Day 19: Whale Watching, our last absolute 'must do', everything else is icing on the cake...

After the hiccup of yesterday's humongous drive down to Vancouver, we were up feeling refreshed this morning - treated to breakfast in bed at the hotel too no less!

We had booked whale watching for today, as the majority of reputable outfits offer a 'no whales, free rebook' option and we wanted to give ourselves the opportunity to rebook if needed - we shouldn't have worried.

We got to Granville Island early, unsure of navigating around Vancouver, and not being certain of finding parking, we did not want to miss the boat.

Everyone seems to drive really fast here - not like the other side of the country - no-one seems to stick to the speed limit and they get cross if you do.

We found somewhere to park (what3words: images.seating.human) and started looking around for where we needed to be to board our trip.....turns out we were standing right outside it - handy!

Before we checked in we had a wander around the area - it was such a Saturday morning vibe. (what3words: insert.rockets.wharfs) Bakeries just opening and coffee shops grinding their beans - I would definitely visit every Saturday if I lived here.

There was a covered public market too - it reminded me of what Carlisle Market used to look like in the days before it was modernised and the soul was sucked out of it.

I have no idea how long it took them to pile that fruit up like that!

We stood on the harbour (what3words: award.slippers.maps) and watched the noppy little ferries doing handbrake turns to dock perfectly.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/ccc3e4_5265f56de5754fb6b7a1e6b6ea6e6268/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

Then it was time for the main event(what3words: mammoth.spike.grow) and we duly boarded the catamaran that would take us on a 5 hour trip out of the harbour.

We saw;

Surf Skimmers which were little birds with bright red flashes that skimmed across the waves.

Bald Eagles - in total I think we saw six of them. They mate for life and can live past 25 years old

Harbour Seals - they are true seals without the ability to 'walk' on their front flippers - they are essentially sausages.

They are also lazy. Rather than move to higher ground, they just hold their heads up until the water subsides

but the stars of the show were a mumma and baby humpback

She is apparently called Pawn, has not been sighted here since 2019, and has only been sighted three times in the last ten years. She is an older whale and the crew were surprised to see her with a calf. It was a really young one too, still grey coloured rather than the black of the older ones.

Just wonderful. We have signed up to Happywhale.com and we will get alerts whenever she is spotted anywhere, so we can plot her migration.

When we got back to dry land we had another wander around Granville Island, it had a completely different feel now - it was busy and full of tourists. We bought some street food in the market and sat by the water to eat.

After close encounters with the whales, we wanted to get back to nature, and as we have to return the car tomorrow, we took the opportunity to get out (not far) of the city and made our way to Lynn Canyon to have a walk through the woods and visit the suspension bridge. Unlike the Capilano Suspension Bridge which is in private grounds and costs $65 entry, the Lynn Canyon one is free. To be fair, if you are planning a whole day at the Capilano one it may be worth it, it depends on your preference. We just wanted a walk through the woods to finish off the day.

The bridge is high, and the gorge underneath is beautiful. I thought we had seen the last of waterfalls, so this was a treat!

The majority of people had parked on the opposite side of the gorge, where the cafe and facilities are. We chose to park further away and walk through the woods. Emily had just finished saying 'isn't it lovely to walk through the woods and not have to be terrified for your life'..... when we came across this warning

I have never wished for my little bear bell so much..... bears and cougars - oh my!

As we were exiting the woods to go back to the car we heard a deep throated growl, We looked at each other and picked up the pace, but trying to remember not to run. We exited the treeline to find a family playing with their Husky..... a very deep voiced Husky - phew!

We finished the day with a visit to Stanley Park. Huge and lovely. The road through is one way and split down the middle, one side for cars and one side for cycles, skateboards, rollerblades and the like. You can also get a horse drawn carriage ride around the park.

There is no charge for entry, but you must pay for parking, regardless of where you stop for a visit. Fortunately we had downloaded the app from this morning at Granville Island, so we were ok.

I was delighted to find the totem poles - I last saw some in Alaska and the stories behind them are really interesting. Each one was explained and they are treated with reverence. The grass and wildflowers are flourishing as you are not allowed to step into the area.

We are going full tourist mode tomorrow. Everything we want to see is in the city - but we have a lot to cram in and only 2 days left :)