Our first RV Trip on Vancouver Island: Kalyniuk – Welta family
Parksville. British Columbia
Last week of August 2006
By Carmen Welta
Part 3 of 3: Rain, Rain Go Away
Just in case you happened to miss the of Island RV Guide allow me to quickly recap: Me (Carmen) and my family; husband (Todd) and children (Tomas – age 6, Toria – age 4) spent a ‘fun’ month of August 2006 moving from Edmonton to Victoria. Before school started we were eager to sightsee and explore our new Island home. We loaded up our Cardinal 33-foot fifth-wheel and headed to Parksville. We spent the first 5 days, shopping, sightseeing, playing and relaxing in and around Parksville. Oh ya, and we ate a lot of ice cream too. And without further ado here’s the last 3 days…
 Thursday brought a little rain. Hmm, what to do when it rains? Go for a drive on the Old Island Highway. We loaded up the Comox/Courtenay maps we had received from the Parksville Visitors Center and pointed the dually truck north. If you are not in a rush or are looking for a scenic stress-break I highly recommend the Old Island Highway. You meander along the ocean with lots of beaches, road-side pull-outs and interesting stops.
For example; I, being a prairie-girl, could not figure out what these huge mounds of ‘snow’ were at Fanny Bay. I actually had Todd pull over so I could take a closer look. It was oyster shells. The coolest thing. They actually use the empty shells around the edges of the parking lot.
Todd and I highly recommend the scenic drive. As for Tomas and Toria the up and downs of the sea-side route put them both to sleep!
Once in Courtenay we found Tito’s restaurant. It had been reviewed as one of the best Mexican restaurants in the Times-Colonist Best of … series. Hola! Vamonos! (That’s the extent of my Spanish, courtesy of every 4-year-old girls dream cartoon character-Dora the Explorer ). Hello! Go Quickly! To Tito’s. The food was fresh, yummy and while I’m not a food critic it has to be some of the very best Mexican food north of Mexico.
Down by the marina we found a play area and the kids had a fun time running & jumping amongst the play structures. The only downfall came when one of our cute and adorable children (who shall remain nameless) needed to use a bathroom and there was not one nearby. Fortunately there are bushes nearby and the problem was quickly resolved. Enough said.
We had time for a quick drive in the drizzle around Courtenay and about 1 or 2 seconds outside of Courtenay you drive into the town of Comox. This is home to CFB Comox - Canada’s only Air Force Base in British Columbia. We’re hoping to have more time to visit and explore this area in the future.
The drive back from Courtenay/Comox was via Canada’s #1 Highway also known as Vancouver Island Highway. The speed limit was 110km an hour. 110km. I didn’t know there was any place in B.C. that had a legal speed limit that fast. But the road is great and it is a fair speed limit for the drive. And while you do make good time it has nothing of the ambiance and roadside attractions you’ll find on the picturesque Old Island Highway.
That night we stopped in the town of Qualicum Beach for a bit more sightseeing. Qualicum Beach is another quaint town and is only about 10 or 15 minutes north of Parksville. There seemed to be two main streets that are home to the majority of shops and restaurants. After a fantastic lunch at Tito’s we were not that hungry but we were able to find a great bakery where we had a little snack followed by an ice cream!
On our second to last day of our trip my husband’s work had him renting a car and driving back to Victoria for a day. And wouldn’t you know that it rained that day? No problem. The kids and I played a game of Monopoly Jr.™, and about 672 games of Chutes and Ladders™. For a game of pure luck - based on the roll of the dice – how is it possible that I lost every single time???Oh. And I drove that big ol’ dually truck to the… (can you guess)… the ice cream stand at the Parksville Park.
Some of the things we like best about RVing is just hanging out in the campground, riding our bikes, reading books and spending time as a family with no ‘outside’ interruptions.
At night we could sit outside the trailer and watch the giant ocean- going cruise ships cruise past our paradise. Or one night we were at Surfside RV Park’s pool enjoying a great swim, watching the sunset, the ships cruise past on the water, listening to the music.
I almost forgot to mention the fresh fruit. WOW. There were fresh fruit stands all around Parksville. One day we picked up some peaches and raspberries for less then you would pay for a chocolate bar. That afternoon the kids each ate 2 bowls of peaches and raspberries. Or the day we bought corn that had been picked THAT morning. It was delicious.
We all love our trailer. The kids are constantly asking when we can go camping next. I think they appreciate having the family physically closer together. Let’s face it – in a trailer – everything is ‘kid-sized’ and mom or dad is never more than two or three steps away.
Even though our kids get along great (most days!) there is something magical about RVing that makes them get along even better. Having said that we’re fortunate enough to have a fifth-wheel trailer with two slides, one for the master bedroom (queen-size bed) and the dinette/couch slide out in the living room. Along the back are bunk beds and a wardrobe for the kids, with a door that closes to their ‘bedroom’. There is even a space for a TV and video console in their bedroom although I am proud to say that we have yet to succumb! Ha ha, Having said all that, I just realized that we have two TVs in our trailer (living room and our bedroom) and only one in our house! 
|
