Pacific North West Tour 1994

This is Tiffa’s day to day account of a family trip through the Pacific North West in the spring of 1994 with five Meadows and a Peach! The Peach came along in the form of Andrea who had just recently been widowed.

Her husband, Leigh, was a dear friend to all of us and we all hoped that inviting Andrea to come with us would help her through the first difficult months.

Wednesday April 27th

Depart London on UA 933 at 10.25 am; arrive Seattle at 12:00 noon.
Pick up Ford Aerostar 7-passenger van (Hertz).
From Seattle take I-3 to La Conner, then Highway 11 (Chuckanut Drive).
7 pm ferry to Lummi Island. Staying at Loganita, #206-758-2651. Confirmed with Gina
Carriage House @ $205 (Queen and two singles); Blue room @ $135 (King).

Left home at 7.00 am. Rainy and misty morning. Gerry came in the Quantel van. Picked up Georgia at work so she could leave the car in their car- park. No queues at Heathrow and it was a very easy check-in. The journey was 9 hours long, in economy class, and although it was no problem, it was a tight fit in the seats!

Arrived in Seattle at 12:00 noon local time and picked up a terrific 7-seater van in light metallic blue. Tom drove, with his dad beside him map reading. Lovely sunny afternoon ahead of us. Horses grazing in the fields with their new foals by their sides and cows with their baby calves. Lots of sunlit water and tall spruce and larches bordering the roadside.

Took Route 99 through Seattle along the harbour – over the Aurora Bridge through Fremont. We took a detour down to North 36th street under the bridge to see the TROLL which was a huge surprise. A mass of sculptured concrete against the embankment under the freeway bridge. I was amazed because it was so totally unexpected. The troll was created back in 1990 by four Seattle artists. He has one shiny hubcap eye and in his left hand is a crushed Volkswagen beetle!

We caught the ferry at Mulkiteo, to Clinton on Whidby Island. Just a ten minute ferry costing $14.00. We had wizzes and cokes in that order which was a bit daft if you think about it! It was a large ferry with lorries on it and was all very efficient. Rather makes our Cross Channel Ferries look rather ponderous as far as loading etc. was concerned. Detour through Langley with Georgie pointing out that we’d been to Langley once that morning already! Up the 525-20 over Deception Pass which was stunningly beautiful and with Lisa saying how lovely it was. Andrea and I feeling quite tired, but still able to appreciate everything, and looking forward to a meal at the Oyster Creek Inn on Chuckanut Drive.

We turned up past the Skagitt County Incinerator! to the restaurant and had a WONDERFUL meal. There were one or two other people in a room with large windows overlooking Oyster Creek, and a very nice waitress who looked after us. Lisa has to be weaned onto America and Americans. So far, so good! Most of us had delicious clam chowder, then crab and salmon fishcakes, or steak or seafood stew. And from the local Washington Vineyard we had a Fumée Blanc and a Reserve Cabernet. The whole thing cost $196.15 and well worth every penny (or cent) for the energy injection it gave us.

The meal perked us up after a very long day, but we were all looking forward to a bath and bed and even Lisa was beginning to flag. Georgia drove after supper – VERY well indeed – to where we were going to catch the Lummi Island ferry.

It’s a small ferry which only takes 5 minutes but we just missed one. While we waited for the next one we watched some local boys aged about 11 or 12 climbing the ferry transit platform and then diving from it. The sun was low in the sky by now and the boys were silhouetted against a darkening day. It was very spectacular. One boy took a good 15 minutes to pluck up courage, and with the crowd cheering him on he eventually jumped. Another boy just couldn’t do it and we all wondered how he felt. Initiation into manhood and all that? The brief ferry-ride cost us $8.00 and when we got to the other side we found our way to the Loganita Inn. It was a short drive but by now we were all so tired that it seemed much longer.

Our hosts at the Inn were Anne and Glynn who gave us a pretty overpowering welcome, but a very genuine one. Our room was lovely and known as the Blue Room because – it was extremely BLUE! The children were in the Carriage House which was equally beautiful. We took full advantage of the hot-tub and afterwards walked down to the beach via a large deck from where we watched a lovely sunset. The water was very calm and very warm and after a full day we went to bed where we all slept soundly.

Thursday April 28th

Drive to Whistler via Lummi Island and Vancouver.
Lunch at Horseshoe Bay.
Three nights in a condo at The Marquise, Blackcomb.

