This excludes the parts of Canada we experienced on the cruise trip, and is clearly written months after we left now, so I’ll spare the usual waffle and endless photos and jump to the usual (of what we can remember!)
Rule of Three
Highlights (Alex): laughing so hard I cried playing papelitos with Alex and Clive in a break from the fire threats and then watching the storm outside on the deck, seeing bears just hanging out living their best lives, the amazing views and scenery of the Rockies and outside Vancouver (the bit in between less so)
Highlights (James): A great week with Clive and Alex, beautiful Canadian scenery, poutine!
Lowlights (Alex): The existential threat of wildfires, car breaking down and still dealing with it when we were back in the UK, not being able to see everything because there’s just too many tourists now (but better it’s controlled)
Lowlights (James): car breakdown (then my breakdown), wildfire fears, knowing this is our final country
Takeaways (Alex): we’re really fortunate in the UK that we don’t have to worry about wildfires, mentally, physically and financially. Sitting in the back of a car on a road trip is way less fun than being up front, I get now why kids don’t enjoy it the same. Canada is huge and expensive and there’s barely any public transport so yeah, they’re not going to be investing in electric cars for a while, and that’s okay.
Takeaways (James): the sad realization of the damage wildfires can cause and the likeliness this will only increase with climate change. If there is an incident/accident on the highway it is a long, long way around in a country like Canada. We’re lucky to be so connected these days and from that we’re able to quickly adapt our plans when things go south
Description (Alex): Huge!, expensive, full of nature of extremes
Description (James): Gigantic, sparse, great for nature lovers
Entertainment
TV: The Bear
Where We Stayed
Wicked Hostels (Calgary): 3 ⭐️ curtains didn’t fit and the noisiest beds in a dorm
Kicking Horse Airbnb (Golden): 4.5 ⭐️ bit hot
Airbnb (Valemount): 4 ⭐️ hot, no sauna or hot tub as paid for, poor host, amazing manager
Windsor Guest House (Vancouver): 4 ⭐️
Mountain House of Wonder (Vancouver Island): 5 ⭐️
Andrew and Jacqueline’s (Victoria): 5 ⭐️
Sterling Cove (Vancouver Island): 5 ⭐️
The Pinnacle (Vancouver): 4.5 ⭐️
Ben and Jen’s (Vancouver): 5 ⭐️
Cutting Room Floor
- The noisiest bunkmate ever
- Feeling like we were in an episode of Colin from Accounts going to a craft brewery during a power cut
- Dog-sized mosquitos
- James acting out eternal growlers and me not getting it
- Clive acting out kayaking and Alex not getting it
- Amazing fresh food provided by Alex & Clive
- Bear bear table
- Acting out “in”
- Entertaining hold music on the phones to car rental companies
- Gorgeous cat following us to the guest house our first night in Vancouver and trying to follow us in
- Gorgeous dogs to make break-downs less stressful
- As we waited outside the laundry, the guy so out of his face that he imagined we were starting on him and I genuinely thought we might be in real trouble
- Accidentally putting in way too many tokens for the laundry, and gifting it to another couple of backpackers
- Loving Vancouver and finding a city we actually could feel at home in (until we found out it rains more there than London)
- The kids on the ferry swearing they were seeing whales every couple of seconds
ONE POST LEFT!
1 Comment
Canada has always been on our list, it sounds an amazing, but vast place to get around and not easily. It was really sad to see the devastation of the wildfires in Jasper and surrounding areas on the news. I think I’d have been wearing full body armour to avoid the massive mossies 🤣. Sad there is only one blog left, but look forward to reading it nevertheless X