Castles Aren't The Only Things Found In Sand

Today, we drove the width of Vancouver Island for two reasons. The first is because there wasn't enough time to drive the length and the second was because I had heard how beautifully wild the west coast was, especially during storms when the Pacific rises up and crashes into the rocky coast. My luck tends to run in the opposite. I want bright sunny days and get gray drizzle. I want wild Pacific wind driven storms and get warm brilliant blue sky days where surfers are disappointed in the four to five foot swells. The road to Tofino and Ucluelet is steep, twisting, narrow, and travels through some of the most beautiful countryside on the island, rising from sea level up to more that 411 meters and then back down once more. Long narrow fiord like lakes nestle in the crooked valleys of huge mountains and the snow banks get higher as we climb. Every once in a while I’m treated to a breath taking view of frost encrusted trees glistening in the sunlight or old growth forests dripping with dew. And there are eagles here to tease my camera lens as well. Tofino is a sleepy little fishing village that has managed to adapt to accommodate all of us tourists from the outside world. When we arrive, I feel like I’ve arrived home. The people are friendly and their speech is characteristically punctuated with an “eh” here and there. It just made me feel as if I belonged. We walked beaches, watched the tide rise and fall from our hotel room, wandered quiet streets empty of traffic to find the perfect native doll for my grand daughter ( didn't succeed ) and we asked the locals where to find the perfect sunset. We are directed to the “ best spot on the island” to view the sunset and it didn’t disappoint. While we waited for the time to approach, there were tide pools to investigate and drift wood piles to be searched. We found curious little trails in the sand left by unseen creatures and everywhere we looked was another beautiful view just begging to be captured by my camera. While walking , I happened to look at my feet to see this unusual pattern in the sand. The outgoing tide has created art of it's own. It was not unique, however. I found other forests along the way. The sunset was beautiful, as promised. It was a perfect end to a perfect day spent with my dad, taking pictures. Sometimes I feel like I'm ignoring the people around me when I get lost in that special moment .

Another helpful suggestion directed us to a restaurant reputed to have good food at reasonable prices. Well, the food was good! We spent the night overlooking a secluded harbor where the cannery waits for the fishing fleet to arrive.