18 May - Hyde Creek to Campbell River....and Walmart

 We enjoyed our few days at this AirBnb. This morning we went for a walk down to the water and learned why it was that we hadn't done that yet -- very steep and a bit far. It was a good morning workout exercising different muscle sets in our legs going down and up....and some good heart exercise going up!

Driving on Vancouver Island is a delight...everywhere. They have many "rest stops" where you can stop, ease yourself and take in some amazing view of water, forest, mountains and usually all three.

Our destination this morning is Campbell River, a little city, including environs of 60,000 people situated so you can see the Discovery Passage, which connects the Campbell River to the Strait of Georgia, as well as the Vancouver Island Mountain Ranges....amazing! We left there wondering why anyone wouldn't want to live in this clean, beautifully laid out city.

Our reason for visiting Campbell River was to see relatives who live in the area. It was lovely to share lunch with this wonderful family. We learned a lot about video games - something we may need to consider taking up soon as grandparents.

As we drove out of Campbell River I saw a black bear ambling along. We were told that bears are common in the area, even in the city at times. It is, in fact, their natural territory.

I had identified several iOverlander sites we could consider as we drove further south and west on our way to our eventual destination of Tofino. However, we were not thrilled with any of them. We did hang out at one beautiful area along Qualicom Beach. 

The sun was on its way towards the horizon so lighting was good for a few hours. I pulled out my camera with my long (birding) lens 100-500mm and saw down on a log. I saw a couple of dogs playing with their owners along the beach and into the water. I was thinking of creating several backlit images of this interaction, with the light shining through the splashes of water...but no birds. 

Eventually a blue heron flew in and invited me to watch them fish. I must have sat on that beach for half an hour and watched this skilled fisher-bird catch 4-5 little fish. Fantastic to watch but sorry for the fish!

The sun was going down and we were tired so we finally settled on a Walmart parking lot in Port Alberni. We slept well, enjoying the sound of the rain, cozy in our warm, dry, steel and glass "tent"!