Vancouver Island Reviews and Information

  I have always been somewhat intrigued by the paranormal, so in celebration of Halloween this is a list of some of the most haunted places on Vancouver Island! Feel free to add more to the list by commenting! Have a fun and safe Halloween!  Old Stone Butter Church in the Cowichan Valley McPherson Playhouse (Victoria) - The ghost of the gray lady haunted the theatre. Several performers have seen her floating back and forth across the balcony in front of the projection booth.  Ross Bay Cemetery (Victoria) - Strange happenings have occurred at any time of day. There have been sightings of people weeping in grief and then suddenly disappearing!  Old Stone Butter Church (Duncan) - The haunted church has a rich oral history. This was captured in 1931 with a report in "Ripley's Believe It or Not" They described "The church of no services...in which no congregation has ever gathered." According to Ripley, "the Indians will not go near (it) because

  After spending some time exploring Chemainus we embarked on our journey towards Point-No-Point. Our check-in time was 4pm but we wanted to pick up some local wine or beer to drink (White Bark Ale from Driftwood Brewery to be exact) so we decided to stop into the lovely town of Sooke.   Point-No-Point Resort is located about 25 minutes from Sooke in Shirley (unincorporated). As we drove further and further from the city we joked it was beginning to look like the setting for " Last Cabin On The Left " or some other exploited horror movie riddled with cliches and good-looking over the hill actors playing teenagers. But it was really just so far outside of the city and in one of the most amazing locations.   We checked in at the absolutely perfect time to catch a withering West Coast sunset on a glimmering, calm Pacific ocean. We quickly absorbed the stunning views with a glass of red wine (Apothic Red). Sunset. Check. Open fireplace. Check. No TV. Check. No al

Campbell River has a beautiful seawalk that spans 6 kilometres along the Discovery Passage and Highway 19A . If you're lucky you'll catch an Alaska bound cruise ship in front of the gorgeous BC mainland mountain range.   The wood carvings that line the seaside trail are the result of the Shoreline Arts Annual Transformation of the Shore event held every July 1st long weekend. 

We were very impressed with our stay at Point-No-Point . I ended up taking so many photos and videos that I am going to have to break this review down in at least 2 parts.  The first magical sight we saw when we finally arrived at our destination was a gorgeous sun set. When I first watched the playback on this video I noticed something a bit odd 11 seconds in. Maybe just a reflection.... Then the next day when we were headed towards Botanical Beach we came across this little bear munching on some salal bushes a long the road.    The next few videos are just us documenting our exploring around the resort, hope you enjoy them! 

Someone in Nanaimo needs a hobby!

It was a beautiful Sunday morning and there is nothing better than getting up at the crack of dawn (5:30am to be exact) for a fishing adventure in Sooke. As of October 1st anglers in Sooke waters can keep 4 coho (1 wild and 3 hatchery) Coho are probably my favourite to fish as they are usually very energetic and acrobatic fishing when they hit.  It's very important to remember your fishing license. (As well, be aware of all current regulations in the area you will be fishing) All this information can be found on the Department of Fisheries website . A full year saltwater fishing license is only $21 but you can also get a 1,3 or 5 day if you don't think you'll be hitting the waters too much in a year.  This was going to be my first salmon fishing trip this year, once September hit I was disappointed I hadn't gotten out on the water so I was stoked on my dad calling me late Saturday to invite me on a little trip down to Sooke. We've fished in Sooke since

PRESS RELEASE   Mid Island Co-op Donates $15,000 Towards Nanaimo Community Hospice’s New Home Fundraising Reaches 70 per cent of Campaign Goal   Nanaimo, BC – October 12, 2012 – Nanaimo Community Hospice has recently received a generous $15,000 donation from Mid-Island Co-op towards the $900,000 Expand the Heart of Hospice fundraising campaign. The funds will go towards the renovation of Hospice’s new house on Waddington Road. The campaign has now reached the 70 per cent point, with over $600,000 raised to date.   “Donations from organizations like Mid Island Co-op are what have helped us make it to this point and we are extremely grateful for that,” said Wendy Pratt, Executive Director, Nanaimo Community Hospice. “When dealing with dying, caregiving or grieving many people don’t know where to turn for support.   Hospice is here for everyone in the community when they are at their most vulnerable. Donations to Expand the Heart of Hospice are helping us to increasing

'Voices of The River' is a 45 minute documentary about the importance of the Nanaimo River watershed. This film will become part of the educational foundation of a new Nanaimo River stewardship initiative. This film explores the historic and contemporary uses and values of the Nanaimo River, including aquatic fish habitat, terrestrial wildlife habitat, traditional and contemporary First Nations uses, industrial activities such as logging and mining, water quality and quantity for drinking and irrigation, commercial fisheries, and recreational activities such as fishing, hunting and water sports. This was created and produced by Manly Media ( you can now purchase the completed DVD)

  PHOTO: UWCNVI Campaign Co-Chair Laura Healey and Christine McAuley, Bernard Callebaut Chocolates pose with the chocolates for sale this year.     Chocolates Support “Change Starts Here” Campaign United Way Partners With Bernard Callebaut For Second Year To Sell Chocolates   Nanaimo, BC – October 1, 2012 – The United Way Central and Northern Vancouver Island (UWCNVI) has partnered with Bernard Callebaut Chocolates for the second year to sell chocolate bars during the “Change Starts Here” campaign. The UWCNVI hope to raise $8000 this year from the chocolate sales.   The specially branded United Way milk or dark chocolate bars can be purchased for $2 each or boxes of 30 can be purchased for $60. One dollar from each bar sold goes directly to the United Way Central and Northern Vancouver Island campaign that funds critically needed programs for kids, youth and seniors in the Central Island.   Chocolates will be sold until the end of the year through a v

 Upon driving past North Town Center in North Nanaimo, I noticed a new sushi restaurant had opened up where the Taco Time used to be. Being a huge sushi fan I just had to try this new place.    I am going to get straight to the point here, I'm going to highly suggest you visit Dami Sushi on 10-4890 Rutherford Rd in Nanaimo. They don't seem to have a website or Facebook page as of yet but hopefully they stick around, because I think they make some mighty delicious sushi!   The Alaska roll was basically a california roll with actual crab and cucumber inside, topped off with some smoked salmon and drizzled with a special sweet sauce (I asked what it was and was told it was the "house" sauce and they could not reveal) regardless, it was very different from any sushi sauce I have ever tried and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Next up was the Caterpillar roll complete with prawn, crab and tuna - topped off with avocado and tempura. Pure crunchy heaven.      Last bu