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Nelson
Monday, 30 June 2008
Another day, another city in Britsh Columbia. For the past few days that city has been the fantastic little place of Nelson in the Columbia Mountains. It truly is an amazing place to visit, the city is on the west arm of the massive Kootenay Lake system surrounded by wooded hills with just the faint glimpse of the larger mountain ranges away in the distance. There is a park and a beach alongside the lake and the main street has been preserved so is one of the few places I have visited in Canada to actually appear old.
The hostel is of a high quality too, there is a no shoe policy to keep the floors and rugs clean, and the place looks more like a pretty high standard of hotel than a hostel. The only main difference to a hotel is that instead of single rooms the rooms are predominately dorms. I am getting used to the dorm rooms now, although on the first night I was here the person in the bunk below was snoring so loudly even the ear plugs were useless. I was very relieved when he checked out the next morning!
Despite the high standard of the hostel, I was slightly concerned by the apparent lack of people arund, however my concerns were soon washed away as I got talking to some of the other guests and that of course turned into drinking with the other guests. There are some decent bars in Nelson! Nothing beats sitting in the warm evening sun having a drink on a pub patio.
I even managed a bit of hiking in the area, although this did involve taking a bus to the nearby Kokanee Creek Provincial Park at an early hour on Saturday morning. A glacier fed creek crashes down the valley with its crystal clear freezing cold water splashing and frothing like no river you have ever seen. There were also forest hikes and a busy beach on the lake. It was a nice day in soaring temperatures, but the only downside is that the Canadian mosquito has a very strong appetite for humans. I am not sure I have ever been this bitten in my life! At least there is no Malaria here....
A good time in the scorching sun has been had in Nelson - each day has been around or above 30C, but as usual its time to move on again, this time to Shuswap Lake and the interesting HI-Shuswap, a hostel made out of old railway cabooses. It should be fun, especially as I will be there for Canada day. I'll keep you posted!
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Penticton
Friday, 27 June 2008
So, another week another city! This time it was the town of Penticton in the Okanagan Valley east of Vancouver in British Columbia. The journey to get there was pretty surreal, it started in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, I took a bus from the hostel to the Ferry Port, caught the ferry to North Vancouver, bus to downtown Vancouver, the Sky Train to the main Bus and Train station and then two Greyhound buses to reach Penticton. The whole journey took around 13 hours. By the time I got in I just grabbed a shower and hit the very comfortable mattress!
Penticton is in an area of British Columbia that is very different from the rest of Canada, it is the only area of the country to be semi-arid, i.e. desert like. This means the vegetation is very different, and the whole area, despite having a large lake in the middle appears very dry. It also means the area is famous in Canada for its fruit harvest and wineries (of which there are many). Exploring downtown and the lakefront beaches didn't take too long, but the area was pleasant and the old steamship restored on the lake front an interesting diversion. There was also a disused railway line heading out of the town in different directions that made for a decent hike in very warm sunshine. There was no shade on the path so by the time I got back to the Hostel I was glad to be out of the sun.
The hostel also had a decent patio area which was good for hanging about in and chatting to the other residents. I even met some people who had been in Tofino with me on the third night, I think the number of people travelling in West Canada can't actually be too many! My final night in Penticton was spent on the patio helping to celebrate the going away of one of the more long term residents who was going back to Australia the next day, a good as an excuse for a few beers as any!
Other than these events though my time in Penticton was spent relaxing and enjoying the slightly warmer inland climate. The trip from there to my next destination of Nelson in the Kootenays was slightly shorter, a mere 6 and a half hours on the Greyhound buses! Would have been slightly better had I not taken a 5 minute extra detour when I turned the wrong way out of the bus station! Hostel seems nice, but very quiet. I'll check out the town tomorrow and see how it goes.
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Tofino
Sunday, 22 June 2008
Tofino. Where do I begin? It all started when people in Vancouver and Nanaimo said that if I have made it as far as Vancouver Island I have to head West to Tofino. One quick 'phone call later and I had a bed for three nights in a dorm. It was to be the first time I broke my dorm cherry so to speak so I was a little nervous, but as it turns out, in a hostel you spend very little time in your room so as a dorm is much cheaper its time I made the switch!
The bus ride over the island took in more fantastic mountain vistas and then on the West side these were mixed with huge lakes. As we neared Tofino these all turned into coastline and mountains - the hostel is positioned at the end of a peninsula on the beautiful Clayoquot Sound. The view from the dining and lounge areas looks out over part of the harbour and onto mountains beyond. Instantly I knew I was in a special area of Canada.
The location seemed to go a long way to relaxing all the travellers and within seconds of stepping off the bus I was meeting some fantastic people and having a brilliant time. It helped that some of these fantastic people were all amazing Swiss girls, most of which had been in Canada doing English language courses. This all meant that their English was far better than mine!
Events in Tofino included a hot spring which was accessible via an hour long boat ride and half hour boardwalk hike through temperate rainforest. On the boat trip there we managed to see a Grey Whale's blowhole spout but didn't get to see it surface, but on the way back a Grey Whale went one better and surfaced to dive sending its tail into the air before disappearing beneath the waves. The hot spring was amazing too, lying in 47C water and yet still being in the rain was an interesting experience. The sulphur and heat made for a dizzying, but therapeutic time. This was followed by kayaking in the Sound to more rainforested islands the next day - I think I now have become a bit of a kayak convert.
