We arrived in Victoria (the capital of British Columbia, despite being significantly smaller than Vancouver) at about 16:00 and donated our tent to the Salvation Army (who seemed a little too pleased to be receiving a wet, dirty tent, that probably couldn’t survive a moderate gust or 30 minutes of steady rain). We then checked into our nights accommodation before wandering back along the beach front into the central city. Our walk took us through Beacon Park that along with being the location of the 0km marker for the transcanadian highway, it also contained a Great Horned Owl, peacocks, a cricket ground, fountains, a putting green, a zoo and the pope (OK the last one’s a lie but you get the idea), and was therefore one of the best urban parks either of us has ever been to.
We arrived in the city centre in time to see the end of the climate change protests which had been going on worldwide and walked along the harbour as the sun set. Our host for tonight’s stay had recommended the Canoe Brewhouse, so we headed there to sample a few more Candian beers and food listen and dance to a local band.
The next morning was a Saturday and yet again our overnight accommodation happened to be 5 minutes walk from the start of a parkrun (although Claire was not impressed that this parkrun started at 8am!). We really must recommend both the run and our accommodation (search for Fairfield Pied-à-terre on Airbnb) to all Parkrun Tourists out there. Gareth triumphed this time, beating Claire and all the other girls! Then we were off to get the Ferry (which we did manage to catch this time), back to mainland Canada and Vancouver.
We had both been to Vancouver before, so had decided to just spend one night here (but it is a brilliant city and deserves a few days if you haven’t been before) and unfortunately a 2 hour traffic jam off the Ferry ate into our day. We contented ourselves with a wander around the harbour, admiring all the massive ships before a stroll into Stanley Park. Gareth also had a root bear float (root beer with a dollop of ice cream in it), but it wasn’t quite as good as he rememberered them to be .
We spotted some raccoons during an early evening meal in the park, completing our Canada wildlife bingo. Claire had one more soaking wet run in the morning to burn off some energy before a long flight. Goodbye Canada – we have had the most amazing time! Next stop Japan!
Canada Overview:
What would we have done if we’d had more time? Claire: White water rafting in Jasper, Mountain biking in Whistler, Sea Kayaking to the Broken Island Group from Ucluelet. Gareth: Coming back in the winter to go snowboarding, going to see some North American sport, exploring more of the north and visiting some of the eatern maritime provinces.
Anything we wouldn’t have done again? Claire: Left the train wreak 5 minutes earlier so we caught the earlier ferry to Vancouver Island! Gareth: Correcting Claire’s spelling of wreck throughout the blog – it would have made a good running joke.
Highlight of the trip? Both: Via Ferrata in Banff!
Best 24 hour period? Both: Afternoon Lake Louise hike to Plain of 6 Glaciers followed by Morraine Lake and Icefield parkway the next morning.
Claire and Gareth go travelling! 