more from Qualicum

We were lucky with the rain let-up for our drive to Tofino yesterday. Again, we were awed by the gorgeous fall colours all along the way. It is SO beautiful winding through the trees, including Cathedral Grove, with all the bright yellows and reds -- what a great time of year to travel.

We love those Tofino Beaches. The waves were rolling in and the surfer dudes were literally running from the parking lot to the water to take advantage. Around there they have "wave signs" similar to our fire condition signs and the wave rating indicated "Extreme" :-)

We also drove around the town of Ucluelet. Like Tofino it is a beautiful resort town and there is a lot of development taking place. I believe Jason Priestly from the 90210 TV show is responsible for much of the development there. It is such a remote area and a long 2 hour drive from this side of the Island and we wondered about living so far away from everything. Deb & Rene said many of those people work in Qualicum, Parksville AND Nanaimo and make the trip daily. We couldn't even imagine!! That one day, 4+ hours on the road was more than enough for us and we would be reluctant to do it again let alone daily!!! At Ucluelet a bear ran across the road in front of us. I managed to snap a quick picture. As we drove by, he was looking in the window of one of the homes!

When we arrived home, Deb & Rene were having dinner and we joined them for some pasta with Rene's homemade sauce. What a great campspot!! Supper included!

I'm not sure we'll be so lucky with the weather today. It's raining a little harder and looking pretty socked-in. I'll do a little laundry this morning and we've planned a short drive tour this afternoon.

That's all from here.... Have a GREAT birthday, Greg & Jeff!!