Hippy and Happy - Vancouver, Canada

Travelogue Thirty minutes north-west from Vancouver, Canada, you can join the ferry at Horseshoe Bay and head across Howe Sound for Gibson’s Landing. Even the names in this idyllic part of the west Coast of Canada seem to be created to entrance - Robert’s Creek, Pender Harbour, Earl’s Cove, Nelson Island, Halfmoon Bay - and those who sneak into this sun-drenched paradise quickly fall under its spell.

This is the Sunshine Coast, known for its wacky inhabitants and slightly off-the-wall atmosphere. Visitors love the laid back lifestyle and friendly communities that reflect the history of the place. In the 60s this was the centre of Canada’s New-Age culture and forty years on you’ll notice every other character has their own version of hippy-ness. Even the seventy-year-olds sport long beards or little white pony-tails. This isn’t a rich community, but it does have a ridiculously seductive sense of well-being and contentment. You get the impression that the people here are happy with their lot, and the impression is a strong one.

We were visiting Ian and Cindy, the best of friends. You know the sort: friends with whom you pick up just where you left off, perhaps a full year and half a globe away. Snuggled into their gorgeous little Steiner-arch log-cabin, we were immediately back at home with them. After supper on the sun-deck, relaxing with a glass of Merlot, we whiled away the summer evenings up to our necks in their luxurious hot-tub, catching up on each other’s lives, and putting the world to rights. How lucky we are to have them move to this heavenly part of the world! They loaned us their car to go where we wanted, and were ready to act as travel advisors or guides for our visit. Yet we were more than happy to stay close to Gibson’s, with its neatly laid out harbour and rows of variegated little boats, allowing the warmth of the sun to melt the tensions of our busy professional lives, and the cool breezes from the Pacific to blow any remnants far away. We watched transfixed as delicate little humming-birds drank from the bright red feeder just feet away from the kitchen window, back-dropped by the North Shore Mountains, snow-capped even at the height of summer. We laughed as translucent-winged butterflies danced innocently around the flowers on the patio. We drank in the normality of life as little pre-schoolers chattered excitedly in the park a stone’s throw away as they learnt the skills and traditions of baseball.

Gibson’s Landing was chosen as the set for the Beachcombers TV series with good reason. This is a very attractive little strip of outdoor living space, tucked as it is between those noble mountains and Vancouver Island. Rich green forests slip gently into benevolent waterways, and in so doing provide miles of driftwood-encrusted beaches, inlets and hidden coves to draw the eye and heart, if not the boat, of would-be sailors. The Sunshine Coast is the perfect destination for the true escapee. Although it is ten hours from Heathrow to the ferry, who cares? We travelled with Air Canada and were wonderfully treated with the sort of respectful hospitality we’ve grown to appreciate from the Canadians. They’re good people, and most display a gracious generosity that is rare these days.

Vancouver is an hour away by ferry and bus. We joined the commuters on the ferry, dodging between the islands (40 minutes of the most stunning scenery any commuter could wish for!) into town and did all the usual Vancouver stuff – we got to the famous steam clock in Gastown to hear it mimic Big Ben as it struck mid-day – and spent our time shopping. Prices in Canadian dollars seemed virtually equivalent to British pounds despite the 2.4 exchange rate! The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Shop on Robsons is unmissable, It has twenty varieties of the most luxuriously bedecked toffee-apples you’ve ever seen, and an attractive Canadian girl slowly stirring a huge cauldron of silky chocolate in the window.

For a different lunch experience, we ate at the downtown premises of the Art Institute of Vancouver on Granville Street. Here fifteen young student chefs learn to prepare gourmet food in a glass-walled kitchen and serve you at their best in the smart ambiance of their pristine and classy restaurant. Definitely a highlight of our holiday – three very sophisticated courses at a ridiculously low price.

We visited the Skookumchuck Rapids, forty miles north along the only ‘main’ road on this inaccessible peninsular, where due to a freak of nature literally billions of gallons of water pour in and out through this constricted channel in just a matter of hours as the tide ebbs and flows twice each day. We poked our noses in the door of Roberts Creek General Store, as it serves the scattered community with everything imaginable, and Miss Sunny gave me the perfect haircut at her little mauve and pink Hair Boutique. On our last day we had a huge brunch at the Gumboot Café just up the road from Gibsons’ - as delightfully unsophisticated as its name suggests - where live music (the musicians presumably from those halcyon 60s hippy days) entertains the diners each evening. The menu was amazing.

And so our ten days soaking up the calm of Canada’s verdant Sunshine Coast, its unique culture and temperate climate, drew to a reluctant close. They even dropped us off at Vancouver airport! (We had supper at the airport’s excellent Fairmont hotel.) Ten days in the best of company. Ten days drawing strength, inspiration and a new sense of contentment from a community of people who, it seems, have learnt the secrets of laid-back living.


