A “Loch Ness Monster” in Parksville’s Cameron Lake?

Two massive strikes on a fish finder tells cryptozoologist John Kirk that there’s a large aquatic animal in Cameron Lake, just west of Parksville-Qualicum Beach, and he and his research team want to find it.

“I’m not ready to say what it is, or if it’s a monster, but there’s something there and its very large – certainly larger than any trout or lake fish,” says Kirk, co-founder of the BC Scientific Cryptozoology Club (BCSCC) and author of In the Domain of the Lake Monsters, who conducted an initial research expedition on September 19, 2009 at Cameron Lake.

The first pass of the lake that Saturday morning located two large contacts at 56 and 58 Ft. But a pass of the lake later in the afternoon was even more successful.

“The alarm made a resounding ‘ping’ on the fish finder and we saw this absolutely massive object in the midst of various fish,” says Kirk. “In 20 years of doing research on Okanagan Lake (looking for Ogopogo), I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s significant and amazing – like walking into a Sasquatch on the highway.”

“It’s significant and amazing – like walking into a Sasquatch on the highway.” They made four more passes of the object and received readings at about 74 feet each time, ruling out that it was a school of fish.

After analyzing the data collected, Kirk and members of the BCSCC determined that the sonar strike was consistent with an animal at least three metres in length.

Kirk says it’s a “mystery in need of an answer” so he and the BCSCC will be returning to Cameron Lake in mid-September in hopes that they’ll have more luck with the weather which may make a sighting possible.

“Last year we had a lot of choppy water which makes it very difficult to see any sort of surfacing of the creature, “says Kirk. “When the water is flat, we may find whatever is down there responds to sonar frequencies and may surface.”

The researchers came to Cameron Lake in 2009 after repeated sightings of something in the water. The best evidence was a photo taken in 2007 by Bridget Horvath, who snapped a strange shape in the water that appeared to be three objects swimming in a circle.

“Our organization has received reports coming from Cameron Lake since 2004,” Kirk says. “Witnesses have been describing what looks like a dark creature in the lake; one even saying that he was pulled around the lake in his fishing boat by something for close to an hour.”

Kirk says this is completely consistent with sightings of water creatures in other Vancouver Island Lakes, the nearby seashore, and many sightings along Highway 4 (which parallels Cameron Lake) of Sasquatch.“ This is really a Cryptid Corridor of sorts – there is a lot of activity occurring on Vancouver Island,” he says.

The BCSCC was founded in 1989. The group studies elusive creatures, such as lake monsters and Sasquatches, known as cryptids and the study of called cryptozoology: from the Greek (cryptos) for hidden, and zoology, the study of animals.

Kirk is also chairman of the Crypto Safari Organization which sends investigators around the world, and has traveled to Africa as part of research teams in search of living dinosaurs.

Getting to Ucluelet Half the Fun

Light breaks through the craggy branches of giant cedars on your right, rocky outcroppings drip with rain water on your left. As you slow to take the corner at the top of the rise, a commanding view of Kennedy Lake unfolds in front of you. The lake’s 6,475 hectares of water surface makes you think you’ve reached the ocean – it’s a common mistake. But you’re getting close and the journey to Ucluelet has been one magical, natural wonder after another.

You could fly from either Victoria or Vancouver to Ucluelet, but if you really want to experience what makes this island special, you need to drive. From the breathtaking scenery of mountains, lakes and ocean to road-side curiosities to a golden west coast resort at the end of the rainbow, this drive has it all.

From 1 to 4 – Where it all Starts

The road with a view begins once you leave the Trans Canada Highway #1 and head west on Highway #4 where you’ll quickly come upon Coombs.

The whimsical goats on the roof of Coombs Country Market have been a snapshot must for tourists for years. Go inside and pickup some fresh baking or a gourmet treat for the road. Browse around the gift shops and crafts stores for a selection of hand made toys and unique crafts. Coombs Country is no cookie cutter strip mall with fast food franchises and carbon copy stores.

Monsters and Giants

Further along Highway #4 you’ll pass by Cameron Lake, as mysterious as it is picturesque. In the summer of 2009 researchers from Vancouver came to Cameron Lake to follow up on repeated sightings of a lake creature.

A little further down the road, and centuries-old trees at Cathedral Grove beckon you to stop once more. The 301 hectare park has one of the most accessible stands of giant Douglas fir on Vancouver Island – some as old as 800 years and nine metres in circumference.

