Well, I'm leaning towards Ucluelet!

the difference is on is on the open Pacific coast (Ucuelet) and the other is on the protected Johnstone Strait (Campbell River). Pacific Rim Nat'l Park between Ucey & Tofino offers great beach combing, but the area in general can be crowded at times. but a great true coastal experience. CR has Miracle Beach Prov Park nearby, which can also be a relaxing place with the options you seek. you can also drive up the mountains of Strathcona Park in less than an hour, or go on a marine tour to Knight Inlet to view grizzlies. you can't go wrong with either option, but think about what type of coast experience you desire and that will be your guide.

Thanks much Gonzo. I'll post that exact question to my wife, since this is her part of the trip. I'll have had a week of open Pacific coast walking by then. Hope to have my West Coast Trail dates in hand within a few days so I can start booking the hotels and other stuff.

Never seen a grizzly in the wild so that option has some appeal. Looks like a good chance to see Orcas there too, which would also be new for us.

Thanks again, will take a closer look at CR.

went on a boat tour a few years ago out of Campbell River to see birds and bears and ended up spending most of the tour watching Orcas...was an amazing experience

you know, one thing i forgot to mention about Campbell River area is that aside from
alpine hikes an hour away, you can head to some of the warmest water north of Hawaii
about an hour south to the ferry to Hornby Island- one of the Gulf Islands.

If you are doing the West Coast trail you will either start or finish in Bamfield I imagine. Not sure how/where your wife will meet up with you but Bamfield would be closer to Ucluelet/Tofino than to Campbell River. You could possibly meet in Port Alberni and then drive from there.
Ucluelet has great hiking, an amazing new aquarium, and some nice restaurants. (Tofino has a couple of nice restaurants too). You can easily stay in Ukkee and do day trips to Tofino or vice versa.

Oh, and if you wife likes gardening there is a Botanical Garden in Tofino
http://www.tbgf.org/gardens/

Thanks again for the suggestions. Really appreciate it!

We will be starting in Bamfield so we do the easier section of the trail with the heavy packs and finish in Port Renfrew, doing the more difficult section with lighter packs.

From there we'll make our way back to Victoria. My friend will head on the way to his next destination and I'll meet my wife at the airport. We're thinking that to keep the logistics simple and to maximize time on Vancouver Island that she and I will just fly in to Victoria, even though the price is much higher compared to flying into Seattle. But it greatly simplifies various logistical issues.

I'm still slightly leaning towards Ucluelet, though I think there's not a bad decision to be made. I will show my wife all this stuff in the next few days - she has been swamped at work this week.

Thanks again!

Just booked my West Coast Trail trip and was able to draw an August 3 departure from Bamfield. Now working on the logistics regarding that: West Coast Trail Express shuttle drop offs, hotels at the trail heads for one night, couple nights in Victoria, etc.

This weekend my wife and I can work on our part of the trip. I reconsidered flying into Victoria. There are no direct Denver flights, and all itineraries have long layover times. So we decided to just fly into Seattle, rent a car there, and take the Anacortes ferry over to Sidney, which will probably be fun anyway.

I've taken the Anacortes-Sidney Ferry and it is a wonderful trip. We saw whales (from a distance of course) on my trip across. The Butchart Gardens are closer to Sidney than Victori, being only about 20 - 25 min across the Saanich Peninsula at Brentwood Bay. Unfortunately, your wife won't be with you then. The Gardens have good directions on their website under "Planning Your Visit".
Vancouver Island is very large, nearly the size of Switzerland, only a different shape so check your travel times but be careful of the routes. Their travel times use the inland highway but then you miss all the good stuff and the charming small towns which are on the coast.
If you are needing to rent a car to get to Victoria, how is she going to get there to meet you after the trip?
You could consider having her flying into Vancouver and using the YVR - Victoria bus operated by Pacific Coach to get to the ferry and into downtown Victoria. http://www.pacificcoach.com/Bus-Coach-Travel/YVR-Victoria-Link/YVR-to-Victoria
I love Victoria. It's a wonderful place to visit (my sister lives there). It is the City of Gardens. Here is a link to Victoria & surrounds gardens - http://www.gazebo-victoria.com/gardensandparks.html
Towards Sooke, which you've just been on that highway on your return from the WCT, you'll get a glimpse of all the wonderful parks. They best are near Sooke which is 1 - 1/12 hr from Victoria (depends on your rate of travel) so if you made an early start, you can make a day of it and visit renowned tidal pools. If you want to spend more time, consider a few days in Sooke. http://www.hellobc.com/sooke/things-to-do/water-activities/beaches-swimming.aspx
You can take whale watching tours from downtown Victoria or from Sooke but I would only take them from Sooke if I was staying there just because of the travel time.
Consider moving from one place to another along the way staying at B&B's rather than hotels. There is so much to see and what has been mentioned has taken me years and multiple trips to see.

cdnnomad, thanks for reply and further information, especially the gardens link which I had not seen one one nice page yet.

