When we first arrived at Bryce and Myra's, they were giving us suggestions on what to see and do. They both agreed heading out to Cape Scott Provincal Park was a must. After tossing around possible options in the park, we decided a 2.6 km easy walk in to San Josef Bay, where there would be tent sites, bear caches, and compost toilets, was the winner. We'll tackle the 26 km hike to Cape Scott next time!
And it seemed as though we had made a good decision when at dinner one night Myra said, "Did Bryce tell you San Jo is where we got married?" Umm, what? I guess if you and 120 of your closest friends are willing to drive 2 hours on windy, bumpy roads, then hike 45 minutes through the forest, it must be a pretty special place.
Our adventure to San Jo definitely ranked number 1 in our North Island adventures, and that's saying a lot given all of the amazing sites we explored.
Our two day excursion started where else but the Port Hardy grocery store, to buy what other than a tomato, a bag of chips, and a 6 pack of ... danishes. Being well supplied (again mostly from Myra's pantry), we started driving west on the road to Holberg. Bryce gave us driving instructions: pull over for experienced locals (faster drivers), use the pull-outs when you meet a logging truck, watch for potholes, make sure you have a spare in case you get a flat, and the 60 km will probably take about 1.5 hours. Holy crap - maybe we should drive the excavator if its that bad!
Along the bumpy, gravelly, dusty way, we found the stops Myra suggested. The Shoe Tree was the first. It's a massive tree with piles of shoes on and around it. It was started many pairs ago when a hiker, returning from Cape Scott, nailed their mud soaked, irrepairable hikers to the tree. This tradition kinda caught on and now Google maps even recognizes it. A snazzy pink Crock caught Gayle’s eye, but unfortunately there was no mate. Sad 😔.
Thank gosh Gayle’s tears had dried by the time we arrived at the Nahwitti trailhead as we had a massive Sitka Spruce to find. After about a 10 minute walk and 100 beautiful trees, we found it. Pictures don't do it justice. This tree was massive, and as it towered above, it had such a powerful, calming effect. It truly was magnificent.
We clamoured back to the car, passed through Holberg, and carried on to find Ronning's Garden. Back in In 1910, Norwegian settler Bernt Ronning established a homestead near the uncompleted San Josef Wagon Road. While most local settlers eventually abandoned the area, Ronning remained until the early 1960s, hunting, trapping, fishing, and clearing over five acres of rainforest. There, he built his house and created a dream wilderness garden using exotic seeds, cuttings, and plants ordered from around the world. It was wild to find daffodils, rhododendrons, and monkey puzzle trees in the middle of nowhere!
Our next stop was the penultimate - the Cape Scott Provincial Park parking lot. We were a wee bit shocked by the 30+ vehicles, and optimistically convinced ourselves they were not destined for San Jo Bay. We hoisted up the loaded back packs, honestly dropped our $10/person camping fee in the slot, and hiked down the trail. Forty-three minutes later we were greeted by an expansive sand beach that skirted a gorgeous bay. Hello paradise!
There were several available tent sites available, so we chose one with a sheltered fire pit, a table, and a fantastic view of the ocean. We did manage to reno the site with a few upgrades: bench seating, extended table, dry firewood, and a well positioned tarp. Bear Grills would be proud!
That afternoon we explored the sea stacks, but the real prize came the next morning when we were able to investigate the tidal pools and Beach Two at low tide. Myra had tipped us off, so we felt a bit like locals when we spotted and named green anemomes, sea stars, limpets, barnacles, and rock fish. That feeling rapidly faded as I scrambled over a rock, looked up, and saw a black bear about 20 m away. Trying to be calm, I told Paul, grabbed my phone, and snapped a quick pic, as Paul called out, "Hey Bear", like Bryce told us to do. We stood our ground, facing the bear, as it slowly ambled toward the shoreline, and what seemed like toward us. Pretty sure my heart rate was 150 bpm, but to be honest, the young bear wasn't interested in us. If anything, it was annoyed we disrupted its breakfast hunt.
We explored the shoreline some more, collected fresh water to filter, carved our spoons, and of course ate our egg and chip sandwiches and danishes. On our drive home, we made a celebratory stop at the Scarlet Ibis in Holberg, the most remote pub on Vancouver Island. If you're ever in the area, get the chicken wings and fries. Seriously, they were no joke.
Our trip to San Jo was a definite highlight of our explorations on Vancouver Island. And unlike the road biker and SUV we passed on the way home, we avoided the dreaded flat tire. 20 km/h paid off!
