Looking like a cartoon scene from Dr. Seuss it’s full of stunted and dwarfed trees that have been wind swept into all kind of disfigured and unique shapes.

To protect the delicate landscape the entire trail through the bog is along a built up boardwalk. Most of the ground surface is covered in carpet of Sphagnum moss that can be several meters thick and is up to 400 years old.

The ecosystem is a unique environment where only a few plant species can survive due to the acidic soil and lack of nutrients and minerals. The most prevalent tree in the bog is the Shore Pine which would normally grow quite tall but here is stands just a few meters high. Other stunted trees include yellow cedar, red cedar and hemlock. Some of the trees are estimated to be 300 years old.

There are a few types of ferns and specific bog plants such as skunk cabbage, dandelions, laurel and a carnivorous plant that eats flies, mosquitoes and ants.

Directions To The Bog Trail

From Highway #4 in the Pacific Rim National Park the trail is located off of Wickininnish Beach Road. Whether you are coming from Tofino or Ucluelet watch for signs for Wickaninnish Bay and turn onto Wickininnish Beach Road. Drive past the sign for Florencia Beach parking and shortly after turn left into the parking area for the Bog Trail.

The trail is within the Pacific Rim National Park so a valid park pass must be displayed on parked vehicles.

Trail Difficultly Level

An easy 800 meter loop that is flat and has no stairs making it suitable for wheelchairs and strollers. Dogs are allowed but must be kept on leash.

Throughout our travels in Thailand there was one name that kept coming up and that’s the park we choose to visit. We had an amazing experience at the Elephant Nature Park.

Elephants In Thailand Were Originally Used For Logging

Thailand was once riddled with elephant camps that keep them for logging purposes. They were worked for long hours every day doing heavy logging throughout the country. The land was so over logged that in 1989 the government had no choice but to put a complete ban on it. The barren landscape had created a disaster. With every wet season there would be people losing their lives due to mass flooding and landslides. With all the trees gone there was nothing left to absorb the water or keep the land in place.

This left hundreds if not thousands of elephants and their owners out of work. It’s very expensive to care for and feed an elephant. Many of the mahouts (the name for traditional owners and caretakers of elephants in Thailand) were forced to take to the streets of Bangkok and beg for money and food for their elephants. Tourists would take pity on them and buy bunches of bananas and other fruit. The elephants were being kept in horrible conditions and very under nourished. The government banned the elephants out of the city of Bangkok. You can imagine the chaos caused by bringing such huge animals into a busy city full of traffic.

Elephant Tourist Camps Were Born

Someone had the idea to make elephant camps outside of the cities. These are places where tourists come by the bus loads to get their fill of the creatures. The sad thing is that many of these camps also treat the elephants very poorly.  Elephants in Thailand even though they are on the international endangered species list are only considered as “live stock”. They are treated the same as cattle and poultry. Many are subject to brutality, abuse and overworked by their ignorant owners who are hungry for tourist dollars.

These camps have people coming in and out on a daily basis. Most of them come for the thrill of riding on the elephants back. They do anywhere from 1 to 5 day elephant treks. People are loaded up into baskets on the elephants backs to trek throughout the forest. The mahouts have been riding elephants for centuries, but they ride on the back of the elephants neck right up behind it’s ears. This is the strongest part of the elephant and where a person should sit if they do so. The back can become weak and even deformed after carrying basket loads of tourists over and over.

The elephants in some of these camps have gone through a training ritual that would make you cringe if you saw it. They are beaten into submission, poked at with sticks and have all four legs tied to the point of their skin being rubbed raw. This goes on for days until the elephants spirit is broken. We have seen video footage of it and it was very difficult to watch.

The Elephant Nature Park In Thailand Is Created, A True Sanctuary For Elephants

After doing some research and after seeing beautiful elephants in the wild in Africa we decided going to one of these camps and riding on elephants backs was not what we wanted to do. We had started to look for an alternative to this. It seems that seeing elephants in the wild in Thailand would be a rare sighting. Other than a few national parks, there is virtually no wildlife left. It has all been poached.