For the evenings the hostel was a good place to relax and have a few drinks with other travellers, but on the Wednesday as it had been a warm day and was a fantastic evening a load of us headed to the nearby beach. The group initially had English, Swiss, German and Italians all having a great time hanging out and playing Frisbee. This is how the European Union should work! As the evening drew in and it got a bit colder I took it upon myself to get a fire started. There were some problems however, the wood was a bit damp from the previous days rain, and the only materials to start the fire were maps of Tofino and twigs. The initial attempts were less than successful but rather than listen to the howls of derision from around just spurred me on to get it going. More Tofino maps were donated by some other hostelers that had appeared on the beach and the fire was cleared and started (yet) again. This time I just kept feeding paper and adding wood slowly and I managed to get some embers. Ignoring the derision again one of the local brave Canadians appeared. By brave read very drunk and pretty stoned. Some wood was brought over and he proceeded to use his axe to make more kindling - this was done by holding the wood in one hand and bringing down the axe with the other, scary. Thanks to his help and the help of some more German guys who rounded up more wood (I have no idea where from!) we eventually had a great fire and an excellent evening. The next morning when I came for breakfast I had acquired the name of "Fire Man!"
I was enjoying myself so much that I extended my stay by two more nights, but the next day was wet so after a day of slobbing about and a quick stroll back to the beach in the rain more drinking ensued with the evening ending in the local pub - think loud dancy music and crazy locals! Craving exercise I went kayaking again the next day but then had a late, but chilled out final night on the beach again.
That brought me to the realisation that nothing good lasts forever so this morning I caught the bus back to Nanaimo with one of the Swiss girls I had met who was heading back to Vancouver. It was nice to have some company on the bus, but I was sad to leave the amazing people I met in Tofino and Nicole when she left for the ferry to the mainland.
Tomorrow the plan is to get the morning ferry to Vancouver and get the bus inland to Penticton in the Okanagan valley. There my hosteling adventures continue, but they will have to go a long way to top the experiences I had in Tofino.
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Nanaimo
Monday, 16 June 2008
A shorter visit this time. I have been in the port town of Nanaimo on the Eastern side of Vancouver Island for three nights. To get to the town it was a bus journey from Vancouver and then a ferry crossing for about 95 minutes from Horseshoe Bay in North Vancouver to Departure Bay just north of Nanaimo. Sadly I missed a ferry by about 15 minutes which meant a wait of over an hour for the next, but one thing I have gained from travelling is never to be in a hurry so I merrily relaxed in the departure lounge waiting for the ship to come back in. Its a real adventure when to get to your next hostel you have to take a ship!
Arriving at the hostel I was pleasantly surprised to see it was more like a hotel, with a well stocked kitchen area, clean rooms and modern furnishings. The hostel is located in the centre of downtown and just one block from the harbour, after busy and homeless ridden Vancouver it was lovely to come to a sleepy harbour town. Although the younger population do still enjoy a good weekend out, as I discovered when I ended up drinking with one of the hostel workers, her husband and some of their friends on the Saturday night - pubs in Vancouver Island seemed very English but only with a less threatening atmosphere. A good night!
The town itself is a really nice place to visit, many millions of Canadian dollars have been spent recently on improving the centre of downtown. A big screen for sporting events has been built which had one European on Saturday morning stood by himself watching Spain beat Sweden. Had it been Ice Hockey there would have been lots more people! The harbour has park areas and lots of walks along the seawall. Newcastle Island is a small island accessible via a 10 minute ferry ride, there are no cars on the island and lots of walks and campsites are available. Also as the sun has been out and temperatures have risen its been a really fantastic couple of days.
Its a fairly small place though so as I am on Vancouver Island I have taken the chance to do a bit more exploring and I go to Tofino on the Bus tomorrow. Tofino is on the Western side of the Island on the Pacific coast approximately four hours away. The area is famous for being windswept and beautiful so I couldn't miss out on the opportunity to go. That said I will miss sleepy Nanaimo and the fun people I met along the way, I'll be back here on Thursday night though to catch the 8:30am ferry back to the mainland on Friday morning. No lie in for me that day!
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Vancouver
Friday, 13 June 2008
Final night in Vancouver. Time to update the blog as its been a while. Vancouver is an interesting city. Firstly the good points, its a clean city with excellent and cheap public transport. Stanley Park is amazing and its so easy to walk around the coast from the hostel to the Park. The bridges around the city look fantastic and there are loads of bars and restaurants which sell me alcohol. The city truly lives up to its tag as the city within a park.
The gay area is marked out with pink bus stops and garbage bins (it is where the Safeway superstore is in case you are wondering why I would go to such an area!). Granville island is a little area in the false creek which you can get to via the Aquabus from downtown which is really good fun. The 2010 Winter Olympics are coming so the city is already getting ready and lots of new developments are springing up giving the city a modern edge. All this is framed by sea and mountains creating a dramatic skyline. It was strange looking west onto the Pacific Ocean and face Japan and China.
