Shawn already gave you lots of great info. I've only gotten to explore the
area by bicycle so only covered a small part of it. We did get out to Tofino
and certainly enjoyed it (yes, it is tourist filled, hang out at Long Beach
(Pacific Rim NP) or explore some rain forests).
I'm told that Sooke Harbour House (Near Victoria) is worth a side trip for a
great meal, we haven't tried it though so no first-hand experience. Shawn
did suggest you check out that area so perhaps it's on your way...
If you have time to explore the east side of the island, I liked the area
around Qualicum Beach. The water there is said to be the warmest on the
whole north american west coast. We took a a ferry ride to Hornby Island,
loved it... a great place to go with a hippie bus :). I imagine any of the
islands would be nice though.
Some photos from our trip:
http://picasaweb.google.com/pkraiker/VancouverIsland2005#
including a shot of this pretty purple bay:
http://picasaweb.google.com/pkraiker/VancouverIsland2005#4962817182350835730

On Tue, Aug 17, 2010 at 12:28 PM, Richard Koerner <rjkinpb@sbcglobal.net>wrote:

>
>
> Also, would appreciate any tips and travel ideas for Vancouver Island or
> the general vicinity.  I'm pretty familiar with the US part of the trip
> (Olympic peninsula, Puget Sound area and islands) and also the California
> and Oregon coastline.
>
>
> Rich
> San Diego
>

--
Regards, Peter Kraiker
studiofstop.com
'82 Westfalia 1.9TD