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Saturday, May 9, 2026

Working Away?

Our first official work day as WorkAways on May 4th arrived with an uncharacteristic beautiful forecast of sun and temperatures of 26C, so our hosts, Bryce and Myra told us to take the day off. Is that even a thing if we hadn't worked yet? Obedient and eager to please, we agreed, and drove off in search of the Tex Lyon trail head near Fort Rupert.  We were ready to explore the rugged coastline of the north shore of Vancouver Island.

Hike 1: The Tex Lyon Trail

After a month of up and downs through the humid Amazon rainforest, we figured we were invincible. The "difficult" rating on AllTrails surely was nothing we couldn't handle.


Within five minutes, we were wedged inside a rock crevice, hauling our out-of-breath selves up a vertical wall. The trail didn't just have "sections"; it had "ropes of desperation." We puffed past the 2km mark only to find a sign essentially saying, "Good luck, the maintenance crew gave up here."

It was only when the undergrowth began to swallow us whole that we re-read the hike description. It wasn't a 7-kilometer hike. It was 7 miles. One way.

While Paul’s knees began a formal protest, we did find a stunning lookout. Islands dotting the foreground, snow-capped mountains in the distance—it was the kind of view that makes it all worth it.

Hike 2: The Blinkhorn Trail

By day four, we’d managed a staggering two days of actual work. Naturally, the forecast called for future rain, so Bryce gave us the "get out of town" nod again. At this rate, we’ll be fired for over-relaxing.

After a tactical supply run in Port McNeill—where we secured our lunch essentials: bread, tomatoes, chips, and half-price Danishes—we hit Telegraph Cove.

I like to think of myself as an "aware" hiker (others may call it 'nervous' or 'panicky'). Bryce assured us there were "only" black bears around here, but the local sign for "Grizzly Tours" suggested otherwise. I had just managed to lower my bear-radar when we stumbled upon a pile of scat so fresh it practically had a heartbeat. New radar level: MAXIMUM.


The trailhead warned of "downed trees." In Ontario, that’s a twig you step over. In BC, a downed tree is a multi-story apartment complex made of bark. We crawled under, over, through, and eventually retreated to the beach to bypass these wooden monsters. It wasn't hiking; it was an untelevised episode of American Ninja Warrior.





After about 2 hours we reached the island link at low tide (purely by "expert" accidental planning) and scrambled across to the final lookout. We were greeted by:

  1. Two very curious and playful sea lions.

  2. A tide pool gala of sea urchins and limpets.

  3. Three pine martens who played tag around us while we ate our "gourmet" tomato and chip sandwiches. They were delicious, just in case you were wondering. 

If there is one thing we’ve learned about North Vancouver Island so far, it’s that the trees are bigger than big, and a "difficult" rating doesn't lie.


After our return to the car, we did enjoy our half price danish treat and agreed that we’d take "obediently" skipping work for that any day of the week.