I have lived on the Island for almost 20 years and I still marvel at how beautiful it is. I’m so glad that you were able to experience our Island’s beauty
Welcome to our island! Born and raised in Victoria with no plans to leave the island. Although now I am up island just a tad bit in Shawnigan Lake right by that trestle :) The only reason most people I know that have left is cost of living. It’s very expensive to live here but when it’s home and all your family is here you do what you can to try and make it here. Definitely not easy but we do live in the most beautiful place.
I was born here on VI 57 years ago. Many of my school friends couldn’t wait to move away from here. Thinking maybe I was missing something, I have travelled all over the world but always come back home to the island as I have never found a more beautiful place to live. Having said that, there are so many people who have now moved here and that has changed it. Now I have a hard time finding a camping spot or a quiet place to be near the ocean. I mourn the loss of my quiet paradise. There are still times when I can find that solitude in the parks I love… but the chances are getting less and less by the year and the ‘evidence’ of human activity increases as people don’t respect the rule of leave things in the same condition you found it. Don’t take or leave anything is the rule in our naturally beautiful environment.
I'm sure it's changed a lot in that time! We also struggle with folks not following LNT. We try our best to abide by the rules, and it breaks out hearts when we arrive to a campsite full of trash.
I grew up in Victoria, and now call Port Alberni home (which you would have driven through to get to Ucluelet/Tofino). Thanks for showcasing the beautiful place I call home. You'll certainly never get me to move away.
Not sure which direction you plan on heading after Alaska but if you want more Vancouver Island experience on the way back you can take the Northern Expedition car ferry from Prince Rupert down the inside passage to Port Hardy on the top of the Vancouver Island, highly recommended.
We seriously want to experience the inside passage. Unfortunately, we didn't make it happen on this trip. But maybe we'll do it via kayak on our next northern jaunt!
Yes, a lot of amazing adventures on VI. My favorite time of the year is July-Sept. The salmon are running, the rivers are packed with life. Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, huckleberries, and thimbleberries all ripe for the picking. The weather is amazing!
I see a lot of fellow islanders in the comments (me, born and raised here). Always fun to see my homeland through the eyes of visitors. I’ve lived, worked and travelled abroad, and there’s not another place I’d rather live than Victoria. Hope you have a chance to return because you barely scratched the surface. Enjoyed your video very much.
As someone born and raised on the island, I LOVE seeing it through the eyes of visitors. I’m so glad you enjoyed your time here and I hope you come back to explore more! I recommend heading up to San Josef Bay and checking out a few of the gulf islands (Salt Spring Island and Hornby Island are my favourite). Hope you have a great time in Alaska!
It's great that you travel with the flexibility, to change on a whim. It always makes me laugh how many seasoned travellers look at a map of the island, and say yeah I only need a week there. Good on you for seeing as much of this beautiful planet as you can. Well done.
As an avid traveller, we are so happy you enjoyed our basecamp of Vancouver Island. I moved here fifteen years ago, my best move. We have visited more of the island than most who have lived here all their life. We call it our basecamp because like you we love on the road. We just got back from our 'Rock-to-Tuk' tour visiting northern BC, Yukon, NWT and AK for 2 beautiful months. Part of the reason we travel is to see if anywhere else is as beautiful. Last year it was 'Rock the Klondike' tour to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Klondike Gold Rush in Dawson City and to drive the Alaska highway. I am confident you will love Northern Canada and Alaska.
I'm so happy you enjoyed the island I call home. You're right about tempering expectations. Whenever we go to Tofino, we expect rain. If it does (as it does much of the time!) we are prepared to enjoy the "wet coast" and the grandeur of its storms. But if the sun comes out...WOW! Expectations blown away! Come back soon, further adventures await.
We camped at Pacific Rim Park for our honeymoon in 1984. Every morning we woke up to the sound of the foghorn. I remember the parks Canada booklet saying “Don’t let mist or a little light rain spoil your stay here!” Truth in advertising -- brought to you by the government of Canada!🇨🇦 🌧️⛈️🌦️
There are several downed WWII aircraft on the island to hike to - I find the Tofino one a bit sad with how vandalized it is. If you do come back and make it to Port Hardy, or if you're exploring the Cowichan Valley, there are two really excellent locations that are treated with more respect and have quite a different feeling to them. One is intact and the other is in so many pieces you just have to marvel at how hard the plane must have hit the hillside (no one survived that crash and it is also a gravesite). Looks like you had a great adventure and hit many of the good spots! Hope you get more sun on your next visit! it really is spectacular here in any weather, but the sunshine just makes it so much more pleasant.