We all had a great sleep and walked down to the beach at about 7.15 am. Andrea and I walked up the road for some exercise and then met the others on the front deck with coffee made for us by Anne. Breakfast was scrambled eggs, strawberry cheese muffins and Danish pastries. Delicious. When we left Anne gave Jeff a travel book and a terrific send-off, saying, “Jeff, you’re so special. Let’s hug!” He never quite knows where to look in that sort of situation.

We caught the 10 am ferry and drove north to Vancouver, stopping off at a Factory Outlet Mall. Lisa was terrifically excited at the bargains and Andrea bought a very colourful pair of baseball boots in purple and blue. We had lunch at the Bayshore Inn on Horseshoe Bay, sitting outside in the hot sun.

Afterwards, Georgie drove us over the Sea-Sky Highway and up to the Marquise at Blackcomb. Andrea and Georgie had the loft area with Jeff and me in the Master Suite, and within a few minutes of getting in we all fell asleep.

When we woke up Jeff, Georgie and I went to the store and bought some steaks which we cooked in the apartment and went back to bed about 10 pm.

Friday April 29th

We all slept well waking to the sound of Tom making tea, at 7.00 am. Decisions for the day were made which of course was centred around skiing which was the reason we were there. Jeff and I had already decided we were not going to ski.

Lisa was in tears with nervousness as we went up the mountain and Andrea who skis terrifically well was busy calming her down. It was so quiet as we rode the chair-lift and we all had to laugh at Andrea’s conversation with Lisa while trying to keep her mind off her ski worry.

Andrea “I have this friend called Shallott –”
Others “No, what a funny name”
Andrea “Yes, isn’t it? She’s half –”
Lisa “Onion?”

Jeff and I felt a bit wimpish in our lace-up shoes while everyone else was bustling round organizing themselves with their skis. It was like being in the middle of a huge club that you don’t belong to.

So, having seen Lisa ski off like a pro, we took the lift back down and went into Whistler to do some grocery shopping and look at the shops.

When we came off the mountain we were jolly cold but the sun soon started getting hot and we sat in the square with a cup of coffee and a muffin each and decided to rent a couple of bikes for an hour.

Jeff put the shopping on the back of his bike to take back to the apartment before we were to set off properly, and by the time we got there we found the bike had worn one of the bags out! Somewhere we lost some potatoes and half a pound of butter. Having sorted all that out we rode our bikes to the rear of the Marquise and took off up the Lost Lake Trail.

It was a lovely ride – up and down gentle slopes on dirt track and tarmac riding paths. Lost Lake itself was very tranquil with no-one swimming but a lot of people sunbathing on a sort of sandy beach. Much nicer than skiing. They were really good mountain bikes although by the end of the one and a half hours it was my back that was aching more than anything else.

We dropped the bikes back and had lunch at “Joel’s”. Although we were sitting outside we were fortunately under cover as it started to rain . We had a very handsome waiter who’d spent 11 months in England – a couple of them renovating a house in Somerset. Jeff had a burger and I had BLT and afterwards wandered back to the room arriving back about 3.00 pm. Tom and Lisa were waving from the balcony with Tom dressed in a multi-coloured coat which he’d just bought. Georgia was in the shower, while Andrea was still up the mountain having, it transpired, a wonderful time. She did come down the mountain eventually as the mist came down.

We booked dinner at the Rim Rock Café – another of Jeff’s successes – for 7.30 and the afternoon was spent watching a video and sleeping while the rain came down.

A lovely, lovely meal in a full restaurant with our crowd saying what a lovely time they’re having. Georgia ordered ‘Death by Chocolate’ for pudding and it really looked the part. A triangle of thick muddy chocolate with a sliver of chocolate shaped like a dagger stuck in the top and a splattering of raspberry sauce all over the rest of the plate. Just wonderful. Georgia drove home in the pouring rain and we all to bed around 10.

Saturday April 30th

We had a drink at Chez Joel. Jeff and Tom got chatting with the waiter, James, and arranged to play golf with him the next day. A really nice chap. We had margueritas and nachos before going over the road to the Restaurant Alexi

(Italian) and had a lovely lunch with a bottle of Cloudy Bay. I wasn’t very hungry and had salmon chowder and carpaccio to follow. We got back to the Marquise around 3.00 and slumped. The plan for the evening was to eat in with Lisa cooking pasta.

At 5 o’clock Jeff, Georgia, Tom and Lisa were playing bridge, Andrea was sitting in the sunshine and I was writing the journal. Lisa’s pasta was excellent – very hot – and we had chocolate for pudding. Then bed.