The lady who started the Elephant Nature Park in Thailand is nick named  “Lek.” It means small in Thai. People say she is barely 40kg and 35kgs of it is her heart. She worked hard to create a sanctuary for abused and mistreated elephants. Some of these elephants stories would break your heart. They are forced to work when they are sick and old. They are not fed properly and allowed very little rest. Sometimes an elephant will have many different owners. Each of them wanting to get the maximum amount of time from the elephant to cash in on tourist money. Saddles with baskets to carry tourists are clamped on very tight.  In some cases the owner does not know the elephant is pregnant. This causes stillbirths and miscarriages. Many mothers are put back to work within a month of giving birth. The poor baby has to try to keep up along side the working mother. They often die or become deformed not being able to withstand the conditions.

One elephant Lek rescued named Jobaan was brought to the park. She was sold by one owner to another at  ripe old age of 70. The new owner figured he could get at least another good ten years of work out of her. Lek acquired her at the age of 80. Still she had to pay the person to give up the 80 year old elephant.

Another female elephant had miscarried due to overwork. She was forced back to work and then got pregnant a second time. She gave birth only to watch helplessly as the 2 day old calf was washed down the river. She became very depressed after this and refused to work. The owner wanted her to mate again immediately, but she refused. They basically set it up to have a male forced upon her. When she became pregnant again she was rescued and brought to the park to have her baby in safety.

Another elephant named Jokia is totally blind. She lost her baby and became too depressed and refused to work. One of her eyes was damaged when her owners used her for target practice and hit it with an arrow. Her new owner decided to pierce her other eye so she became totally blind and would be more submissive. She now lives out her retirement days at the park. Another adult female elephant name Mae has taken it upon herself to be Jokia’s caretaker. She stays by her side most of the time. If she leaves her for a short time in the day it is a huge commotion when she returns. She calls out to Jokia to let her know she has returned. Jokia calls back in great excitement and they continue to greet each other and touch trunks.

Lek has had a very tough struggle in trying to save elephants in Thailand. She is seen as a threat by many of the elephant owners.  Some of her own family turned against her. At one time she had threats on her life and had to go into hiding. Someone even came on the park property and poisoned one of the baby elephants to get revenge on her.

The Elephant Nature Park Gets The Exposure And Recognition It Deserves

Through international exposure the government has been forced to recognize Lek and offer reluctant support. Lek and the park have been featured in National Geographic, in Time magazine, CNN, BBC and many other publications around the world. Some reporters from the Toronto Star were there just prior to our arrival to do a story. Lek also has the Royal Family of Thailand on her side. The princess comes to stay at the park occasionally. The Royal Family can have a great influence over the government.

How The Elephant Nature Park Operates

The park has many rescued dogs and cats as well. There is an older adult cat with no eyes, but he manages to get around very well. The first day we were there Lek had brought two 4 week old kittens. They both had bad eye infections. One seems to be able to see a little, but the other one has membranes over both of his eyes. No one is sure whether he will ever see or not. One volunteer was assigned to be their caretaker. They stay with her 24 hours a day. She keeps them in a little cloth bag and they go with her everywhere. They are already so content in knowing they are being cared for. There are two cows who fell off the back of a truck that was on it’s way to a slaughter house. One was unconscious when it was found. Both are doing well now in their new home. Lek rescues all kinds of animals, she just can’t say no!

At the time of our visit there were 28 elephants at the park. It was pretty much to capacity, but Lek is always trying to acquire more land.  There were several babies including a 2 month old that stole everyone’s heart. He is cute beyond belief.

When elephants have their babies the father has nothing to do with them. Another female automatically steps up to act like an Aunt. She will take just as much care with the baby as the mom. All elephants will work together to keep the baby safe.

There is one mahout assigned to care for each elephant. They are all local Thai people. Lek has rescued some of the elephants from terrible situations. Some of them come from owners who have approached her because their elephant is very ill and they can’t afford to keep it anymore. A price tag comes with this though. It has become a very careful balance for Lek. She wants to rescue as many elephants as possible, she has to be careful not to set a huge precedent with the price she pays.

There have been some really emotional cases where someone has brought Lek a very sick elephant. She takes it in and agrees to look after it for free in hopes the mahout or owner will sell it to her. They love to play a game with her saying they will only lease it to her. Out of the kindness of her heart she will agree and not only takes care of the elephant but pays the mahout to keep the elephant there. Sometimes they will eventually sell it to her. Other times everyone at the park has to deal with the emotion of the elephant being taken back by the owner, sometimes a year or more later. The owner basically uses the park as a respite for the elephant to get well and then puts it right back into its abusive work situation again.

