The Slow Road
Departure Lounge: Venturing West with Bespoke

One Family's Odyssey in Western Canada

There can be many trials to travelling with family, but some of the main hurdles happen even before leaving the comforts of home. How about gathering three generations of family for one big adventure through Western Canada—how to design a trip that satisfies such a cross section of tastes? It’s a challenge that we put to Georgia Yuill, one of our Bespoke Trip Designers, a B.C. native now based in Milan. Georgia devised a journey that emphasized enough variety for all interests, while ensuring everyone shared in the larger adventure together, as one.

That adventure started with two days at the Calgary Stampede, an annual spectacle of bull riding, steer roping, chuck wagon races, country music and more. The midway for the kids, the livestock exhibits for the horse-loving grandparents, and all diversions in-between. Soon it was off to Alberta’s Badlands for a private trip to see one of the world’s foremost dinosaur collections at the Royal Tyrell Museum where the kids helped dig for bones and everyone got properly Jurassic.

Bears in the Rocky Mountains Into the Canadian Rockies next for a tour of a wildlife research station near Banff, followed by a session tracking for elk, moose and bear with a biologist, before heading to Lake Louise and the charms of a Relais & Châteaux. The group then dipped their canoe paddles into Canada’s iconic Moraine lake (once the B-side of our $20 bill), just one of the many activities they took in during two glorious days of hiking and sightseeing along the Icefields Parkway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In Jasper the family resided in a large cabin—avec chef—operated by the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge on the shore of Lake Beauvert. Here all ages could indulge great hiking and riding trails, world class golf, spa, boating, and of course some of the most stunning mountain vistas imaginable.

The Pacific Yellowfin Suitably satiated with the mountains, next it was off to the high seas off Vancouver Island where they boarded the Pacific Yellowfin, a classic private yacht for adventuring the B.C. coast. Featuring three lovely staterooms forward, two cabins astern, a salon and open deck dining area, this former research vessel is now the ultimate family transporter. The captain set course for one of British Columbia’s most famous fjords: Desolation Sound, where the summer water temperature hovers around 80 degrees, perfect for swimming, kayaking, and all manner of water sports. The yacht even carried mountain bikes for more terrestrial explorations.

After a few days of fun, sun and exercise it was time to head north through the famous rapids of Seymour Narrows, Yaculta and Sonora, where some of the fastest tidal currents in the world provide a spectacle for travellers and a bounty of fish for eagles, seals, whales and fishermen. Further northward, the search continued for orcas, bears, and other coastal wildlife in the Broughton Archipelago, a world class marine park and home to a population of about 250 resident orcas, as well as humpbacks and dolphins. The clear cold waters of the central BC coast make for excellent salmon fishing, which the grandparents loved, as well as crabbing, which the kids gravitated towards when the crew were checking the pots. Meanwhile, local fishers and oystermen kept the Pacific Yellowfin’s chef supplied during the four days in the Archipelago.
Kayaking with whales
The final destination with the Yellowfin was the hamlet of Telegraph Cove, one of the oldest outports on the north islands and home to the local whale museum, which features skeletons of several enormous cetaceans and myriad other mysterious marine creatures.

Saying farewell to captain and crew, our group took a short scenic flight over the coast, to Vancouver for a three-day exploration of the newest Olympic city. Based in the Pan Pacific Hotel on the waterfront, everyone scattered in different directions: Stanley Park, with its aquarium, amusement parks, wooded trails and sandy beaches for the kids; Granville Island Market beckoned for the foodies; and, the grandparents hit Robson Street for an extended shopping spree. Everyone convened for dinners at Vancouver’s renowned seafood, Japanese or French restaurants.

The final night found the group wandering to the city’s most famous beach, English Bay, to watch the Festival of Lights, where international participants compete to create the best firework displays choreographed to music. Granted, it was tough to convince the group that this was just another B&R Bespoke event, but it was a fitting tribute to a great journey in a tremendous region, which offers so much adventure, variety, and opportunity.

To speak to someone about arranging a custom trip of your very own, call B&R’s dedicated Bespoke trip design team at 1-800-387-1147. You provide the inspiration, they’ll take care of the rest.

The Slow Road

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Activity Levels:
E = Easygoing
M = Moderate
C = Challenging
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