Port Alberni’s new Quay to Quay Trail – our living history!
I sure haven’t been posting here much! I’ve been away a lot: working on a ship the last three months, and wasn’t in town much last summer either.
So I finally got out this week to check out Port Alberni’s new Quay to Quay Trail. And – wow – although there is still lots of work to do (mainly remediating and improving the shorefront lands that the City has expropriated for public use), it sure gave me a good vision of the municipal government’s foresight in making this happen.
But there was also a lot of hindsight, too…
What I mean by that is that this route really gives a glimpse of our town’s history, on live display too!
First, the old steam train was running. Ferg was not too impressed, but I was! The train used to run up to the McLean Mill, but now it just does a short run in town. But it is an important part of Port Alberni’s history (and one of only a very few operating steam trains in the world!)
We had a beautiful day for our walk! The new trail roughly follows the waterfront, and alongside the pulp mill. Yes, logging is still important to Port Alberni.
It continues on to Roger’s Creek, and from here you can hook up to a whole network of trails around the creek, or continue along the waterfront to Kitsuksis dyke. Dave and I walk Kitsuksis a lot in winter – especially if it is a sunny day (rather than being under the forest cover). We are both super happy about this new trail system!
And then I went out the next day, and guess what! The Philippine Mars Water Bomber was flying around! The other bomber left our lake this summer, for a museum in Victoria. This one is the last remaining flying Mars, and it is flying in a few days to its new home (on the ground), destined for a museum in Arizona.
It was such a big event for us out on Sproat Lake this summer, seeing the Hawaii Mars out on the water and sometimes flying, as they prepared her for her final journey. With all my travels away from Port Alberni, I didn’t think I would get to see the Philippine Mars at all. She is due to depart for good tomorrow. So it was an unexpected treat to see her, and have her go right over us, as Ferg and I were exploring the Quay to Quay Trail. Here is a little video glimpse, nothing fancy, just filmed on my phone – but special to me because I got to witness her very final days in the air:
Jacqueline Windh 