I know, the holidays are over, we have been home for roughly 5 months and I still have a post to do on last years cruising in BC. I actually kind of saved one of the best for last – while Ron and Diane were with us, we splurged and rented a Jet Ranger helicopter for a day of touring.
Our ride met us at Pierre’s Echo Bay Marina. After a foggy start to the day, our ride arrived and landed on the beach just across from the marina.
Pretty exciting taking off vertically and departing the marina at over 90 knots just off the water.
First stop was back Port McNeill for a full load of fuel.
Then it was off over Vancouver Island exploring. There are literally thousands of miles of logging roads – so many that there are actually maps for those who wish to explore 4 wheel style.
First stop was on top of a glacier – but the trip in and landing were pretty spectacular. Along cliff faces and waterfalls (no telephoto here – we were that close).
Our destination.
A glacial lake below the glacier – no photoshopping here – it was that blue.
A closer look at our landing site.
Touchdown.
Not the best picture, but you can get a sense of how small our landing area was – not much bigger the helicopter really.
Just past the heli was a glacial face that fell almost 2000 feet. Behind the picture of Deb and me was a sheer rock wall that fell even further. Our departure was a vertical lift off and then a vertical plunge down the rock wall. Better then any roller coaster ride I have been on.
Next it was off to the wind swept west coast of Vancouver Island and the Pacific Ocean. Rugged and beautiful coast line.
A beach landing and some time to explore.
This spot was known as Pirate’s Cave for obvious reasons.
This was a primitive camp used by kayakers who sea kayak along the coast – not sure I would be doing that given the wind and waves.
We also stopped by a few mountain streams where Ron and I tried our hand at fly fishing. Unfortunately, conditions had been so dry that the salmon could not make it in to the streams and the trout had departed for deeper and cooler water in the lakes.
We also saw plenty of wild life from the air including humpback whales, orcas, and eagles.
At the end of the day, a very happy crew.
I took lots of movies during our adventure, one of these days I will have to add the capability to put them up on the blog as well.
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