Up-Island Ho!

Brenda and I truly had an adventure last weekend. We had a rough plan when we left the apartment, but we didn't follow it too much. We ended up in some interesting places, including a deserted campground in the middle of nowhere, and we had a blast!

Welcome to Denman Island!

Our first destination was Denman Island. Denman is one of the Northern Gulf Islands and has a population just over a thousand. I don't think we saw a man on the island without a beard and the place definitely had a hippie vibe about it.

Vancouver Island from Denman.

The heart of the shopping district.

We spent the night at Fillongley Provincial Park on the shores of the Pacific. The park was donated to the province by George Beadnell, and George is buried on site.

Thanks for the park George!

George's magical pasture.

Brenda amongst the flowers.

I don't know if it was the salty ocean air, or some concoction of hippie dust, but there is something about the clearing in Fillongley that is very inspiring, almost spiritual. There was no one around, and it was extremely peaceful there.

Hornby Island from Denman.

In the morning we headed to Boyle Point Provincial Park for a quick hike. We also stopped in Denman village and picked up some cute gifts from the local craft store.

Brenda investigates Chrome Island.

Chrome Island.

An eagle flying off of . . . Eagle Rock.

Back on Van Isle, we continued north, heading through Campbell River and on up to Lake Schoen Provincial Park. The last 13 km into the park was a deserted, pothole-marked road, and the rain pouring down on us made it all feel quite lonesome and eerie. We were not alone though, we spotted deer and had our first elk-sighting on route to the lake.

We discovered the campground to be devoid of human life, but there were plenty of signs of recent animal activity. I will spare you the pictures of droppings. Because of the rain, and our still modest outdoor skills, we decided to camp in the car for the night (it was also prettty chilly to be outside).

Cozy life in the Loon.

It was pretty awesome being on a lake in the woods and knowing you had the place to yourself. Even just watching a raven fly over the water presented a sense of grandeur. It would have been nice to stay longer, but Brenda was a little freaked out that we were so isolated and we left just as the Sun was beginning to fight its way through the cloud cover.

Where'd everybody go?

Car camping by the lake.

Life is good.

On the road back out to the highway we spotted three foxes as well as the first chipmunk we've seen on the Island. There were also some strange sights, such as a pipe graveyard and old constuction equipment hiding in the bush.

Croman Lake.

Where pipes go to die.

It was a bit of a relief to be back on the highway and have some solid pavement under us. We drove back to Campbell River and explored the town for a bit. It is a really nice town and they've done a good job of keeping most of the oceanfront as public lands and parks. Elk Falls Provincial Park is also just outside of town and that was our next destination.

Elk Falls.

Dam pipes.

The little running man makes this sign awesome.

Campbell River's Big Rock.

Heading south down highway 19 our adventure was mostly over. We took in a leisurely game of mini-golf in Parksville and had an easy drive home. The golf game was highlighted by my recording of not only two hole-in-ones for myslef, but also knocking in one of Brenda's wayward tee shots to hand her a hole-in-one. It was a jam-packed weekend and a great way to cram a bunch of exploration in before we head back to Ontario in a couple of weeks.

Brenda sizes up the pirate ship hole.

Cam wins!