Hopefully the way people look at elephants in Thailand will continue to change and they will be protected and valued. It’s strange to think this is one of the main symbols of Thailand. You can’t walk down a street in Thailand without seeing some kind of elephant symbol. It’s hard to understand the how they are treated.

The Elephant Nature Park is situated on a large piece of property along a river and back dropped by mountains. It’s located approximately one and a half hours drive outside of Chaing Mai. At any given time there are several guests staying at the park as well as long term volunteers. We booked a stay of 2 nights and 3 days. It was enough to give thorough experience of the park. We were not obligated to help our during our stay, but it is a working park with a lot to do. Help is always appreciated and it’s a great way to get right in there with the elephants. Long term volunteers pay a small amount of money for their room and board and help out with the daily tasks that are required to care for the elephants.

There are bamboo structures on the land. Some are the sleeping quarters for the guests, others are the living quarters for the mahouts who look after the elephants.

The sleeping rooms for guests are nothing fancy and the beds are a little firm, but it’s all part of the experience.

The evening meal waiting to be served to the park staff and guests.

Nighttime is the park is peaceful and relaxing.

There were about ten guests including ourselves on the day we arrived at the park. We were greeted by one of the staff and given an orientation and history of the park. Elephants started to slowly work their way into the park grounds as the lady was speaking. It was quite an amazing site. As certain elephants came into view we were told about some of their individual stories and how they had come to live there.

Feeding Time For The Elephants

An unimaginable amount of food has to be trucked into the park to feed the elephants. Pick up trucks pull up to the feeding platforms. Everyone helps unload the food into baskets to prepare for feeding. They are full of bananas, squash, cucumbers and pineapples.

The elephants know the routine like clockwork. As soon as they see the trucks they start to gather around the edges of the platforms, eagerly waiting to be fed. They stick their trunks out and start smelling and feeling for food as they make noises as to say “hurry up and give us something to eat!”

A chain gang forms to unload the trucks. All the food has to be washed to rid it of any pesticides, which are heavily used on Thailand produce. It wouldn’t be a good thing to keep exposing the elephants to. After a good washing it is put into the baskets. They are lined up along the platform and the frenzy begins.

The elephants are so funny. They get very picky about what order they want to eat the food. They generally want the pineapple first, then the squash and the cucumbers are left for last.  At first they will pick the green heads off the pineapple, but return to them . If there are bananas they are held back. The elephants will pig out on them and not want to eat anything else.

During the entire feast there are loud crunching noises and lots of sniffing and snorting. You have to pay close attention while you are standing on the platform. At one time I had some food in my hand and turned to talk to another person. I got a trunk batted across me to let me know not to stand there holding onto food. Jack got a good dose of elephant snot across his foot!

After the elephants are satisfied we can all sit down and enjoy our own lunch. The food prepared at the park is delicious. The local Thai ladies work very hard to prepare the meals. Pom a tiny lady, who’s as strong as an ox was overseeing the meals during our stay. We saw her carry a log across her back one day that would be a feat for most men. She’s just as sweet as she is strong, we became very fond of her during our stay.

Elephant Bath Time

After lunch it is time to take the elephants down to the river for their bath and scrub. They especially love this on the hotter days. Everyone treks down to the river gets in with the elephants. Buckets and brushes are handed out and the scrub down begins. This is some of the younger elephants favorite play time. The elephants get out of the water on their own time, some days they like to stay in longer than others.

Within minutes of exiting the water they start to re-apply dirt and mud. Elephants have very sensitive skin and need to do this to protect their skin.  Some like to itch for a while before the application. They rub up against fallen tree trunks. It’s fascinating to watch one of them pick up a stick with its trunk and use it as a scratching device. They have incredible dexterity with their trunks and their feet.

After bathing there is some time to just sit around and relax. It doesn’t seem like much time passes and then it is off to the river again for the elephants final dip of the day. After the second bath the elephants are chained up for the evening. This will have to be done until Lek is able to obtain a mass amount of property. The elephants would wander off in the night, most likely to farmers fields where they could be harmed or even shot.

