Today we drove back to the other side of the island and parked up at a beautiful free spot beside the bay. We got chatting to Colin and Pat, a couple of locals and they told us of all these hidden gems on the island to explore.

We were chatting until about 10.30Pm and they invited us to stay at their place in Victoria, where we plan to catch the ferry. People in Canada are so welcoming and friendly.

We woke up and had a super lazy morning. It was another glorious day on Vancouver island but we’d planned to drive on. Then I accidentally booked something that would keep us here another day.

Before leaving I wandered over to the surf shop to take a few photos. I casually asked about the cost of surf lessons and the lady said she’d need to ring to see if any were available. I wandered around the shop while I waited, only semi serious about it. She found me in the shop and told me I’d been booked on the 1.30pm course. Looks like I’m going surfing!

It was already midday so I went back to the can to tell Mike the news, we had some lunch and headed off to my lesson.

I’d booked on a group lesson but when I arrived I was the only one! So I had a private lesson for the price of a group.

Zach was my instructor and he was your typical surfer dude. Tall, lanky with long blond hair. he was a super nice guy.

He gave me a big bucket and chucked my wetsuit in and said he’d meet us at long beach, about 15 mins drive away.

I was a little apprehensive but the sea was calm with a steady stream of learner waves.

He showed me how to stand up on the board while still on the beach, then we hit the waves. I was expecting it to be cold but it was nice and warm in the wetsuit.

The first wave I completely forgot to stand up on but it was fun to belly surf. The second waved I got up straight away. Too easy I thought. Then it seemed like beginners luck as I struggled with the next few. I was having trouble getting my feet under as the booties felt really cumbersome. So I took the booties off and next wave I was up!

But not having booties brought on an extra challenge. It was slippery. But I caught few waves and it was awesome fun. we were in the water for 1.5 hours and near the end my upper body strength had gone. Trying to push yourself up in the board was like doing push ups over and over.

After the lesson I was really cold and the feeling had gone in my fingertips. So I layered up, put the heater on full and eventually things returned to normal. We camped again at the surf shop.

This morning we were up early to avoid the rush. Our first stop was Long beach, which is a long sandy beach on the Pacific Ocean. We took a walk and paddled our feet. It was freezing, even colder that the Arctic Ocean.

After our beach walk we checked out the town of Tofino which is a little surf town. We did a 1.5 hour walk through beautiful bush which took us to 3 private beaches. It reminded me a bit of the walk from Waihi beach to orokawa bay, but longer.

The beaches here are stunning, just like NZ. We saw a family of octopuses hanging out under some rocks.

After our walk we had lunch then headed out on another walk to a plane crash site. In 1945 a bomber plane crash landed into the hill, and is still there, in the same place. I’d heard about the walk , so asked at the visitor centre. it’s not a sanctioned walk and he told us it’s muddy and people get lost there all the time.

We thought we’d take our chances. We grabbed the Garmin Inreach but it was flat. We chucked it on a power bank and took it with us for just in case.

It was about an hours walk to the plane wreck. I’d watched a couple do this on YouTube a couple of years back and they were slushing through mud! But now they have planks of wood and it couldn’t have been an easier walk. It’s better than most maintained tracks in nz.

The plane crash was really cool. Most of the plane was still in tact with other plane parts scattered about. All 12 people on the plane miraculously survived. This was such an amazing thing to see.

That night we camped at the surf shop again.

Today was my birthday. I had to remind Mike this morning. He’d forgotten.

First stop this morning was a sand castle competition. But these weren’t your average sand castles. They were elaborate structures with so much detail.

Then we drove across the island to Tofino, at about 5pm I started feeling tired, so we headed down a rutted unmarked road to a freedom camping spot. It was a hidden oasis with crystal clear swimming holes, and a cascading water fall. We hung out here for a bit. Then I remembered it was my birthday, and I decided I wanted to eat out.

So we left our free camp and headed for the next town, about 30 mins away. We found a restaurant overlooking the ocean. I had fish tacos which were delicious and Mike had a poke bowl.

