Highway 101 hugs the California, Oregon and Washington coastlines to Port Angeles, then, re-emerging north of Vancouver, continues another 139km along two spectacular peninsulas. Sheltered by Vancouver Island, this aptly named Sunshine Coast provides a perfect four-day road trip.

Departing Horseshoe Bay, a ferry ride whisks us across scenic Howe Sound to Sechelt Peninsula. Entering Gibson’s Landing, George Gibson’s statue surveys the picturesque harbour where his ketch *Swamp Angel* blew off course in 1886. George and his sons stayed and established this port. Museum photos and artifacts highlight Finnish neighbours who began homesteading around 1905.

Across the street sits canary yellow Molly’s Reach, an iconic building seen regularly on Canadian television for nearly two decades. Here, motherly Molly served up coffee to Gibson’s beloved Beachcombers characters. Nick Adonidas, his native partner Jesse and their oddball competitor Relic humorously connived to gather stray logs along the shore. Nic’s workhorse boat *Persephone* lies in an adjacent corner. Gibson’s museum further celebrates its maritime heritage displaying exploits of local sailors, a locally developed submarine and *Beachcombers* memorabilia.

Along Highway 101, blue artisan signs trumpet a more recent population influx: artists coming to work in glass, fabric, clay, gems, wood, stone and paint. Visitors like us venture here to hike the rugged coastline and evergreen forests. Chapman Creek Trail is especially appealing. Over 25 years ago, an anonymous carver created a whimsical series of wizened, whiskered faces on fallen logs and stumps; we encounter a dozen such wood spirits along the creek. Below Chapman Creek stretches Davis Bay, where summer beaches attract kite flyers, sandcastle builders and swimmers. Strolling the seaside esplanade onto the landmark wooden pier, we watch anglers catching sand dabs, bullheads and Dungeness crabs.

Up the road, Sechelt, the town named for Shishalh native band is festooned with multicoloured totem poles. Heading to Porpoise Bay, we stroll around a waterfowl conservation park at Sechelt Marsh before basking on the sundeck of a local pub. Awaiting fish and chips, the manager stops to chat, telling us about this peninsula’s charming, laid-back resorts and lodgings - and how water sports attract most visitors. He grins, “I’ve already caught some good-sized salmon this month!”

After a cozy evening in a B&B overlooking magnificent Sechelt Inlet, we savour three-course gourmet breakfasts while trading lively sightseeing stories with other guests. Luxuriating next in a Secret Cove resort, we hike, swim and romantically dine on luscious seafood. Our hostess describes how this breathtaking resort evolved from an early fishing lodge by adding this fine restaurant, upgrading cabins and creating hillside, ocean view tent-houses linked by forest boardwalks. She whispers, “Joni Mitchell stayed several months in cabin 11, composing a new album while her home was built.”

In the morning we’re off, meandering through Pender Harbour, Madeira Park and Ruby Lake to Egmont on the Sechelt Peninsula’s northern tip. Just past the popular trail leading to the formidable tidal rapids of world famous Skookumchuck Narrows, we board a sturdy cabin cruiser to travel 30-nautical miles through a series of royally named fjords, deep U-shaped trenches carved by glaciers 10,000 years ago. Today, kayakers ply these pristine waters, though sheer bluffs generally prohibit landings.

Along the way, Captain Tim notes, “This is one of the few logged sections. You can see how companies face difficulties harvesting in this terrain. Those green patches demonstrate three stages of replanted, fast growing hemlock.” Then, passing a rock quarry near Prince of Wales Reach, he explains how gravel from here is economically barged throughout B.C.

“Only deep-water fish like lingcod live in this fjord,” says Tim. So, sighting over 100 seals basking on a tiny island prompts speculation on an envious diet. White-shelled oysters lie strewn along the low-tide shoreline, numerous blue buoys mark traps dropped to harvest prawns and faraway floats identify a fish farm. More distant enterprises grow mussels, oysters and scallops.

In Princess Royal Reach, we pause to photograph the vertical cascade of Soda Creek Falls and minutes later view red pictographs high on a rock face, perhaps revealing an ancient fishing spot. Surefooted natives once scaled these green craggy slopes to hunt mountain goats, chasing them over the steep cliffs.

