Category: Free Inquiry

Today I was on a mission to see some of the waves in the ocean thanks to the wind. I drove along Dallas road, and landed at Willows Beach. Willows Beach is located in Oak Bay and is the beach that the Oak Bay tea party takes place at. It has beautiful, white sandy beaches, and you can see the Oak Bay marina to the right, and Cattle point to the left.

Despite the wind, it felt like there was spring in the air today. The sun was shining, and the beach was beautiful.

The beach is an easy walk, and there is a concrete path that follows most of the water front, so if you do not want to walk on the beach, this is a good alternative. The beach is usually rather busy as it is in the heart of Oak Bay, there is a great playground, and the views are spectacular.

The beach is also dog friendly, so naturally I had to bring my favourite adventure buddy Koko. She was a big fan of the beach and was pretty tired after the beautiful walk.

The beach is great all year round, especially for swimming in the summer! The way that the tide comes in and out allows the sun the heat the sand, so when the tide comes in, the warm sand heats the water and makes it a very pleasant place to swim.

I would recommend coming to this beach if you are looking for a place to lounge in the sun, or a nice stroll to get some fresh air.

Below I have linked the directions to Willows Beach from UVIC!

Willows Beach – Bing Maps

This weekend, I went for a walk at one of my favourite beaches on the south island, Island View beach. I have been going to this beach since I was a kid, and it has always been a favourite. It is located out by Michell’s farm, on the way to the ferry. It is a beautiful drive, through some farm lands were you may see some animals.

(All of the pictures below were taken by me throughout the year visiting this beach)

The walk is a very relaxing gravel path, that follows the shoreline, and is beautiful during every season.

There is a campsite at the beach, and a covered picnic area which is great for parties and get togethers. There is lots of parking, and there are year round washrooms so you can spend the whole day there.

Since this is one of my favourite beaches, I have photos from different months of the year I want to share.

July

August

September

October

November

As you can see, I love to go to this beach to watch the sunrise and sunset as it has one of my favourite sky lines. On a windier day, you can even see people flying some large kites down at the beach! It is also one of my favourite places to watch the stars as there is little to no light pollution, so the sky is full of them.

Even though the beach is quit a drive from UVIC, I 100% recommend going to this beach at least once for all the reasons I have explain above.

Below are the directions from UVIC to get to Island View beach!

island view beach – Bing Maps

Over the weekend I took advantage of the snowfall and went for a walk with my sister at Tod Creek Inlet. This walk has always been one of my favourite spots as you get a little bit of everything. The walk follows a river in the woods that takes you out to an inlet with a small doc.

The walk is relatively easy, however the walk back is mostly uphill as you have to get down to sea level to reach the inlet. Our walk was very pleasant, the snow was still covering the trees and the lighting through the trees made for a very pleasant afternoon.

Tod Creek Inlet is located near Butchart Gardens, so it is a bit of a drive from Uvic, but it is always worth it. The walk feels like you have escaped the city, and the inlet it always such a pleasant surprise when you make it the the end of the trail.

The inlet always has boats docked there and is full of moon jellies so if you are wanted to look at some sea life this is a great place to do it. Overall I would recommend this for anyone who is looking to get out in nature and go for a easy, but lengthy walk.

Below you can find the directions to Tod Creek Inlet!

Tod Creel Inlet – Search

One of my favourite beaches the walk to is Stewart Bay. This beach is located at the end of Stewart Avenue in View Royal and has a spectacular view and nice hidden beach. I took my dog there for a walk the other day at golden hour and it was beautiful.

To get to the beach, you do have to go down quit a few stairs, but there is a bench down on the rocks and one above the beach so you can still see the view without walking down the stairs.

My dog Koko is my favourite adventure buddy, and she is a big fan of this beach.

Here is a link for the maps of how to get to Stewart Bay!

Stewart Bay view royal – Bing Maps

This weekend I went for a walk around Spectacle Lake. This lake is located on the Malahat, tucked away in the bushes. I had never been to the lake before and actually found it when I was looking for new fishing spots, as Spectacle Lake is the only place on the island where you can fish for brook trout. I am glad I ventured out to this lake as it was absolutely stunning. The lake itself is very small, and the walk is relatively easy, so if you are looking for a walk that you can focus on the scenery not on tripping on a root, this is the walk for you. When I went, it had been very cold over night and the whole lake was frozen. In fact, it was so frozen that there were some very brave people walking on the frozen lake.

I definitely will go back to the lake as I think it would be beautiful to see it throughout the different seasons, and I am looking forward to heading there once the ice has melted and hopefully catching some brook trout!

Here is the map link for the directions to Spectacle Lake from UVIC. It is quiet a long drive, but it is definitely worth the commute for a serene walk that makes you feel like you have escaped the busyness of the city.

spectacle lake – Search

Over the past weekend, I took part in a beach clean up at Cordova Bay Beach. While I was trying to plan out where I wanted to go for a walk, my friend texted me and asked if I wanted to join her with a beach clean up she was partaking in. This was a great opportunity as I got to spend the morning walking down a beautiful beach, while helping to keep it clean. If you have never been to Cordova Bay Beach I would 100% recommend it! It is a beautiful, long beach and it is relatively close to the university. There is a park above the entrance where you can sit on some benches and look at the view, which is spectacular and the walk is relatively easy as walking on sand can always be somewhat of a challenge. To access the beach, you have to walk down a couple of flights of stairs, so keep that in mind before you make the trip. Despite the beach swarming with fellow beach cleaners, It is relatively busy, so if you are looking for a more secluded walk it might not be the place. However, it was a sunny, beautiful Saturday morning so it makes sense that everyone wanted to be out!

This is a picture I took while sitting on the bench at the park above the beach!

Here is a picture I took of me and my friends walking on the beach and picking up garbage.

And finally, I have connected a link to Cordova Bay Beach access on the maps so you can find it!

Cordova bay beach – Bing Maps