Great video. Glad you had a great time on the island. I’ve lived my life here and never wanted to leave. After visiting the main land and hitting rush hour I prefer my short commute to work and back. And the fact that on the island you can drive for half an hour and be in the middle of nowhere.
Our Island fosters a spirit of adventurous travel. After rambling around on our little rock we naturally want to explore further horizons. But, it's always so nice to come home to our Island Paradise.
Thank you for this great presentation. I am so glad you didn't dig deeper and drove beyond super natural BC. Just around the corner is pure devastation. You stayed where you should. Thanks again for keeping image about Vancouver Island alive.
I am from a little town called Sidney by the Sea, just up the highway from Victoria. My wife and 3 kids love to travel, and we travel alot. Up to 3 moinths every year. Our favorite places usually involve some kind of surfing (with no sharks) or cycling. Mauii (but every year someone gets eaten by tiger sharks in the spot i surf, so i am a bit sketched out by it) and we love northern Italy (Piedmont area) for the hiking, dining, and of course, the food. The isle of Jersey in Guernseys is also a favorite, love that atlantic swell. The Isle of Skye in Scotland..... so good. We even recently went to the Antarctic to hang with the penguins. HOWEVER. All these wonderful places we travel to don't hold a candle to where we have put down roots, and that is Vancouver Island. Something about living on the water, the sun and the mist, the grey rainy mornings that seem so mysterious, the edge of the wilderness, and the rain. So much rain at certain times of the year. I love it. I love the storms as well and we have thriving stormwatch tourism. We just cannot get enough of. It stabs me in the heart when i think about home.
Local Islander here 🙋🏼♀️ there’s so many more spots to check out here. I’m wanting to sell my van and trailer and get an expedition truck instead. Subscribed to your channel so I can ask you guys some questions 😊
Great video. We are based on the Island, and it's always nice to hear other peoples perspective. North Van Isle is amazing. FYI... there is another ww11 plane wreck near Port Hardy that is even better preserved than the Tofino site.
Thanks! We got up to Port McNeill, but didn't have much time there- next time we want to get to Port Alice and the north coast. We'll have to look up that second plane crash- would love to check it out.
I'm Canadian from Western Canada, and I’m happy to say I’ve visited the island-and I really love it, too! Fantastic video! I'm glad you enjoyed your time there. You even showed me some parts of the island that I hadn’t seen yet.
Did you know that Vancouver Island has the highest concentration of cougars (mountain lions) in North America? If you didn't see one, don't worry. They saw you ... or so they say. An average of 800 cougars roam the island. Love the vlog :)
cougars (mountain lions) are ninjas. Your lucky if you ever see one. We also have huge numbers of wolves and bears. And Grizzly's have swum over and are starting to grow in population as well.
This was such a fun video! I loved seeing the Island from your perspectives. We went to Tofino with the kids this summer and we did the hike to see the plane, the kids loved it. If you go to the Island again you should go Holberg, Winter Harbour, and San Josef Bay.
We were on the ferry to Victoria with you and may have been on the cruise ship you saw pass by. Alaska was nice but look forward to exploring the island in our camper.
Did you go to the North to Port Hardy and take the ferry to Prince Rupert? Alaska fairies also depart Prince Rupert for Alaska The scenery second to none. The only bad part is you would miss so much of British Columbia if you were to drive from the lower mainland north.
We departed from Nanaimo, and hit the Sea To Sky. We were really tempted to take the ferry north, but we're not great planners, and the trips had booked up by the time we had concrete plans. Next time!
I have a beater benz ml 320 & it only takes premium gas which is almost $2 a litre on the Rock as its actually called or referred to by us locals here on Vancouver Island. C'mon it's o.k. here but there is one park to avoid, it's got lethal trees that have a deadly gift from its park... it's in between Victoria & Duncan.
I have lived most of my life here, always loved it, but loving it a little less as is way too crowded, dont know where that info came from about the number of people, but its way too crowded for my liking, and they keep developing and building. we are thinking of getting off the Island, somewhere small and without tons of people.Theres a lot of long time people here feeling the same.
