Travel to the West of Canada ( 1 ) - Introduction

天边一片白云
楼主 (文学城)

In the past a few years, my son and his wife worked while traveling ( or traveled while working) in different provinces of Canada.  On the east side, they went far to the city of st. john's, newfoundland and labrador. On the north side, they went  far to the city of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.  On the west side, they went  to Vancouver and Vancouver island, British Columnbia. Of course, they had worked in Toronto and nearby cities too. Toronto was their homebase. 

And then, they made a conclution  that Vancouver  is the most suitable place for them to set down after considering all factors. So they signed a one-year contract to rent an appartment in a condo in downtown Vancouver and moved over from toronto in September last year. 

They invited parents of both side to visit Vancouver during Chinese New Year in January this year. We didn't go. I prefered to go when the weather got warmer. I thought summer might be a better time. The other two parents went there because they like sking and planed to go ski in Whistler  during their visit . 

When I started planning the trip, I realized summer time is  not good for the famer in our family. In toronto area, the summer monthes from June to August are very crucial for gardeners. So we decided  to travel from  April 5 to April 20.  This was the first time we traveled to the west side of Canada  and the first time only two of us traveled after the nest is empty.

Since we had enough time and Vancouver is very close to Seattle area of Washington state of US, we planned to spend a few days in Olympic National Park before  visiting Seattle and coming back to Vancouver. I booked all the hotels in advance, except the one in Seattle. It turned out it was a very good decision. Both of us like nature more than the big city. After visiting Olympic National Park, there are a few options to come back to Vancouver. We chosed to bypass Seattle and stay one night in the city of Bellingham, which was a very pleasant route , saving lots of driving time and geting  some unexpected experience.

Picture 1: Toronto -> Vancouver

Picture2: Vanvouver -> Victoria -> Olympic National Park -> Coupeville-> Skagit Valley -> Bellingham -> Vancouver

April 5:  AC127 YYZ/term 20:15PM flight from toronto to Vancouver YVR/term M 22:03. All local time. the total flight time is about 5 hours and there are 3 hours different between Toronto and Vanouver.

April 6 to April 10: in Vancouver, picked up rental car on April 10

April 11: Drive to Victoria ( taking Ferry from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay ), stay one night in Victoria

April 12 to 13: Drive to Olympic national park ( taking Ferry to Port Angeles), stay two nights in ProtAngeles

April 13 to 15: Drive to Forks, stay two night in Forks

April 16: Drive to Bellingham ( taking ferry from port townsend to CoupervillaAC)

April 17 to April 29: Drive back to Vancouver and stay for another 3 nights in Vancouver

April 20: AC116 YVR/tem M 13:30 pm  flight back to Toronto

 

 

 

最西边的岛上
Welcome to the Wild West, & try to stay longer next time;-)
7
7grizzly
We liked the Athenian Seafood Restaurant, made popular by
7
7grizzly
the movie "Sleepless in Seattle."
暖冬cool夏
I‘ve been to Seattle a few times.Love Mt.Rainier andOlympic.
移花接木
What a good excuse to skip Seattle:-))))
天边一片白云
Tanks. It is a very different experience in the west.
天边一片白云
Many people recommend this.
天边一片白云
美国最近治安不太好。我们开个租来的外地牌照的车不想在那里呆太久。车窗被砸了很麻烦。
天边一片白云
we bought fresh seafood in granville island of Vancouver.
天边一片白云
It was the first time I ate raw oysters. it tasted very good
天边一片白云
我们原计划去西雅图就是要去Mt.Rainier。后来觉得这个季节不太好就不去了。所以也不需去西雅图了。下次去上这个山。
天边一片白云
农民和家庭煮妇都怕去大城市。
7
7grizzly
The fresher, the better, I heard.
妖妖灵
I like Vancouver!Like the concert outside!Like lamb kebab!
妖妖灵
Go west!:)