Whale-spotting, take two.
After yet another pathetic breakfast, Tonya and I left the Kia in the bowels of the Shangri-La hotel and walked back to Starbucks. Once again, we treated ourselves to some over-priced drinks and waited. But this time, things looked more promising. People were starting to gather.
The girl in the Prince of Whales jacket showed up again and once we were all there, led us through the Waterfront Station and down to the boat. There were about 30 of us all together. As we left the dock we were given a brief rundown on how to use the life jackets and life preserver in case someone fell overboard. Then as the boat kicked into high gear, Tonya and I took our seats on the stern. The wind was cool but the sun was out, and I felt like a dog with its head out the car window. We sped away from the shore and then beneath the Lion's Gate Bridge, and soon we were heading out into Deep Water, toward Victoria Island.
The first species we saw were some sea lions, sunning themselves on a large number of logs tied together. They seemed to ignore us as we drifted past (the captain cut the motor for photo ops) but the flock of seagulls intermingling with them took flight.
A while later, way off in the distance, I spotted a dolphin. They were too far off to get a picture of, but their playful splashes gave them away. I assume they were Pacific White-sided, like in the aquarium.
Two hours into the trip, it stopped being fun. The air was positively frosty and many of us covered up with some ratty blankets supplied by the boat. But Tonya and I stuck it out and stayed on the uncovered stern. Our efforts paid off as not much later, the people on the top deck started pointing to the left...
Orcas!
A pod of them, maybe 5. It was so cool being able to see such majestic and genuine wild animals. The captain kept up with them as they swam for about half an hour, giving us plenty of time for pictures.
When the whales were moving too far off course, we continued on our way to Victoria Island. We passed by a second group of sea lions, sun bathing on a large rock...
We docked at Victoria Island close to lunch. Restaurants and shops lined the streets and there was a definate 'touristy' feel to the place. Tonya and I ate at Nando's because I know they're in Australia. The food was mediocre, as I've been told. ;) We explored the streets and stopped for gellato, though it wasn't as good as what I had in Australia, and on our way to the bus for Butchart Gardens, I got a bubble tea because I've always wanted to try one since I first saw them in Australia. Maybe I was homesick...?
The gardens were beautiful but because we'd spent so much time stuffing our faces, we only had an hour to go through five different themes and I could have spent at least an hour in each one.
There were too many people for me to be truly happy with my pictures, but I'm very glad we went. At around five, we headed toward the back of the gardens where the boat was waiting to take us back to Vancouver. The trip home was a lot faster because we weren't looking for whales. Tonya and I sat inside this time, and took photos of the mountains.
Dinner was an impromptu stop at Keg Caesar's, where Tonya and I each had some decadent pasta followed by a shared dessert...
1 comment:
The first photo is so clear, so blue. The water glistens. Beautiful! And your ‘dog out the window’ analogy makes it so easy for me to imagine!
That’s a big seal – uh, seal lion. I hope he has a lot of belly fat because those logs look uncomfortably scratchy.
I love that you’re already identifying dolphins from their splashes! You’re so cool!
Whales! *points and holds breath* Your photos, though clear and impressive, don’t nearly capture how amazing that experience would have been! No photos could. The only time I’ve seen whales are in the distance, not as close as you got, and I remember how awed I was. Moments like those are what make travelling worthwhile. Thank you for sharing it!
The second sea lion group looks more comfortable. *pets them… then rushes out of the way of their teeth* lol
*hee hee* Yeah, Nandos isn’t high cuisine, and eating gelato in Canada could never match the gelato shop in St Kilda on a cold night not so long ago. *wistful sigh*
I’ve been told that there’s an even better gelato place in Brunswick Street – the T2 street! I’ll research…. :)
That is one impressive vine covered building! Is it a hotel?
Just the few photos you have shared of the gardens gives me a real sense of how magical they are. It’s a pity that you couldn’t have spent longer, but by not having done so means there’s a good reason to go back. :)
The ocean photos are beautiful! I especially like the one of the boat with the misted mountains behind. Simple toned photos like that really appeal to me for their simplicity and depth.
Dinner looks delicious, and if I didn’t know better I’d say that was a chocolate pancake that you and Tonya shared for dessert… but I bet it wasn’t. Was it? ;-)
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