Tofino and Ucluelet, BC

Yvonne on a cliffside trail in Ucluelet.

I took a spring trip to the west coast of Vancouver Island with my friend Yvonne Maximchuk. It was partly for work with lots of time for play.

Yvonne is an author and artist. She needed to drive to several galleries to pick up paintings that were on display and take them to the Filberg Lodge in Comox for a show on Mother's Day weekend.

We stopped in Port Alberni and purchased lunch makings to use for hikes and beach visits.

Our first stop was Long Beach in the Pacific Rim National Park. It wasn't a sunny day, but still the long hard packed sandy beach was beautiful.

Long Beach in the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.

We were surprised to see hundreds of thousands stranded Velella Velellas (By-the-Wind-Sailors). Some were fresh and others had already reduced to their chitonous structure.

A stranded Velella Velella.

Marina view from the dockside pub,

We spent two nights in Tofino at the Tofino Resort and Marina. It's totally remodeled and has a wonderful restaurant and pub down by the marina. I enjoyed the view of floating homes across the bay.

We had a queen suite with two separate rooms, one with a comfortable sofa bed. The large deck was where we spent our evenings with glasses of wine and snacks before and after dinner.


The second day we went to Ucluelet to a gallery to pick up paintings. While there, we walked a portion of the Wild Pacific Trail. There were magnificent views of the rugged coastline.

A trip to Tofino wouldn't be complete without a visit to Chesterman Beach to watch cold water west coast surfers.

Here I am at Chesterman Beach on a misty day.

The trip ended in Courtenay so I could help Yvonne set up for her art show and sale at the Filberg Lodge in Comox the next day.

The historic lodge made their wall available to display her art for visitors throughout the weekend. The lodge was the home of Robert and Florence Filberg. Robert was Superintendent of the Comox Logging and Railway Company and the home is beautifully positioned on the bay.

Yvonne with a painting at the Filberg Lodge.

Here's Yvonne with one of her paintings inside the magnificent lodge.

Outdoors there are gorgeous gardens with lots of flowers, shrubs and trees. The grounds and lodge are open to the public and very popular with locals and visitors alike.

Come visit Vancouver Island and be sure to put Comox, Ucluelet and Tofino on your travel list.

You can learn more about Yvonne, her books and art at her website. She's also on Facebook. -- Margy