For our summer 2022 road trip, we chose to visit Vancouver B.C., Victoria B.C., and explore Washington’s Olympic National Park. It was a great mix of city and country locations for indoor and outdoor adventures.
Our kids’ passports expire next year, so we crossed the North border to get one more use out of them. Violet and I traveled to Victoria B.C. for her 10th birthday, but the other kids hadn’t been to Canada.
Science World
We love our local science museum, so it was a no-brainer to visit one in Canada. Our favorite Science World experiences were found in Eureka! and the puzzles and illusions gallery.
They had a surfing wave made up of smartphone cases, T-Rex featured exhibit, and a hands-on area with a tornado, bubble reflections, and visual illusions.
Raymond, Manny, and Gracie Li
One inspiration for this trip was from my cousin, who invited us to come up to Canada to visit. I couldn’t accept his offer during the pandemic, but we enjoyed visiting with them on our first night in Vancouver. They hosted us generously and look forward to seeing them again.
Vancouver Aquarium
We loved seeing all of the jellyfish and frog varieties at the Vancouver Aquarium. Even cooler was the sea lion interacting with Bruce and his sunglasses.
Sea to Sky Gondola
The drive on Highway 1 had scenic views before we took a gondola up to the Sea to Sky Gondola Summit Lodge. The mountains in the distance with the Howe Sound in the foreground provided an epic backdrop to our walk across a suspension bridge.
Victoria Butterfly Gardens
This is a magical garden where butterflies flutter all around and may even land on you! The humid environment makes it hard to stay too long, but the girls enjoyed butterflies and a parrot landing on them.
Miniature World
The detail in each piece of each scene is incredible. It invites close inspection as well as admiring the whole display.
I took less photos this time since I’ve visited three years ago. But the castle diorama is still my favorite.
Victoria Ferries
We took two ferries in one day, arriving in Victoria in the morning and leaving in the evening. We got to enjoy the sunrise and sunset on the water.
Between the Butterfly Garden and Miniature World visits, we walked the downtown streets and found ourselves in a candy store with an unique assortment of sweets.
Hurricane Ridge, Olympic National Park
I resisted stopping at viewpoints on the drive up because they were on the other side of the road. I don’t think I missed much because the top gave the best views. The haze in the sky made the lines of mountains and hills have a painted look to them on the horizon.
Hoh Rainforest
We had a late start out and arrived at the Hoh Rainforest around 11am. The line of cars was quite long and the wait was two hours. The parking lot by the Hoh Rainforest visitor center is small and full.
Thankfully, we didn’t have anything else scheduled (because Ruby Beach was closed). We waited for one and half hours before admiring the Hall of Mosses and the blue color of the Hoh river.
