One year today!

Just a small acknowledgement that today is our one year anniversary in Canada!

And what a year it has been; bring on the next!!

CS

Cultus Lake & an unexpected Tea Party

So our weekend didn't entirely go to plan.

We were meant to be hiking in Baker in the U.S., however due to crazy queues and frustrations at the border, we gave up and stayed on Canadian tuff.

Instead we went to Cultus Lake Provincial Park and hiked 'teapot hill' - yep, amazing name:

It was an easy 4km walk, but nice to get outside. We were also delighted at the top to find...you guessed it...teapots!

Unfortunately the teapots didn't have any tea in them (now that would have been a real treat) but fun times none-the-less!

CS

Conquering The Chief!

Today we conquered 'The Chief' - three different summits on a granite cliff in Stawamus Chief Provincial Park.

I'll be honest - it was way harder than we imagined. It took four hours and involved using chains, climbing tactics & scrambling.

The only downside was how busy it was; it's well-known & therefore a popular route. However it's a stunning hike & gives views over Howe Sound & Squamish.

We also got to play with chipmunks at the top - clearly my personal highlight. Check it out:

Yes it was hard work, but undoubtedly worth it!

CS

Sunshine Coast: Bay hopping

Our final day on the Sunshine Coast was spent 'bay-hopping' - to ensure we saw everything there was to see.

We begun with Tuwanek, a small village alongside Porpoise Bay:

This was followed by a brief stop at Half Moon Bay. This is deemed to be the 'romantic' area on the Sunshine Coast.

Next on the list was Secret Cove, which essentially turned out to be a private port:

We finished our bay hopping experience with a quick stop at Smugglers Cove, before going back to our favourite spot - Sargent's Bay.

CS

Sunshine Coast: Gibsons & Roberts Creek

As David was going back to Vancouver a day earlier than the rest of us, we took the opportunity to stop off at Gibsons.

Gibsons is a quaint seaside town that celebrates all things arty and crafty. While I failed to take any photos of the town, I did capture the wildlife, which predominantly consisted of herons and seals:

On route home, we also stopped off at Robert's Creek - a gorgeous spot to watch the sun go down. I was loving the bongo player & his hippy vibe...

CS

Sunshine Coast, Triangle lake & Trail running

We want on a more adventurous walk near Sargent's Bay in search of the nicely named 'Triangle Lake'.

It was a rather challenging walk and as we were tight on time, David and I did some trail running to get back to the car in time. Here are some pictures:

CS

Sunshine Coast & the world's worst bear photo

A moment we've wanted for over a year: a bear encounter.

David and I were walking through a woodland near our cottage in Davis Bay...and we walked into a male adolescent bear. He was 10 feet in front of us & directly on our path.

We both jumped back and watched the bear's bottom disappear into the scrubs.

Thinking we were safe, we walked on clapping and shouting 'hey bear' as we'd been taught to do. A loud rumble in the scrubs next to us told us Mr. Bear hadn't gone very far - however after hearing our footsteps, he scurried off further (about 15 feet) before turning around and watching us.

On David's instruction, I then tried to take a photo - hurriedly - while the opportunity presented itself. I didn't realise the flash was on. So not only did I flash in the bear's face, I also took the world's worst picture. It was daytime - and this was the result:

Yes, you can only see the bear's eyes glaring in the dark. The bear looks scary here - he was actually gorgeous, with a black shiny coat.

By contrast, I thought it was worth sharing Dee and Bob's photos of bears from three days earlier. They'd seen a Mum and three cubs while walking in whistler:

Despite the awful photo, David and I were both delighted - and we tiptoed our way through the rest of our walk in hope of another encounter...

CS

Sunshine Coast: part 2

We went for a 4km hike in Sckookumchuck Provisional Park in search of rapids. At the highest tide, unusual rapids formed through the narrows, creating a stunning scene.

Here are some photos of our venture:

 

We finished our day by eating at the Lighthouse Pub, a rather well-known, loud & popular place in the Sunshine Coast.

CS

Sunshine Coast: part 1

For our next adventure with Dee & Bob, we headed to the Sunshine Coast, which is a short ferry ride from Vancouver and predictably, renowned for its sunshine.

We stayed in Davis Bay. I've included the map below, as we travelled far and wide throughout the region so it's a useful reference point for places:

We arrived to find very cute accommodation - check it out:

What perhaps was somewhat of a surprise was the sleeping arrangements. We walked in to find all four of us would be essentially sleeping in one room:

I was entirely to blame for this arrangement - as the person who had booked the accommodation! We made it work fine, but good learning for me...

CS