There is no free camping in Tofino so we found a surf shop which offers fcfs camping for $20

It was sad this morning saying goodbye to Wayne and Sue, they are like our best friends now! It was great being able to talk to Wayne about the YouTube stuff, and seeing other people’s work flow. Plus it was weird having watched their videos for years, then suddenly being in their life. It was like being on the set of a TV show!

We caught the ferry from twassason to Nanaimo, a two hour crossing. Wayne had given us a list of things to do on the island so we’re ticking them off.

First was to eat a nanaimo bar, a sweet chocolatey custardy treat. It was like a caramel slice but it custard instead of caramel. It was too sweet for me and we won’t have another one.

Then we took a walk along the waterfront down to the park. It’s a beautiful place and reminded me of Poole quay with all the boats and seagulls and stuff.

Then we went to pipers lagoon and ended up doing an hours walk as it was so nice.

We walked down a thousand steps to a beach to watch the sun set.

We camped the night in Costco carpark.

Monday was a quiet day spent working on a video as both Wayne and Sue were working.

Mike booked the ferry for Vancouver island for 10am tomorrow.

That evening we had a bbq and one of their friends, Richard came over. We clicked with him straight away as he’s done cycle touring in Europe as well. He also mentioned how he went to a Spanish immersion school in Costa Rica, so I now have this on my to do list. Mike’s not so sure.

Tomorrow we go to Vancouver island.

It was a lazy Sunday. Sue cooked us a fry up of local cuisine of bacon, eggs, potatoes and fried bread with molasses. It was delicious!

Then I helped (hindered) Wayne work on his vlog. He does his vlogs all on his phone and gets the done in half a day! It takes me a week! But then I only spend an hour or so on most days.

I can’t remember what else we did this day, but that evening Wayne brought out his guitars and we had a jam. Well, it was more him playing and me watching, but it’s given me a renewed enthusiasm to take up guitar again.

Today Wayne and Sue took us on an adventure. We drove up to Cypress hill which had a stunning view over Vancouver and the bay.

At the top of the hill was the local ski fields and also the site of some of the Winter Olympics from 2010. Mike and Wayne learned how to throw axes and had a little competition throwing axes into a giant dart board. Wayne won.

Then we ventured into Vancouver city and got stuck in traffic. There had been an accident which closed off a major road. Wayne finally got us into the city and we parked in a downtown carpark.

Vancouver is a really cool city on the harbour. There was a massive Alaska cruise ship in. We stopped and had lunch at a waterfront restaurant and all opted for pizza.

It was cool walking around the city and it reminded me of Melbourne. The others went up to the revolving restaurant to see the views but not to eat.

They had other things planned for us but we ran out of time. Thankfully there was no traffic heading home.

Wayne and Sue have a local pub and invited us out again to hangout with their friends. It’s just been really good fun. and I’ve discovered zero corona is really delicious!

My itchy bites are still driving me crazy and it’s still very hot.

We looked at the option of getting our air conditioning fixed, but they can’t look at it until Friday, and there’s no guarantee they’ll be able to fix it. So we might have to look at driving early to avoid the heat.

Today Wayne took us out to see the local area. We went to a strawberry and blueberry farm and they are the best strawberries I have ever eaten. Huge and oh so tasty. We are in the south of Vancouver and it’s a huge berry growing area.

We also went hunting for eagles nests but didn’t see any.

That night we went to the pub again and it was such a fun night.

Tomorrow they are taking us on an adventure!

I’ve had itchy bites on my ankles for over a week now and they are driving me crazy. They are so itchy and the only thing that relieves that intense itch is ice. So I am waking up every hour and having to ice my ankles. so today I am feeling very groggy and headachey.

We’ve been hearing a clacking sound when driving in our van so I got Mike to check the shock absorber the muffler guys fixed. That was fine, but the other side had broken.

The bolt that held the shock absorber had lost its nut. Wayne finished work at 10.30am and was keen to help. So he took us around a few stores looking for a nut. But turns out the thread on the rod was ruined so we found a new rod.

Wayne and Mike spent the afternoon fixing it, and Wayne is so funny, it made the afternoon fun. He reminds me of brother Paul.

In the evening we went out for dinner at a yummy Italian. It was fun.

Tomorrow, Wayne is flying in the morning, but will take us into the big city of Vancouver and show us around.