To celebrate my birthday I treated myself
to 4 days in Tofino (my favorite runaway destination for real R&R). The township of Tofino is a relaxed, casual
place, completely given to unwinding and getting back to nature (although I do have nature all around me on Bowen). Tofino's backdrop is Clayquot Sound and from town you have a lovely view of Meares Island, where some of the largest old growth trees in BC still stand.
Tofino is a mix of
wide sandy beaches and old growth forests, fishing boats, loggers and surfers. It is also the end of the trans-Canada
highway. Next stop is Japan!
It’s wild and wonderful and lies just beyond
the Pacific Rim national park where Long Beach is located. My preference for beach combing and walking, though, is
Chesterman beach. It's always called to me, and so it was on Chesterman where I had my birthday lunch at the Wickaninnish Inn. The Wicki has also been one of my favorite lunch spots for years now, and the best view spot in my opinion. My lunch started with a crisp glass of Burrowing Owl Chardonnay, and wonderful home made leek and parmesan cheese baguette.
This was followed by a west coast seafood chowder and an amazing autumn kale salad topped with warm roasted fall vegetables with a sauce of black garlic.
The meal was so delicious I went back the next day for the exact same thing!! Double the birthday pleasure, I say. The rest of my little getaway was spent waking the beaches. In the morning I would walk on McKenzie beach where I was staying. The magic hour of sunrise each morning offered such delicate pastel shades in the western sky caused by the reflection of the rising sun behind the eastern mountains.
I call it the magic hour because it is the time of morning when the sun coming up behind you casts a long lean and skinny shadow!! A great way to start your day.
Afternoon walks were on Chesterman Beach which was warm and inviting each day. Very few folks on the beach made it even more memorable. There was little wind this trip so the surf was not that high. Good for the surf school lessons but no big waves for the true surfers.
The golden hour of sunset called for walks on McKenzie beach each evening. This seemed to be the time the paddle-boarders came out, and it was so relaxing to watch them fade into the shades of night.
The sunsets were Roy Vickers colours for sure
A visit to Kevin Midgley's Tofino Art Glass Shop which is off the beaten track.
And of course the November 11th Remembrance Day ceremony which I attended in Tofino Town. This included a parade of veterans, RCMP, park rangers, coast guard, first responders, cadets, scouts and beavers, all marching through town to the cenotaph which was located outside the local legion. There was even a fly pass just after 11am.
All in all it was a great little getaway, and for November, Tofino just happened to be the warmest spot in Canada for 2 days in a row. I was very blessed! My new little Yaris performed wonderfully so I think I will keep her. I had my favorite tunes in the car for the road trip and I was able to sing my little heart out while enjoying the wonder drive in the sunshine. I'll do this again next year on or around my birthday.
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