We just got back from an amazing holiday in North West Canada. Whilst jet lag is still kicking me and tomorrow I may forget everything as I turn 50, I though it best to record some thoughts now.
Firstly 4 days in Vancouver felt so relaxing that it was like we had lived there for ages. We did a fair bit of course, cycled around Stanley Park
We also got on a sea plane to Victoria, where we then boarded a Zodiac rib in dry suits to blast out into the sea and get sighting of Orcas – Killer Whales.
The dry suits were not very dry though !
We found some great places to eat in Vancouver and got some great recommendations from friends too. I marched us off to have korean shaved ice – Bingsoo
As a home form home the predlets experienced yet more VR
The science museum was great too
We all enjoyed that.
Then we went for another holiday, completely different we hired an RV for 12 nights
Just a 7 birth, 9m long, 3m high and wide V10 mega beast, or so we though until we got to see the other campers.
We headed off on what ended up being a 2500km drive to multiple sites.
We managed to go and get supplies at a local Walmart but this was not where we were supposed to park!
The first was by a lake and had no hookup for the van, but it did have Canada geese and play park for the kids
The second site had a swimming pool and full van hook up. It is odd to be flushing sewage at the side of the van down a big pipe next to where the other people are having their breakfast, but that’s camping !
The inside of the van was bigger than the hotel room, or so it felt sometimes
We stopped on the long 3-4 hour journeys to admire the trees and sights
We then headed to Lake Louise, a campsite by the river. With Bears.
We walked into town by the river
We took the bus to the actual lake, where it was a bit misty
Where we then walked 3 km up a big hill to mirror lake, not many people with us there.
This fella was though
When we got back down the mist had cleared
Elemming had booked afternoon tea at the Fairmont as a complete contrast to the hiking and camping
We then headed to the pst famous road in Canada that runs Lake Louse to Jasper. A long 400km run to Hinton but fantastic road and fantastic scenery such as the glacier
more waterfalls
and water
Driving the view was great but not easy to take photos, but stops I got them.
We arrived near Jasper, in the rain. It all seemed a bit UK camping like.
Still, they had Wifi
And weird beer cans
When the rain cleared it was quite spectacular.
We had a day of nothing, doing nothing at all. It was great.
Then it was Elemming’s birthday.
So we went up a cable car and walked up the top of Jasper’s Whistler mountain. The cloud kept rolling and and rolling away it was very spooky. As was the big fat Marmot that laughed at us on the way up.
This is where we walked from, the cable car stop in the distance
Then once again for contrast we drove off to the hot springs and sat in boiling hot water with hundred of others
The next day we were travelling but I made a pinhole camera out of the beer box in case we got a clear sky for the Solar Eclipse (we didn’t)
As we drove along it went dusk like, very steadily, car headlights got very much brighter. Once it was done we stopped for a cuppa
We made the next KOA campsite at clearwater it had another swimming pool too.
We drove up a smallish mountain road, it got a bit bumpy towards the end and got to watch Salmon jumping the falls. Predlet 1.0 managed to catch a phot but I was just watching. Saw 5 all in all. Very cool
Elemming saw a bear n the way up too.
There were an amazing set of Waterfalls to view all very varied
There were some great places to eat here too
Our next stop was on the way to whistler it was a bit more desert like, and apparently was closed due to the wildfires two weeks previous.
We then headed to Whistler the final stop arrived to a watch out there are bears warning again
After a stroll into town we were in civilisation again, with olympic park.
We rode two chair lifts (yuk) up the first mountain
Then the peak 2 peak in gondola across to Whistler. The worlds longest of its type. only two posts holding it up. we avoided the glass bottom gondola.
A long way up/down
More olympic rings
Stunning views
Then a gondola back down (phew) I really don’t like chair lifts especially with a snowboard on.
The final day was a 4×4 trip up Whislter to look for bears
We saw Slumber, a 21 year old male for about 40 mins, it was amazing how he could melt away into almost no grass or trees then pop up a head to look at us whilst he ate berries. iPhones are not great for that sort of photo but here he is.
We saw some awesome cycle parks too
After a slap up meal and beer in El Furniture Warehouse (a happening place it seems) we drove back to Vancouver. Suddenly hitting traffic was a shock but the van was undaunted and undented
2500 km sat here.
Timing was a bit odd then as we had to drop the van at 11am but flight was 9pm. So we sat at the airport and watched our screens
Once we were able to drop the bags the predlets got to play chess.
And that was that. Luckily after the drive, the wait and the flight and no sleep we had a bank holiday monday to recover.
The whole trip was amazing, I still don’t like camping, too much faffing around but I am glad we did it and saw the things we saw.
The big van fitted the big scenario too.
The whole album of photos is here. Probably missed a few so may do a search for the lost ones 🙂
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