What a wonderful journey.
On a vacation to Vancouver Island I had the good fortune to go on a lovely
kayak trip though the Islands and inlets around Tofino, Canada.
Besides seeing an eagle swoop down from a tree and grab a little lunch from the
sea just 50 feet from my kayak, one of my favorite parts of the trip was seeing
the Big Trees.
On an UNESCO protected
island only accessible by boat down the loveliest boardwalk constructed by
local First Nation Peoples from naturally felled lumber, visitors get to
experience some of Canada
largest trees. One of the largest (a circumference of 38 feet) on this walk is
called simply “big tree” and is said to be around 1,500-2,000 years old.
Imagine that in the European “dark ages” this tree was already quite large.
This tree has held not only what we see today as an entire mini-ecosystem in
its branches and structure but through time and circumstance … it has held generations
of these ecosystems. This tree was one of many I saw on this trip and holds a
powerful moment in my heart.
And on the trip to this
tree … the boardwalk is a strong and stable feature providing its own wonder.
After landing the kayaks we crawled up what seemed to be a sketchy trail to
only have it suddenly awe us with a set of stairs out of Tolkien’s- Middle
Earth! These stairs have a total rise of approximately 30 feet and make me
smile just to think of them. I take my hat off to the creative and tenacious
craftsmen that built and maintain these stairs.
David Shuler
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