Have lived here all my 69 years,never gets old! We go on holidays but we also love coming home!
I have lived on the Island for almost 20 years and I still marvel at how beautiful it is. I’m so glad that you were able to experience our Island’s beauty
I still can't believe I live here. It's mind blowing every time I step out my front door. Truly the best place on earth
Welcome to our island! Born and raised in Victoria with no plans to leave the island. Although now I am up island just a tad bit in Shawnigan Lake right by that trestle :) The only reason most people I know that have left is cost of living. It’s very expensive to live here but when it’s home and all your family is here you do what you can to try and make it here. Definitely not easy but we do live in the most beautiful place.
That's a great point about why folks leave.
I was born here on VI 57 years ago. Many of my school friends couldn’t wait to move away from here. Thinking maybe I was missing something, I have travelled all over the world but always come back home to the island as I have never found a more beautiful place to live. Having said that, there are so many people who have now moved here and that has changed it. Now I have a hard time finding a camping spot or a quiet place to be near the ocean. I mourn the loss of my quiet paradise. There are still times when I can find that solitude in the parks I love… but the chances are getting less and less by the year and the ‘evidence’ of human activity increases as people don’t respect the rule of leave things in the same condition you found it. Don’t take or leave anything is the rule in our naturally beautiful environment.
I'm sure it's changed a lot in that time! We also struggle with folks not following LNT. We try our best to abide by the rules, and it breaks out hearts when we arrive to a campsite full of trash.
@@HD.Adventuring Thank you for taking care of our beautiful rain forest/beaches! 💜💜💜
I grew up in Victoria, and now call Port Alberni home (which you would have driven through to get to Ucluelet/Tofino). Thanks for showcasing the beautiful place I call home. You'll certainly never get me to move away.
We got ice cream near there- it was GREAT.
Not sure which direction you plan on heading after Alaska but if you want more Vancouver Island experience on the way back you can take the Northern Expedition car ferry from Prince Rupert down the inside passage to Port Hardy on the top of the Vancouver Island, highly recommended.
We seriously want to experience the inside passage. Unfortunately, we didn't make it happen on this trip. But maybe we'll do it via kayak on our next northern jaunt!
Yes, a lot of amazing adventures on VI. My favorite time of the year is July-Sept. The salmon are running, the rivers are packed with life. Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, huckleberries, and thimbleberries all ripe for the picking. The weather is amazing!
So much to do! Can't wait to get back at some point.
I see a lot of fellow islanders in the comments (me, born and raised here). Always fun to see my homeland through the eyes of visitors. I’ve lived, worked and travelled abroad, and there’s not another place I’d rather live than Victoria. Hope you have a chance to return because you barely scratched the surface. Enjoyed your video very much.
Awesome video. You put on film why I call Vancouver Island home. This place is the best.
@@jl4482 thanks! It really is a great place.
As someone born and raised on the island, I LOVE seeing it through the eyes of visitors. I’m so glad you enjoyed your time here and I hope you come back to explore more! I recommend heading up to San Josef Bay and checking out a few of the gulf islands (Salt Spring Island and Hornby Island are my favourite). Hope you have a great time in Alaska!
Yes, we have heard great things about the gulf islands. Next time!
Vancouver Island is purely magical!! ❤❤❤ this place and miss it so much!!!
Yes!!
It's great that you travel with the flexibility, to change on a whim. It always makes me laugh how many seasoned travellers look at a map of the island, and say yeah I only need a week there. Good on you for seeing as much of this beautiful planet as you can. Well done.
As an avid traveller, we are so happy you enjoyed our basecamp of Vancouver Island. I moved here fifteen years ago, my best move. We have visited more of the island than most who have lived here all their life.
We call it our basecamp because like you we love on the road. We just got back from our 'Rock-to-Tuk' tour visiting northern BC, Yukon, NWT and AK for 2 beautiful months. Part of the reason we travel is to see if anywhere else is as beautiful. Last year it was 'Rock the Klondike' tour to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Klondike Gold Rush in Dawson City and to drive the Alaska highway.
I am confident you will love Northern Canada and Alaska.
You picked a great place to serve as basecamp! Those trips sound amazing- you've done a ton of travel!
