With its spectacular scenery and abundant wildlife Vancouver Island is simply sensational
The first stop on our epic trip to Western Canada is Vancouver Island, the biggest island off the West coast of the American continent, no less than 460 kilometers long! Despite the fact that it is home to British Columbia‘s capital Victoria as well as being only a stone’s throw away from Vancouver, it remains surprisingly wild and, for most of it, very sparsely populated. Nearly half the population lives in and around Victoria and there are few other small towns, mainly on the more protected East coast facing the mainland.
Vancouver Island is sensational in every way and I really wish we could have stayed longer.
Spectacular scenery is everywhere, there are wild temperate rainforests with tremendously tall trees, rugged, windswept coastlines, endless sandy beaches, rivers and waterfalls backed by snowcapped mountains. The island is home to many species of flora and fauna, including black bears, cougars, deer, all sorts of birds as well as dolphins, seals, sea lions, sea otters and several species of whales. It is simply a dream for anyone interested in wildlife viewing or photography.
The temperate rainforests are home to black bears and cougars
The beautiful sandy but windswept beaches of the West coast back directly onto a lush dense coastal forest. This is where we got our first taste of the awe-inspiring temperate rainforests of the Pacific Northwest that once stretched in a continuous narrow band all along the West coast, from Alaska to California. Tall trees are reaching high up into the sky, some of them are not only very tall but also huge in diameter.
Their understory branches are draped in mosses and long yellow-green lichen aptly named witch’s hair. The forest floor is an impenetrable tangle of decaying rootstocks, fallen trees and branches, all swaddled in thick soft moss and bright green ferns. It feels like entering an enchanted forest and I let my imagination run wild, picturing bears and cougars hidden away in the undergrowth….
Wandering amongst the gigantic ancient trees in Cathedral Grove (MacMillan Provincial Park), some of them hundreds of years old, more than 75 meters tall and 9 meters in circumference, is a humbling experience.
Cathedral Grove is a small and rare remnant of old growth forest, dominated by typical West coast species such as Douglas fir, Western Red Cedar and Western Hemlock. Extensive logging on Vancouver Island and the mainland West coast has radically reduced the areas once covered by old growth forest and it was only due to years of public pressure that this section of forest was finally donated “for the perpetual enjoyment of the public in recognition of the unique stand of trees.”
Birdwatcher’s paradise
Even with in limited time available I was able to observe several species of birds that I had never seen before. On China beach I came across my first American robin. Despite being named after the European red robin on account of its reddish-orange breast, it belongs to the thrush genus and is more closely related to blackbirds than robins.
Western sandpiper on the beach
British Columbia boasts one of the biggest populations of bald eagles
When we get to Port Renfrew I can’t believe my eyes, several bald eagles are perched in the trees overlooking the harbour! The bald eagle, like so many other raptors has suffered greatly at the hands of humans. Legal and illegal shooting as well as massive destruction of its habitat and the use of the pesticide DDT nearly wiped out its population across the contiguous United States. And that despite being their national bird! Banning the use of DDT and putting in place various protective measures have allowed the population to recover. British Columbia boasts one of the biggest populations of bald eagles.
Unlike Common Buzzards in Europe they don’t seem to be particularly afraid of humans. On the contrary, they are patiently waiting for the local fisherman to empty their scraps into the sea and promptly swoop down to retrieve their dinner out of the water.
I have watched their cousin the white-tailed sea eagle in Norway before and once again I am completely mesmerized by the arial acrobatics of this beautiful, elegant and enormous bird of prey!
After having scooped up a bit of fish with their talons it is transferred to the massive beak, then gripped again with the talons to tear off bite size chunks to swallow in flight.
Bald eagles are particularly challenging to photograph as the combination of their dark plumage and white head makes it very tricky to achieve a balanced exposure for the 2 extremes…..