Lake Country

Continuing on your way to Port Alberni, the scenery along Highway 4 will take your breath away. You’ll marvel that there are such massive mountains on Vancouver Island, and after the first snow, you’d think you’re traveling through the Rockies.

Just past Port Alberni you’ll pass majestic Sproat Lake with 322 kilometres of forested lakeshore, and enter a winding road that will take you past rivers, craggy bluffs, wild rivers, waterfalls and forests.

Next stop Ucluelet

Soon you discover magnificent Kennedy Lake bordered by jutting cliffs and rugged mountains that will trick you into thinking you’ve reached the ocean. But it will be the tell-tale craggy treetops against the sky that will give away that you’re nearing the open ocean and the end of your odyssey.

Finally you make a left turn at a fork in the road and you’re just a few minutes from Ucluelet with its ancient tradition of welcoming others. Ucluelet takes its name from the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nation phrase, Yu-clutl-ahts, “the people with a good landing place for canoes.”

A community which once relied upon fishing and logging for its livelihood is morphing into an eco-tourism resort town. Ucluelet continues to develop and build its reputation as a first class yet unpretentious resort town. Its small town charm and respect for its heritage are apparent throughout.

The west coast of Vancouver Island is as rugged and rough as it is breathtaking, and new developments in Ucluelet are finding a way of fitting into the landscape. One new kid on the block, Black Rock Oceanfront Resort, is an architectural marvel that has been constructed to fit in with the natural landscape, with expansive spaces, natural light and breathtaking seaward vistas.

Set amongst the natural tranquility and beauty of Ucluelet, Black Rock rises from the black rocky shore, combining contemporary modern luxury with the energy of the breathtaking coastline – and after the magnificent drive to get here, is truly the pot of gold at the end the rainbow.

Your road trip offered incredible scenery and wondrous surprises, but comfortably perched on the wild Pacific Ocean and surrounded by millennia-old rain forest, you’re ready to stay here a while. In fact, it will be hard to leave.

Hollyhock Retreat Center on Cortes Island is an Antioxidant for the Soul

Hollyhock Retreat is an upscale New Age and personal development retreat centre located on the sunniest southeastern beach of Cortes Island, British Columbia, approximately 160 kilometers (100 miles) north of Vancouver.  It offers a range of personal and spiritual development programs on a variety of topics, including animal communication, relationships, nonviolent communication, spiritual chanting, Tibetan Buddhism, Kabbalah, yoga, morphic resonance, holistic health, integrative medicine, leadership, and social ventures.  Likened by some visitors to such similar centres as Esalen in Big Sur or Findhorn, Scotland, Hollyhock was created in 1982 on the grounds of the former Cold Mountain Institute.

Hollyhock – Antioxidant for the Soul

You say no to plastic shopping bags. You may bike to work. Perhaps shop at the farmers’ market all summer. You choose local, use the library, and you just plain buy less. All of these are great strategies for being a more conscious consumer who aspires to build more robust communities and a healthier planet.

There are all manner of how-to manuals for being responsible consumers. We can measure our trash and calculate our carbon footprint. The epic challenges of our times are complex, and it’s easy to see that we need to do more than buy local and recycle, but what? The answer lies not only in what we buy, or drive, or eat. It’s also in how we create, how we relate to each other, how we think and play. We need to be more skilled, wiser, creative and resilient .

There’s no formula, no roadmap, no university degree or certification in personal resiliency. An elusive concept, it’s about stretching yourself, deepening your capacity to engage in life. We develop it by nurturing our creativity, practicing wisdom and learning new personal skills. And while there are books and conceptual tools, there are few places that support and offer experiential learning that’s essential.

Hollyhock is one of these rare and unique places. Humbly tucked away on Cortes Island, British Columbia, it’s a non-profit centre for experiential learning, leading-edge professional development, personal growth, as well as a stunning holiday destination. Hollyhock’s programs reach into areas as diverse as leadership, painting, yoga, cooking, meditation and spiritual practice, and social change trainings.

Hollyhock is an antioxidant for the soul. The staff, volunteer board of directors and founders are a talented community of individuals dedicated to building and maintaining this magical experiment that’s unlike any other retreat centre.

Small, beautiful and simple, the campus perches at the water’s edge. You can’t help but quickly become in tune with nature’s rhythms of the tides, the sun and the moon. The breathtaking beauty of coastal mountains, rainforest, and the Salish Sea surrounds and infuses Hollyhock with an electric vivacity that’s deeply nurturing and restorative. It’s a place where you’ll recall what it is to converse with, and be inspired by nature.

