Plan ”D”

[MegaBug]

Plan ”A” at this time of year is usually to be in the Southwest enjoying the red rocks, canyons and deserts. However, from my base here in Victoria, BC Canada that has been out of the question for some time now :-(
While hunkering down over the winter I started to plan a trip in the opposite direction. ”Go north young man” :-) We would head up through BC to the Alaska Highway then up the Klondike Highway to the Dempster Highway and finally the ”new” Inuvik/Tuk Highway to the Arctic Ocean. We would return via the Dempster, Klondike and Alaskan to the Stewart/Cassiar Highway and (if allowed) pop over into Hyder, AK to see the sights. I was really starting to get excited about this trip but our Yukon and Northwest Territory also closed their borders and again made me pull back my plans.
Plan ”C” was to visit the Kootenays in the Southeast corner of BC and I created a great route through the mountains and valleys to enjoy the hot springs and many small fishing lakes ...BUT... we have recently been restricted to travel within our own region, which limits me to Vancouver Island.
So plan ”D”.... tomorrow we leave for the North end of Vancouver Island for 2 weeks, to explore the remote coastlines and cave complexes of this Karst topography, and fish in the many small lakes while staying in the tiny, primitive Rec Sites.
I guess it's not so bad enjoying your own backyard, but I still badly want to put some serious miles under the rubber.
Sigh..... hopefully soon.

 

[dpsmedic]

Not sure if you have seen this route before..Vancouver Island Grand Loop

And some checkpoints that may impact you. COVID-19: Roadside travel checks to start in B.C. at midnight

 

[MegaBug]

Not sure if you have seen this route before..Vancouver Island Grand Loop

And some checkpoints that may impact you. COVID-19: Roadside travel checks to start in B.C. at midnight

No, I had not seen that specific route before but interestingly, our plan includes many of the same legs. We will also get out to Gooding Cove west of Port Alice and also the furthest west you can go on the island, just West of Raft Cove. We also hope to hit the northernmost point by road on the islsnd at Shushartie and a lovely Rec Site on the east coast just south of Robson Bight (killer whales!)
Thanks for the heads up on the travel restrictions but luckily those are all on the mainland and won't affect us. I abide by the rules but will do everything I can within them.
We're loaded, gassed up and water tanks are full. The first ”long” trip begins in the morning with our new rig.

 

[dpsmedic]

Have fun! Sorry, I should have looked where you were located prior to referencing the main land stuff. Post photos so those of us south of the border can virtually enjoy your get away!

 

[BensonSTW]

Im jealous of your plan d. I have always wanted to spend a couple of weeks fly fishing Vancouver island. That is one of my bucket list trips. Sounds amazing.

 

[MegaBug]

Thanks guys! I'm off the grid now for a couple of weeks. No cell, no internet, no news, no worries. Will check in at the end of the month and post some pics (hopefully something frying in the pan :-)

 

[MegaBug]

Well, we're back from our Plan D trip to the North end of Vancouver Island and it was a huge success! Even the weather co-operated, which often isn't the case in May, though we did wake up to some 2 deg C mornings (36 deg F). We did lots of fishing, saw tons of wildlife and basically got away from the day to day rat race. The final long weekend we met up with our kids (and grandkids) for a family adventure on the backroads. Over the next week or two I will be adding these areas onto the OB map, along with some useful resources we found along the way

1) A lovely campsite on Vernon Lake with it's own dock that we could launch our canoe from.



2) Clearing the way into the disused Rec Site at O'Connell Lake. After 3 hours of brush clearing and 4 logs we finally made it to ....



3) .... the lovely little 2 spot site with a boat launch.



4) The next morning we did a little fishing and I came back with two nice trout for dinner.



5) At Shushartie Bay, the northernmost point you can drive to (and only with a suitable vehicle) we saw 3 black bears at the same time, feeding on the intertidal shellfish and seaweed.



6) Back down on the Alberni Inlet for the final weekend we stayed at a dispersed camping area at Coleman Log Dump with a great view of the commercial and recreational boats going up and down the inlet.



7) At the Coleman Dump I was relieving myself in the bushes and heard a massive splash. I looked up to see a huge spray and thought it was a power boat hitting a wave too fast. Then the Humpback whale breached again and we saw she also had a calf in tow. I ran for my camera and had a happy half hour photographing this pair, and a third, as they breached, bumped, periscoped and finally tail fluked into the depths.

 

[Billiebob]

awesome to see it and catch a picture