Ro Wells Travel

I’ve been in Ucluelet for just over a month now and I love it here. It is without doubt one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. And that stands for the whole of Vancouver Island (or at least the parts I’ve seen so far). It’s a small town, if you want endless shopping, cinemas, all night bars and a Starbucks then this town is not for you. But if you want quirky locals events (Ukee Idol), karaoke, open mic nights, unbelievable scenery and awesome wildlife then Ucluelet will not disappoint.

I came here because I wanted to be in nature and wildlife, whilst still having a couple of home comforts and it’s the perfect balance of that. I am working on a campground here and it’s a really relaxed job. It’s taken me a long time to get used to the laid back pace, to the lack of expectation to be working at a 110% every second of the day. If I’m being honest, I’m still not used to it, and frequently have to remind myself that it’s ok to take a more leisurely approach to work as long as the guests are happy.

My friend Malen came to visit me a couple of weeks ago and we had the most awesome week getting to explore some of the provincial parks on Vancouver Island. We started off in Little Qualicum Falls which offers two beautiful waterfalls then headed up to Miracle Beach which truly lives up to its name. We watched the sunset over the West Coast Mountains, then got up at 5am to watch the sunrise in the same spot. Worth it. Driving back to Ucluelet, we saw a black bear which both of us had been dying to see! It was amazing to have a friend here to hike with, and we did some great hikes, my favourite being the hike from Radar Hill near Tofino to an old WWII Bomber that had crashed in the rainforest. It’s a pretty short hike but is the perfect mix of trail, boardwalks and clambering over rocks and trees. The crash site itself is really surreal and well worth going to see. We also decided to go for a cold dip in the Pacific. I thought the Welsh sea was cold but holy hell the Pacific is on a whole other level. I have never been in water so cold that it literally takes your breath away and activates that gasp reflex. We lasted about 3 minutes before we ran out. Then ran in again for another quick dip before driving as fast as was legal back to the campsite for a long, hot shower.

Living on a campground has been amazing so far. We get wildlife right on our doorstep, quite literally. Last week we had a black bear meander across our front lawn and take refuge from the pesky humans trying to take it’s photo. We are treated to daily sightings of the most beautiful bald eagles, blue herons, and an owl who likes to make their presence known in the evenings. Although I haven’t seen them yet, we’ve also had wolves and raccoons around the campground and seals in the harbour opposite us. I love living in a van on site and being as close to the nature as I am.

Adjusting to #vanlife (internal cringe at the use of an actual hashtag here) has been surprisingly easy. I’ve always loved camping and being on my parents’ boat (not so much the sailing, but the small space living) so it’s been nice to have a space that I can make truly my own. The first week with a van was a bit of a rollercoaster. Buying the van was a real minefield, which I mostly blindly stumbled through and was thankfully helped along the way by some very kind people. Working out what driving licence I needed, insurance, registration and the actual purchase was only the start of the journey. I knew the van needed a couple of minor repairs and the seller had booked it into the mechanic to get these done for the day before I bought it. However, this quickly escalated to a more major (and substantially more expensive) repair. Thankfully the seller agreed to cover the cost of it. Once all the repairs were completed, I bought the van and headed to stock up on food and some camping essentials – a stove, a cool box and a couple of battery powered lights. Shop done, bank account significantly lower, I hit the road. Then, 20kms outside of Victoria when I was already on the highway, the check engine light came on. Bugger. I pulled off at the next exit and found a local mechanic who was still open (as it was creeping towards 5pm by now). They checked it out for free for me (honestly, Canadians are amazing), told me what it was and that I didn’t need to worry about it for now and so I carried on driving. I made it to the campground safe and sound, and still haven’t bothered to get the check engine light issue fixed yet. But it’s on my ever growing list.

I’ve not really done a whole lot to the van yet. It was already part converted when I bought it, so already had a bed set up and I’ve been making do living out of numerous boxes for the last month. I wanted to make sure Malen had an actual bed to sleep on whilst she was here so delayed ripping the inside of the van out until she left. However, I have now begun pulling it apart. I’m going to try and keep my Instagram updated with the progress on the van build (note to self, must remember to keep Instagram updated) for anyone who is interested to follow along. I have zero van build experience, and most of my “carpentry” knowledge comes from playing ‘hammering and nailing’ in my dad’s shed with my brother when I was about 8 years old. Luckily, I am surrounded by amazing people who have all the skills I lack, as well as a tool box, to help me build out the van exactly how I want it (and I shall pay them in an abundance of beer for their efforts).