We woke to low cloud and drizzle and I crept around making tea and writing up the journal. People were slowly waking up. Andrea and Jeff were talking business. Tom and Lisa left early for shopping and were very successful. When we next saw her she was wearing a coat similar to Tom’s but in different colours.

Andrea and I had an adventure. We went for a hike around Lost Lake and saw a bear across the lake on the beach. We had already met a jogger with a dog who warned us that he’d seen one on the track ahead and it was a bit of luck to actually see it. I was a bit worried we might meet it around the other side but Andrea really wanted to confront it!

We got back to find Jeff and Georgie still in the room so we all went down to Whistler Square and did some shopping. I bought a blouse and Georgie a hat.

Sunday May 1st

Awoke to sunshine and Tom watching the Grand Prix from Italy. Aayrton Senna has had an awful crash and in fact died 4 hours later. I find it very sad. Another man died too with another seriously injured, but somehow Senna’s death has reduced the impact of the other man’s death which is somehow wrong. One man’s death is no worse than another.

We went for breakfast to the Chateau Whistler and the plan was that Tom and Jeff were playing golf with James and a friend of his called Bobby. Andrea and Georgia will be skiing and Lisa and I are hiking as she wants to see a bear!

Well – Lisa and I walked a long, long way. I wore Tom’s new jacket, the sun was shining and it was lovely. We walked around Lost Lake and sat on the pontoon for a while watching the fly-fishermen casting into the water. Because it was Sunday there were quite a lot of people around, but no sign of a bear. We tracked around the same route that Jeff and I had cycled before but walked further down to Alta Lake and Lakeside Park. We worked out that we had walked 8 miles! We saw a man whittling canes and making the most beautiful chairs from them. Rather like those Adirondack chairs. We sat down by the lake in Lakeside Park and soaked our feet in the water. They soon got very cold as the lake is fed from the mountain streams.

We arrived home at about 2.20 pm and Andrea and Georgie turned up about 3.00 having had a terrific time. They’d lost each other for about an hour while each waited steadfastly at a wrong post. It’s significant that they were both most worried about what I’d say if they came home without the other one. Lisa, Andrea and I had a hot-tub and a swim. As we were coming out of the changing-rooms we almost bumped into a man coming down the short corridor in his little white Y-fronts. The poor chap was most embarrassed. He’d just come out at the wrong time.

The men turned up at about 4.00 pm having had a really good time although the course itself had been a disappointment. Both with brand new pairs of golf shoes, of course! On the advertisement for the Golf and Country Club it stated, “This is where dreams come true”. If only, said Tom! It turned out that Bobby was very well off having made his fortune as a map-maker. He was 37 and had several homes around the world.

We slumped for the rest of the afternoon until our 7.00 booking at the Rim Rock Café. It had been so good the last time that we’d found it irresistible and decided we had to go again. We had a really good evening at the restaurant with every one feeling very ‘up’ about the holiday. I had six Oysters Rushkin – that’s with caviar and yoghurt – Caesar Salad and then prawn and scallops with wild rice. Jeff and Tom had steak which was apparently delicious. Dear old Georgie drove again, so didn’t drink. Her eyes are hurting her a lot as she skied without her goggles because she didn’t want to get ‘panda eyes’. On the way home she said “when we get back to the Chateau”. I think she’s got ideas above her station as to where we’re staying.

When we got back. Andrea finished listening to her tape of ‘The Shell Seekers’ while the other four played what sounded ike a very energetic game of bridge. Andrea is coping well so far, but can be found staring into the distance at times and needs to have a chat with Georgie and Lisa. Leigh is very much in all our thoughts and I hope it’s a comfort for her that we all knew him so well and can share memories with her.

Monday May 2nd

Drive to Lund via Horseshoe Bay ferry 11.30 am arrive Langdale 12.10 pm.
Lunch at Garden Bay Hotel.
Ferry from Earls Cove 4.30 pm to Saltery Bay 5.20 pm,
Dinner at the Shinglemill, Powell Lake.
The Lund Hotel. Three rooms @ $57.50 each.

We awoke earlyish and eventually found some breakfast after trying three places. It was called Pete’s Underground Restaurant and was in Whistler Village. The food was excellent with Tom having French bread and an egg and bacon and toast plate. We had a smashing waiter with a gorgeous smile. Lisa is still so impressed with all the friendliness being shown.

