TRAVEL

Accessible Saltspring

A SURPRISING thing aboui Saltspring Island is how ac-

cessible it is

by B.C. Ferries,

with services from

Tsawwassen and two points on Vancouver Island to Long
Harbour, Fulford Harbour and Vesuvius.

And yet, on a sunny weekend
in June, the roads are quict, a
handful of picnickers have Ruckle
Park to themselves, and the goif
course is wide open.

The Saltspring Golf and Coun-
try Club, if you please, is a crack-
ing little course with nine holes
including two par fives of 524 and
505 yards and a tough par four
measuring 454 yards.

{t is beautifully treed with lush
fairways and flawless ercens.
Members here pay $1,000 to join,
$250 a year, have the use of a
clubhouse (with stand-up bar) that
really feels like a golfers’ retreat,
and welcome visitors, who can go
round the course as many times as
they want for $18 weekdays and
$24 on the weekends.

Twilight rate is $12, and club
rental $4.

There’s no booking, the trick
being to call pro/manager Gord
Fergusson (537-2121) to check for
tournaments and busy periods.
We had a blissful round with two
locals, also an opportunity to
catch up on island politics, places
to eat and house prices.

Then on to the Beach House
bed and breakfast on Sunset Drive
near Vesuvius and a warm wel-
come from John de West and his
wife Maureen.

They have two suites and a cot-
tage available, with one more cot-
tage nearing completion. The de
Wests, formerly of West Van-
couver, moved to Saltspring right
after Expo °86, when John de
West ran the ResWest accom-
modation booking service for
visitors to the fair.

Those were heady days, he
recalls, when $56 million worth of
room business was booked in nine
weeks with B.C. Tel calling at one
stage to say that ResWest was ty-
ing up all the trunk lines from San
Diego north.

The de Wests have a quieter life
now, occupying an elegant water-
front home that is nicely laid out
so that both family and guests
have privacy.

Guests share a common table
for Maureen’s delicious breakfast,
when the conversation bubbles
along. Two couples were cot-
tage-hunting on Saitspring, one of
them with an aim of growing as-
paragus for lunch, dinner and
breakfast too.

Meeting people is one of the
joys of bed and breakfasting. The
price is right as well — $135 fora
beautiful room with luxurious
bathroom, fluffy towels and

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TRAVEL TIPS

bathrobes. De West even serves
wake-up coffee with an infectious
smile.

The cottage, ai $165, also has a
kitchen. It hangs over the water
and wins nothing but admiration.
De West says it’s amazing how
often people pop up who are
friends of peopie who stayed there
the previous weekend.

Saltspring is popular with
cyclists, and yes, you can rent
them at Ganges. It’s a great place
for crafts, what with the farmers’
market on Saturday mornings and
the Ganges shops anytime. Check
Dana’s wildly painted gumboots
at Mouat’s store.

Ruckle Park, on the sunny
southern end, is perfect for a pic-
nic, and don’: be surprised if
Maureen sends you off with sticky
buns and other goodies.

On your way visit the

Everlasting Summer dried fawer
farm, Nearby is the Fulford Inn’s
“hamburger heaven’? pub. There
are cating places galore, from pub
food to fine dining at Hastings
House (bookings essential).

We had a happy evening at the
Vesuvius pub with a balcony table
and view of the sunset, saw lots of
passing marine activity, including
the busy Crofton ferry, and had
all the food and drink we wanted
for $26.

On the way back to the Beach
House a deer jumped in front of
the car (pink clephants are $26
more) and then ambled slowly
towards the ocean.

Back at the Beach House there
was no TV, no phone, just the
sound of the ocean, and then
nothing, not until the coffee-man
came by.

Note that you can, and should,
book on B.C. Ferries to Saltspr-
ing, and that you forfeit your res-
ervation if not at the dock 30
minutes before sailing.

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Sunday, July 14, 1991 - North Shore News - 44

ESCAPE TO THE SEA

A beautiful island hideaway with spectacular-coloured
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A fall service resace bawel
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