We spent a VERY relaxing two+ weeks in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, BC. We were a little optimistic to think we could get here in a day from Portland. We left on time, but misjudged the amount of time it would take to get across the border into Canada. So, it was almost dark when we rolled in and Jeff actually used a flashlight to make sure everything was hooked up properly.
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| Our view of the Straight of Georgia |
This campsite is the most beautiful spot so far on our adventure AND the easiest parking job yet. Jeff backed in perfectly on the very first try and we leveled the trailer by continuing backward 6 inches over our leveling blocks. This does wonders for our relationship, let me tell you!
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| Bast Campsite Yet! |
The campground is also very well managed - again right up there at the top so far. They must employ a small army to maintain the site. Every day golf carts are out in force with people raking the gravel campsites in preparation for the next visitors, weed whacking, watering trees and whatever else needs attention. The office staff is equally helpful to give change for laundry and assistance when needed. During our stay, we were effected by smoke again from the fires both in BC and the western US.
After a lot of moving about, we were really happy to stay put for a couple of weeks with no agenda. During the smokey or rainy days, we did laundry and various maintenance activities. Jeff actually landed 2 one hour consulting gigs, which beats laundry!
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| The Empress Hotel |
We spent one day and just about 20K steps exploring Victoria. The flowers were lovely, but we found that the city was sort of ok, or maybe we were just cranky (20K steps can do that to a person)? Victoria is on the very southern tip of Vancouver Island and a 1.5 hour drive from Nanaimo. Since neither of us is into museums, we prefer to take in the local culture and take pictures of the architecture.
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| Beacon Hill Park Stone Bridge |
Our walk took us through Beacon Hill Park, Fisherman's Wharf and finally to Old Town and Chinatown. The Empress Hotel and the Parliament Buildings are the crown jewels of the city - we saw each only from the outside.
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| Parliament Buildings |
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| Westwood Lake |
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| Lake Trail |
Another day was spent hiking/running around Westwood Lake. They have a well defined 6.2K trail that Jeff ran twice while I walked once. Since he went counter-clockwise and I went clockwise, we got to see each other and gauge our progress. The start for me was actually a hike up and down a rocky trail on the more mountainous side of the lake. The rest of the way was pretty flat and well maintained.
Jeff 'showered off' in the lake afterward and we hit Wolf Brewing Company on the way home. Wolf was one of three local breweries in Nanaimo. We also visited White Sails Brewing but my favorite was not a brewery but a pub. The Crow and Gate was a very authentic English pub in the countryside of BC.
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| The Crow & Gate Pub |
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| Beautiful English gardens |
I should stop right now and give total credit for our BC adventures to Kristen Smith and her boyfriend Trent. Kristen and Trent are our role models for living a life of adventure. They retired early and sold everything to launch the next/best part of their lives. They are 100% on the road and apparently loving it. We almost crossed paths at the Canadian border and since they were in Nanaimo before us, we have pretty much followed all of their recommendations so far.
On a sunny day after the rain had beaten down the smoke, we took a ferry to the City of Vancouver on the mainland. Perhaps we should give Victoria another shot since the sunshine makes all the difference in our attitudes. We walked over 20K steps again, which I think is the equivalent of about 10 miles. Vancouver does have a bit of a European feel but also very modern. The way we like to see a city goes like this....walk a lot...eat and drink....walk some more and find the local brew pub....walk it off until you find dinner or your way home.
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| Yaletown real estate is more expensive than San Diego! |
In Vancouver we walked through Gas Town, Yaletown and took a water taxi to Granville Island where we enjoyed the local brew pub and goodies from the Public Market.
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| Inside the Public Market |
With the intent of walking through Chinatown we stumbled upon the largest gathering of homeless people we have ever seen. San Diego has a big homeless population due to our fantastic weather where you can comfortably live year round in a tent. Apparently Vancouver is similar, but the stench and fighting was not expected, so after a block or so we turned around and gave up on Chinatown and said goodbye to Vancouver.
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| On the ferry back to Nanaimo |
