August 22-23, 2014, Sooke, BC (continued)





Saturday morning we took the dogs to the Sooke Potholes Regional Park to hike along the Sooke River.  The “potholes” are unique geological formations – deep pools in the river – that are great freshwater swimming areas.  We saw lots of people swimming and tubing in the various pools in the lower part of the park.  Farther upriver the gorge became narrower and steeper with a number of waterfalls.  This is one of the more rugged areas where we are told some of the more adventurous jump and dive off the cliffs. 













One of the larger of the waterfalls along the trail.
















Another view of the beautiful rugged gorge along the trail.



We hiked on the Galloping Goose Trail back to the parking lot.  The 55 km Galloping Goose Trail lies on the route of a railway grade that was established after World War I to haul logs and lumber from the forest.  The trail runs from Victoria to the area where the former gold rush community of Leechtown was located along the upper Sooke River.  This gravel trail is wide and as it is on an old railroad bed the grade is gentle.  This was a great hike in another beautiful area on Vancouver Island.

After our hike we went back to the 5th wheel for lunch and to drop the dogs off so they could rest.  While the dogs slept we went to the Tugwell Creek Honey Farm and Meadery where we bought a bottle of their great mead and a jar of honey.








We then drove into Sooke to hike on Whiffin Spit, a natural breakwater sheltering Sooke Harbour from the waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca.  















It was a pleasant 20 minute walk to the end of the spit where we had a great view across the harbor to East Sooke with the Olympic Mountains of Washington in the background.



When we got home Rex gave the dogs their Saturday night baths – and boy did they need one after all the hiking they have been doing.









Sunday morning Rex gave the dogs much needed haircuts and after lunch we went kayaking.  We put the kayaks in at the campground and headed up the Sooke River - Nancy taking a little rest and enjoying the beautiful scenery.

















About 10 minutes up river we were stopped by this huge tree that had fallen across the river blocking the way.  We could have portaged around the tree but decided to paddle down river instead.
















We saw lots of geese – of course, Canada Geese – honk honk, eh!















We paddled through the river estuary and into Sooke Harbor where we saw this sailboat sailing in Sooke Basin.  We paddled round this gravel spit into Sooke Basin where we paddled along the shore for a while before turning back and heading up the Sooke River to the campground. 




Another great day!  We have enjoyed this area of Vancouver Island just as much as the other areas we have visited.  We are leaving Sooke tomorrow and heading north again to spend a few days in Duncan before we leave the Island on the 30th.











Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

June 4-11, Loveland, CO

Image
Sunday morning, we drove to Loveland, CO – again it rained the entire trip.   We are staying at Loveland RV Park.   This is the park we stayed at for 6 weeks between our house selling and our retirement starting. Monday morning, we attended the services at Fort Logan National Cemetery for Nancy’s parents.   Nancy’s mother passed away 5 years ago and her father passed away in January.   There wishes were to have their ashes interred at Fort Logan National Cemetery.      Waiting for the ceremony to start.                                                            Folding the flag Taps (see video below, make sure audio is on) and a 21-gun salute.                       Deacon Mike giving the final blessing. It was a beautiful ceremony in a very peaceful and restful setting.  We were fortunate that we had nice weather and it did not rain.  After the ceremony, we visited the grave of our good friend, Bob, who was buried here last year. We spent some time with Nancy’s son, daughter-in
Read more

September 5-11, 2013 – Copalis Beach, WA

Image
It must be moving day again as it is raining – seems like the last few weeks it has rained every time we move.   We left Port Angeles and headed west on Highway 101 and then turned south and followed the west side of Olympic National Park.   The highway then turns west to the coast where we stopped at Ruby Beach.   We donned our rain gear and walked down to yet another beautiful Washington beach. People had stacked little rock cairns on a sand dune in front of these great rock stacks. We could barely see Destruction Island Lighthouse through the fog. After spending a little time on Ruby Beach we headed back down Highway 101 to Copalis Beach where we are staying at the Copalis Beach Sunrise Resort.   This is a very nice resort next to the beach. We only have to walk to the end of the resort then about a block through some dunes to the beach.   This is a great beach and is almost deserted this time of year.    The dogs love t
Read more

May 6 – 31, 2023, Chama, NM

Image
We arrived in Chama and got set up on a river site at the Rio Chama RV Park.   We will stay here until June 1 st and help the new owner, Dale, get the park ready for the season.   The river is very high right now but the view from our campsite is wonderful. We drove to Pagosa Springs on our day off to get groceries and were happy to see all the snow still on the mountains.   We are glad that the Rockies got a good amount of snow this winter. We enjoyed our time helping Dale get the RV park going and also seeing all of our “Chama friends” but we are anxious to get back to traveling again.
Read more