Tofino, ‘Surf Capital of Canada’, lies on the west coast of Vancouver Island, right out there on the edge of the Pacific Rim. The Editors’ Choice Awards from Outside Magazine gave Tofino the title ‘Best Surf Town in North America, and the title ‘Best Beach in Canada’ came from TripAdvisor’sTraveler’s Choice Awards.

Tofino Beaches

No matter the moniker or who has bestowed it, it’s easy to see how they are accumulating when you start to visit the beaches of tofino, like Chesterman, Long and Cox Bay. Chesterman Beach is known for good summer waves, Long Beach has the largest stretch of sand which seems to just draw surfers in, and Cox Bay gets strong wave action, more than others in the summer.Tofino creates a unique surfing adventure, and wetsuits and other gear are a necessary blessing when surfing here.

Tofino weather is not that typical of the climates you usually find surfers; ocean temperatures are on the average 50°F/10°C, but the exquisite terrain of

Popular Tofino Surf Spot

Some beaches are better for newbies to learn how to surf and some are better for pros to ride the waves. The beaches of Tofino are good surf beaches for both novices and seasoned surfers, as they tend to have flat and sandy bottoms. And while some of the beaches are sheltered, making them a bit kinder and gentler to surf, some of them face the Pacific head-on, which creates a more challenging surf, so there is a range of surfing possibilities, even including kayak surfers.

You could do a 5-10 minute drive from downtown Tofino to get to the Beaches or you could do what the locals do, and bike to the beach of your choice, with your board on-board.

Tofino’s Surf Schools

The nine surf schools in Tofino offer equipment rentals, comprehensive lessons regarding safety, technique and the etiquette of the waves:

· Bruhwiler Surfschool – Surf with Canada’s best known pros

· Island Longboards – Lots of Longboards and SUP

· Live to Surf – Original Tofino Surf shop that provides Surf, Skate and Skim, Sales, Rentals, and Lessons for all ages.

· Long Beach Surf Shop – Large selection of rental and retail gear; largest selection of CD’s and vinyl

· Pacific Surf School – Learn from our coastal crew on the Island’s rugged west coast.

· Storm Surf – High quality surf gear, sales and rentals

· Surf Sister Surf School – Canada’s only women surf school (gents welcome as well)

· Tofino Surf School – Tofino’s newest surf school!

· Westside Surf School - Most advanced techniques learnt from director Sepp Bruhwiler, Canada’s internationally known pro

Do a quick hour lesson as a brush-up, or take a day or two and learn the basics. Take a 2, 3, or 4 day excursion or plunge into the world of surfing with a week-long option.

Tofino – O’Neill Cold Water Classic and Surfing Events

In 2009 and 2011, Canada’s first professional surfing event, the O’Neill Cold Water Classic was hosted in Tofino, with hundreds of professional surfers from all over the world in attendence, including some of the local surf pros, including 2009 winner Peter Devries, Jeremy Koreski, Noah Cohen and Raph and Sepp Bruhwiler.

Tofino Annual Events that have surfing

· Pacific Rim Whale Festival (March)

· Feast! (May to June)

· Rip Curl Stew (June)

· Queen of the Peak (October)

Come out and experience the Tofino surfind adventure, or just watch some surfing – it’s a beautiful sport to observe.

More information…

Tofino Accommodations

There are a number of hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts to pick from including our sponsors, Best Western:

Located on the peaceful and scenic Mackenzie beach of British Columbia’s Clayoquot Sound, the BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort proudly offers friendly customer service and comfortable accommodations at an affordable price. This Tofino area hotel, owned and operated by the First Nations People, features well-appointed guest rooms each fully equipped with cable satellite television and high-speed Internet access.

Enjoy a delicious meal at the onsite restaurant before taking advantage of a variety of other hotel amenities including an exercise facility, hot tub, business services and meeting facilities accommodating up to 250 people. Just steps from the hotel; Mackenzie beach, local galleries and shops, whale watching tours, fishing trip charters, fun on the water.

