Ukee Days 2010 Volunteers

Ukee Days 2008 Recap

A weekend of fun for the whole family! The 2008 festivities of Ukee Days kicked off off with a scrumptious Salmon BBQ. The next morning began with a pancake breakfast and parade which was fantastic for the whole family to enjoy.

In total, there were two event-filled days of Logger Sports, kids games, face painting, live entertainment, great selections of food and crafts, contests, prizes and much more!

– Abby Fortune for HarbourLiving.ca

Ukee Days 2011

This year, get ready for a Ukee Days flashback as we resurrect the mighty Whisky Dock Run and Longboard Competition during the Friday Night Street Dance.  All events, both NEW and VINTAGE will dazzle n’ delight!

See you at the fair grounds…..

More about Ukee Days

For all the latest information on the Ukee Days festival or to get in touch with the Ukee Days organizers please follow the links below.

Follow Ukee Days on Twitter
Friend Ukee Days on Facbeook
Read The Ukee Days Blog

For Solo Marathon Runners

The road between Tofino and Ucluelet is absolutely perfect for a marathon. With rolling hills and fresh ocean air, the scenery is spectacular as you wind your way down Vancouver Island’s Western coastline.

We suggest you read Rumon Carter’s full race course report before registering. The course is tough but beautiful. A truly rewarding experience for anyone hoping to test themselves against it.

The Edge to Edge Marathon Course

For Solo Half-Marathon Runners

This course will wind its way through the seaside village of Ucluelet with a portion of the course running on the spectacular Wild Pacific Trail! The trail is hard-packed and nicely graded with the most amazing views of the Pacific Ocean– absolutely breathtaking!

For Teams

This Ekiden style relay is our most popular category. As a team of five, each person runs between 7-10km. It’s a great way to spend a weekend with your running friends! Make a weekend out of it….rent a condo or camp, and enjoy a wonderful weekend with your team. The setting is nothing short of exceptional offering amazing views and adventures… relax and rest up for the run while enjoying the spectacular setting in good company!

For more Information on the Edge to Edge

Whether you’re looking to compete, volunteer or simply watch all the action take place this Summer, the Edge to Edge official website has all the information you’ll need. If you’re registering, get in quick because places tend to fill up quickly as the event draws nearer. Good Luck!

We HEART Whale! project on MacKenzie Beach. Photo by Jeremy Koreski (jeremykoreski.com) and Spectral Q

What they’re saying about the 2011 Whale Festival

Keeping in mind that it’s not everyone’s cup of tea to take up a sea-faring adventure and be confronted with the enormity and charm of a grey whale, the Whale Festival offers up a varied platter of over seventy-five events – many free of charge – that aim to educate, inspire, and raise the spirits of the young & young-at-heart. Expect live music, culinary competitions, children’s fun-fairs, art and hands-on education. – pacificrimwhalefestival.com

What’s on at this year’s festival?

This year will see the return of the Chowder Chowdown as well as the first Martini Migration.

For a complete calendar of all the events at this year’s festival, visit: pacificrimwhalefestival.com/events

Stay up to date on the festival.

The Pacific Rim Whale Festival has a social media presence this year! To stay up to date on any changes in scheduling or activities, feel free to use the links below to follow the

Follow PRWF on Twitter
Friend PRWF on Facebook

More about the Whale Festival

It’s an all-out celebration of our coastal lives! It’s about grey whale and marine life education, inspirational talks and interpretive walks, children’s fun for the small and culinary events for the tall, First Nations cultural workshops and more – come and experience a coastal tradition!

While you’re here, walk a few miles of sandy beach, explore the nooks and crannies of the intertidal zone, and lose yourself in the lushness of one of the worlds most significant regions of coastal temperate rainforest.

GeoCaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online.

GeoCaching on Vancouver Island

Geocaching is enjoyed by people from all age groups, with a strong sense of community and support for the environment. Waymarking.com will provide you with the tools to share and discover unique and interesting locations on the planet. Visit Tourism Ucluelet on Geocaching.com and download the coordinates of “Wild Pacific Break” to your GPS. You can also download the co-ordinates to some Ucluelet Points of Interest by visiting Ucluelet Tourism at Waymarking.com.

