Everyone? Come and meet Ms. Frances Barkley, a hard-working, dignified lady, who was born in 1958 in Norway and then cleverly immigrated to Canada. Our day with Frances was the highlight of an energetic, giggle-filled weekend, beginning on Saturday morning with a patio brunch featuring blueberry Dutch pancakes, barbecued Italian sausages and mimosas. We then waddled to the car and drove to Coombs for a wide-eyed wander through the market, stopping to scarf down a hot dog by the giant stone sculptures in the Emporium before driving to Port Alberni and checking into our hotel for the evening. And yes, Gramp's Canny Jar (or at least the contents of same) accompanied us, every step and nautical mile of the way.
To our unending delight, we managed to put off the great unveiling until the second we all stepped on the quay. This required the cooperation of the staff at the Hospitality Inn in Port Alberni, where we overnighted on Saturday night. Since everyone loves to be part of a secret, they joined in on the fun with many secretive winks whenever "the girls" were nearby, right from the desk clerk to the morning waitress who ensured our hot breakfast was delivered to us early so that we made our 7:30 a.m. Sunday dock time.
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| Our HBG - With a whale of a smile! |
Thanks to RJ's wide-ranging browsing skills, we discovered this opportunity in a magazine, and we couldn't wait to try it. Frances is a bona fide supply ship, delivering mail, lumber, groceries, hikers and fuel to remote native villages and outlying areas. She carries on from her predecessor, The Lady Rose, who toiled for over 70 years before her. We could hardly wait to experience the slower pace of yesteryear and have a glimpse of BC's history, as well as explore a few little villages and towns along the way.
Our route took us 35 nautical miles up the calm Alberni Inlet, and we stopped to drop supplies off at the Sechart Whaling Station, an exclusive lodge that is well-favored by the kayak crowd. As we cruised through the Broken Islands, we caught sight of a few whales - mostly well away from our ship but finally, within the reach of the camera lens. After several hours together the crew and guests worked like a well-oiled team and with the first cry of "whale!", we all rushed to the side of the ship, our digital cameras clicking and humming in unison. We saw one breeching, and he treated us to a few tail flops and barrel rolls before the ship had to move on. Piper Mahalo, the ship's mascot, showed intense interest in all the goings on but when things were quiet he served as goodwill ambassador and comedian, entertaining all aboard with his cheerful personality and his dedication to enthusiastic bites of RJ's ears, for no particular reason at all.
We arrived in Bamfield around four hours later. Beautiful, bizarre and most definitely quirky, Bamfield welcomes you with a long boardwalk and an inviting stroll beside the harbour. We disembarked while Frances tootled over to East Bamfield to drop off or pick up hikers from the West Coast Trail. She then returned and busily loaded freight for a few hours, giving us ample opportunity to stretch our legs. Our intrepid foursome explored the boardwalk, until we ran into a charming watering hole called the "Boardwalk Bistro."
The Boardwalk was owned by a cranky crustacean who did not bear fools well. When I politely inquired if there was a spot we could enjoy a beer with our dog, she jerked with her thumb- "Yoo's can get over there to the Dog Bar." Oh, good, I thought, we can actually have a beer!
"What do you have on tap?", I politely inquired.
"I gots one kinda beer and one kind only. D'ya want it or not?" Of course I did, and promptly ordered three tall ones. Turned out they were a darned decent German beer, and we happily settled in at "The Dog Bar." Of note, the Dog Bar was someone's front porch that directly abuts The Boardwalk Bistro. We tentatively filed up there and sat primly, nursing our beer as we sat around someone's picnic table, and fervently hoped they would not return home. Bamfield is very hospitable like that. If someone's not home, then who cares?
Caught an astonishing sight on our wander back to the ship. A very large sea lion was playing havoc with the salmon, circling around underneath a school and then launching himself toward them, causing them to break out of the water in silvery unison and allowing him to gorge. HBG managed to get it on video. Sorry, everyone, but the video refused to load so you're going to have to take my word for it!
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| East Bamfield Harbour |
By the time we checked out the General Store (fantastic ice cream cones), the tree-pee loo, and Bamfield's "cat house", we were ready to return to Frances for the three hour trip home. Although the wind kicked up a bit and the rain arrived, we felt warm and cozy tucked into the little cabin. Beer, hot chocolate, and the bottomless bag of canny made the hours fly by, and before we knew it, we were docked back in Port Alberni.
This wonderful adventure was a package deal through a fairly decent hotel in PA. It included our room, a full breakfast (anything off the menu) as well as the day-long cruise. We highly recommend it to anyone who feels they would enjoy a beautiful day on the water along with the camaraderie of curious tourists, happy hikers and extremely helpful crew. The scenery is breathtaking and ageless, the air pure and fresh and the wildlife bountiful. A big, big double thumb's up!
p.s. Sharing photo credits with HBG - thank you for your talented eye!
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| West Coast Style Bench |
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| The Tree-Pee Loo |
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| Cat House, Bamfield's privileged felines |
p.s. Sharing photo credits with HBG - thank you for your talented eye!