Contact info: BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort Lodge, Box 389 1119 Pacific Rim Highway, Tofino, British Columbia, V0R 2Z0, CA Toll Free: (800) 661-9995 Phone: (250) 725-4445 Fax: (250) 725-4447 Email: guestservices@tinwis.com

Come and enjoy surfing in Tofino and please tell your friends.

Re-published from www.amazingvancouverisland.com under creative commons license.

Cascading waterfalls flowing into natural soaking pools, carved by Mother Nature herself into the surf rock, which in turn leads down into the waters of the Pacific Rim near Tofino BC on Vancouver Island. Inviting image, yes? That’s just one of the many beautiful images that will invite and entice you to visit the Tofino Hot Springs. Bubbling hot water, infused with healing powers by the ancient magma, filling the springs with a magical quality. The springs beckon – Imagine being out on the edge of the Pacific Rim where the Hot Springs and the cold ocean waters meet. I must admit, that’s the picture that always gets to me, and in fact, each of these images aptly describes the Tofino Hot Springs.

Take a Scenic Boat Ride or Float Plane

Accessible only by boat or a float plane, you travel 26 nautical miles north of Tofino, to the coastal Maquinna Provincial Park where you find, a thousands of years old, natural thermal hot springs in Northern Clayoquot Sound.  A long-favourite destination stop for locals, the Tofino Hot Springs is perched overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

This adventure is open year-round and most charter companies offer transportation via either water or air, and incorporate whale watching and/or bird watching as part of the day’s activities. Departures are usually morning and early afternoon.

The Rainforest Hike

Once you arrive at the bay you begin the next chapter of your adventure: that of hike along a boardwalk through the ancient rainforest terrain (approx 1 mile/1.2 km); it involves climbing numerous groupings of 20-30 stairs at a time. It’s majestically beautiful, but you will want to be physically prepared – and your reward for making the trek is the treat of the rustically spectacular Hot Springs themselves – Nature really got it right!

If you’re game for an evening adventure in the hot springs there is a lodge, a bed & breakfast and a campground where you can stay. Regardless of how long you plan to visit the hot springs, you will want a good pair of walking shoes and warm clothes.

Contact a charter company or tour operator for current prices and travel conditions and get ready for this bracing and breathtaking escapade.

Tofino Accommodations

There are a number of hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts to pick from including our sponsors, Best Western:

Located on the peaceful and scenic Mackenzie beach of British Columbia’s Clayoquot Sound, the BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort proudly offers friendly customer service and comfortable accommodations at an affordable price. This Tofino area hotel, owned and operated by the First Nations People, features well-appointed guest rooms each fully equipped with cable satellite television and high-speed Internet access. Enjoy a delicious meal at the onsite restaurant before taking advantage of a variety of other hotel amenities including an exercise facility, hot tub, business services and meeting facilities accommodating up to 250 people. Just steps from the hotel; Mackenzie beach, local galleries and shops, whale watching tours, fishing trip charters, fun on the water. Contact info: BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort Lodge, Box 389 1119 Pacific Rim Highway, Tofino, British Columbia, V0R 2Z0, CA Toll Free: (800) 661-9995 Phone: (250) 725-4445 Fax: (250) 725-4447 Email: guestservices@tinwis.com

Come and enjoy Vancouver Island and please tell your friends about us.

Re-published from www.amazingvancouverisland.com under creative commons license.

There’s nothing like a leisurely walk in a garden to remind you of the sheer beauty of nature and Tofino is a veritable festival of gardens.

The Tofino Botanical Gardens

The interconnected walkways that take you through 12 acres of the Tofino Botanical Gardens’ floral gardens, forest and shoreline illustrate the relationship between nature and civilization in a simply and beautiful way.

