There are so many beautiful places to tell about on Vancouver Island that it would take a whole page by itself.

Victoria is, of course, a beautiful and rewarding city to visit; also the Butchart Gardens, a short distance north of the city are justifiably world-famous. They are built in a worked-out quarry, and have many beautiful flower gardens, planted so that as the seasons change, the gardens are always attractive.

Nanaimo - North of Victoria, on the East Coast of the island, is Nanaimo, "The Bastion City". It is a small but well-ordered city, and one of the attractive features is a pedestrian trail adjacent to the harbor. B C Ferries runs between Nanaimo and Vancouver.

Chemainus Chemainus is an old-time logging town that was suffering from a general slow-down.

The City Council in desperation came up with the idea of painting murals on some of the walls. The idea caught on and at the time of our visit there were 26 murals around town, along with many small shops and several thriving businesses carrying tourists to see the murals.

There is also an intriguing statue depicting a young man who has been caught by the "snipe hunting" joke, and is still waiting for one to run into his bag.