A year later and I'm finally ready to add another entry to my blog. My excuse is that I haven't been anywhere from March of 2006 until now. Now Tofino isn't exactly exotic, and I've been there before but I was looking forward to getting away from the city for a while. Anita came with me and having never been there before and she was super excited about it so that got me excited too. February at Long Beach is pretty much low season but with the benefit of no crowds and perhaps some winter storm watching opportunities.
The trip didn't get off to a great start. Before we had even left downtown Vancouver a guy crossing at the street caught my attention and told me my right front tire was flat. Great timing! I pulled into an alley and tried to get the tire off with a short tire wrench. Should have probably checked to see if I could have loosen the bolts before I spent that time jacking up the car. Anyway after that false start a tow truck was called and the tow truck driver had the proper tools to get the emergency tire on in 5 minutes. The weekend could've been ruined before it started because we still had a ferry to catch and a 3 hour drive across Vancouver Island. We decided to head over to the island on the emergency tire instead of spending the night in Vancouver. After all that we did catch the last ferry, stayed over in Nanaimo for the night, got a replacement tire in the morning and were at Long Beach by noon Saturday.
Our place was right across the street from Chesterman Beach. It was a small B&B and our room was a top floor suite with a big queen bed, fireplace and a sitting area. What a great find! The weather report looked a bit bleak but it turned out great. There was a bit of rain, clouds, wind and sun. Saturday evening on the beach was beautiful. There were a lot of people taking advantage of the rare nice February weather including surfers who presumably were wearing wetsuits. The sunset was incredible, but since my words won't do it justice, you can see some pictures here. After we watched the sun disappear beneath the waves and returned along the beach, most of the people had left but there was a cool strong breeze making comb-like patterns along the wet sand.
On Sunday we hit the beaches to the south of where we had stayed including Long Beach and Wickaninish Beach. They were both beautiful. The big waves meant we had to keep a close eye on the water to make sure we didn't get wet. Anita learned that the hard way and paid for it with wet shoes for the rest of the day. The highlight beach that day was definitely South Beach. A small cove with a short sand and gravel beach. It was much smaller then most of the others but is angled in such a way that it takes the full force of the winter storms. The perch from the rocks safely above the waves was great place to sit for a while and feel the power of the ocean.
Tofino Photo Album on Picasa
Next stop Yellowknife!
