Y Walkers



Victoria, in fact Vancouver Island, is a walkers mecca and there are numerous walking groups to choose from.  After joining the YMCA-YWCA I decided (for now) on the Tuesday morning women 50+ walking group.  Many of the walkers don't belong to the Y but our $30.00 a year "fee" is a donation to the Y's Thunderbird Camp in Sooke.  I've learned that many of the walkers are retired librarians by and with my arrival it was a toss up whether to call the group the Librarian Walkers or stay with the Y Walkers.  No competition here, we stayed with the Y Walkers!!  The walks average 2 hours each with a snack break.

 

Brentwood Bay



S.V. Duen





On October 5th we walked from Brentwood Bay through Gowland Tod Provincial Park to Tod Inlet which at the foot of Buchart Gardens.  Before starting the walk we went down to the public dock at Brentwood Bay and were delighted to see numerous pink starfish in all shapes and sizes in the water. 

When we arrived at Tod Inlet we were treated to the sight of the S.V. Duen at anchor.  Acccording to their website, The S.V. Duen is one of those lovely sailing ships that offers exploration trips around the West Coast.  We ran into the exuberant young students from Calgary who were preparing to go for their adventure sail. Tod Inlet itself has an interesting history as an early settlement of the Vancouver Portland Cement Co.  Remains of the settlement and the cement company were clearly evident.

On October 17th the walk followed the water along Dallas Road (and we saw a sea otter!!) meandered past the Chinese cemetery (http://www.oldcem.bc.ca/cem_ch.htm), then made our way via a rocky pathway and steps via King George Terrace to get to Dennison Road so we could get to the lookout on Walbran Park.  Walbran Park is a small undeveloped natural area with an historical WWII lookout and marker cairn.   We rested at Waldren Park and enjoyed fabulous views of the ocean, mountains, and urban settings before heading back via Fairfield and Ross Bay Cemetery. This was a longer walk of about 2.5 hours with around 200 steps (my fitness regime at the Y is paying off!). We had ample time to enjoy gardens and nature.   I am getting to know more of the women.  They are a diverese grooup and I am really enjoying hearing their stories of how and when they came to Victoria.  So far only two walkers can claim long-term residency here.



Below are pictures of the WWII cairn from Dennison and the view from the fence around the cairn.