We left for Horseshoe Bay in heavy rain with low clouds. A lot of fresh snow had fallen and the tree-tops were bent very low. But by the time we’d got half-way down the canyon and stopped at a viewing point, the sun was shining. We had a group photograph by the van and arrived in time to catch the 11.30 ferry.

Having left Garden Bay we headed for the ferry to Saltery Cove. We arrived at 2.45 for a 4.30 sailing but although we were early we stayed put and read and slept in the hot sunshine.

Georgie’s eyes are still hurting her, although she seems to be able to read her Jilly Cooper book and hasn’t had her head out of it for two days! Another lovely ferry ride of 50 minutes with about an hour and half drive ahead.

We were due to stay at the Lund Hotel at the end of the road, which we knew was going to be a bit down market. So, we stopped off at Shinglemill to check out the food as we didn’t know what lay ahead of us at Lund. Fortunately, we made the right decision, because we decided to drive on to the Lund. Our hearts were a bit down when we saw the place but it turned out to be great fun. Our rooms were very basic and brown with two doubles in each room overlooking the harbour.

We decided to eat in the hotel restaurant which was really terrific. The sun was setting outside the windows and Joe Fifield, who had owned the franchise for three years, was lovely. I nearly ordered the fish and chips but someone on the next table had ordered it and it was enormous. Three huge pieces piled high on chips. So we had a seafood medley between us (I always imagine the prawns are going to get up and sing!) and I had a bowl of pasta. The under waiter was a very doddery young man who was a bit thick, and the service took a long time but it didn’t matter and having finished with coffee, sambucas and a sort of Baked Alaska we went to bed. I did not sleep well!

Tuesday May 3rd

Ferry from Powell River (9.15am) to Little River (10.30am).
Ferry from Buckley Bay (12.00am) to Denman Island, on to Hornby Island (12.35pm) and return to Buckley Bay (5.00pm).
Dinner at The Judge’s Manor, Parksville.
Beach Acres Resort Hotel, Parksville. Two bedroomed condo @ $135.

We awoke to the lovely sound of seagulls and the glint of sun on water. We had toast and coffee for breakfast but it was all a bit of a rush ‘cos we suddenly realized that the ferry from Powell River went at 9.15, in one hours time. Tom is amazingly more panicked about this sort of thing than I am – but had due cause this time because we were the last ones on the boat.

The crossing was one and a half hours and we were on the look-out for seals and whales. We did see some seals but no whales. It was a lovely sunny crossing and as we were approaching land we were aware of a low flying plane dropping parachutists out by the dozen!

Having spent a lovely half hour writing up this journal in the sunshine we caught the ferry to Denman Island. We all had delicious chocolate chip ice creams on a stick. Lisa bought a Zoom lollipop, but she only likes the blue colour on the bottom!

By the time we got to Hornby Island Georgia was feeling a bit better. She’d had a bit of a tummy upset, and she decided to stay in the car where she slept for two hours while we went for the most lovely walk that I’ve ever been on. It started off along a soft pine-clad forest track which opened out onto a cliff meadow with springy turf and it was full of alpine flowers and wild orchids.

Out in the Georgia Straits were seals, cormorants and gulls. We could hear the bull seals rutting out on the rocks. A ghostly sound – quite haunting. The rocks were interesting. Like large pebbles welded together presumably with volcanic lava.

There were quite a few people around, in particular lots of children from school parties who seemed to be getting awfully close to the edge of the cliff.

We managed to get down to the shoreline where we found huge, brilliantly coloured starfish – pink, purple, beige orange and all the colours in between. Andrea picked them up and decided she likes “all things marine!”

At this point it was all very quiet, with driftwood everywhere, no manmade litter and by the landing there were millions of jellyfish. Georgia was still fast asleep when we got back from our wonderful walk.

We were now very tired, and raced to catch the ferries back to the mainland. We found too that we were a bit fed up of being in the space wagon.

By 6.30 pm we arrived at the Beach Acres Resort at Parksville which the kind of resort where the accommodation was all in separate cabins. Although it was on the water it was a bit run down. Jeff’s first reaction was disappointment and he was saying how much better we could do. He was particularly put off by the fact that the main house was built in a mock Tudor style as were all the cabins which really looked a bit daft. The rooms were a bit poky and brown but we really didn’t want to drive any further.

We were due to eat in the Judge’s Manor but discovered it had closed! So we ate on site in the McClure Restaurant which was very good. Four bottles of wine good!