We are staying in a chalet a fair way out of town, Diane, Ron and their huge but very friendly dog Aspen welcome us to the cosy cabin that will be our home for one night. I love the idea of sleeping in a place surrounded by pure rugged wilderness with bears, wolves and cougars as neighbours!
Elk in the garden,
how lucky is that?
I let the others catch up on their sleep the following morning and slip out of the cabin at the crack of dawn. The chances of meeting a bear or cougar are slim, but the owners mentioned that they often see elk in their garden. And sure enough, I have barely stepped out into the lane when I see the first elk bull.
I also meet some new birds, sooty fox sparrow, cedar waxwing, purple finch and most impressive of all, the tiny little Rufous hummingbird.
I would never have suspected such a miniscule bird to be so vocal and so territorial. Diane has put up feeders for them, and as soon as I approach the terrace I am greeted by loud tutting noises making it very clear that I am not wanted there!
Before we move on, we stop off at Botanical beach for a dose of intertidal magic! At low tide you can walk across flat sandstone and granit rocks and admire the colourful purple sea urchins and all sorts of other strange creatures in the tidepools.
Vancouver Island is one of the best whale watching spots in the world
Another highlight of our stay on Vancouver Island was no doubt our whale watching trip. The zodiac speeds along at 50 km/hour, luckily the sea is calm today. Before we head out to the whales, Andrew, our captain and guide, is keen to show us a group of Pacific white-sided dolphins that put on a spectacular show for us, displaying their flips, somersaults and all sorts of other acrobatics.
The males, recognisable by their more heavily curved dorsal fins are particularly playful, they come right up to the boat, dive underneath, they know full well we are watching. And watching them is truly magical. Much harder to catch their display on camera, they are incredibly fast and it is impossible to predict where they will appear next. We finally tear ourselves away from these endearing creatures…..
…….passing a few Stellar sea lions hauled up on the rocks.
On our way to search for humpbacks we linger along a little island, the tide is coming back in and the currents force schools of fish up along the steep rocks that stretch deep into the ocean. The bald eagles have long realised this and in the trees and the airs are more of them that I could ever have hoped to see together. Andrew reckons that in total there are around 200 individuals, adults and juveniles.
Periodically large numbers glide down, skim the surface to grab a fish and then settle back in a tree to feast. The fish seem to surface in waves, as periods of rest are abruptly cut short when lots of eagles swoop down to hunt. They are fascinating to watch, far more difficult to capture as everything is moving. The currents are violent, and the zodiac is constantly bobbing up and down as our captain is steering it to avoid dangerous whirlpools and back eddies.
Humpback land
After what seems a long ride we finally arrive in humpback land, our guide has already spotted 2 individuals, swimming together. We move in to get a closer look.
Most of their 15 meter long bodies weighing up to 30 tonnes are underwater, but their dorsal fins, together with the top of their back are visible when they swim close to the surface.
However the most visible sign betraying their presence is the bushy fountain of water coming up from the blowholes. They show us a series of blows and finally a large heavily arched back to bring up their flukes. Simply amazing, beautiful, magical! I could sit here all day watching them!
In preparation for a dive they arch their back until the top is well out of the water, roll forward and bringing up their wide tail and flukes. Humpbacks flukes are all different and individuals can be identified by their shape as well as by the scars on them.
You never really know where they will come up again after their dive to feed in the depths, one individual surprises us by reappearing no less than a few meters from the zodiac! Fantastic to see him so close, I can clearly identify the bumps on his head and we are left with no doubt that he came up close intentionally to eye us up! Humpbacks are not aggressive, but I guess having such a huge animal next to a tiny dingy can still be somewhat dangerous and Andrew unfortunately cuts short our close encounter by ripping the boat around and away. How I would love to have spend more time eye to eye with our new 30 tonne curious friend!
I also would have loved to see them breach, the thought of such a huge mass of an animal lifting itself fully out of the water as well as the force of the splash of it dropping back is mind-boggling. Unfortunately the humpbacks don’t seem inclined to put on such a display today…..