October 2023

 
Speaking of Autumn, we decided to do one last trip to the playground.  Nara would rather go clothes shopping than play at a playground and Claira isn't far behind her.  The playground at Cadboro-Gyro Park is a family favorite because of the climbing structures so got everyone in the car and went for a drive.
 

I quite enjoy the Tofino Ucluelet corridor, but it's a big production to go out there (it's mostly out of range from my parents house for day trip).  That said, the exposed west coast from Sooke to Port Renfew has many of the same attractions - giant trees, small towns and an abundance of wildlife and is easily reached by car.  The mix isn't exactly the same (there are no flat sand beaches that I have found) but there are lots of corners I still haven't explored.  Today I wanted to go to China beach.

There is a good sized parking lot and a wide trail down to the beach.  The trail down took maybe half an hour and cuts through a mix or recently harvested and older forests.  The beach access is flat and there is a pit toilet close to the access.

 
If you walk North, there is a headland that is impassible with some plants that survive on the dripping rock.

On the ride back we stopped in at Shirley Delicious for lunch and then a new place for me - Otter Point.

We spent about an hour here watching the birds, seals and whales.  I wasn't expecting such a small whale (harbour porpoises are less than a meter long), but they were plentiful - we saw more than 30 swim through in a loosely packed group.  Unlike Orca, no one seems to be trying to identify individuals and life stories with these small whales.

We did eventually get home for a thankgiving dinner - thanks Mom! 

I'm quite a big fan of Art Crawls so this year I wanted to try a few new ones.  I saw the signs for the  North Shore Art Crawl last year, but I spotted them after the crawl had already completed.  This year, I booked it on my calendar and made a point of keeping a weekend day clear.  The North Shore is quite large (it includes West Vancouver) so my plan was to Start near the North end and move south through the day.

 
The North Shore Art Crawl has a mix of venues - some are shared studios with a dozen artists, other locations are artists homes or studios.  You notice themes - the North Shore Mountains were a more common element in work, as was the ocean.

I don't know what triggered the Capilano Fish Hatchery in my memory, but the salmon were returning so I decided to go over for the morning and take the kids.

The next generation were quite interesting - they had a small display showing the early life stages and a tank with two kinds of juvenile salmon that will eventually be set loose to return to the ocean.

The fish ladder is a strong attraction because you can see the live animals fighting there way up the man made end of the river where they are harvested.