Wednesday May 4th

Drive to Port Alberni and on to Ucluelet/Tofino.
Stay at Chesterman’s Beach Bed and Breakfast. Confirmed with Joan.
On to Hornby Island (12.35pm) and return to Buckley Bay (5.00pm).
Ocean Breeze Suite @ $150 (Double & two twins)
Garden Cottage @ $95 for two nights.

We awoke early and had a huge breakfast at Smithys with a very sweet waitress serving us. After we left there we set off across the island stopping at Cathedral Grove, a preservation of huge trees. It looked like a petrified forest except that it was very much alive. It was very quiet and rather awe- inspiring with beautifully naturally kept paths which led us through this “Cathedral” of trees.

We drove for the next 100 miles through huge tracts of forest with rivers and streams tumbling over smooth boulders. We got out of the car several times and stood by the water which appeared very green, but very clear and terribly cold. Periodically, there were big notice boards giving us information about the state of the planting of the trees, such as “harvested”, “re-planted” or “future harvesting”.

We stopped at Wickaninnish Inn for lunch at 2.00 pm. As we got nearer we were confronted by a wonderful stretch of beach which curved around in a beautiful crescent shape with softly lapping waves licking at the edge and despite lots of high school children making a lot of noise, it was lovely. After a wonderful lunch we had a walk onto the rocks where there were lots more colourful starfish and some huge crabs. And oddly there were lots of bear warnings around!

Then it was on to Chesterman’s Beach. WOW! We met our landlady Joan and she showed us all round. Andrea, Georgia, Jeff and I on the ground floor of the main house. Tom and Lisa in the garden cottage.

And then there’s the beach! It was absolutely spectacular and even Jeff said that it’s one of the most beautifully quiet places he’s ever been to.

Off to the right hand side of the beach was Frank Island which had two cabins built on it. It’s a privately owned island which is cut off twice a day by the tides. The rocks were lovely to climb over and to explore.

Jeff and Georgia went shopping for supper to cook back at the house as we had done so much driving already and it was so beautiful where we were, it seemed daft to go anywhere else. They bought two large spring salmon which I stuffed with herbs and onions and we had baked potatoes and Caesar Salad.

We made a fire on the beach and afterwards sat around finishing the wine and chatting with Joan. The sun had been shining all day and it was only when it went down that it became cold. We all slept very well that night despite the lighthouse beacon sweeping across the darkness.

Thursday May 5th

We awoke to the sound of the sea and foghorns! There was such a thick fog that everything was muffled and rather haunting. We had breakfast inside the cabin. Jean provided muffins, melon and orange segments and we toasted bagels.
To Georgie at breakfast: “How did you sleep?”; Georgie: “Like a lighthouse”.

After breakfast we walked over to Frank Island where Tom and Lisa collected mussels for lunch. Andrea, Jeff and I looked over the cabins but decided perhaps it wasn’t going to be a good idea to rent one because they were slightly spooky and it would be an awful drag carting things over there when the tide allows. We looked over to where Andrea, Tom and Lisa were clambering on a far away rock when a sudden wave rolled in and washed over them. Their faces were all lifted towards me in a frozen moment before it released them.

Jeff had realized at breakfast that we were a bit short of cash, so he and Georgie went off for the bank and some shopping. We sat on the beach while we were waiting for them, even though it was still a bit foggy with odd patches of blue sky beginning to show. Lisa cleaned the mussels which was beyond the call of duty considering she’d been the one collecting them, and Tom brought us out some wine and crisps. It actually took Lisa 3 hours on and off to clean them!

Consequently we had lunch around 3.00 pm and the mussels were gorgeous with a whole soup of white wine and onion.

After lunch, when the sun had cleared some of the mist off the beach, various parties went walking. Tom and Lisa set off to the left, where the fog hadn’t been so quick to clear, with Tom going first dragging a stick in the sand behind him and Lisa, who tends to linger more, following faithfully the mark he’d made for her to follow.

She looked rather drunk as she meandered first this way and then that following his deliberately erratic course!

Andrea had already left and Jeff and I followed leaving Georgia reading indoors. We found a small meadow on the top of the rocks which was smothered in wild strawberries and Jeff tucked himself down and had a sleep. Andrea and I started back and over the last rocks met a couple picking mussels. He was dressed in blue dungarees, a matching shirt with a very colourful tie, a cap and small national health style spectacles. They told us they were picking them for their supper (the mussels that is). After we’d explained how we’d had them for lunch and went into details of their preparation, we discovered they were mussel farmers from Salt Spring Island and all they did was to throw them in a pot – byssal threads and all! When we told Lisa she was jolly upset but it put paid to any doubts we might have had about getting poorly. Anything that well cleaned had no chance.

