Travel with Joyce James to Canada's West Coast in 2010

Come join us for the first 'West Coast Tour to British Columbia – More memorable travel for knitters & friends. '

Note: Extra nights before and after our tour can be arranged, as well as
flights from your home city to Victoria.

Day One: Monday, 23 Aug.
Our tour starts in Victoria, British Columbia’s capital city, established as a formal settlement when Fort Victoria was built as a Hudson’s Bay Company trading post in 1843. Our hotel is centrally located in this scenic small city, with the reputation of being ‘more British than Britain.’

Our accommodation for the next six nights is at the Fairmont Empress, one of Canada’s famed railway hotels and a pre-eminent place to stay. The Empress was placed on the Condé Nast Gold List for 2010. The hotel has been recently renovated and in addition to their outstanding rooms and dining facilities, offers extensive amenities such as a spa and an indoor heated swimming pool.

In the late afternoon, we’ll get together at the hotel for a private reception to meet your fellow travellers, followed by a special dinner to discuss plans for the second Canadian tour, and our first trip to the West Coast.

Day Two: Tuesday, 24 Aug.
Breakfast at the hotel. The morning is at your leisure. You’ll probably want to walk to the Inner Harbour, just across the street from our hotel and always busy with many small and large boats, and float planes taking off and landing. There is much to see -- be sure to bring along your camera.

After lunch we’ll join the group to walk to the nearby Royal British Columbia Museum. The building is stunning and we’ll meet our guide for an introduction to both the cultural and natural history of the area. There are many interesting exhibits from a recreated town, dated at the turn of the 20th Century, to a West Coast forest setting in the Natural History Gallery. Be sure to take in a showing at the National Geographic IMAX Theatre.

We’ll also stop at Helmecken House, next door in Thunderbird Park. The building is the former home of Sebastien Helmecken, a Hudson’s Bay Company surgeon at Fort Victoria. The restored log building was constructed in 1852, and displays furniture and medical equipment of the time. The setting of the Park has an extensive display of totem poles and an aboriginal traditional Big House.

A must for anyone visiting Victoria is to have afternoon tea at the Empress Hotel. This is a traditional ritual at the hotel and a reservation has been made for our group.

Day Three: Wednesday, 25 Aug.
After breakfast, our coach will meet us for the scenic ride along Marine Drive to the Butchart Gardens, designated a National Historic Site of Canada. The Gardens have grown to an area of 55 acres and are an amazing transformation from a former limestone quarry. No doubt you’ll marvel at the beautiful setting, with its special gardens and countless flowers and foliage said to number in excess of 700 species.

Before leaving the area, we’ll pay a short visit to the Victoria Butterfly Gardens, dedicated to tropical butterflies and moths but also home to some exotic birds.
We’ll be back in Victoria in time for more exploring and most likely a visit to the Beehive Woolshop. No doubt you’ll want to go there more than once as they carry a wide variety of yarns, books and patterns.

Day Four: Thursday, 26 Aug.
After breakfast, our coach will take us north on the Malahat Highway to the former logging town of Duncan (now known as the City of Totems) and the Cowichan Valley. We’ll visit the Cowichan Museum and meet with one of their knitters, plus see a short film about the history of Cowichan knitting. True Cowichan sweaters are highly prized and very long lasting. The natural lanolin is kept in the yarn when it is prepared for knitting, making the garments practically water repellent. The Cowichan band has had a constant struggle against Japanese copies which have been produced to supplant the genuine version.

The Cowichan Valley has a number of wineries and we’ll go to one for a tour and a tasting. ‘Cowichan’ was named by the first Aborigines and means “the warm land.” This is appropriate as the valley records Canada’s highest mean temperatures.

After lunch, we’ll stop in at the beautiful residential area of Cobble Hill and join the knitters during their weekly knitting get together. In addition to being able to see what knitters on the Island are working on, they will bring us up to date on local yarn shops in the area.

Day Five: Friday, 27 Aug.
Today is at your leisure and your time to explore the city.. Shopping in Victoria is excellent with many antique stores and specialty shops, including one of Canada’s best bookstores; a beading store; an area known as ‘Old Town’ with 1800‘s architecture; several local markets and many outstanding choices for places to eat. The city is very ‘walkable’.

Some additional suggestions for your day: Victoria has Canada’s oldest Chinatown and there are many shops and studios along Fan Tan Alley; for those interested in art, visit the restored house of Emily Carr, BC’s best known artist and The Art Gallery of Greater Victoria; the gardens of the official residence of the lieutenant-governor, the Queen’s representative in BC; the Maritime Museum of BC and much, much more!

From 5:00 to 7:30 p.m. tonight is the Beehive’s Friday Night Knitting get together and we are welcome to join local knitters.

Day Six: Saturday, 28 Aug.
We leave the hotel after breakfast for a memorable, full-day trip to Salt Spring Island, one of the Gulf Islands. We’ll leave by ferry from Swartz Bay, near Sidney and dock near Ganges, largest town on Salt Spring. Our visit is timed to take in the Saturday market, a tradition on the Island, and well worth seeing, with its gathering of residents and tables of local produce and crafts. We’ll also go to Treenway Silks, the Salt Spring Cheese Company (makers of goat cheese) and meet with some talented local knitters.

Day Seven: Sunday, 29 Aug.
After breakfast, we’ll check out of the Empress for two days on the outer coast on the western side of the Island. We’ll stay at a stunning resort at Long Beach, a perfect place for relaxed knitting overlooking the Pacific Ocean; walking on the trails of Pacific Rim National Park and along the beaches, or perhaps taking a whale watching cruise.

In the evening, we’ll go to the Tofino Botanical Gardens for their annual Lantern Festival. This is a magical event with a display of homemade paper lanterns.

Day Eight: Monday, 30 Aug.
A full day in this special area. Your choice to either keep busy or do absolutely nothing! This will be a special time to mark the end of our BC visit.

Day Nine: Tuesday, 31 Aug.
After breakfast we check out of the hotel. Our coach will be waiting to take us to central Victoria in time to meet your ongoing transportation home.

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