Tofino & the Pacific Rim National Park, Vancouver Island

Schooner's Bay - bliss!
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We stayed here in the Whalers on the Point Hostel which is a great, atmospheric and friendly hostel right on the waterfront. We had a family room with a shared bathroom and it was a great place to base ourselves for our 4 day visit as there were lots of very friendly people (staff and other guests) to talk to about where to go. The area is known for its whale watching trips, but as it was expensive for us all to do (and we’re off to NZ & Oz where we may also have the opportunity to go) we regretfully gave it a miss and stuck to land based pursuits.

The view from the hostels sitting room window.
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The first thing we did was to go on a 2 km walk on a boardwalk through temperate rain-forests. Apart from Tofino and it’s sister town Ucluelet on the opposite side, the whole of the peninsula is a protected national park, inhabited only by First Nation people. A lot of it is temperate rain forest which is lush and gorgeous. It’s mushroom season (we kept seeing people out mushroom gathering by the sides of the roads on the island) and there were loads of amazing fungi. There had been an unusual amount of rain just before we arrived (although it was bright clear sunshine for the whole of our stay, luckily) so the forest felt washed clean and incredibly verdant.

a big black bear came out from the forest.. and swiped a massive salmon

Some of Jonty's funghi. Needs to wash more.
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We then did a second walk through more rain-forest down to Schooners Bay, at the end of Long Beach. It was a beautiful landscape, through the rain-forest a few km till we burst out onto a beach covered in enormous piles of driftwood, waves crashing on the enormous beach, the ocean full of densely forested islands and snow capped mountains in the background. We stayed here for a few hours, eating a picnic and climbing over the rocks and logs on the almost deserted beach, it was really magical.

The boys playing on a big log. Simple pleasures for simple people.
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The next few days were filled with other fantastic walks; through weird stunted forests of bog trees, along Long Beach and over the aptly named Pacific Wild Trail where we were warned about a rogue black bear nearby (cue swift turn to the car park as Archie went very pale). We did want to see a bear though - preferably from the safety of a car, so we were directed to a local salmon hatchery and farm where at low tide bears were known to come and feed. We drove up the bumpy track and rounded a corner to see a mother black bear with her baby, wandering along the road towards the river. We followed, marvelling, at a safe distance, and they eventually turned off into the forest. We arrived at the fish farm and waited a few minutes before a big black bear came out from the forest, ambled down to the water and swiped a massive salmon from the waters edge before heading back home. It was an awe-inspiring experience.

Walking the bog trail.
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The boys enjoyed it all, especially the social aspect of being around lots of people in the hostel, to whom young kids were a bit of a novelty (the only other family group there was a lovely Hawaiian family with grown up boys). I think their favourite part of the Tofino experience though was the free pool and football tables which they played as often as we would let them. Never let it be said that we are sacrificing their education...