I'm so happy you enjoyed the island I call home. You're right about tempering expectations. Whenever we go to Tofino, we expect rain. If it does (as it does much of the time!) we are prepared to enjoy the "wet coast" and the grandeur of its storms. But if the sun comes out...WOW! Expectations blown away! Come back soon, further adventures await.
You're lucky to call it home! We absolutely want to come back- we feel we've just scratched the surface.
@@HD.Adventuring i've been adventuring on the island for 40 years and there are still new things to see!
We camped at Pacific Rim Park for our honeymoon in 1984. Every morning we woke up to the sound of the foghorn. I remember the parks Canada booklet saying “Don’t let mist or a little light rain spoil your stay here!” Truth in advertising -- brought to you by the government of Canada!🇨🇦 🌧️⛈️🌦️
@@IMMe-yp4bu us locals call it "Fogust" instead of August :D
I loved fog. I loved the fog horns before they automated them.
There are several downed WWII aircraft on the island to hike to - I find the Tofino one a bit sad with how vandalized it is. If you do come back and make it to Port Hardy, or if you're exploring the Cowichan Valley, there are two really excellent locations that are treated with more respect and have quite a different feeling to them. One is intact and the other is in so many pieces you just have to marvel at how hard the plane must have hit the hillside (no one survived that crash and it is also a gravesite). Looks like you had a great adventure and hit many of the good spots! Hope you get more sun on your next visit! it really is spectacular here in any weather, but the sunshine just makes it so much more pleasant.
It is sad to see the vandalism- we just don't see the appeal to it. Thanks for the tips- we've added to our list for next time.
Great video. Glad you had a great time on the island. I’ve lived my life here and never wanted to leave. After visiting the main land and hitting rush hour I prefer my short commute to work and back. And the fact that on the island you can drive for half an hour and be in the middle of nowhere.
Thank you! It’s such a special place- as much as we drive, we also hate traffic😂
Our Island fosters a spirit of adventurous travel. After rambling around on our little rock we naturally want to explore further horizons. But, it's always so nice to come home to our Island Paradise.
It really has been amazing to meet people who call the island home, all over the world. Must be something in the water.
How long have you been here?
Thank you for this great presentation. I am so glad you didn't dig deeper and drove beyond super natural BC. Just around the corner is pure devastation. You stayed where you should. Thanks again for keeping image about Vancouver Island alive.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful video 🙏🏾 Moved here 3 years ago and loving it!
Have safe adventures!!
Glad you enjoyed your visit to the island!
There is so much to explore here!
Thanks! What a magical place.
I am from a little town called Sidney by the Sea, just up the highway from Victoria. My wife and 3 kids love to travel, and we travel alot. Up to 3 moinths every year. Our favorite places usually involve some kind of surfing (with no sharks) or cycling. Mauii (but every year someone gets eaten by tiger sharks in the spot i surf, so i am a bit sketched out by it) and we love northern Italy (Piedmont area) for the hiking, dining, and of course, the food. The isle of Jersey in Guernseys is also a favorite, love that atlantic swell. The Isle of Skye in Scotland..... so good. We even recently went to the Antarctic to hang with the penguins. HOWEVER. All these wonderful places we travel to don't hold a candle to where we have put down roots, and that is Vancouver Island. Something about living on the water, the sun and the mist, the grey rainy mornings that seem so mysterious, the edge of the wilderness, and the rain. So much rain at certain times of the year. I love it. I love the storms as well and we have thriving stormwatch tourism. We just cannot get enough of. It stabs me in the heart when i think about home.
You've put down roots in an amazing spot! Having a basecamp and getting to travel is the dream.
Beautiful video! Love Victoria, glad you guys got to enjoy it.
Thank you!!
Local Islander here 🙋🏼♀️ there’s so many more spots to check out here. I’m wanting to sell my van and trailer and get an expedition truck instead. Subscribed to your channel so I can ask you guys some questions 😊
So many spots. DO IT! You won't regret it. 4x4 is very nice to have.
Great video. We are based on the Island, and it's always nice to hear other peoples perspective. North Van Isle is amazing. FYI... there is another ww11 plane wreck near Port Hardy that is even better preserved than the Tofino site.
Thanks! We got up to Port McNeill, but didn't have much time there- next time we want to get to Port Alice and the north coast. We'll have to look up that second plane crash- would love to check it out.
I continue to be amazed by your incredible adventure!!! Thanks for sharing!! Safe travels❤
Thank you!!!
