The ‘Jade Magic’ Drink Recipe by Jonathan Paul- the ‘Robert Downy Jr.” lookalike.

1/4 oz Chambord
1/4 oz Creme de Menthe
1/4 oz Godiva Dark
1/4 oz Creme de Cacao
1 1/2 oz Milk or Soy Milk

Shaken vigorously together in a martini shaker
Poured in a glass including the ice remaining and finishing with the froth in the shaker.

Tastes just like a peppermint patty.
Sleep well tonight.

It was only five days ago that the core staff were spending a beautiful sunny day outside.  Some of us were out on a long horseback ride while the rest sat around an outdoor fire pit and roasted wieners for lunch.  We all congregated at the end of the day around the fire for a little staff meeting… some people go to the office, not us.

This morning I woke up and was surprised to see about four inches of snow on the ground.  It is definitely not a normal sight, on the west coast, for this time of year; consider that Tofino has the  mildest winters in Canada.  However, the kids were ecstatic… snowball fights and tobogganing is the chore of the day.

What else is going on at Clayoquot Wilderness Resort?  It’s that time of year when the seasonal staff starts joining our team.  This year Owen Davies is back in the mix, he worked with us 10 years ago.  Chuck and Owen have been in the paint booth getting all the boats in tip top shape while Courtney has been back and forth to Quait Bay working on the Barge.  Chad and Dickson have been cleaning up all the old trails as well as cutting a lot of beautiful new trails.  Digger Dave, our excavator operator, is busy digging, of course.  Adele is training me in the office which is a totally new CWR experience for me.  Finally, John is all over the place… travelling for business, in the office and overseeing the entire operation.

The scientists for the Wild Fish Conservancy are back at Quait Bay for their second year of a 5 year Sea Lice Project.  Once they get settled in, I will be sure to update you on their research.

There are a few new changes at Clayoquot Wilderness Resort this year.  First, I am no longer a wrangler.  Yup, that’s right I’m trading in the cowboy hat for a computer; I am now in the Office alongside Adele, training to take her position, so she can get out and do the things she has been working towards all these years.  I know what you are all thinking… what about the horses?  But I can assure you, that you will still see me saddling up and galloping around the claim.  I traded in my hat, not my horse.  One good thing about this new position is that I will be able to really focus on other things such as the blog.  I have been thinking of new topics and albums but most exciting is the decision to put a weekly video clip which will be referred to as a vlog.  You can expect to see the vlogs in April.

Moreover, we are proud to announce that we have been given the award for Most Excellent Lodge for the United States and Canada from Conde Naste Johansens 2010 Awards for Excellence.  Conde Naste Johansens is one of the most comprehensive hotel guides which invite only the best to feature on their site.  You can check us out, along with other hotels around the world, on their website.

It is a busy time of year so keep checking in with us to get updated on everything.

Go Canada Go!

The band ‘Kings Without’ came for a visit to the Outpost this week. Just like old friends- Todd, Neil and Dean played their hearts out. Take a look at the photos from this trip in the Kings Without Photo Album.

Kings Without also had a great review in the Naniamo News Bulletin here. It won’t be long before they hit the big time.

And if you didn’t get a chance to hear Tiki Todd and the boys perform at one of their many venues (including the resort), have a listen to them by downloading the MP3 of ‘Slow Down’, which Neil Atkinson believes is “the most appropriate song because it deals with slowing down ‘their’ lives to appreciate and preserve the beauty that surrounds ‘them’. That sounds like the song for us!

CWR had a blast at this year’s food and wine festival held in our small neighboring town located 20 miles south of us by boat. It was a trip we had to take. We couldn’t miss out. Tim May brought pulled out all the stops with a stewed apricot-chicken liver terrine with chicken leg confit on a toasted caramelized red onion & arugula cracker. And if that wasn’t enough, he topped it off with a port fig compote.

So many bites of food, and so much BC Wine flowing at the event, it was enough to make your head spin.
The festival helps to promote BC Culinary Tourism and Sustainable Food Sources while enjoying the company of friends and family of the local culinary community.The event generated much needed funds for the Community Children’s Centre playground improvements.

The festival also promotes “education and professionalism in the hospitality industry, promoting culinary and sommelier programs as well as Slow Food, a non-profit, eco-gastronomic member-supported organization dedicated to recognizing the importance of pleasure connected to food in conjunction with agricultural biodiversity”

This week we had guide training with Rob Burns of’Bold Point Centre- Sustainability Tourism Training’ and water rescue training with Jim Dehart of Destiny River Adventures.

The 3 day course by Rob Burns is something he has been developing for some time now and finally the industry has found a need for it. Sustainability training for guides. His hands on 3 day workshop teaches interpretation, natural history, regional cultural history, and the importance of guides to promote sustainable tourism. Rob states “this program delivery process has developed since the 1950’s mostly in National / Provincial Parks. Since about 2001, with the rise of Ecotourism, private tour companies have identified Interpretation Planning and program delivery as critical to their continued existence.”, and we believe him. I don’t believe I’ve met someone more enthusiastic about sustainability. If you would like to know more about Rob’s Bold Point Program he can be contacted at bpc@connected.bc.ca

Following the intensive sustainability training (some days starting at 8:00 and not finishing until 9:30 at night), our guides had a taste of extreme river safety training with Jim Dehart. It was quite a change from the classroom setting for all of our guides to be in the river all day long. For an all day river trip forget wetsuits, this was drysuit time. And talk about worst fears, imagine being held underwater by your instructor! Its a good thing we all know and like Jim. The purpose of the training was to teach our guides enhanced water safety in the worst possible conditions. Now that is a wilderness classroom experience.

Dominique, our Spa Manager, and Noelle, our Massage Therapist, decided to take a day to explore the Wildside hike on Flores Island today with Dickson, one of our resident guides/jack of all trades. It was a cloudy day, but the they were able to see sea lions, grey whales, eagles, and bears flipping over rocks looking for crabs. Read about the Wildside in the Tofino Times here and take a look at Dominique’s photos in the Wildside May 28th Photo Album.

34lbs and a fighter. Not to mention the three teenagers (13, 16, and 18). Thats a good trip!

Sea Lice is a major problem for our little salmon and is causing a drastic reduction in salmon stocks in Clayoquot Sound. You can see the damage already caused in the Broughton Archipelago. Just look at what the effects were in Oregon and California- fishing is closed!

How is this happening? Why are sea lice such a problem? These are common questions that are continually asked. Check out this video which discusses Salmon Farming and the sea lice problem. There is an excellent article in the new ‘Be WIld in BC’ magazine produced by the BC Wilderness Tourism Association here.

The effect of sea lice on our wild salmon is staggering. And in turn, if we don’t do something about it now, there may not be wild salmon left for our children.