As I haven't been on a tour group for the past week its been weird having to go back to organising things for myself again! Have been busy though, watched a lot of Euro 2008 Football! I've also walked around downtown far too many times and hiked in Lynn Canyon and Grouse Mountain today. Grouse Mountain has a cable car to its 4100 foot summit, but it also has a trail called the Grouse Grind which is a series of steps in the side of the mountain to the top. The average time to the top is about 90 minutes but I was pleased to do it in about 65. I am absolutely shattered from the climb, the summit still had about three feet of snow on the top. Definitely worth it even though the view was lost in the low cloud. The hiking was great as it meant getting out of the city for the afternoon and into the wilderness. The best part was this was just a half hour ferry and bus ride away!
But for all the splendor of Vancouver there are several downsides. The hostel is in a good central location but on a pretty rough street above and surrounded by bars. This can make it noisy and prone to people getting in from the street. There has been a succession of thefts from rooms which makes you constantly feel uneasy about important documents. Thankfully I haven't had any problems. The kitchen was also inadequate, two microwaves do not make cooking easy! The street outside is also close to prostitution and drug addicts and the whole city is overwhelmed with homeless. I have been shocked with just how many homeless people there are. Vancouver has the poorest neighbourhood in Canada and due to its milder climate attracts them in their thousands. Although they aren't particularly threatening they do give the city a slightly menacing edge. It is a serious problem when the world is coming to the city for the Olympics in 18 months time.
Overall though I have enjoyed my time in Vancouver and have met some cool people but I am ready to move on again and tomorrow I head to Naniamo on Vancouver Island for another hostel. I'll let you know how I get on!
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The Rockies and the Rocky Mountaineer
Saturday, 7 June 2008
I have made it to the West side of Canada, the furthest I have ever been from the UK! A quick recap on how I got here though. I started back in the Rockies in Jasper - a very nice mountain village. Sadly I only had a short time there due to late trains and busy schedule, I am glad I go back in July. From Jasper we drove down a stretch of road called the Icefields Parkway. This traverses some of the most fantastic scenery in the world to Banff. On the way I saw glaciers, mountains and wildlife including a bear and lots of mountain sheep! It was pretty amazing and stopping at the Athabasca Glacier and seeing how much its retreated in recent years was fascinating. Lake Louise was also stunning, but due to time restraints our visit was sadly short.
At Banff we got a very nice hotel as our base for the next days hiking. The morning was spent hiking up Tunnel Mountain and the afternoon I went around Tunnel Mountain. There are so many more hikes to do in the area though so I am looking forward to coming back and I also booked a couple of nights in the hostel there for after my next trip.
From Banff we caught the Rocky Mountaineer train to Vancouver. The trip took two days with a stop in a place called Kamloops halfway. Thanks to usual lateness of Canadian Trains we got in very late on the first night so the stay was shortlived and brief. This was also the first time the Explore group split with half upgrading to Gold Leaf for the train and hotel. Needless to say I stayed in Red Leaf which although cheaper, was just as much of an experience. Although this might be because the carriage was quiet so we all got double seats!
Tired from the travelling I finally arrived in Vancouver the other day where after a couple more nights in relative luxury with the Explore group we parted with me heading to my hostel. Vancouver seems a lot different after being in the mountains and first impressions of the staggering amount of homeless and sex industry close to the hostel painted a bad picture. However, I am here for a week so hopefully these initial impressions will have faded by the time I leave next week. I'll let you know!
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Toronto & The Canadian
Sunday, 1 June 2008
Been a while since I last had internet access! The past three days have been spent on the Canadian, the train that links Toronto with Vancouver. Currently I am in Jasper in the Rockies before doing some mountain exploring and picking up the Rocky Mountaineer train to Vancouver.
The trip started back in Toronto where I spent three nights with my Explore group. Toronto is the biggest city in Canada and has more in common with New York than the European feeling Montreal. Whilst clean as any other place in Canada, it isn't a place I'd recommend unless you particularly like cities. Toronto Island Park is formed from a group of small island accessible via a short ferry trip from the mainland and was much nicer offering views of the cityscape and CN Tower but with no traffic. I spent a day in the sun roaming its sleepy beach side walks and harbours. The houses were fantastic and were the only place in Toronto I'd live! I didn't make it up the CN Tower by the way (very expensive!).
After the three nights I went with my Explore group to catch the VIA Rail Canadian Train to Jasper in the Rockies. Thanks to Explore we were travelling in Silver and Blue Class (i.e. First!). This meant we got a sleeper birth which was comfy if noisy, access to three skycars with panoramic views and some of the best food I have ever eaten in my life! The journey to Jasper took two nights and crossed lakes in Ontario to the flat prairies and into the Rockies. On the way I saw some fantastic scenery, a thunderstorm on the plains and a fantastic sight of fog and mist at 3:40 am in the prairies. Two nights sleeping on a train was pretty hard work if novel and now I am in the Rockies ready to explore some mountains for the first time on my tour.
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