A visit to Hollyhock is a full sensory experience. Be prepared to be livened and awed. The convivial chatter of shore birds, the quiet burble of life in the intertidal zone, being watched over by eagles, the garden of vivid colours and intense perfume. And if you’re not in paradise yet, then the dinner bell will certainly call you to heavenly pleasure three times every day. Fresh, tantalizing food delights taste buds and tummies.

It’s easy to understand how it’s possible to spend hours, even days, simply taking in the sound of the waves and the sublime garden scents, yet the average day at Hollyhock is filled with a wonderful array of activities and opportunities. Not to be missed are the morning yoga and movement classes, world-class bodywork, naturalist-guided excursions, sailing adventures, and hiking. On any given evening, you may find yourself with the option of lingering on the seashore, sampling local oysters grilled over driftwood, or heading out for a night-time kayak paddle to explore the sparkling bioluminescence.

This all may sound like relaxation and indulgence, however, for CEO Dana Solomon this sort of rejuvenation is vital refuelling.

“Places like Hollyhock are crucial in times like these when there’s so much we need to step up and do in our communities, local and global. The greater capacity each of us has to be wise, compassionate and creative, the greater chance we have for survival as a species on this planet,” she says.

Hollyhock is a recipe for growing personal resiliency through growing a juicy life. Like improvising in the kitchen, it’s a place to try new flavours and get creative. Add a touch of this, or a pinch of that. You can mix it up. Let it marinate. Savour for a lifetime.

Whatever the reason that takes you there, you can be guaranteed to find unexpected gems. You’ll find yourself in a place where you can try things on, learn, grow, then take home new skills, integrate, and share with others.

New Images of Proposed Johnson Street Bridge Unveiled

The City of Victoria recently released new design images for the proposed new bridge that will replace the aging Johnson Street Bridge that connects downtown Victoria with the Songhees area. A new website, www.johnsonstreetbridge.com, describes the project in detail and includes an animated video with various “fly-overs” of the new bridge.

The fly-through was produced by Wilkinson-Eyre Architects based in London, UK.

Earlier this year, the Victoria City Council approved a proposal that would replace the current 85-year-old and rapidly deteriorating Johnson Street Bridge with a brand-new bridge that would include amenities for improved cycling, walking and accessibility.

The City views the new bridge as a top priority because the span functions as one of the main corridors into downtown. Over 30,000 vehicle trips cross the Johnson Street Bridge daily in addition to thousands of pedestrian and cycling commuters.

Construction on the drawbridge is expected to begin this coming spring with an estimated completion date of Fall 2011. The total cost of the project is projected to be a modest $63.2 million.

By all accounts, the modern design is popular with the public. “Seeing these images really conveys a feeling of how breathtaking this new bridge will be for the City,” said one member of the citizen advisory board, David Cubberley, in a City press release. “These new illustrations will generate a lot of excitement for the future and the amenities the new bridge will provide, including dedicated bike lanes and pedestrian walkways.”

Bob Dylan at Save-On Foods Memorial Arena October 23

Legendary songwriter and pop cultural icon Bob Dylan will appear at the Save-On Foods Memorial Arena beginning at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, October 23. Dylan is one of the world’s most popular and acclaimed songwriters, musicians and performers in the world, having sold nearly 100 million albums and performed literally thousands of shows around the world in a career spanning five decades.

Dylan’s most recent trilogy of studio albums — Modern Times, Time Out Of Mind and Love & Theft –have been among his most commercially successful and critically lauded, each having sold more than a million copies in the U.S. and earning Grammy nominations for Album Of The Year (Time Out Of Mind won that award in 1998). He wrote and recorded “Things Have Changed” for the 2000 film Wonder Boys, for which he received both the Academy Award and Golden Globe. Read more

Victoria BC Free B-Movie Films Under the Stars in Victoria’s Beacon Hill Park This August

This is the kind of event that makes Victoria such a fun place to live and visit. Once again this August, the Victoria Film Festival will host FREE screenings of classic B-movies outside under the stars at the Cameron Bandshell in Beacon Hill Park. All shows start at 9:00 p.m. on select Friday and Saturday nights.

The films are absolutely FREE. Just bring your own snack, flashlights and blankets!