The evening meal served to the guests is just as tasty as the lunch. There’s more variety of dishes served up here than we have experienced anywhere in Thailand. You certainly won’t go hungry during your stay. Evenings are spent sitting around a fire, or playing games as we did one night. It was a cranium challenge. Someone also brought all the ingredients to make smores, something we were not expecting to eat in Thailand.

The mornings consist of getting up and eating breakfast and being ready by 9am to take the elephants for a walk. They get led down the road to a larger area of land where they can have more space for grazing.

The Ice Cream Man

Everyday at the park the ice cream man shows, up, what an experience!  It’s a small Thai man that comes from a nearby village. He has a motorcycle with an ice cream freezer attached to it. He even plays the ice cream truck music as he enters and exits the property. He is the sweetest man with a smile that goes from ear to ear and he loves interacting with the guests at the park.

We were told a story about the helmet he now wears while he drives. One day he arrived at the park with quite a bit of road rash on his face and head. Apparently he had been driving the ice cream bike while he was a bit intoxicated and he took a tumble. After this happened a second time, someone in the park was concerned he was going to get seriously hurt. A shiny blue helmet to match his bike was purchased and presented to him. He now wears it with great pride knowing his head is safe.

Here’s a link on youtube of a little video someone made at the park called the Icecream Boogie!

Max, The Gentle Giant

Max is one of the tallest elephants in Chiang Mai. When his mate Siam died at the age of 85 in 2004 he wept over her body. He only left her to slowly saunter to his food before returning to her. He continued mourning after her burial with large drops of tears rolling down his face. Everyone who saw it wept along with him.

Max was left to die after he was hit by a twelve wheeled truck that broke his front legs. He was getting old so his owner didn’t think the cost for medical attention was worth it. He was rescued by the park and made a good recovery. He doesn’t bother much with the other elephants in the park and they don’t with him. He stands at an angle due to the damage that was done to his front legs when they were broken. He walks very slowly and methodically, but he eventually gets to where he’s going.

Jack and Max seemed to have some special connection, they immediately bonded. It was like they were two old souls who somehow understood each other.

It’s Hard To Say Goodbye When You Leave The Park

We had an amazing time here. Even though it was only for three days it felt like we were here for much longer. We became very attached to certain elephants and it was very hard to leave. I can’t imagine what it’s like for long term volunteers when they finally go. We can’t say enough about this place. It’s hard to come here and not leave a piece of your heart behind. There are many repeat visitors, I hope we get the opportunity to be one of them.

The park area serves as an interm project. Leks plan is to have a large area for the elephants to wander freely in a safe area where no harm can come to them. She hopes to change the way people view elephants in Thailand. Not as a tourist attraction for riding. She wants it to be more like what we experienced in Africa. Going to huge nature reserves to see them roaming in the wild as they should be.

The original race went 57km’s (36 miles) across the Georgia Straight from the Nanaimo harbour to Vancouver’s Kitsilano Beach. In recent years he race has been modified to start and finish in Nanaimo and has become part of the Marine Festival held annually in July.

In addition to the races the Marine Festival is a three day event with live music entertainment, an evening of fireworks, beer gardens, a pancake breakfast, children’s activities and a street fair with food vendors, merchants and a parade.

Events take place at the Pioneer Waterfront Plaza, Maffeo Sutton Park the adjacent Swy-a-lana Lagoon Park adjacent to the Nanaimo Harbour for the entire three days. On Sunday there is a fan fair of vendors, beer gardens and activities at Departure Bay Beach where the race ends.

The event has become an International World Championship Bathtub race attracting participants as far away as Australia. The boats have come a long way in design, they evolved into aerodynamic crafts with high tech motors but still have to include a shape in the form of an old style rolled edge bathtub as a key part of the design.

This is such a big event for Nanaimo that the city does not put on a fireworks show for Canada Day, July 1st. This allows all their funds and efforts to go into the pyrotechnic show for the Saturday night of the Marine Festival.