Just above the couple a nude man was sunbathing on the rocks. Mr Cap-Man, noticed this and said he’d like to share with us a favourite line of his wife’s. Andrea and I both thought he was going to wade into the majesty of this and the bounteousness of that but what he came out with was “it looks like a penis only smaller”!

When we got back we dropped off our shoes as it was getting hot. Andrea and I set off in the now very hot sun to walk around to the other end of the beach. I only got halfway round but Andrea walked the whole way and said there were both very large and very small properties all along the coastline.

The first thing I saw when I got back were Jeff’s very wet trousers and shoes drying in the sun. It turned out he thought he’d paddle around the headland but the water had suddenly come up to his waist whereupon Tom and Lisa returned wet through as well having had the same thing happen to them.

We lit a fire again that evening and cooked red snapper fillets which Tom had prepared. Absolutely delicious. Joan spent some time around the fire talking about conservation around the area. She mentioned a woman on a neighbouring island who held a huge party once a year, which sounded more like an extravaganza than anything else. If we ever went back it would be good to time it right to be able to experience it. The others played bridge until 1.00 am, but Andrea and I went to bed.

Friday May 6th

Drive to Nanaimo. Lunch at Zeta’s Café.
Ferry from Crofton (3.30 pm) to Vesuvias Bay, Salt Spring Island (3.50pm).
Dinner at Hastings House, Ganges.
Staying at Cottage Resort, Salt Spring.
Three bedroom cottage (Queen, double and two twins) @ $125 per night for two nights.

With great sadness on a beautifully sunny day we left Chesterman’s Beach at 10.30 am.

We were on our way to Salt Spring Island and the journey took most of the day. We did get a bit fed up driving because of the lovely weather – there was not a breath of wind.

We caught the 3.30 ferry over and just a short way on the island we stopped off at the bunjy-jumping bridge which was rather horrid. A young chap did a jump who obviously really didn’t want to. As he fell off the platform he let out an awful yell which was not a happy one.

We arrived at the Cottage Resort at 4 in the afternoon. It seemed a very nice cabin at first with three small bedrooms and a very beautiful deck with a table and chairs on it and overlooking a lake. But on closer inspection it was a bit tacky. The shower curtain was rather manky and the notice over the sink in the kitchen said “Please leave the kitchen as you find it. Thanx. Gord and Pearl.” Which really summed it up.
We were booked into a very smart place called Hastings House at 7.00 pm. So we all got changed into our best which was jackets and ties for the boys, and pretty clothes for the girls, and after posing for our group photo which was taken to prove we could do it, we drove to the restaurant.

We had cocktails outside served and made by Alexander. We had daiquiris and margueritas although as he explained they weren’t really set up to make them. They were very strong.

We were called to the table by someone who looked just like Lady Penelope. She certainly needed some treatment for a stiff neck.

Although it was a delicious meal it was all very pompous. Lisa and I were in fits of laughter at the “lifting of the silver cloches” which was performed as simultaneously as possible by Lady Penelope and Alexander, although the very fact that there were two of them and six of us made it a horribly complicated affair. It was a $500 meal which we rather regretted for its over lavishness, but every holiday has to have one! The others played bridge until 1.00 am, but Andrea and I went to bed.

Saturday May 7th

We didn’t sleep well that night which was either the heavy meal the night before or the fact that the beds were awfully uncomfortable. But the weather was wonderful. Jeff, Tom, Lisa and I went into Ganges to do some shopping. Andrea and Georgia didn’t come as Andrea was expecting a friend called Chris to come by the cabin whom she’d known for a long time but who she hadn’t seen for many years. While we were shopping Lisa bought a very pretty rose-bud dress. We found a craft market but it was disappointing with home-made jewellery, dried flower pictures and everything looking so ‘crafty’ and ethnic that it really put us off. We even saw a dog in a hat who looked just like his master!

Arrived back to find Chris had been and gone and Andrea in a panic because she’d decided she didn’t particularly like him and he wanted to pick her up the next morning, take her into Victoria and deliver her back to Sooke Harbour House (where we were staying the next night) in the evening. Eventually she became really paranoid about it and it became a bit of a running joke.