The lineup this year includes:

Labyrinth
Fri, Aug 8th • General; 101 min.
David Bowie stars as the fiendish Goblin King, sending a young Jennifer Connelly through a devious maze in order to save her baby brother from his evil goblin minions. Plus it’s got all the cool, incredible worlds and fascinating creatures from Jim Henson’s Muppet Workshop that you know and love so much.

Teenagers from Outer Space
Sat, Aug 9th
(General, violence); 86 min.
Aliens descend from the stars to take over the earth and turn it into a giant ranch for hideous space monsters! It’s Rebel Without a Cause… but with “lasers”.

The Princess Bride
Sat, Aug 16th • PG; 98 min.
The ultimate fairy tale! High adventure and comedy abound in this fabulous star-packed “twoo-wuv” story of pirates and giants and tyrants. Oh my! Star Fred Savage may be a lot older now but this is a story that will live on forever.

Forbidden Planet
Sat, Aug 23rd • General; 99 min
The sci-fi story that ushered in a new era for the silver screen! On the edge of the galaxy, a strange invisible monster threatens to destroy a lost expedition before they can discover the secrets of the long-dead civilization that once populated a strange and fantastic world.

The Goonies
Fri, Aug 29th • PG (may frighten young children, course language); 114 min.
Get your 80s on because “The Goonies” is back! A mysterious pirate treasure map takes a group of kids on a perilous journey through an old and secret series of caves. Fighting to save their home from an evil developer, those caves will take them on the greatest adventure of their lives…

Bikini Beach
Sat, Aug 30th • General; 100 min
Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello: need we say more? The usual gang of suspects is back for big hi-jinx and slapstick laughs on the surf and on the sand when a millionaire sets out to prove his pet theory about the local teenage population and their strange little surf-happy lifestyle.

Victoria BC Sees Old-Fashioned Soda Shoppe Across the Street from the Fairmont Empress

Rogers’ Chocolates — a Victoria institution for more than a century — just announced the grand opening of their newest store, an old-fashioned Soda Shoppe. The store is located in the heart of downtown Victoria at 801 Government Street, just across from the Fairmont Empress Hotel.

The Soda Shoppe will be using ice cream made at the Rogers’ Chocolates factory in Victoria. Some of the other items on the menu include parfaits, malts, sundaes, floats and milkshakes as well as hot fudge and caramel sauces made at the Rogers’ Chocolates factory. The signature item is the Capital City Banana Split.

The Soda Shoppe’s interior is a mixture of past and present; including a restored soda fountain, retro bar stools, and marble counters. With the option of “for here” or “to go”, the Soda Shoppe strives to be environmentally conscious and is using glass steel and biodegradable cups and spoons made from corn.

With both their Heritage Chocolate Store and Sam’s Deli, the Soda Shoppe will be the third addition to the Rogers’ Chocolates family of stores on Government Street in their 123 year history. The Soda Shoppe operates between 10 AM and 10 PM daily.

Spectacular Tall Ships Return to Victoria BC June 26-29!

Victoria’s scenic Inner Harbour will once again provide the backdrop for an event that will touch the hearts and minds of thousands this June 26-29, 2008. During four unforgettable days of revelry and celebration, the city will commemorate its maritime heritage with the historic visit of over two dozen tall ships from around the world.

This renowned international event means Victoria will have an unprecedented opportunity to experience history at first hand. Visitors will be able to walk the decks, touch the massive timbers, look up through the rigging at the sky, and turn back the clock to a time when the city’s future was being built by ships like these.

In addition, there will be a program of interactive educational activities, concerts, craft fairs and festive events that will celebrate Victoria’s history and BC’s 150th anniversary.

Read more

Kid Rock Performs July 5th at the Victoria BC Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre

American rocker Kid Rock will perform July 5th at the Victoria Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre with his “Rock And Roll Revival Tour” including featured guests Reverend Run, Peter Wolf, and Dickey Betts in addition to Kid Rock’s Twisted Brown Trucker Band. The band is to play a medley of hits has garnered the best reviews of Kid Rock’s career.

The Kansas City Star describes Kid Rock’s music this was: “It was lowbrow and hardcore and rock solid and it made for one of the most entertaining live shows you can see these days.” Kid Rock’s hometown paper The Detroit News concurred, saying “this revue-style rock and roll revival is the most musically impressive tour Rock has ever put on.” Nielson SoundScan reported Rock’s “Rock N Roll Jesus” is climbing the charts, hitting number 19 in mid-June. Read more

A Walk Down Fan Tan Alley in Victoria’s Historic Chinatown

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