I pulled up to my desk with a fresh Earl Grey and Carolans. It was a sunny afternoon to begin what I thought would be the easiest article of my life. Writing about my favorite trip to one of the greatest places in the world. Tofino. Two Earl Grey’s and a couple of Carolans later my page was still blank, the trips I’ve taken to the west coast have been un-rank able against each other. Each Tofino adventure has been undeniably amazing for it’s own unique reasons.
I started thinking… what is it about this place that keeps drawing us back? Yeah there’s the obvious one, it’s freaking breathtaking. But there’s more, something that’s not quite namable. Countless visitors have come to the west coast shores to play, celebrate, explore, harvest from the sea and connect with each other and chances are if they’ve been there once, they’ll back again and again.
You can surf anytime of the year at least one of the beaches, you can watch huge surging waves collide with the rugged rocky shores, blasting water into the sky. You can explore the dramatic coastline, decorated with isolated islands by boat or plane or simply by walking down one of the many trails accessing the sea. You can witness migrating birds and whales, resident eagles and orcas and if you’re really lucky you might spot some wolves, bears or cougars in their natural habitat, wild and free. You can golf, shoot your friends with paintballs, sing karaoke, spend an entire day getting pampered in the spa or visit some 30 or more ridiculously delicious restaurants. You can camp, socialize in a hostel, hit a hotel or live the good life in a five star beachfront resort. You can cruise solo, with a lover, a partner, a friend, your family or a gang of your favourite people in the world. There are endless opportunities to connect with yourself or your chosen company.
I can’t say what’s best, or what not to miss or how to make your trip perfect because its all relative to who you are and what deep needs you are searching to fulfill. This magic of Tofino doesn’t get to be summed in a one-page article. You’ve just got to go for yourself and see what you find.
Someone once said to me “Tofino may not give you what you expect, but you will somehow always leave with exactly what you need.” You will leave Tofino with a kind of peaceful joy, a deep and relieving satisfaction. Something like this Earl Grey and Irish Cream combination I’ve been sipping on.
If I could offer one piece of advice it would be; go there. Go open to experience, welcome spontaneity, and be curious.
