Traveling up Vancouver Island in the spring.

 We were camped on the western shore of southern Vancouver Island, enjoying the rocky beach below and keeping track of all the ships going in and out of Vancouver and Seattle ports via the Strait of Juan de Fuca.  We were parked in a 'scenic' clear-cut with a great ocean view because Mystic Beach 'campground' is only accessible from the Juan de Fuca Marine trail, and has about enough space (at high tide) for one medium sized tent.  (Perhaps there were more sites hidden above in the trees?)

Before heading further north, we backtracked into Sooke to re-stock with supplies.  While there, we made a run up to Sooke Potholes Provincial Park to have a look at the river.

Headed up the coast to Port Renfrew.  Masked up and made a brief stop there to check on their Covid protocols.

I thought things were a bit fishy, but the sign hooked me!

 

On the drive across the island on this road last summer, I had spotted this camp spot; this time it was unoccupied, so we moved in for the night.  It's right under the bridge, but there is virtually no traffic at night, so that was not an issue.

Next day, there was a bit of snow remaining roadside on the 1200' summit on the way to Lake Cowichan, but none at the lower elevations.  We frittered away most of the day getting caught up online etc, so when evening came we were parked right by the small ferry terminal in Crofton, on the east side of the island.  Rain returned, but despite being in town, in it was a quite uneventful night.

 

 Sun came out in the morning briefly, and we were rewarded with a nice sunrise over the water.

Spent a bit of time walking around the waterfront and marina in Ladysmith.  I did some shopping for a suitable watercraft.  The first one was advertised as needing some TLC and minor fire damage!

 

The next one was 'guaranteed not so sink', as long as you kept it on shore, but it was in my price range at least!

 There was even a boathouse I could rent for cheap ;-)

Before I get complaints from the Ladysmith Chamber of Commerce, that appears to be the 'unnoficial', 'discount' area to moor your boat!  Here's what the regular marina looks like.

(Blogger editor refuses to remove the underline!!!)

 

We found a trail later in the day to Cable Bay, that was a nice hike to the shore through big timber.  The parking lot cleared out in the evening, and there were no signs, so ...  Next morning I was surrounded by loggers and logging 'security' guards, crashihg trees, and a working feller-buncher!  They were polite, but I decided to leave, so they could cut the trees I was parked beside.  :-(  Indications are that it is a hot-button issue with the locals there and I can't say I blame them.

 

Hailey napped when we stopped at Wheatcroft Park in Nanaimo for a look around.

 
 

 

 

Little Qualicum Falls provided another opportunity to get out and hit the trails between rain showers.

 

 

More coming soon, as we continue up the coast and some great free ocean-front spots, and some nice lake camps as well.

Hitting the road in 2021! (Or, how I dug the camper out of a snowbank!)

 Both the truck camper and the 5th wheel are looking a bit sad this winter.  It is quite depressing get up on the roofs - to shovel off the snow!

 

We've been watching the weather and the forecasts, and wondering when this winter is going to break a bit.  Actually, it was not that bad at all - till February.  Then the long cold snap arrived with temps here down to -38C.  That's nippy.  With an unknown amount of snow still on the way, the time finally came to dig the camper out of the snowbank, before the bank was too deep!

It was easier than I was anticipating.  I thought I might get stuck a few times getting to the camper, but the big GM didn't even slow down.

 

 

With that taken care of, the next question was where to go, and when.  Nice to see that the fridge, the heater, the furnace started right up.  Just no water allowed yet, as most nights and some days were still well below the freezing mark.

For the first run of 2021 we headed a few hours to the south east, and visited the area around Drumheller.  The sun was out most of the time, but it was still pretty cool, though still nice to be on the road.

 

 

While we were prepared for more than one night, we'd seen about everything we wanted to, and it was still not that enjoyable to be walking around outside - in the cold breezes.  So, after a single night it was back home to come up with a better. longer term plan. 

Well it didn't take long to come up with a plan to head to Vancouver Island, where winters aren't that cold and spring seems to arrive there first.  The only problem was waiting till the roads between here and there were going to be in decent conditions to drive.

Both Roger's Pass and the Coquihalla summit had plenty of snow, but the worst conditions we had was wet pavement and a few small sections of slush.

 

After an overnight spot on a windy, cold lake shore south of Kamloops, the coast was within reach and we were on the ferry to the island!

 

 

Once on the island, it did not take long to find us a nice, ocean view of the strait of Juan de Fuca, with Washington's Olympic peninsula in the background.

 

 

A nice free spot in an old cutover - no traffic, no hassles, and great views of all the shipping traffic to and from Seattle, Wa and Vancouver BC!

 

For the first time in months, Hailey was able to get out and do some proper hunting without having to worry about snowmen coming!

 

It took a couple of days to discover that we were camped right above a nice little isolated beach on the Juan de Fuca Marine trail.

 

And as for blogging - the area allows me to finally get some use of my US data account with AT&T, that I pay for but haven't really been able to use for almost a year.  It's high speed, and unlimited, so it's lots better than I have at home.

 

A couple of ships outbound, and with my  ship tracking app, I can find out the name of the ship, it's course, speed, and usually it's destination, and see some close-up photos of the craft.

 

Not sure how long we'll be out here, but wherever we end up, it's sure to be a good time!