Day 66 – June 8

After a leisurely breakfast I geared up for a hike to the river, just as it started to rain. Clad in my waders I was not to be dissuaded and headed off. I followed the trail that I had found the previous night and within 15 minutes was at stream side. The Englishman River, like many of the B.C. Rivers we have seen, is gin clear. Although I had not seen any signs of fish the previous night the river and its setting was too attractive to resist. I walked upstream for a ways and then fished downstream. Ate ran hour of unproductive fishing I headed back to the BRT only to coincidently ruin into Diane who was hiking out to the falls. Despite my inappropriate hiking attire, waders and fly vest, I joined her for the walk.

On the return trip we ran into a couple of Denman Island residents and we exchanged some useful travel and fishing info. They were interested in travelling to Newfoundland so we offered some guidance on where to go. They recommended that we stop at a nearby community, Coombs, on our way to our destination for the day, Tofino.

Coombs proved to be a popular destination as witnessed by the challenge we had in finding a parking spot for the beast. Our Denman Island guides had suggested that we eat at the Goats on Roof restaurant so we worked our way through what could only be described as a fairgrounds crowd to the restaurant. As it turned out Goats on Roof, complete with sod roof and yes, goats on the roof, was a speciality grocery store as well as a restaurant. Established in the 70’s by some self proclaimed ‘hippies’ the current establishment reflects its roots in the plethora of products offered in the store. There is not a preservative, artificial flavour or colour to be found on a label, which is reflected in the price tags.

The restaurant offered wild salmon burgers with sweet potato fries that attracted both of our attention. It was not only delicious but also very filling. After lunch we had monster sized single scoop ice creams while we walked around the other stores lining the street of the immediate area. A group of teenage buskers were performing on a series of home made xylophones and maracas, obviously really enjoying themselves and entertaining the crowd with the infectious rhythms of their music.

We headed west across the island through Port Alberni, which although close to the east coast of the island is on an inlets that flows to the west coast, almost cutting the island in two. As we climbed the coastal mountains towards Tofino the weather closed in and we passed through periods of rain. At points the road became quite narrow and twisty as it skirted the steep cliffs. Once past this constriction the road widened again and began its descent to the coast, accompanied by clearing skies.

We found our destination, Crystal Cove RV Resort where Sean and Carla were staying in the MRT, along with Casey and her boyfriend Alex in his parents Westfalia. There was a vacant site close by where we set up. Crystal Cove is a very high end park, with small but well separated sites. The lots are raked after each use and the common areas have beautiful well maintained gardens. In addition to the full hook ups, wifi and FREE fire wood the amenities were reflected in the $50 per night price.

We had been gifted some frozen Halibut by Bev the day before so we prepared the main course of barbecued halibut accompanied by a rhubarb crisp Diane baked. We had a great campfire fueled by the free wood before retiring for the night.

Day 67 – June 9

After a restless night, Diane had a very upset stomach, we had a breakfast of egg mcmuffins hosted by Sean and Carla. Diane’s tender stomach limited her to toast and tea. We headed out back towards Nanaimo for our trip north in a new armadillo, with Casey and Alex in their VW filling the now vacant place of the LRT. The trip to Coombs was a repeat of the weather of the reverse trip the previous day. At Coombs we split off and continued north along the scenic 19A ocean road while the MRT and the fill-in LRT went on to explore Coombs.

Along the road I explored for possible fishing sites but nothing appeared worth stopping for. We found our planned rendevous, Miracle Beach Provincial Park and had just finished our reconnoiter of available sites when the others arrived. We had found a double site big enough for all three vehicles and quickly had a campsite set up and a fire going, with left over wood from the previous night.

It wasn’t long before a Rummoli game appeared and we spent the next hour or so disrupting the campgrounds with out laughs and groans. Casey peaked early in the game while Sean’s steady game had him in good stead for a win – until the last ‘winner take all left on the board’ poker hand which Alex, who until then was on the brink of cashing in his last chips, won, clinching a narrow margin over Sean.

Our fashionably late supper of spaghetti was courtesy of Alex’s father, an excellent cook, who had made a delicious sauce for the trip. Thanks.

Day 68 – June 10

Although we had planned a somewhat earlier start we were on the road by 9:00, after saying our goodbyes to Casey and Alex, who we wouldn’t see again September, and confirming our rendezvous of the night with Sean and Carla. With clear skies we headed north along the coast where we were treated to great views of the snow capped mountains with a backdrop of blue skies and white clouds, tourist bureau stuff. We continued north through Campbell River on Highway 19 which then veered further inland from the coast. We stopped at Roberts Lake picnic area along the way, at the end of a somewhat ominous logging road, really not a BRT kind of road but at the end was a lovely isolated picnic site with a great wharf jutting out into the clear water of Roberts Lake.

The lake was nestled in a valley with snow capped mountains at the end. Time spent fishing here would certainly not be wasted on any front so while Diane did her daily back exercises in the beast I tried my luck. Two boats trolling on the lake gave me some hope that at least there were fish in the area but after an hour my most positive fishing result was one smallish trout that followed my fly into shore. Diane joined me after finishing her routine and enjoyed the view (of the mountains, not my backside) while I tried, without any success, a variety of delicious looking flies on my line.

We explored a couple of other spots on our way north but most either proved difficult to fish from the shore or were effectively inaccessible due to their steeped sided banks. Weather phased from overcast, to rainy back to sun as we continued towards Port Hardy.

Our destination for the night was the Port Hardy RV Resort, formerly the Sunny Sanctuary according to our guide book. Basically a grassed field with hookups, plywood stall washrooms and showers, a pay laundry with a broken dryer, at$37 a night its only redeeming virtue was its geographic proximity to the ferry terminal building, 10 minutes down the road.

We arrived at 5:30, in time to explore one more lake down a nearby logging road which was touted as the best cutthroat fishing in the northern island. Possibly the case but despite being close to the road steep banks and heavy undergrowth to the lake’s edge again thwarted my fishing efforts.

We arrived back at the ‘Resort’ as Sean and Carla were checking in and we all set about the now comfortable routine of setting up for the night. As the very expensive cost for the ferry was partially determined by vehicle length we had booked for a 23 foot long vehicle requiring that the bicycles and their rack be removed, about a $120 saving. As we had to be dockside at 5:30 the next morning, I busied myself with the extraction while I had daylight and a sense of humour.

Supper for us was left overs and some of Sean and Carla’s barbecued lamb chops eaten in the BRT due to weather and an infestation of noseeums. In light of a 4:30 start to the day we retired early-ish and watched some more of the movie we had started two nights before. It appears this is going to a serial movie.