We made the short drive from Capilano River RV to the Horseshoe Harbor for the ferry to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. With the RV queued to board, we had time to stroll through the cute town & park of Horseshoe Harbor.
The ferry crossing itself was as smooth as silk. The large ferry had a full bar and cafeteria-restaurant and was very full. (See 04 July for comparison with the next ferry crossing.)
When we got off the ferry on Vancouver Island in Nanaimo, we headed south for Butchart Gardens, close to Victoria. (Note: originally we/me expected to camp near Nanaimo, but the delay in crossing dictated that we go directly towards Victoria. It would have been better to take the ferry that goes to Swartz Bay, but …)
We arrived at the Gardens around 7 pm, and were happy that it was open until 10pm (pretty empty at that time). In a beautiful light late into the evening, we covered the park with Molly (Canada – at least AB and BC – is really dog friendly), and had a lovely dinner in the Dining Room outside on a porch listening to a jazzy group playing in the nearby performance area. 
We arrived at Weir’s Beach RV Resort after dusk – thanks to our GPS because it would have be very hard to find otherwise. Weir’s Beach is advertised as being in Victoria but the GPS says its in Metchosin BC, and we only found the address by “expanding” the GPS search area. It was definitely a good pick with beachfront sites in a picturesque park, about 20 miles from Victoria, which you can see across the bay. We felt lucky to get space at such a great place on a long Canadian holiday weekend.
Beach at Weir’s Beach RV Resort
Molly testing the waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca at Weir’s Beach. Victoria in the distance.
The next day we went whale watching on a zodiac-type boat out of Victoria harbor. We saw orcas of course (we saw the L resident pod), seals and an immature humpback (we got quite close and all the other boats left so it was especially cool).
Geared up in survival suits for the whale watching tour.
Orca’s! Close along shore.
Happy sailors!
More Orcas.
Solo Humpback whale
A late lunch in Victoria followed by a short stroll around the city and back to our rolling home by the beach. The evenings on the beach were very mild and the sun didn’t set until after 10p. Many campers had fires and sat around in family groups until late. Next day, the 4th, we headed to Victoria for the ferry to Port Angeles, but had time at the BC museum to see a fabulous exhibit on First Nation languages and other aspects. We were short on time – lots more to see there.
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On the Go with John and Jessie 