Our Vancouver Island Holiday

Way back in March we booked a summer vacation on Vancouver Island, hoping that it would be safe to travel by August, at least within B.C. 

On Thursday, we finally began with a ferry ride, leaving Horseshoe Bay for Nanaimo.

Everyone was excited, and we spent as much time as possible out on the ship's deck.

When we got to Nanaimo, we had a few hours until we could check into our condo, so we went to see the famous Goats on the Roof. The roofs at this rustic marketplace were covered with long, dry grass, with goats roaming around eating it. We looked in the shops and had some ice cream,

then Eric made his first souvenir purchase: a wooden sword.

When we finished there, it was time to check into the Inn of the Sea.

You never know what to expect with a place you've only seen on the Internet, but we loved our condo. We had lots of room, everything we needed to be comfortable, beautiful views of the ocean and easy access to the beach and pool--which were only about a one-minute walk from our patio door.

In the mornings, when the tide was out, we explored the rocks and tidepools.

In the evenings, we could walk far out into the water before it even came up to our knees.

Eric's second souvenir purchase: a slingshot

The surrounding area was known as Oyster Bay (now Ladysmith), and there were LOTS of oysters to examine. Eric wanted to open one and find a pearl, but that's not as easy as it sounds!

The beach was covered in crushed shells of all kinds, and it was really beautiful. Needless to say, we spent lots of time there.

That first evening, we decided to order pizza, but we found that our cell phones didn't work in this remote location! We ended up driving 15 minutes into the town of Ladysmith, where we enjoyed Roberts Street Pizza.

We all slept really well that first night--maybe because of the fresh ocean air, or being so far away from traffic sounds at home.

On Friday we made Jason's dreams come true by floating down the Cowichan river in inner tubes, which we rented from The Tube Shack--a company with a shuttle service to pick us up at a certain point down the river. 

Eric and I shared a big tube, and Eric wanted to steer us through all the rapids. Luckily they weren't too treacherous! We got stuck a few times, but we managed to make it to our end point in about two and a half hours.

On Saturday we drove an hour and a half to visit Victoria. We'd been there before, five years earlier, when Eric was two. He'd been miserable, so we were excited to see the city again under happier circumstances. We went to some of the same places, including the Parliament Buildings, the Royal BC Museum and Craigdarroch Castle.

When we got to the Parliament Buildings, I was not prepared for the emotion I would feel seeing all the little shoes and stuffed animals on the steps to commemorate the lives of Indigenous children who had died in residential schools. I had to look away and could not keep the tears from flowing. The entire time we were on the grounds, I could not look at the display. Driving around Ladysmith, we'd also seen red dresses hung at the ends of driveways as reminders of missing and murdered Indigenous women and children. It is heartbreaking to think of this aspect of our country's history.

After visiting the castle, we drove over to the University of Victoria, since Alaina has expressed interest in attending there someday. She loved the grounds, and we even saw a deer on campus.

We had been hoping to make it to the Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Site to see the lighthouse there, but unfortunately we arrived just as it was closing. So instead, we spent some time at the nearby beach, which was the windiest place we visited during our trip! 

On Sunday, we drove back into Ladysmith to hike the Holland Creek Trail. 

We'd read that at least the first half of the trail was "easy," accessible by wheelchairs and strollers (the only type of trail certain of our kids are willing to "hike"). However, the entire first half we climbed steep hills and steps, maneuvered narrow pathways and relied on rocks and tree roots to keep us steady. Were we on the wrong trail, or had the reviews been that inaccurate? 

Sure enough, when we looped around we were on a flat, easy trail. We started to see people with kids and strollers and realized we'd started on the "wrong" side of the loop. At least we got some exercise--over 14,000 steps that day! 

We had to check out of our condo Monday morning, although it seemed as though we'd just arrived. We'd planned to spend the day in Parksville and Nanaimo before catching our ferry home at 6 p.m.

In Parksville we visited Morningstar Farm, which had a few animals for kids to pet: a big bunny, some goats and cows, and two very entertaining llamas. 

We spend the next few hours at Rathtrevor Beach, which had sand stretching a full kilometer before the ocean. This area is known for its calm, warm water, but we'll remember it for all the sand dollars and crabs Eric collected.

Then we went to Nanaimo for ... Nanaimo bars. They did not disappoint.

Soon we were in line for the ferry back to Horseshoe Bay, which was a beautiful trip as well. Vacations are never long enough, but we definitely enjoyed this break from our regular lives and routines.