Surfing, Running and Big Trees

Last Friday we took off for a weekend vacation up-island. Cam's cousin Jill and her husband Dave were kind enough to put us up at their home in Port Alberni. They also offered to serve as our tour guides to the west coast.

Saturday morning we drove to Tofino and rented surfboards. Jill gave us a quick lesson on the beach and then Brenda, Jill and I attacked the waves.

We pose like we know what we're doing.

Cam falls, Jill laughs.

Brenda falls, Jill laughs.

We wrestled the surf with little success, but we had tons of fun doing it. We surfed at Chesterman Beach, then returned our boards and checked out the more famous Long Beach in Pacific Rim National Park.

Brenda, Jill and Dave at Long Beach.

We saw this little guy on the way home on Highway 4.

Surfing, which looks graceful and effortless when you see the professionals do it, is actually exhausting. We had a quiet night back in Port Alberni, though we did crash a dinner party for a midget hockey team - don't ask.

Sunday was another busy day. The local running club was hosting a 10K and we joined Jill in running, while Dave biked around the course keeping us encouraged. Cam had never run an organized race before, and Brenda had only done the Nike 10K in Toronto. It was a fun experience, we met the mayor, and in a hilarious twist of events Cam won his age category (he was the only one entered).

Brenda closes in on the finish line.

Jill's friend Robin enjoys a celebratory drink with us after the run.

After the run we had one more big stop on our agenda - Cathedral Grove in MacMillan Provincial Park.

Cam on the banks of the Cameron River.

Have we mentioned the giant trees?

It was one of the most active and fun weekends we've had together, and we offer many thanks to Dave and Jill for being such excellent hosts and encouraging us to take part in everything that we did last weekend. There are a couple more surfing wipe-out videos here and here.

Kissed By A Rose

Sunday morning it was nice out so we went for a walk down to Oak Bay Marina. We had been told that there were seals that hung out there, but we'd never seen them. Turns out we were probably just looking in the wrong place. We were really excited to finally see a seal!

Our new friend!

Apparently there are other seals that swing by regularly, and some people at the Marina were disappointed to only see one seal. Those people are spoiled.

Stretching out for the camera.

For Brenda's birthday she got a new (larger) memory card for her camera, so we're hoping to take some more videos. Here is our first film for your viewing pleasure.

The seal is not skittish at all.

Here's Cam on Beach Rd. by the shore.

Mount Finlayson

Last Friday we had our first perfect day out here in B.C. We decided to celebrate the gorgeous weather by scaling our local mountain. At an elevation of 419 m, this was no ordinary stroll.

Mount Finlayson.

At some points the trail disappears and you're just walking up rock. While we were initially fazed by some off the drop-offs beside us, you could spot regular mountain-hikers, bouncing up and down the hill like it was nothing.

Our adventurer takes stock of his surroundings.

Cam navigates the trail.

Near the top.

Almost there . . .

At the summit!

Upon reaching the top, we discovered many other hikers lounging around and taking in the Sun. We joined them in taking a break and munched down on some crackers and grapes.

View from the top.

It was a fun morning and only about two-and-a-half hours up and down. Another successful adventure, and one we imagine we'll repeat a few times over the course of the summer.

Kite-Boarders

We shot these pictures while walking around Dallas Road last Sunday. We don't know when, or if, we'll ever get to try this, but it looks like crazy fun.

Three times the fun.

Flying solo.

China Beach

A couple of Sundays ago the Sun finally came out. We thought we would drive out to the Juan de Fuca Trail and scope out China Beach. We were expecting a leisurely ten minute stroll from the Loon to the beach, but we were in for an adventure!

Trail to the beach.

Winter storms had laid waste to the trail, turning it into a maze of fallen trees. Brenda and Cam, undaunted by the obstacles in front of them, ventured through the jungle determined to reach the sea.

Brenda smiles in the face of danger.

After climbing through the wreckage at the start of the trail things got a little better. The trail was still pretty rough but posed no serious challenge.

Have we mentioned that the trees are big here?

We're almost there!

Unfortunatlely while we making our way through the bush the Sun went back into hiding. We should've known he couldn't last.

Sun! Where did you go?

Mussel Beach.

A closer look.

We searched for wildlife as we strolled along the beach. There wasn't much to find and the skies decided to rain on us, so we turned and headed for home.

A wall of fallen trees.

Big trees leave big roots.

We'll leave you with one more picture. It's not much of a picture, but those guys in the water are surfers, and we're going surfing this month and we're really excited about it!

Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze in the distance.