The full schedule of events can be found at http://bathtubbing.com

Other Summer Events In Nanaimo

The Nanaimo Dragon Boat Festival is a huge event drawing in teams from all over the province of British Columbia and from the United States. It takes place each year in early July on the waterfront at Maffeo Sutton Park.
http://www.nanaimodragonboat.com/

In mid-July the Silly Boat Regatta is also held on the waterfront near Maffeo Sutton Park. Teams build a boat out of recycled material and race with them in the harbour. For many of the crafts it becomes more about staying afloat then winning the race. It’s not uncommon waist or nearly neck deep in water still trying to paddle!
http://sillyboat.com/page/event-schedule

The Vancouver Island Exhibition is held each year in mid-August. It’s a country fair with a showcase of 4-H animal shows and judging, carnival rides, live music and other entertainment.
http://viex.ca/

It’s full of photographic opportunities, a bird watchers paradise and a popular diving spot. Ocean wildlife is abundant, sea lions and otters can be spotted playing in the water and sometimes Orca whales and dolphin pods pass by.

There are 36 acres of rocky bluffs, small coves, tidal pools and pebble and sandy beaches to explore. A trail system of boardwalks and lookouts run along the shoreline and into the forest of Gary Oaks and Arbutus trees.

Most of the trails consist of an easy grade of gravel with some stairs and boardwalks. It’s well worth taking the trail to Keel Cove, but it is a section with some steep sets of stairs.

The park is accessible and worth visiting year round. In the spring there is an abundance of wildflowers and in the fall the trees have colorful leaves.

Directions to Neck Point Park: Turn off Hammond Bay Road onto Morningside Drive and continue past the Elementary School to the parking lot.

Tips for visiting Neck Point Park

– if it’s a no jacket day elsewhere you may still need a light one here, the open sections of trail along the water can be windy

-there is a toilet facility at the parking lot

-dogs are allowed on leash

-sunset beach is great for evening photography, otherwise most of the views face east making it perfect for morning shots

– See if you can find the secret elf door in the park. I don’t know how long it has been there or who placed it, but it sure is cute! I didn’t post a photo of the contents to keep the mystery, but there are some various trinkets inside.

In particular, the city of Victoria loves to brag about its mild climate. Rightly so when they can have an average spring day temperature as high as 15.C. It hosts an annual bloom count in early spring. Residents are encouraged to count their blooms and report them to the official website at http://flowercount.com/ The count has reached as high as 3/4 of a billion blooms!

Every few years Mother Nature decides the island should get a good dose of winter and when it does it can hit with a vengeance. Snow has been coming down for the last couple of days and does not seem to be letting up. This is what much of central Vancouver Island is experiencing at the moment.

There wasn’t much to complain about during this winter. On many occasions from November up until now I have been able to go out in spring like weather with nothing but a light jacket. This photo was taken in January when I enjoyed hours in the warm sunshine at Pipers Lagoon in Nanaimo. The last big snowstorms to hit parts of the island were two winters back to back in 2007 and 2008. Prior to that the large ones I can think of were in 1996 and 1991.

Most locals see snow as a minor inconvenience, but unlike other provinces in Canada we can take comfort in knowing it never lasts long. Likely by this time next week it will all be melted and winter island life will resume as normal, if not with a bit of a muddy aftermath.

It was first introduced to the Hawaiian islands by American soldiers during World War II when the manufacturer provided cans to American and Allied troops. Not needing refrigeration made it a portable meat that was useful food source during the war. This was especially important for places such as Hawaii that had trouble getting fresh meat. The Hawaiian natives took a liking to it and to this day it remains an integral part of the local cuisine.

Dubbed the “Hawaiian steak” you’ll find it everywhere on the islands from the menus of high-end restaurants to fast food places such as McDonald’s and Burger King. In the grocery stores it can be seen taking up entire aisles. It’s used in sandwiches, as a side at breakfast with eggs, tossed in a stir fry or with macaroni and cheese and added to soups. There’s no end to the dishes that have been created with it. The residents of Hawaii consume more Spam than anywhere else in the world, millions of cans per year!

The large Asian influence on the Hawaiian diet may be another reason SPAM is so popular. It’s similar to the salted pork used in a lot of Asian cooking. There’s even SPAM sushi! It’s one islands most popular uses of the product. It’s called SPAM Musubi, a slice of teriyaki fried SPAM placed on rice and a wrap of nori seaweed. You’ll find it everywhere including convenience stores.

