January 9, 2010 by Rae

Campbell River to Nanaimo

There are two ways to get from Campbell River to Nanaimo. The first is the way I came after the ferry, highway 19, a new thoroughfare deemed the ‘inland highway.’ It is a speedway, pure and simple, with the highest speed limit I’ve ever seen in Canada (110kph) and nothing to see except a blur of trees. The second option is the older ‘ocean route’, highway 19A, which meanders its way quietly through sleepy hamlets. This is the route I picked to go to Nanaimo today.

It rained all day and most businesses were shut tight, so there wasn’t really much exploring to do. I simply savoured the coastal drive, occasionally stopping for photographs or to stretch my legs.

My longest stop before Nanaimo was in Qualicum Beach, a picturesque retirement community with the oldest average population in Canada. ‘Qualicum’ is from the Pentlach language and means ‘chum salmon.’ I took a small detour into downtown so I could see some of the murals. The town has a museum, but it is only open on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the winter.

I’ve known about Nanaimo since I was a girl because my childhood best friend moved there when were were about ten. I looked him up before coming to the Island, but have thus far been unable to find him and imagine that he’s probably no longer in town. Nanaimo is also famous because of the delicious dessert named after it, the Nanaimo Bar, a decadent confection featuring chocolate, custard, and coconut.

The weather made wandering around the pedestrian-friendly downtown unappealing, so I decided to visit the Nanaimo Museum and take a quick glimpse at the harbour, then call it a day.

Coming into downtown Nanaimo was frustrating. There were two signs for the city and then signs for Victoria, more than a hundred kilometres away. I assumed that I missed downtown and got off the highway, then spent some time trying to find the museum before my GPS was able to help me. As it turns out, Nanaimo is a long, narrow city, and there were more than ten kilometres left to drive before hitting the downtown exit. Nanaimo definitely needs a ‘exit at *** for downtown’ sign at the city limits. Once downtown the museum is easy to find, just follow the big blue M signs. I was happy to find free parking at the corner of Museum Way and Terminal Avenue, literally in front of the museum entrance.

The Nanaimo Museum is brand new. The $2 entrance fee was easily explained by the museum’s size; tiny. This is a fine museum that makes full use of its small footprint. Within a few minutes of arrival I knew what Nanaimo was all about, from its coal mining origins to its bathtub races and Native heritage. It was one of the best museums I have ever visited.

During the summer, the museum also operates the Nanaimo Bastion, a fort built by the Hudson’s Bay Company between 1853 and 1855 to defend its coal mining operations. I had a chance to view the exterior of the Bastion after taking a quick tour of the harbour, which was cut short by the start of a downpour that did not let up until I got home. The harbour was just a couple of blocks from the museum and my raincoat was soaked through by the time I made it back to the car!

Nanaimo has a reputation for being a working, charmless, city, but I found downtown to be quite beautiful and I would very much like to spend more time exploring it on a slightly drier day. Being just 150km from Campbell River, it is the perfect destination for a day trip; far enough away to shake off cabin fever, but still near enough to be easily doable as a round trip.

the first rest area outside of Campbell River

Oyster Bay Rest Area

next rest area

Baynes Sound Rest Area

Oysters underfoot at Baynes Sound Rest Area

Baynes Sound Rest Area

trawlers off of Baynes Sound Rest Area

Baynes Sound Rest Area

farm across from Baynes Sound Rest Area

Qualicum Beach

mural in downtown Qualicum Beach

details about the mural

mural in downtown Qualicum Beach

downtown Qualicum Beach

bathtub racing, what an idea!

Nanaimo bars

the first black teacher in BC

Nanaimo’s mines are notorious for their death and injury rates, hence the ironic messages.

Native dress

this trunk belonged to Joseph McKay, founder of Nanaimo

model of Nanaimo’s Bastion

world famous singer Diana Krall is from Nanaimo

arrowheads

these beautiful combs caught my eye

drum

Victrola

book of Victrola records

Victrola

historic building

close-up

downtown Nanaimo

🙂

Nanaimo Harbour

what a great staircase!

Nanaimo Harbour

I don’t know if I will ever be able to see a palm tree in the wild and not feel a tingle.

the Bastion

December 13, 2009 by Rae

Seawalk-ing, Redux

The popular Campbell River tourist attraction that will the subject of my next post is about three kilometres from home, of which about two follow the Seawalk. While it was a bit nippy out, hovering between 0 and +1 with the odd flurry, there was no threat of rain, so I decided this was the perfect afternoon for a six kilometre stroll that would allow me to photograph some of the things that I’ve only glanced at while zipping by in a car.