Even though I wasn’t particularly hungry I was persuaded to go to lunch. It was such a sunny day it seemed such a waste. But we found lunch at the Vesuvius Inn. It had huge television screens on which families could play electronic games while they were having their lunch. Right up my street! There was a lovely view from the deck outside but inside was not so nice and I think we were all glad to get back.
We spent the afternoon in and around the boats, swimming in the lake and sunbathing, with the result that we all finished up with a tan. When we got back the others had a game of bridge.

We left for dinner at 7 pm. We were going to the Piccolo Restaurant via Mount Maxwell. There was a long dirt road on which we travelled for half an hour before reaching the summit. There were spectacular views over the Gulf Islands to the U.S.A.

We arrived at the sweetest little house which was the owned by a man and wife from Finland who’d been looking for somewhere on Salt Spring and who’d eventually found this little house. His name was Piccolo Lyytikainen! All done up with white walls and dusky blue trimmings, good lighting and lovely pictures. It was a delicious meal, better in taste and general ambience than the much more expensive Hastings House.

By now Andrea was most neurotic about Chris turning up – quite pink with worry – and when we got back to the rooms we found a note on the door with a telephone message from Chris saying that he’d contact her in the morning!

Sunday May 8th

Ferry from Fulford Harbour
9.30 am to Swartz Bay arr 10.05; drive to Sooke
Sooke Harbour House, Rooms 1 and 14 $275/$275+$50

Got away by 8.00 am much to Andrea’s relief who was now REALLY neurotic about Chris contacting her. We got to the ferry by 8.30 for a 9.30 departure. We didn’t expect to have any breakfast therefore Sod’s Law dictated that there was a terrific restaurant by the ferry owned by a Mexican called Rodriguo. It had formica top tables, Sting on the tape player and Phillip Sutton pictures on the walls. I just had scrambled eggs, but Andrea and Jeff had huge burritos. The view was lovely overlooking the water and ferry-landing. The meal was quite a long time coming but caught the ferry OK and because we were the first on we had the very best view right from the front of the boat. It was a lovely half hour ride.

On the way to Sooke we decide to have a quick stop off at Butchardt Gardens which turned out to be hilarious. Because it was Mothering Sunday it was packed. We likened it to Disney World, an image helped by the parking boys who all wore white gloves and who insisted we put the car to the nearest inch on their parking lines. The flower beds were beautiful and terrifically orderly. We all seemed to be very giggly which lasted all day – possibly this is what a breakfast burrito does for you! There was a gorgeous sunken garden with a gleaming fountain in the middle, a greenhouse that nobody was allowed to go into and a gift shop, of course. They even had a separate entrance for boats and sea planes!

I did buy a tape of nature sounds of the Canadian Wilderness as a relaxing tape for the plane journey home. We were the first ones to leave the Gardens where most people obviously spend the whole day.

We arrived at the Sooke Harbour House where we had lunch straight away as our rooms weren’t quite ready. It was a light lunch of salad between sheets of fried pasta which sounds funny but which was delicious. The food was decorated with fresh bluebell flowers and for dessert we had chocolate espresso torte. Our rooms were ready by then with Andrea, Georgie, Tom and Lisa in one very big one and Jeff and I in the smaller one. It was all very beautiful and ours was so bijou with lovely pictures. It had its own sitting room with a fireplace, a huge bed, a hot-tub on the deck and a great bathroom.

Guess who turned up at 3.00 pm to take Andrea for a hike along the East Sooke Coast Path! Chris. Andrea was beside herself, but Lisa and I said we’d love to go along too and poor Chris had to say how delighted he’d be if we joined them! Well, Lisa and I were in FITS of laughter and I have to say Chris was a real dear and very diplomatic. He was like a Storm Trooper, setting a very fast pace through forest, over rocks, roots of trees, on and on. Me stumbling along and even Lisa flagging at times. We were tired with laughing so much, I think, and with Chris and Andrea leading fast from the front and unable to see either our fallings over or our stupidity. At one point though I did rather save the day because Chris misread a sign-post and I was able to correct him and lead us on the right path. Lisa said she saw a seal and we didn’t believe her until we saw it come out of the sea and onto the rocks complete with long body and a face full of whiskers. Very exciting. Even Chris was impressed.

