Protection Island

Protection Island is a small island located 1.5 km north-east of downtown Nanaimo. It is right in the city's harbour, with no bridge leading to it. This is a typical Georgia Strait island with tall forests and sandstone tidepools, but only a five minute boat ride from downtown.

We had a wonderful half day tour on Protection Island with our real estate agent, Fraser. He showed us around the island on his golf cart, not only houses, but also culture and community of the houses' owners. It was an amazing experience!

There are no paved roads on the little island. Some residents move about the island in golf carts, others with cars, but most walk.- What a healthly way to live! Locals frequently transport their groceries from the community dock with their own wheelbarrows. Access to the island can be via private vessel or a small, privately run ferry. Some residents also commute by kayak or rowboat as well.

There are about 300 residences on the island. There is an interesting blend of types of people here, too, characteristic of the gulf islands in general; Artist, writers, retired professionals, gays and lesbians, etc.

Protection Island is gorgeous, with its dense woods, and beaches that turn exotically sandy when the tide is out. There are heron rookeries in the arbutus groves, where the herons protect their young from predatory eagles by croaking in unison, an intimidating prehistoric chant. Seals and otters also circle the island, which is great for all the kayakers that come exploring, or who commute to the city by water every day.

If I wanted a home for my retirement, this is the place to be.

Downtown Nanaimo

Nanaimo is a beautiful and unique city. It has the longest shorelines in Canada. Forest mountains are only minutes from downtown harbour centre. I was amazed by its nature environment, a harmony combination of ocean, mountains, clean air, wild animals and green open trails!

Downtown Nanaimo, along Commercial Street, Victoria Crescent, and Fitzwilliam Street is a thriving mix of restaurants, music venues, shops, galleries, and exciting nightspots. We stayed at the Vancouver Island Regional Library and visitor center for hours, we also went shopping. - We found a lot of free parking space in downtown, which was unbelievable for us, with our experiences from big cities such as Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal!

I liked it so much that I thought it could be an idea place for my retirement. Real estate market was down for the moment, and house price was much lower than Vancouver and Victoria.

The local people were very relaxing and friendly. At the downtown harbour, we met and chatted with some local "fishermen". They settled down in Nanaimo and enjoyed very much the West Coast community and island lifestyle. A gentleman originally from Ottawa told us he thought this city was too good to be true. It was a paradise for him and his family.


 

From Port Alberni to Qualicum Beach

There were festivals in every town on Vancouver Island in July. We played all the way from Tofino back to Qualicum beach. It turned out that the weather was much more calmer and nicer on the east side of the island than the west side!

Fresh fish was available for $15 each, no matter big or small!

Camping at Tofino and Ucleulet

Only July 2nd, we arrived in Nanaimo, but we did not stay there. We bought groceries and filled our tank, and we continued to drive to the west Coast of Vancouver Island. At the conjunction T session, left turn took us to Ucluelet and a right turn took us through the magnificent Pacific Rim National Park Reserve (Long Beach) and on into Tofino. We stayed at a camping site call the Surf junction.


The west side of the island is dominated by surf and wide sandy beaches. Clayoquot Sound is north of Tofino and is full of beaches, islands and rainforests. We heard that some of the best sea kayakings in the world are found here.

Tofino rests on the north tip of the peninsula and it is said to be a great place to engage in whale watching, scuba diving, kayaking. It is Canada's west side, about 5000 miles to Japan. The weather was windy, raining and chilly, we were not in the mood to  sports. We just wandered along the harbour, and visited some art galleries and workshops.

Ucluelet is nestled in a small harbour south of the park area. We enjoyed the little clean town by alking and hiking.We also loved the most spectacular views in the light tower area, and we enjoyed the Wild Pacific Trail, more than Tofino.

Here is a video clip abut the region we visited.
http://vimeo.com/4946485
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Beautiful Rocky Mountains

From Canada Day to last week, We've been out for vacation! Those pictures were taken on our way from Calgary to Vancouver. Mountains along the highway one in Alberta are totally amazing. They look strong, solid, serious and mighty. Together with playful, ever-changing and mysterious clouds, they make beautiful pictures.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork” (Ps. 19:1).