went around the other side of Florence island to get to the cove, but came back on the side where you can see the arrows. (Picture from http://www.risingsunkayaks.com/images/Clayoquot/mapclayoquot.jpg)

The boat ride is one to one and a half hours each way, then there is a two kilometre walk up and down a boardwalk to get to the spring. It’s therefore a full day excursion.

We were only four today and everything was in our favour. The smaller group and time of year meant a more leisurely pace, we had the springs to ourselves, and the weather cooperated.

While whales can often be seen on these trips, this was the wrong time of year for that. All we saw were groups of sea otters bobbing on their backs waving their paws at us. Too cute!

The walk through the springs is through the rainforest. We had fun looking at the planks underfoot since they all had the names of ships (why, I didn’t quite catch). At one point, I spotted a board for the Stornoway and dryly commented that it must be the official boat of the opposition. A beat passed and then peals of laughter could be heard ahead of me. I love it when I make a funny. 🙂

The hot springs are nothing like those at Liard, where the springs are highly accessible pools. Here at Hot Springs Cove the springs are completely natural. You have to clamber down rocks and stake a claim in a comfortable spot if you can find one. I hunkered down in one ‘deep’ spot where I could at least be covered to my shoulders while the other lady on the trip preferred to stand under the ‘shower’, while the men moved around.

One really neat thing about these extremely hot springs is that sea water comes up and floods them, so you get a mix of hot and cold water. High tide was coming as we were getting comfy and the waves of cold water coming at us grew larger and larger. At one point, a monster of a wave started to bear down on us. I had no where to go, so I just sucked in a huge breath, closed my eyes, and braced myself so I wouldn’t be slammed against the slimy rocks. A crushing wall of ice-cold water covered me and I just rode it out, figuring the water would subside. It didn’t, so I started to climb to the surface before I needed air. My group was concerned, but there was no reason for that, everything was under control. I am at my best in water, even in less than ideal circumstances.

We had about an hour in the water and twenty minutes or so to have a picnic lunch before we had to head back down to the boat.

Facilities at the Hot Springs include a toilet at both the dock and the springs, as well as large changing rooms. There was no place to store valuables, which was fine today but would have sucked on a day with tons of people there. I can’t even fathom that place overrun with people; it must be so dangerous! Good, waterproof footwear would make the experience more fun, but bare feet are fine if you’re careful and not in a rush.

The weather was so warm that coming out of the springs with bare wet shoulders was no hardship. We did the trip in a covered and heated boat, but the few times I stepped onto the deck for pictures, I was struck by how comfortable we were; I’ve been colder in the middle of San Francisco Bay in late June. We had rain coming into the cove, but nearly clear weather coming out.

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that dark spot floating in the water is a sea otter paw!

that dark spot floating in the water is a sea otter paw!

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looking down at the swimming area

looking down at the swimming area

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you can really see the swimming area in this one; first stop is the 'shower' and then you can stake a claim a little lower

you can really see the swimming area in this one; first stop is the ‘shower’ and then you can stake a claim a little lower

looking down towards the swimming area

looking down towards the swimming area

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flat calm between Vancouver Island and Florence Island

flat calm between Vancouver Island and Florence Island

you can see the hostel, look for the green roof on the far right side

you can see the hostel, look for the green roof on the far right side

you can see the hostel, look for the green roof on the far right side

you can see the hostel, look for the green roof on the far right side

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You can see the hostel quite well in this one.

You can see the hostel quite well in this one.

Tofino

I’m not sure what to say about Tofino as it really hasn’t made much of an impression on me. It’s a small village of some 1,600 souls which exists at the terminus of highway four (the Pacific Rim Highway). It attracts surfers, nature lovers, and artists. Coming into town, I felt like I was in southern California (Huntington Beach, especially) since every other car had a surfboard strapped to its roof. The main reason to come to Tofino in winter is to see the storms.