We were thinking our walk through East Sooke Regional Park would be “a walk in the park”, but it was anything but. East Sooke is on the coast of the Strait of Juan De Fuca coastline about 15 miles west of Victoria, on Vancouver Island. These pristine woods must look like the entire island looked before so many parts were logged for settlement and lumber.

This little guy greeted us as we made our way to the beach. We rescued a couple of banana slugs off the trail to save them from being trampled. “I’ve been slimed!” is the appropriate exclamation after picking one up for rescue!

Levar’s been sick for the past several days, so we decided to post him on whale watch in a hammock on his own private “island”, giving him time to rest and recover. He had a commanding view of the Strait and the Olympic Range whilst scanning for sea life.

Meanwhile, Mandy and I took off for our “walk.” The Coast Trail turned out to be a pretty arduous jaunt! The coast is extremely rocky, so one is continuously ascending or descending the rocks lining the little bays. It turned out to be a pretty good workout; today my muscles are aching, in a good way. We were rewarded with many interesting vistas. Around one turn we spotted a GIANT root mass washed up in a cove. It looked like an installation of art of some sort. Sort of Andrew Goldsworthy meets Emily Carr in British Columbia.