The trip was very successful with us seeing Bald Eagles, Harbour Seals, Californian Sea Lions and a mother and calf Humpbacked Whale. We also visited the Broken Islands which have a fascinating history relating to the 1st Nations and their contact with European explorers. In addition we were the only people on the trip so had the undivided attention of the guide.
We have visited the two main beaches which are between Ucluelet and Tofino and are renowned for their surfing. Both were great and had the added benefit of having a vast number of logs washed up on the beach which were put to good use making shelters and "public art" installations. Eilidh enthusiastically added to this collection between playing Frisbee and covering us both in sand.
Tomorrow is an early start and longish drive to Victoria.
Hi! I loved the whale watching! It was amazing how big they were! It was extra special because we saw a mother and a calf together. The whales did mini dives but we never saw the Calf's tail, the boat driver said he had never seen the Calf's tail! From now on so I do not have to say the whales all the time I am going to name the calf Dave and the mother Leanne! Leanne weighed about forty thousand kilograms!!! she was about fourteen metres in length!!! Wow! Dave weighed about a quarter of that! The driver was called Nat. He said those two whales have been in the area for about ten days! The boat was also really good because we were the only ones on the tour.
When we were at the beach I made a shelter out of wood. It looked pretty pathetic compared to some of the big ones but good compared to some of the small ones! Just to confirm, if mum says that I woke her up by pouring sand on her back I didn't, she was awake when I poured sand on her back!!!
Today when I went to the beach I played Frisbee, It was really good fun! I went in the water today for a paddle but on my way back out i got soaked by a wave! I dried quickly though! Well I better go for now! Au Revoir xxxxx
The boat trip was exhilarating, thrilling, inspirational and just sheer fun. Making our way through the fog bank (it had cleared at the harbour but was still out on open sea) was kind of spooky but peaceful. We heard the sea lions before we saw them - sounding remarkably similar to old men hawking and coughing in the morning. The fog seemed to lift as we reached a small rocky island covered in sea lions. These were Stellar Sea Lions which stay there all year round. They were fascinating to watch and seemed much larger than I remember seeing them on wildlife programmes. We then went back out into the fog chasing a sighting of whales reported by another of the whale fleet. Nat stopped the Zodiac's engines and we all looked for signs of blow outs, bubbles, noise or glassy water. After about 5 minutes we saw them breaking through the water. Photographs and words are not really adequate when describing this experience. We followed them for around an hour and were soon joined by the other boats out whale watching. Eventually we left them for the Broken Islands. Eilidh particularly enjoyed the high speed bumpy parts as the boat planed and we surged over the waves.
In the afternoon we went to Wickaninnish Beach and I am sorry to say we all ended the day with lobster red faces as we had forgotten that boats and sun equal extra rays. Added to this it was a pleasant 20 degrees with a sea breeze so we did not put any cream on - having slavishly lathered it on when the temperature hit 30 degrees plus. Coming from Scotland and being experienced beach explorers you would think we would have remembered. I made up a potion of almond oil and lavender and we slapped that on last night. We were particularly scary by firelight as we toasted marshmallows as our faces were redder than the embers and glistened with the oil - we were the ones who were cooked. We have been following Mary's lead and using lavender oil as a cure all for mossie bites, sunburn and cuts. It does work, or is as effective as anything else...
Further to the comments above about Eilidh building stuff out of driftwood I should explain that these were great big lumps and logs of wood that had to be dragged or carried by two. There were no sand castles but there were driftwood sculptures and shelters that were unique and added a truly otherworld experience to the beach.
This morning it was back to factor 30 and hats. We spent a very pleasant few hours strolling and shopping in Tofino which is full of galleries, unusual craft shops and funky offerings. Once the cash was exhausted we headed for Long Beach and it really is long and endless. It also had its fair share of bleached driftwood structures that delineated individual space: no need for Germanic towels here when a strutting turret can make much more of statement.
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