When it comes to making decisions I tend to follow the masses. For example, I will seldom buy a book that’s not a New York Times Best Seller. It’s the same with restaurants. I like to know what I am getting into, or at least have a pretty good idea.

So when it comes to holidaying, I consult those who have gone before me. Friends are my first and favourite source for information. One friend in particular, who travels extensively with her children, ages five and eight, has proven to be a great source for travel advice. Her, and her husband, have been coming to Tofino for close to 20 years, and have owned a home on Chesterman Beach for the past 9 years. So when it comes to Tofino, she is a resident expert.

During our recent visit to their seaside home, I asked her to list her favourite Tofino activities, starting with a beach walk. After all, Tofino is all about the surf and the sand.

Florencia Bay is one of their favourite beaches to walk.  Gold River runs into the beach, where her kids and their dad love to build damns.

Hiking in the old growth rainforest is another popular activity. Their favourite hikes are ones that lead to the ocean. South Beach Trail is one of these, and the great big rocks found here are great for climbing. They like to spend the day here and will often have a late lunch at the Wickaninnish Restaurant, located in the Wickaninnish Interpretive Centre, adjacent to the beach.

Eating is a big part of any trip and finding good restaurants that are kid friendly is pretty easy in Tofino. Here are some of their favourite haunts.

SoBo’s – this trailer serves the best polenta French fries I have ever tasted.  It is located in the Tofino Botanical Gardens, which is also a great place to visit. They serve good food in a picnic style atmosphere. (250-725-2341)

Rain Coast Café (250-725-2215)

Long Beach Lodge – the Great Room (250-725-2442)

Blue Heron – If you go between 6 and 6:30 pm, you might see sea lions feeding on the fish scraps (250-725-3277)

Shelters is also a favourite restaurant, but this one is better suited for adults (250-725-3353)

The Wickaninnish Restaurant has a kid’s menu, beautiful views, and pretty decent food (try their salads, but avoid the fish and chips). (250-726-7706)

Of course there is always surfing and Chesterman Beach is a mecca for surfers. There is a parking lot directly across the street from the beach and it is a popular spot for lessons. Surf Sisters with their pink shirts can be spotted on the beach beginning at 8 a.m.

Another activity they enjoy is kayaking. Several companies come highly recommended, they are: Tofino Kayaking and Remote Passages Kayaking.

I hope these help you with your trip planning and if there are any activities your family enjoys in Tofino, please leave me a comment.

Cheers,

Julie

The orange glow of campfires light up the night sky. Along the long sandy beach, surf boards are propped against logs, waiting for their owners to take them home. It’s Labour Day weekend, the last long weekend of the summer, and we are not at the cabin. We are visiting our friends in Tofino, the surf capital of Canada. I have deferred this visit the whole summer and now I am wondering why.

You see, I am the type of cottager who can’t wait to get to the cabin. Once I arrive, I do not want to leave, not even to get groceries. I froth at the mouth when Bill insists on stopping at Canadian Tire, or worse, Home Depot, to pick up supplies. I clock our travel time from door-to-door, anything more than four and a half hours and I start to get fidgety.

When summer rolls around, I am pretty much parked at the lake every weekend until Labour Day. My only exception is family commitments, they get first priority, but even then I try to arrange them around my precious cottage time.

While most people would kill to hang out on Chesterman Beach in Tofino, I struggle. Ocean versus lake. When it comes to ocean activities I am pretty much a spectator, lake activities I am an instigator. Horne lake is cold, but here on the west coast, the Pacific is a cool 52 degrees Fahrenheit. Brrrrrrrrrrr.

But as I stand on this long flat sandy beach, with not even a pebble in sight, I can’t help wonder why I resisted. It is absolutely beautiful here. The waves crashing over the jagged rocks, the flock of sandpipers sweeping over the water in perfect unison, and the old growth rain forests with their boardwalk trails are nothing short of spectacular. This is nature at it’s finest and while it is slowly becoming developed, there are still vast tracks of untainted wilderness.

Tomorrow I am even going to join the masses and try surfing - who knows, maybe there is a surf dude in me dying to get out.

Regardless of where your spending your weekend, I hope you are making the most of it - it’s the last one of the summer.

Cheers,

Julie

It’s late in the day as the sun’s rays light up the golden wheat fields that fill our horizon. The tall ripen grain is everywhere, as we follow the never ending road of the Trans Canada Highway. Suddenly and dramatically the landscape changes. The flat plains give way to large green oval drumlins, left behind from the last glacier over 14,000 years ago.

The glacier’s melt once filled this deep gully known as the Qu’Appelle Valley. The water’s slow retreat left a thick green carpet of trees and small dense shrubs, that now line the walls of the vale. Deep on the valley’s floor flows the Qu’Appelle River, which feeds into Crooked Lake, our destination.

This lush green valley and narrow lake are teeming with wildlife, as we watch a flock of American white pelicans take flight, their noisy chatter and that of the other water fowl fills the cooling night air.

Shrieks of laughter echo off the water, as my brother and his children struggle to reel in walleyes and perch. It’s almost dark now, but the fish are biting and they are reluctant to leave the alga rich water.

There is a feeling of abundance as I stand on the dock and gaze out over the calm still water. This pristine wilderness is teeming with wildlife. It is like stepping back in time, the way Canada must have looked and felt to the early settlers. The waters, shores and sky are filled with fish, animals and birds.

Crooked Lake, set in this valley, is an oasis in the prairie; it’s beauty still intact despite the ravages of civilization.

More from our adventures on Crooked Lake tomorrow.

Cheers,

Julie

If you were asked to name top cottaging destinations, Saskatchewan might not be one of them. But you might want to think again. With average national price of a standard waterfront property reachable by land costing $427,589, according to the 2007 Royal LePage Recreational Property Report, cottaging on the prairies might be a more affordable option.

There are three cottaging areas in the province, Regina Beach, Qu’Appelle and Last Mountain Lake, all boasting beautiful lakes with ample beachfront. A standard waterfront property in these regions averages $250,000, up from $155,000 to $160,000 in 2006. Like everywhere else in cottage country, the demand for waterfront properties has resulted in significant price increases over the last couple of years.

But if you’re willing to pay more, $380,000, you can get a nice year-round home on a lakefront property. Compared to Vancouver’s housing prices, that does sound like a bargain.

A number of friends have recently built “cottages/homes” in these areas. Despite having to commute by plane, they love the area and the beautiful scenary. I am off to explore the region of Qu-Appelle next week and will be blogging from my brother’s waterfront home. One thing I did notice was how inexpensive a round of golf costs. With the average price for 18 holes costing approximately $20, I might just have to sneak in a few rounds.

Here’s to exploring new territory.

Cheers,

Julie