BRIAN REID PHOTOGRAPHER
Canada West Day 19- The Pacific Rim
Friday, 26 May 2023 03:41
It was time to enjoy a glimpse of the Pacific Rim on Vancouver Island’s western shore with the next landfall being in the Kuril Islands just north of Japan. It is a rugged coast as you can see above, around Amphritite point and it's little lighthouse, but is also blessed with impressive beaches, such as Wickaninnish and Long Beach with the latter being busier with some surfers and picnickers. At the top of this peninsula is the small town of Tofino, a tourist mecca and, although not busy, it was doing pretty well. A good place to find a nice place for a snack lunch as I did. Seaplanes also seemed popular. I’ve added a few more pictures from Amphritite point where the well maintained loop trail was popular with plenty of opportunities to enjoy the coastal scenery and some crooked trees and beautiful plants. A nice way to spend an hour on a temperate day in the sunshine. At Wickaninnish beach there was a gentle mist blowing in of the ocean creating an odd softness close to the ground while at Long Beach the mist had somewhat subsided as the sea had become more active attracting some surfers. These beaches are in the Pacific Rim National Park and a ranger was patrolling Long Beach on an e-bike. An odd sight on a beach. Both beaches are very wide and only gently shelving but most people set up camp in amongst the driftwood. At Tofino there was a bit of coming and going of float planes which were offering sightseeing tours although with only a few takers. Tofino is a bit twee with themed inns, cafés, shops and the like as is typical of a summer resort. On the pier by the DHC Beaver float plane someone had left an unfinished can of drink. A crow spotted it and I watched it knock it over and take a drink. I think it was beer! The road to and from Tofino from Port Alberni is impressive, winding its way between mountains along rivers and lakes but, as is often the case, there are almost no places to stop at the most interesting places such as lake shores as they are covered in private houses preventing good viewpoints. I have included a grab from my in-car time-lapse camera which gives a flavour of what is seen through the windscreen. There are a couple of places to stop at Kennedy Lake and on the Kennedy River in the Provincial Park so I’ll finish today with snaps from there.