FLOAT PLANE TO TOFINO SPEND TIME HAVING ADVENTURES INSTEAD OF SITTING ON FERRY
A great escape is only an hour away, writes Suzanne Morphet
On Vancouver Island’s West Coast, the village of Tofino is a popular year-round destination. But driving there from the Lower Mainland usually takes at least six hours, including a ferry ride and a stretch of sometimes-harrowing mountain road. If you fly by float plane instead, you can be in Tofino in just one hour, giving you more time for the many adventures available.
11 A.M. SO LONG VANCOUVER
Check in for your 11:30 a.m. flight with Harbour Air at the Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre in Coal Harbour. Enjoy a complimentary espresso at the Cockpit Café before boarding a nine-passenger Cessna Grand Caravan EX. Besides the non-stop views over Stanley Park, the Strait of
Georgia and the forested mountains of Vancouver Island, the best part about flying on floats is there’s no security screening, so boarding is a breeze. Just walk on and take off.
12:30 P.M. TOUCH DOWN IN TOFINO
Your plane skims the surface of Tofino Inlet, then docks at Tofino Resort + Marina, situated on the edge of town and your home base for three nights. Enjoy lunch at the Hatch Waterfront Pub, one of the property’s two restaurants. With a menu ranging from raw oysters to wood-fired pizza, and 14 craft beers on tap, you’re spoiled for choice.
2 P.M. PADDLEBOARD CLAYOQUOT SOUND
After the bustle of the big city, Clayoquot Sound feels especially peaceful. Studded with emerald green islands, the waters here are calm compared to the outer coast. Book a small
The water temperature at the geothermally heated springs at Hot Springs Cove, located in Maquinna Marine Provincial Park on Vancouver Island, is 50 C. motorboat from the resort’s Marine Adventure Centre to take you to a sheltered spot to launch your boards. On the way, watch for bears foraging on the rocky shoreline. Vancouver Island boasts one of the densest populations of black bears on the planet.
7 P.M. WALK TO SHELTER
Staying at the Tofino Resort + Marina means you’re within easy walking distance of stores and restaurants including Shelter, where an eclectic menu includes buttermilk fried chicken and mussels in Thai coconut.