You’ll find the flower, herb & kitchen garden, as well as the duck pond, and Children’s Garden to start. As you move into the forest, you’ll discover that there are clearings, which have been cultivated into a series of pocket gardens, that exhibit plants that once flourished in other coastal temperate rainforests around the world;  art installations, which have been designed to survive the natural elements; and garden buildings, comparing and contrasting culture with nature

A Non-profit Foundation, The Tofino Botanical Gardens mission is to inspire the conservation of the Temperate Coastal Rainforests around the world; Temperate rainforests are broadleaf or coniferous forests and occur only in a few regions worldwide with ocean-coastal climates like that of the Pacific North West. The Tofino Botanical Gardens found on Vancouver Island also offer Environmental Education and Student Field Trips.

For more information about the Tofino Botanical Gardens http://www.tbgf.org/

Ken Gibson’s Rhododendron Hill

Way up high on a hill looking over all of Tofino sits one of the most outstanding rhododendron gardens in the world.  Ken Gibson has spent literally decades creating his garden with hundreds of the different varieties of the flowering shrubs. Don’t be surprised if you recognize the view from some of the local postcards; this garden is internationally known.  Flowering starts in early spring and peaks in early summer. You may want to bring a camera, so all your friends can gaze in amazement when you show them where you went and what you did.

Clayoquot Island Gardens, Stubbs Island

You will find Clayoquot Island, otherwise known as “Stubbs Island” off the shore of Tofino. This 25 acre private island is set with beautiful gardens on a nature preserve.  This was the original centre for the town of Tofino up until the early 1920’s.

Spend an afternoon walking the beaches, the forest boardwalks and the exquisite and extensive gardens: The island is a is a modern-day illustration of how people can continue to live simply off the sea and the land, without the bombardment and dependency of the overly electronic age, most of the rest of the us are plugged in to constantly.

Take a boat to the island, provided gratis, bring a picnic, explore, enjoy.

Catherine’s Floating Garden, Clayoquot Sound

This new and unique garden is one that floats, actually it’s a series of floating gardens and sculptures and is truly a ‘must see’!

A cruise takes you to a magic cove where you will find a floating home, a garden, and a new ‘Eco Lifestyle’, created by 2 local artists who have called this place home for the past 10 years. It’s a delightful surprise, and one that will help you relax and recharge.

Cougar Annie’s Garden, Hesquiat Peninsula

Named for the courageous and colorful pioneer woman who created and worked the garden for more than 40 years, visitors find Cougar Annie’s Garden captivating and mystically beautiful. Cougar Annie’s is surrounded by the tall trees of the West Coast rainforest. This was a working nursery and garden that the much-married Ada Annie Johnson Rae-Arthur Lawson ran, shipping numerous types and varieties of plants all across Canada. The 5 acre clearing (cleared by Annie herself) that makes up the garden is filled with criss-crossing pathways, adding interest to your walking garden  viewing.

Tofino Accommodations

There are a number of hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts to pick from including our sponsors, Best Western:

Located on the peaceful and scenic Mackenzie beach of British Columbia’s Clayoquot Sound, the BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort proudly offers friendly customer service and comfortable accommodations at an affordable price. This Tofino area hotel, owned and operated by the First Nations People, features well-appointed guest rooms each fully equipped with cable satellite television and high-speed Internet access. Enjoy a delicious meal at the onsite restaurant before taking advantage of a variety of other hotel amenities including an exercise facility, hot tub, business services and meeting facilities accommodating up to 250 people. Just steps from the hotel; Mackenzie beach, local galleries and shops, whale watching tours, fishing trip charters, fun on the water. Contact info: BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort Lodge, Box 389 1119 Pacific Rim Highway, Tofino, British Columbia, V0R 2Z0, CA Toll Free: (800) 661-9995 Phone: (250) 725-4445 Fax: (250) 725-4447 Email: guestservices@tinwis.com Come and enjoy Vancouver Island and please tell your friends about us.