It was cool watching you drive onto BCferries out of Nanaimo. I saw my co-workers on youtube :)
Small world!
Big like, thank you for showcasing our wonderful island in such a beautiful way !
Thank you!!
I live in Victoria, love this Island, really enjoyed your story.
I'm Canadian from Western Canada, and I’m happy to say I’ve visited the island-and I really love it, too! Fantastic video! I'm glad you enjoyed your time there. You even showed me some parts of the island that I hadn’t seen yet.
It's honestly incredible. We hope to get back some day!
Did you know that Vancouver Island has the highest concentration of cougars (mountain lions) in North America? If you didn't see one, don't worry. They saw you ... or so they say. An average of 800 cougars roam the island. Love the vlog :)
cougars (mountain lions) are ninjas. Your lucky if you ever see one. We also have huge numbers of wolves and bears. And Grizzly's have swum over and are starting to grow in population as well.
No way! We didn't see any. Glad we learned this AFTER our trip.
yeah!
I live here too and just saw your utube video on my tv. Great footage. Glad you came to visit please come again.
Thanks! You live in such a cool place!
This was such a fun video! I loved seeing the Island from your perspectives. We went to Tofino with the kids this summer and we did the hike to see the plane, the kids loved it. If you go to the Island again you should go Holberg, Winter Harbour, and San Josef Bay.
Glad you loved the island, come on back any time! :)
Thanks! We can't wait to come back.
Grteat video. VI is such a wonderful place.
Thank you! It was magical. We could spend a whole summer here so easily!
We were on the ferry to Victoria with you and may have been on the cruise ship you saw pass by. Alaska was nice but look forward to exploring the island in our camper.
No way! The island was great- we want to go spend a month there!
Best place on earth
Did you go to the North to Port Hardy and take the ferry to Prince Rupert?
Alaska fairies also depart Prince Rupert for Alaska
The scenery second to none. The only bad part is you would miss so much of British Columbia if you were to drive from the lower mainland north.
We departed from Nanaimo, and hit the Sea To Sky. We were really tempted to take the ferry north, but we're not great planners, and the trips had booked up by the time we had concrete plans. Next time!
@@HD.Adventuring
I guarantee you will not be disappointed
Your video is absolutely mesmerizing! The landscapes are captured so beautifully. Thanks for sharing these amazing views! sub & 👍93
Thanks so much!!
I have a beater benz ml 320 & it only takes premium gas which is almost $2 a litre on the Rock as its actually called or referred to by us locals here on Vancouver Island.
C'mon it's o.k. here but there is one park to avoid, it's got lethal trees that have a deadly gift from its park... it's in between Victoria & Duncan.
Your next visit to Vancouver Island you should tour the north island. San Josef Bay is beautiful
Yes! We really want to spend time up north!
Everyone comes back, in left for work in my 30s, just came home 😉
I have lived most of my life here, always loved it, but loving it a little less as is way too crowded, dont know where that info came from about the number of people, but its way too crowded for my liking, and they keep developing and building. we are thinking of getting off the Island, somewhere small and without tons of people.Theres a lot of long time people here feeling the same.
Haida Gwaii next?
you didnt even get to the best bits.... north island... im never leaving🤙
We only scratched the surface! We'll be back.
Welcome to my home! :)
Thanks! You're lucky to call this place home!
@@HD.Adventuring Don't I know it. I've travelled the world and cemented for myself that this is the place for me. :)
I lived there for 16 years.
But why did you leave???
It truly comes down to cost, it’s not cheap to live here. But you get what you pay for 🤷🏻♂️.
Funny my wife calls our's a Tiny House, not Giant.
Ha, fair. it felt giant in the moment.
im betting a lot of your vids were from osmo pocket 3
How’d you know? A few of them were from that, but we have a handful of different cameras.
You don’t overland in Canada. It’s called camping.
Be careful putting us on the map, we need less people here😂😂😂🥹🥹🥹
This place is terrible don’t come 😉
Hay... Get a job eh
You guys can go to Pamela Anderson hometown :) it’s super beautiful too! Comox On the island..or ladysmith. Can go to both. Really cool towns 😊
You should get yourselves some MTN.
bikes-then you'll really see something!😊
@@sandralnwebster3204 we were having too much fun riding our mtn bikes to get any video- the riding was epic!