Many places around the world have signature food celebrations so naturally there is Spam festival held each year in Hawaii. It’s called the SPAM Jam. It’s held in the heart of Waikiki on Kalakaua Avenue. The street is closed to vehicle traffic to allow for stages that provide an evening of free family entertainment. Vendors are set up offering various types of Spam dishes to try.

This compact and unique 8 acre park is built on an isthmus that extends out to a rocky headland. Its position makes it the perfect place to enjoy beautiful sunsets and sunrises. It’s a great place to walk year round, the changing scenery makes it a unique experience in every season. Just to the north is the neighbouring park of Neck Point. It’s equally as beautiful and has even more accessible terrain with with over 30 acres of land set on the ocean front.

Starting from the lagoon there is a flat groomed walk along an isthmus that is suitable for people with mobility issues.

Several benches are placed to sit and enjoy the views and listen to the ocean waves as cruise ships, sailboats and the BC Ferries go by.

The area has an abundance of bird life such as eagles, blue heron, seagulls and sandpipers. Sealions often pop their heads up from the ocean waters and if your lucky you might even spot a whale.

At the end of the isthmus a short scramble up and over a rocky hill leads to a forested 2km loop trail.  The cliff sides are covered in arbutus trees and gnarly Garry Oak trees that have been twisted by the wind. This area is truly the essence of the west coast and a photographers paradise!

There are several lookouts to take in the views of the Georgia Straight and distant Coastal Mountains. From the headland you’ll have a great view of historic Shack Island and the southern point of Neck Point Park.

Shack Island first had fisherman’s cabins placed on it back in the 1930’s. There were no roads out to what was an undeveloped area at the time. It was a long row boat journey from downtown Nanaimo to this spot known for great fishing. The shacks were constructed for weekend shelters. The rustic shacks are still used today as summer cabins. They belong to descendants of the original owners.

Directions to Piper’s Lagoon

From Hammond Bay Road turn onto Lagoon Drive and take the first right onto Place Road. Follow it until the very end and into the parking lot.

Piper’s Lagoon Tips

• During low tide you can waste hours looking at sea anemones, star fish, crabs, clams and oysters in the tide pools.
• It’s not that busy except in the summer months. As with any popular place arrive in the early morning, later in the evening or on a weekday and it’s quieter.
• Even when it’s busy you can leave the majority of people behind by climbing over the rocky hill at the end of the isthmus.

The fish can be seen working their way upstream, the numbers vary from year to year. Sometimes they are scarce and other years there have been as many as 50,000 returning to this single stream.

The females select a spot to make a trench in the river bottom. They deposit their eggs while the male waits close by to fertilize them. It’s quite a natural phenomenon if you think about it. At this point the salmon are weak and have traveled thousands of kilometers. After four years of life swimming around the ocean they somehow find their way back to the original stream where they were born.

The fish slowly die, but have left a new generation to carry on. Seagulls are in abundance feeding on the roe and decaying salmon. At night other critters such as raccoon, mink, otter and bear come out to feed. From December to February a large number of Bald Eagles can be seen feeding on the rotting carcasses. Every step of the salmons demise lends something back to nature. As the salmon bodies break down nutrients are released into the forest and stream and eventually taken out to sea. The eggs will hatch in the spring as the temperature warms up and the cycle starts again.

The economy of Zanzibar used to be almost solely based on spice trading. At one time it grew up to three-quarters of the worlds clove supply, it is still a very prominent spice growing region today.

Another bonus of going on a spice tour is getting to visit small villages and getting to see how the locals live their daily lives. Everywhere we went small children would follow us with curiosity.

Lunch was included on our tour, it was prepared using spices from the farm we visited. We chatted with a couple who were driving all the way from France to South Africa! This is not the first time they have done the journey. They had lots of interesting stories to tell us.

Before returning back to Stonetown we were taken to a nearby beach for a little relaxation and beach combing. Several fishing boats were sitting at the shoreline and a large amount of netting sprawled across the sand.

Kidichi Persian Baths

A common stop on the spice tours is to the Kidichi Persian Baths. They were built in 1850 for Sultan Said, the first sultan of Zanzibar. Because his wife Princess Schesade was Persian they were built in typical persian style. They have beautiful domed ceilings where there used to be stained glass and detailed stucco work. During our visit it was apparent that the bath has been allowed to fall into a sad state of disrepair.