A narrow passage leads into Princess Louisa Inlet where snowy peaks and countless silvery waterfalls surround us. To investigate famed Chatterbox Falls, we disembark at a small dock lined with yachts and floatplanes; scarlet jellyfish undulate in crystal waters below. A trail leads us through towering cedars to a point where we fully appreciate the falls’ sparkling white immensity. More roar than chatter, we jokingly rename it Thundering Falls!

Northward on Highway 101, Earl’s Cove ferry carries us through Jervis Inlet to Malaspina Peninsula. Out in the depths at nearby Saltery Bay Provincial Park, a three-metre bronze mermaid welcomes divers into one of 19 local scuba sites. Flippered folks swim from a crystal cove to commune with octopi, wolf eels, red snapper, sea bass, sea lions and other finny friends.

Proceeding through woodsy communities and along shorelines presenting picture-perfect panoramas of the strait, we sweep into Powell River. Onward past blackberry-hedged homes, island ferry terminal, waterfront businesses and beachside Willingdon Park, we stop above the pulp mill where Powell River began. Celebrating their historic townsite’s centennial, we tour the topnotch facilities that attracted workers here. Their arts-and-crafts homes boasted large front porches, installed to promote neighbourliness. One of Canada’s longest continually running theatres stands beside a heritage garden. Though law-abiding, we lunch in a former cell at Jailhouse Café, explore one of many lakeside trails and return for crab night on the arresting terrace of the vintage Tudor-style courthouse.

Narrowing, Highway 101 winds past Powell Lake, upward through Wildwood - settled by Italians - Sliammon, a Coast Salish community, and through a large swath of secondary forest. Ultimately, the road snakes downward into Lund where a stone monument touts its end!

Prominent century-old Lund Hotel, one of two hotels built by Fred and Charlie Thurin, reflects this town’s beginnings and aspirations. Arriving in 1889, these brothers named this settlement after a Swedish city and attracted countrymen to farm nearby. Comfortably refurbished, this 1905 hotel reveals the region’s fine artistry. Hallways sport aboriginal stylized salmon; room murals depict west coast scenes. Understanding the artist owns a gallery downstairs, we pop in for a chat as she meticulously sculpts realistic animals from soapstone.

At the edge of the busy harbour, a water taxi office arranges shuttles to outlying islands; Nancy’s Bakery perches above, offering patio tables for sampling aromatic goodies including varieties of scrumptious cinnamon buns. A boardwalk links a semicircle of craft stores, eateries and outdoor sport shops renting kayaks for paddling Desolation Sound, B.C.’s largest and oldest marine park. If neither sailor nor kayaker, Lund Hotel schedules weekly cruises on Swan Spirit.

Just outside Lund, Hurtado trail leads us toward an extraordinary viewpoint. Ambling through a shady forest past skunk cabbage, leathery-leaved salal and orange tiger lilies, we arrive at a high rock bluff surrounded by coppery-barked arbutus. Across the sparkling water, Savary Island’s wide sandy beaches appear. There, long sunny days and shallows produce the warmest swimming conditions north of Mexico. Our next Highway 101 getaway may end with this Savary twist!

MARCH 2011 SENIOR LIVING MAGAZINE VANCOUVER & LOWER MAINLAND 

Planning Your Own Road Trip:

• The unspoiled Sunshine Coast in a nutshell: www.bigpacific.com
• Complete BC Ferries information: www.bcferries.com
• Lighthouse Pub & Magellan’s overlooking Porpoise Bay: www.magellansbc.ca
• Pamper yourself at Sechelt Inlet Bed & Breakfast: www.secheltinletbandb.com
• Luxuriate at Rock Water Secret Cove Resort: www.rockwatersecretcoveresort.com
• Princess Louisa Inlet Cruise: www.sunshinecoasttours.bc.ca
• Find fresh, locally grown organic food at Manzanita Restaurant within Old Courthouse Inn, a charming boutique hotel in Powel River’s historic townsite www.manzanita.ca
• Historic Lund Hotel: www.lundhotel.com
• Kayak & Water Adventures: www.terracentricadventures.com