Re-published from www.amazingvancouverisland.com under creative commons license.

The Amazing 9^th Annual Tofino Food & Wine Festival on Vancouver Island

The 9th Annual Tofino Food & Wine Festival is right around the corner. Featuring the Tofino Botanical Gardens, and  participating Tofino restaurants, this year will be nothing short of  amazing!

Celebrating the marriage of food and wine, the festival originated simply  as a local event, but as word spread it has grown into one of Tofino’s favourite events, for tourists and locals alike. Sumptuous foods and extraordinary locally grown wines plus amazing Vancouver Island scenery makes this a truly memorable event and a great introduction to British Columbia.

Food, Wine & Purpose

Dedicated to the promotion of education and professionalism in the hospitality industry, and culinary and sommelier programs, the festival also highlights Slow Food, a non-profit company created to recognize the importance of pleasurable food in conjunction with sustainable agriculture.

Additionally, the festival supports several non-profit organizations and initiatives, including the Tofino Botanical Gardens Foundation, Community Children’s Centre and Tofino’s Community Garden, Lighthouse Trail and Multi Use Path (MUP), through fundraising efforts at several of the festival events.

The Events

This year on vancouver island, the Tofino Food & Wine Festival opens with the Epicurean Showcase on Thursday June 2, 2011, where Chef Liam Paul kicks it off with an evening of canapes and wine, and it closes, June 5, 2011, with ‘In A Pinch’ – Effortless Cooking with author/chef  Caren McSherry.

In between there are another eight yummy events, which include:

Main event:  Grazing in the Gardens @ the Tofino Botanical Gardens – focusing on local culinary excellence, paired with British Columbia’s finest wines, you’ll be treated to live shucked oysters with Robert Steinbach of Moby’s, from Salt Spring Island and gourmet bites by local chefs.

The Rainforest Harvest Luncheon at Black Rock Oceanfront Resort

Two Annual Winemaker’s Dinners, one from Cedar Creek’s at the Wickaninnish and the other from Alderlea’s at the Shelter Restaurant

Bienvenue! At the Darwin Café: A Taste of BC Bubbles, 10 fine wineries with their limited release bubbles, live music, fresh shucked oysters, overlooking the Tofino Botanical Gardens – What could be better?

The Cocktail Show at The Schooner Restaurant, where Special Guest bartenders will create cocktails and pair them with canapés, with live music.

The Schooner’s Annual Sunset BBQ with Phillips Brewery and Tofino Brewery featuring fresh Dungeness Crab, Halibut Burgers, BBQ Salmon and all that goes with it.

Sips and Seafood @ The Shore, where seafood and wine, ocean and sunset views join together for an exquisite evening

For more information and to obtain tickets/packages for the festival:

http://tofinofoodandwinefestival.com/

Tofino Accommodations:

There are a number of hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts to pick from including our sponsors, Best Western:

Located on the peaceful and scenic Mackenzie beach of British Columbia’s Clayoquot Sound, the BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort proudly offers friendly customer service and comfortable accommodations at an affordable price. This Tofino area hotel, owned and operated by the First Nations People, features well-appointed guest rooms each fully equipped with cable satellite television and high-speed Internet access. Enjoy a delicious meal at the onsite restaurant before taking advantage of a variety of other hotel amenities including an exercise facility, hot tub, business services and meeting facilities accommodating up to 250 people.

Just steps from the hotel; Mackenzie beach, local galleries and shops, whale watching tours, fishing trip charters, fun on the water.

Contact info: BEST WESTERN Tin Wis Resort Lodge, Box 389 1119 Pacific Rim Highway, Tofino, British Columbia, V0R 2Z0, CA Toll Free: (800) 661-9995 Phone: (250) 725-4445 Fax: (250) 725-4447 Email: guestservices@tinwis.com

Come and enjoy Vancouver Island and please tell your friends about us.

Re-published from www.amazingvancouverisland.com under creative commons license.