We got back at about 6.30 with the others rather worried as we’d been a very long time. We were exhausted I have to say, but a lot of this was to do with the giggling as well as the long hike. Chris left and we met to have drinks in our suite with everyone looking very fresh and smart. We went downstairs to a candlelit room, a roaring log fire and a delicious dinner. From the windows we could see the mountains in the distance across the water, looking rather ethereal as there was drifting fog around. Apparently Trident submarines often come up the straits in the evening looking rather like huge cruise ships. We slept well and awoke to sunshine.

Monday May 9th

Ferry from Sydney (12.00 noon) to Anacortes (3.10 approx)
Drive to Seattle via Whidbey Island and Clinton/Mukilteo ferry (every 30 mins)
Dinner at Saleh al Lago (jacket required)
Hyatt Regency, Bellevue. Two rooms @ $87.50 per night for two nights.

Andrea and Georgie joined Jeff and me for breakfast in our room. Tom and Lisa had theirs in their room. We had lovely crepes with rhubarb and cloudberry compote, and croissants and Danish pastries, all of which had been freshly made that morning. Excellent coffee too.

Afterwards Andrea, Jeff and I walked along the Whiffenspit, rather like a natural dock leading out into the water. It was windy and cool although lovely and sunny and we stopped to admire the Herb Garden for which Sooke Harbour House is famous.

We left at around 10.00 am to look at the Sooke pot-holes and an abandoned half-built Japanese Convention Centre. In order to get there we walked through an entrance which had very definite ‘private’ signs up, and along a dusty, dirt track running alongside a lovely river which tumbled through and around wonderful large boulders. When we came to the building we all gasped.

It was an enormous post and beam structure overlooking three deep pools of water each fed by a waterfall. Georgie eventually made it up the track but was terribly hot and had to sit down for a while. It was all rather ghostly and sad with dreams that had shattered and the feeling of money running out. Andrea, Lisa, Tom and Jeff climbed down through the rocks back to where we’d left the car, while I walked back with Georgie down the track. Before we got in the car we skimmed some stones in the water with Lisa and Tom beating the rest of us hands down.

We caught a big ferry off the island for the mainland which took about one and a half hours through terribly narrow channels. It felt as though you could touch the other islands we passed by they were so close. Andrea was not feeling too good today actually because she’d had too much port the evening before!

By the time we reached Seattle we were really fed up with driving. We decided to abandon our original dinner plans and eat at Ray’s Boathouse. Great fish and wonderful views across the water to the mountains beyond. Tom tried to order steak but the waiter told him to stick to fish as it was their speciality and go to Ruth’s Chris for his steak! The meal was really good and helped to revive us and we reached the Hyatt at about 9.00 pm. It was a good thing we did feel a bit stronger because we arrived at the same time as a coach load of Japanese students. All with identical suitcases and all called either Watanabe or Yamamoto. But we were eventually shown our predictably good, comfortable rooms where we had a good nights sleep with the help of a sleeping tablet.

Tuesday May 10th

As we seemed to have done so much driving yesterday we completely abandoned our planned itinerary in favour of a day without getting in the car. After we had all had breakfast together we split up for shopping in the nearby mall. We regrouped at mid-day after good shopping although Lisa hadn’t bought anything. Not that she was sad but Andrea and I said we’d go round again with her in the afternoon to help her find a little dress. We had lunch at a restaurant called Cochina-Cochina. It was terrific with lovely salads and breads with roasted garlic and dips.

So…… more shopping in the afternoon and although Jeff managed to sell Lisa a hat, Andrea and I couldn’t manage to find her anything else. We arrived back at the hotel at 5.30 to find the men a little worried as to where we were. Tom and Lisa treated us all to dinner at Ruth Chris’s Steak House where the helpings were gigantic but absolutely delicious. Georgie negotiated with the waiter to get a couple of tee shirts for her friends Ruth and Chris! Georgie left a $20 bill and her address and the waiter promised to send them on to England. (Needless to say they never arrived).

On the way back to the hotel we stopped at Eddie Bauer’s main store where Lisa bought a sweater. Hooray! All of us slept very badly on our last night which was either due to the disappointment of leaving the next day or the huge steaks eaten the evening before.

Wednesday May 11th

Shopping in Seattle.
Depart Seattle on UA 932 at 4.45pm
Arrive London at 10.25 am (Thursday).

We spent the last morning doing some last minute shopping which included buying a load of books at Barnes and Noble. Consequently we arrived at the airport with a huge amount of luggage. We checked in early and while the others played bridge I wrote up this diary for the last time before flying home safely having had a wonderful, wonderful holiday.