My trip is now fully booked and goes something like this. It is slightly complicated due to the fact that it is really two trips, one with my friend and one with my wife:

My friend meets me at Seatac in his vehicle and we drive to Port Angeles for the night. He wants to leave his vehicle there.
Ferry to Victoria, one night there
Rent a car, drive to Port Refrew, one night there.
Take West Coast Trail Express to Bamfield, one night there.
Six nights / 7 days on West Coast Trail, hiking back to our car.
Return to Victoria for one more night
Back to Seattle where I'll stay two nights, my wife arrives for the second night. My friend is on his way south.
My wife and I rent a car in downtown Seattle and drive to Anacortes for one night.
Ferry to Sidney, spend two nights in Saanicton so we have full day for Butchart gardens, a meal in Sidney, etc.
Drive to Ucluelet for 5 nights, various activities depending on weather and our energy level.
Return to Victoria for three nights.
Back to Seattle for one night via Anacortes.
We fly home on the same flight.

Though complicated the pace is not bad (IMHO) and there are several reasons why I decided to return to Seattle to meet my wife. For me it's a 3 1/2 week trip, two weeks for her.

The big driving days are the 5 hours between Ucleluet and Victoria, but even that should give us some time to stop in Cathedral Grove, Duncan, Merridale Cidery, etc.

Anyway, it's all booked and looking forward to it. Hopefully we'll luck out and see whales from the ferry!

Wishing you the best of weather and have a fabulous trip!

"Return to Victoria for three nights"

Why?

That's 48 hours more than you need in the place.

Well, we are in the AARP set (i.e., having just returned from a James Taylor concert), so based on this trip report we are going to fall in love with it:
http://www.fodors.com/community/canada/victoria-bc-short-trip-short-trip-report.cfm

Can you recommend any good oatmeal bars?

Mid-forties here. We enjoyed 3 days in Victoria and 9 additional days on the island this summer. More to come soon.

My wife and I enjoyed the place quite a lot. Thanks to all who helped with our pre-trip advice.

Butchart Gardens was outstanding, even to a non-gardener like me, and we did spend all day there. A return tip in spring to see the rhododendrons in bloom would be worth it.

The Ucluelet / Tofino area was indeed spectacular. My wife and I enjoyed some nice hikes in the area and were wishing we had even more time there.

Victoria was a pleasant little city. I do understand the "48 hours more..." sentiment. It's not a dynamic New York or London, but it has its charms, and there are good pubs.

The West Coast Trail, which I spent 7 days hiking with a friend before my wife arrived, lived up to billing with regards to both scenery and difficulty. Any resemblance to what we in Colorado call a trail is coincidental. It should be called the West Coast Mud, Sweat and Tears Obstacle Course. Glad to have done it, but that's another story.

Thanks again Fodorites!

Hi Nelson, sounds like you had a very enjoyable time. Would you mind sharing your accommodations in Victoria and Ucluelet/Tofino? I believe you were looking at staying at a B&B near Butchart Gardens but not sure what you ended up doing.

Thanks.

Hi Maudie,

Our accommodations were all quite basic because we just used them for sleeping and showering, not hanging out.

First, for Butchart Gardens we stayed in the Western 66 Motor Inn.
http://www.western66motorinn.com/

A very basic room for $75 + HST. But it had a mini-fridge and coffee pot, which we like to have. Cost and location were the factors. Minutes from Butchart and very close to the SeaCider cidery (where we had a delicious flight of cider and a light lunch), John Dean Provincial Park (where we went for a nice little hike), and Sidney (where we went for dinner one night).


In Ucluelet we stayed at the West Coast Motel
http://www.westcoastmotel.com/

Again a basic room for about $115 night. The room did not have a fridge which we missed, but the owners provided us with a little cooler for our milk. (We like real milk with morning coffee, not the non-dairy creamers that are typical these days; those are a form of systemic poison). The owners at this hotel were really friendly and helpful. If we stayed there again we might upgrade to one of the mini-kitchenette rooms, which had a lot more room. A negative is a bit noisy in the morning from all the fishermen waking up to go out at 5:00 am.


When we returned to Victoria we stayed right behind the Royal BC museum and across the street from Beacon Hill Park at the Helm’s Inn.
http://www.helmsinn.com/

That place was GREAT! Superb location and rooms for a very reasonable price of $115 / night. We’d go back there without hesitation.

Hope that helps.

Hi Nelson,
Thanks for giving that information. I am just starting to get an itinerary sorted for next year and have been keeping an eye on this thread. I looked at a few of the B&B's near Butchart and the prices were pretty overwhelming so the Western Motor Inn looks fine for us, we will only be there one night I think. Good ideas for lunch and dinner too. As long as it's clean, we are fine with basic.

They all look great and the prices are even better.

Thanks again for your honest reply, I really appreciate it.