Daybreak Park

this is the stuff I met on my last sea walk that I thought looked like Devil’s Snare from Harry Potter!

it says HELLO on that brightly painted rock

Doesn’t he seem to belong there? It is almost as though a man stood in that spot, battered by the ocean wind, until he was rooted there and turned to wood.

that’s a heron out on the rock

that light…

Campbell River lies on the 50th parallel

I just liked this roof 🙂

First time I see a sign with Segway regulations

This is the most bizarre tree I have ever seen. It looks like a parrot.

leaves from the parrot tree

a seaside cottage

a torii (traditional Japanese gate)

tribute to Nova Scotian miners

This wonderful sculpture is across the highway from the gas station and I had never seen it!

Close up of the details

It even has whiskers!

this magnificent totem pole stands next to the torii

Post edited to add onto Donna’s comment about the parrot tree. It is an arbutus tree (Arbutus menziesii), Canada’s only broad-leaf evergreen. It is also known as the ‘strawberry tree’ and ‘Pacific Madrone.’ Thanks for the heads up, Donna!

November 8, 2009 by Rae

Seymour Narrows

Seymour Narrows is BC’s marine equivalent of the Duffy.

This stretch of water 14km north of Campbell River, between the city and Quadra Island, is part of BC’s vital international maritime corridor known as the Inside Passage, which links the American states of Washington and Alaska. It is a treacherous area that has claimed more lives and ships than any other water corridor in British Columbia and was at one time decreed to be the most dangerous navigable waters in North America.

Ripple Rock was one of the main reasons Seymour Narrows was so dangerous. Two underwater peaks came close to the surface, the summit of one being only three metres from surface at low tide. These peaks caused eddies and whirlpools that swallowed ships whole. Ripple Rock was so dangerous to navigate that it seriously limited passage through the area and thus slowed BC’s growth.

In 1958, the under water peaks of Ripple Rock were blasted away, opening up the water to larger vessels. Seymour Narrows is still a dangerous stretch of water, but without the risk of grinding ashore onto one of the peaks, the risks are manageable. The blast opened up the Inside Passage and allowed BC to grow and prosper with trade. The Ripple Rock blast did not cause any of the expected damage to coastal areas and did not affect fish stocks. The event was one of the first live television broadcasts in Canadian history.

Seymour Narrows (what an idiotic place for a power line, in the middle of a viewpoint!)

that must have been quite a sight

driving south on highway 19 towards Campbell River

The mill has shut down, putting those workers out of a job. 🙁

the infamous mill

All I had planned for today was a quick jaunt up or down the highway to photograph the scenery. I picked north because I had run errands in the north part of town. The viewpoint for Seymour Narrows was the second out of Campbell River, about 25km north of town. The first viewpoint, is that of the Elk Falls mill which has shut down, taking hundreds of jobs with it.

November 2, 2009 by Rae

Ah, That Bracing Ocean Air!

I woke to rain this morning but, as mostly usual, it cleared up by mid-day. Needing to get up at, gasp, 5AM tomorrow I decided that a long walk in the bracing ocean air might be what I need to tucker myself out enough to go to bed at a reasonable hour. Norma left me a little project that requires a trip to the hardware store, so I decided to walk to the Rona, about three kilometres away. The store wound up not having what I needed, but I did get a few things for myself. It was an amazing walk and there were moments that made me feel that I was in either or both an alien world and a Harry Potter novel!

there are wizards in Campbell River!

I thought this was William Tell at first, but turns out it’s Eve!

The first of several fantastic wooden statues all set up in a park. They are available for ‘rent’ by local businesses and I had fun spotting them throughout the village.

Oscar!

Willowpoint Village has a grocery store, coffee shop, restaurants, pharmacy, pizza place, and just about any other service you could need

this whimsical seaside cottage is almost a cliché

Driving down the highway, I saw Cookie Monster from the rear and knew I had to walk down and take a look at all the statues!

first time I’ve seen a wooden inuksuk!

a jetty

????

this burn pattern caught my eye

I wear a size nine shoe, if that’ll help with scale

it also looks like that writhing mass of snakes at the bottom of the Well of Souls in Raiders of the Lost Ark

this is pretty much what I imagined Devil’s Snare (from the Harry Potter series) looks like

yellow dogwood next to seaweed

that is some serious seaweed!

October 30, 2009 by Rae

Seawalk-ing

I stayed in yesterday as it just poured and poured and poured, but this afternoon the rain finally stopped and blue sky started to peak from the clouds. I bundled up against a blustery wind and went for a short walk of a couple blocks along the Sea Walk that passes in front of the house. It’s going to be a great place to go biking and running; my only quibble is that crossing the highway can take forever!