I left Nanaimo and drove to Qualicum Beach, where I visited a friend and then onto Port Alberni and Sproat Lake.
I turned off here:
and drove down to the lakeside, where unfortunately, I was confronted with this sign:
However, I was able to get a couple of photos, through the fence. The first time I've seen a Mars up close:
Then I continued on to Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island. I hadn't originally planned on this, but the weather was so nice, I thought that for once in my life, I would like to see Tofino under blue skies and sunshine. Every other time I've been there, it's been pissing down with rain, under low clouds. Tofino averages 129 inches of rain per year!
So I arrived mid-afternoon and went down to the dock to see what was happening.
Aviation History and Nostalgia making money, that's what was happening:
C-FMXR is a 1952 ex-USAF Beaver, S/N 374 with 22,500 hours in her logbook.
(Interestingly, that's only one hour per day since new. She must have spent a long time idle)
I found a very nice room in a small resort, not more than 200 m from the dock, with a lovely view to the west:
For once, the Pacific Ocean was living up to its name