Holidaying in Victoria

Since Monday I've been here in Victoria with my daughter whom all of you know as Shades of Bliss and that's what we've been having--bliss. Beth picked me up at the airport Monday afternoon. Since then we've eaten, hiked, eaten, took pictures, hiked, eaten, toured downtown on a touristy bus ride, eaten, and talked through gallons of cranberry/raspberry juice. Isn't having grown-up kids simply wonderful?

Victoria is still lovely but especially so this time as the flowers are blooming everywhere and the sunny skies of blue provide a perfect backdrop. Beth's house, new to her, has a lot of azaleas and other flowers which are blooming beautifully and we spent an hour or two trying to identify some of them. The first year in a new house that's what you do--let everything come up and see what's there and then decide what you'll keep and what you'll change. For me this is particularly interesting as there are varieties we don't see in Ontario.

This morning we got up very early--and drove all the way to Port Renfrew and down to Botanical Beach. We had thought we were in for a sunny trip to the tidal pools but as we wound around the road to our destination, the skies became cloudy, then dark, then full of mist and fog. Of course we had planned to do this today so there was no turning back. When we started hiking down the trail to the beach a light mist was falling and we were reassessing our clothing decisions. I had put on a short-sleeved shirt, vest, and a light windbreaker with my jeans. Beth had donned a short-sleeved tee shirt and a hoodie sweat shirt. We were under-dressed for the weather but determined to carry on, regardless.

The trail was rocky but easy and we were soon down to the beach. This is not a beach like I know a beach. There is no sand. Instead huge rocks, smoothed by generations of tides sweeping in and out, are filled with hollowed out bowls where reside dozens of species of ocean life. We saw many things that were new to us and also some we could name. Amazing!

Heading back around the bend of the beach we were stopped by the footing but not before I had taken a tumble and twisted my knee going down. Don't you hate that sickening sound of ligaments stretching to their limits? I was okay, thank goodness, although I'll have stiffness there for a few days. We walked back through the wonderful old-growth forest trail, stopping to take great shots of nature's artwork. The last section rose uphill for many minutes, necessitating some stops but eventually we made it back to the car, two hours later than when we had left it. I was tired but exhilarated. What a wonderful foray into nature on this most beautiful island.

Note: I'll have to post the pictures for this when I get home to Ontario.