marnie

Maybe I should start by asking, is it crazy to go to Victoria in February? Will it be too rainy to enjoy walking around? Secondly, I hear so much about Tofino but am concerned about driving there at that time of year. How bad (i.e., icy roads) would the drive be? Thanks for any info you can provide.

Robyn

I've never been to Tofino in February, so unfortunately I don't know from personal experience. <BR> <BR>But generally, Vancouver Island experiences a temperate climate in the winter and rarely experiences snow. The only places where you'll encounter snow on Vancouver Island is in the mountains. <BR> <BR>Now, I know that the drive between Victoria and Tofino takes you through a mountainous area, but I'm not sure if the altitude is high enough to experience real icy roads. Even if it is cold enough on the mountainous regions for ice, generally the roads are well taken care of because there's only one road to get to Tofino. <BR> <BR>As for it being too rainy. You are visiting a rainforest zone in the wet season, but the rain actually adds to the experience. Every time I've been to Tofino, it has rained at least on one day, but the rain wasn't torrential downpour. The skies would be grey, and it would be overcast for the most part, and maybe for a period of 3 hours it would lightly rain... but the clouds acted almost like mist, floating through the trees. It was very magical. It's more of a "pro" than a "con" in my books! <BR> <BR>My favourite experience in the Tofino area was walking along a trail in the rainforest as it was raining. I couldn't even feel the rain as the trees acted as a canopy. The trail was actually a boardwalk, so I didn't have to worry about walking through the mud. You'll probably find that the rain won't bother you as it's a part of the local culture.

April

The roads could be perfectly clear but you'd have to be prepared for snow. It used to be, and maybe still is, that your car had to be equipped for snow (at least carry chains or cables) to travel the Malahat in winter. If there's no snow, there could be some frost on clear, cold days, so I would avoid driving it in the early morning. <BR> <BR>People commute over the Malahat every day and most of the time it's uneventful. But I remember getting half way up once and the flakes were falling so fast and were so huge that I turned around and went back. The road can be closed during heavy snowfalls. Fog can be an issue too. <BR> <BR>I don't know how the rest of the road is as I haven't driven to Tofino in February either. In a nutshell, I'd say it's not that crazy an idea, but I would allow extra time if I had to, say, catch a particular flight out of Victoria. I think it would be fun to be in Tofino in February. <BR> <BR>You should be fine in Victoria. The nice thing is that you will not be battling tourist crowds and in February you may even see a few trees in blossom.

marnie

Stupid question, I'm sure, but I haven't been able to find this info anywhere yet----are there flights into Tofino? (I'm not used to driving in snow as I live in Florida)

Ms. Ghost

Marnie, When we were there at the very end of March, the road over the Pass was closed for awhile the afternoon before we crossed it. That particular day, it was only raining on Salt Spring Island, but it was snowing in that area! By the time we crossed, there was snow along the sides of the road, but everything was clear--pretty scenery, though!! It's an ideal time to be there as it's famous for winter storm viewing! I know that North Vancouver Air flies between Vancouver and Tofino, but I don't know there schedule that time of year. The # is 800-228-6608 so you might want to call.

xxx

Keep in mind that Tofino is famous for being a great place for storm watching. So with that in mind, if there's a storm on the way, your travels will be miserable. And also remember that if a storm rolls in, you might be stuck in Tofino for a few days until it blows over.