Hippy and Happy
*By Andrew Sercombe, UK*
Destination Gibson's Landing, Vancouver, Canada
Categories Singles, Over 50's, No Kids
When Travelled May 2004
Length of Stay 10 Days
Airline Air Canada
Accommodation Stayed with friends


Travelogue Thirty minutes north-west from Vancouver, Canada, you can join the ferry at Horseshoe Bay and head across Howe Sound for Gibson’s Landing. Even the names in this idyllic part of the west Coast of Canada seem to be created to entrance - Robert’s Creek, Pender Harbour, Earl’s Cove, Nelson Island, Halfmoon Bay - and those who sneak into this sun-drenched paradise quickly fall under its spell. This is the Sunshine Coast, known for its wacky inhabitants and slightly off-the-wall atmosphere. Visitors love the laid back lifestyle and friendly communities that reflect the history of the place. In the 60s this was the centre of Canada’s New-Age culture and forty years on you’ll notice every other character has their own version of hippy-ness. Even the seventy-year-olds sport long beards or little white pony-tails. This isn’t a rich community, but it does have a ridiculously seductive sense of well-being and contentment. You get the impression that the people here are happy with their lot, and the impression is a strong one. We were visiting Ian and Cindy, the best of friends. You know the sort: friends with whom you pick up just where you left off, perhaps a full year and half a globe away. Snuggled into their gorgeous little Steiner-arch log-cabin, we were immediately back at home with them. After supper on the sun-deck, relaxing with a glass of Merlot, we whiled away the summer evenings up to our necks in their luxurious hot-tub, catching up on each other’s lives, and putting the world to rights. How lucky we are to have them move to this heavenly part of the world! They loaned us their car to go where we wanted, and were ready to act as travel advisors or guides for our visit. Yet we were more than happy to stay close to Gibson’s, with its neatly laid out harbour and rows of variegated little boats, allowing the warmth of the sun to melt the tensions of our busy professional lives, and the cool breezes from the Pacific to blow any remnants far away. We watched transfixed as delicate little humming-birds drank from the bright red feeder just feet away from the kitchen window, back-dropped by the North Shore Mountains, snow-capped even at the height of summer. We laughed as translucent-winged butterflies danced innocently around the flowers on the patio. We drank in the normality of life as little pre-schoolers chattered excitedly in the park a stone’s throw away as they learnt the skills and traditions of baseball. Gibson’s Landing was chosen as the set for the Beachcombers TV series with good reason. This is a very attractive little strip of outdoor living space, tucked as it is between those noble mountains and Vancouver Island. Rich green forests slip gently into benevolent waterways, and in so doing provide miles of driftwood-encrusted beaches, inlets and hidden coves to draw the eye and heart, if not the boat, of would-be sailors. The Sunshine Coast is the perfect destination for the true escapee. Although it is ten hours from Heathrow to the ferry, who cares? We travelled with Air Canada and were wonderfully treated with the sort of respectful hospitality we’ve grown to appreciate from the Canadians. They’re good people, and most display a gracious generosity that is rare these days. Vancouver is an hour away by ferry and bus. We joined the commuters on the ferry, dodging between the islands (40 minutes of the most stunning scenery any commuter could wish for!) into town and did all the usual Vancouver stuff – we got to the famous steam clock in Gastown to hear it mimic Big Ben as it struck mid-day – and spent our time shopping. Prices in Canadian dollars seemed virtually equivalent to British pounds despite the 2.4 exchange rate! The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Shop on Robsons is unmissable, It has twenty varieties of the most luxuriously bedecked toffee-apples you’ve ever seen, and an attractive Canadian girl slowly stirring a huge cauldron of silky chocolate in the window. For a different lunch experience, we ate at the downtown premises of the Art Institute of Vancouver on Granville Street. Here fifteen young student chefs learn to prepare gourmet food in a glass-walled kitchen and serve you at their best in the smart ambiance of their pristine and classy restaurant. Definitely a highlight of our holiday – three very sophisticated courses at a ridiculously low price. We visited the Skookumchuck Rapids, forty miles north along the only ‘main’ road on this inaccessible peninsular, where due to a freak of nature literally billions of gallons of water pour in and out through this constricted channel in just a matter of hours as the tide ebbs and flows twice each day. We poked our noses in the door of Roberts Creek General Store, as it serves the scattered community with everything imaginable, and Miss Sunny gave me the perfect haircut at her little mauve and pink Hair Boutique. On our last day we had a huge brunch at the Gumboot Café just up the road from Gibsons’ - as delightfully unsophisticated as its name suggests - where live music (the musicians presumably from those halcyon 60s hippy days) entertains the diners each evening. The menu was amazing. And so our ten days soaking up the calm of Canada’s verdant Sunshine Coast, its unique culture and temperate climate, drew to a reluctant close. They even dropped us off at Vancouver airport! (We had supper at the airport’s excellent Fairmont hotel.) Ten days in the best of company. Ten days drawing strength, inspiration and a new sense of contentment from a community of people who, it seems, have learnt the secrets of laid-back living. Would we go back? We’ve already started saving.



Hints on visiting with friends Choose them carefully Enjoy them for who they are Be generous with words, gifts and attitude Rejoice when they move to the Sunshine Coast Do things alone as well as together Check they have a large enough hot-tub!

© Fabulous Holidays 2004. Photographs courtesy of