A couple of years ago, at one of the Travel Media Association of Canada (TMAC), BC Chapter meetings I talked with a number of folks from the Vancouver Island and Sunshine Coast tourism boards, and I mentioned I would at some point, come and visit the Sunshine Coast. It took me THIS LONG to do so. The Sunshine Coast (or the Sunshine Coast Regional District, as it is known in governance terms) is absolutely beautiful.
The first thing that totally shocked me was that it was so close: Gibsons is literally 40 minutes by ferry from Horseshoe Bay. And the second one: it’s not island terrain. It’s actually on the mainland! I felt so ignorant about geography when I realized this.
I was accompanied on this tour by Andrea from Vancouver Coast Mountains (VCMC) and Andrea (Sunshine Coast Tourism) and Robyn (604 Pulse), and we had an absolute blast. We ate at fine restaurants (including the Laughing Oyster in Okeover Arm, and Chasters at the Bonniebrook Lodge in Gibsons), we listened to live music (at the Gumboot Cafe in Roberts Creek), and we saw beautiful art all the way from Langdale to Lund. Literally, we art-crawled.
I will have a series of blog posts about where we stayed, where we ate and a few of the great artists we visited from town to town. These blog posts will be released as a series throughout the next 2 or 3 weeks. Trust me, I have more than enough content. I took 750 photos on this trip. You can follow those posts via my tag “Sunshine Coast Art Crawl 2011″
Some of the art we saw on the first day:
It was really an amazing trip. We experienced the warmth and hospitality of local artists, B&B owners and restaurant folks. For anyone wanting to get out of the crazy pace of Vancouver and the Lower Mainland, I thoroughly recommend doing a week-long or so trip crawling through the Sunshine Coast.
More information on the Sunshine Coast from the Sunshine Coast Tourism site:
The Sunshine Coast at its southernmost tip is a mere 10 miles as the crow flies from downtown Vancouver, and at its most northern point it borders on some of the most rugged natural surroundings in this beautiful province of British Columbia. Stretching 110 miles (180 km) along the shores of the Strait of Georgia from Howe Sound to Desolation Sound, the Sunshine Coast has much to offer visitors. With its coastal mountain range, old growth forests, lakes and inlets, each stop along the Sunshine Coast offers visitors a unique sense of place, featuring local history, cultural heritage and natural attractions. Immerse yourself in marine activities such as kayaking, canoeing, sailing, windsurfing, pleasure cruising, sport fishing, scuba diving, swimming, beachcombing and more!
Amongst the things that intrigued me the most was the fact that there is a lot of stuff that we don’t know about towns we visited. For example, I found Powell River intriguing. It has restructured from being a more industrial town to more of a tourist destination. And it has some really neat displays. Lund, a town founded by Swedes. Who knew?! And who knew that Mile Zero of Highway 101 (the one who goes all the way south to Chile) is in Lund?! I stood RIGHT THERE.
I love the Sunshine Coast. There, I said it.
Disclosure: I participated on the Sunshine Coast Art Crawl 2011 as part of a media trip. My accommodations and transportation are compliments of our hosts and the tourism agencies in charge. I paid for a few miscellaneous expenses associated with this trip, specifically incidentals and my own shopping etc. You can follow along my adventures on the Sunshine Coast through this tag.
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