Easy Steps to GeoCache Exploration!

• Register for a free Basic Membership at geocaching.com
• Click “Hide & Seek a Cache.”
• Enter your postal code and click “search.”
• Choose any geocache from the list and click on its name.
• Enter the coordinates of the geocache into your GPS Device.
• Use your GPS device to assist you in finding the hidden geocache.
• Sign the logbook and return the geocache to its original location.
• Share your geocaching stories and photos online.

More on GeoCaching?

For more about GeoCaching and exploring the world around you through the community, visit the official GeoCaching blog @ blog.geocaching.com.

About the Course

The course offers full services and facilities, including an 18-Hole Mini Golf Course, and is host to a variety of local events in these flourishing communities on the wild and rugged coast of the Canadian wilderness.

The 9 hole championship course is also known to be one of the most challenging courses on Vancouver Island. Surrounded by the ancient rainforest of Clayoquot Sound to the north and the breathtaking beauty of Barkley Sound in the south, Long Beach Golf Course invites you to take a break from whale watching and beach combing, and experience this course in its unsurpassed location.

Contact Long Beach Golf Course

Long Beach Golf Course
1850 Pacific Rim Hwy
Tofino/Ucluelet
Tel: (250) 725-3332
Email: golf@island.net

Long Beach is just one of the many rugged and spectacular beaches found within Pacific Rim National Park. Pacific Rim National Park offers both outdoor and indoor educational programs, an interpretive centre at Wickaninnish Beach, and excellent hiking through rainforests and along along its many scenic beaches. You could spend days in just the Long Beach portion of the park, exploring tide pools and watching the surf, then take a voyage into the famous Broken Group Islands Unit to visit an archipelago of islands that will leave a life long impression in your memory.

Wildlife also abounds around Ucluelet and on Long Beach itself. From crabs to whales and from bears to eagles and sea lions, you could enjoy meeting many majestic west coast creatures.

You could easily spend days exploring Pacific Rim National Park’s many beaches and trails. If you’re planning a day trip into Tofino, consider renting a bike and riding along the scenic Pacific Rim Highway. You can get off the highway and onto a bike path at various points between Ucluelet and Tofino. It is also possible to use bikes on beaches, but trails are reserved for foot traffic only.

The Ucluelet area offers some of the most spectacular opportunities to view wildlife found anywhere in the world. Often overlooked in the area, Bear Watching can offer an exciting wildlife viewing experience. These majestic wild animals can be observed from the safety of a wilderness tour or cruise, but be prepared to be blown-away, as the local Black Bears can grow to be absolutely huge!

Bear Watching in Ucluelet

Adult male Black Bears can weigh up to 600 pounds and stand nearly six feet tall when on their hind legs. While most bears in the area are predominantly black they can also be brown, cinnamon or even blond. It’s rare to see one that’s lightly coloured but they are around so keep your eyes open and you might just spot one!

Abundant to the West Coast of Vancouver Island, the Black Bear makes its presence known at low tide. They travel down to the shores in search of their favorite delicacy, the Rock Crab. These moments offer a great opportunity to view the Black Bear in their natural habitat from the comfort of a marine wildlife viewing tour.

Bird Watching in Ucluelet

Bird lovers will be happy to know the forests surrounding Ucluelet are home to many species of birds, such as Winter Wrens and Varied Thrushes. A seabird, the Marbled Murrelet, even makes its nest in the forest canopy.

Deer, black bear, cougar, otters, minks, squirrels, bald eagles and more than 200 species of shore birds also inhabit the rugged area around Ucluelet.

Other Ucluelet Wildlife

Many of Vancouver Island’s wildlife populations have evolved a little differently than their mainland counterparts. One example is the rare Vancouver Island Marmot, and another is a small red subspecies of cougars. These cougars often feed on the populous small black-tailed deer. Minks are common in the area and feed on aquatic animals, amphibians, birds and small mammals.

During the grey whale migration in early spring, a popular Ucluelet attraction is the Pacific Rim Whale Festival and the start of BC whale watching season.

The new Ucluelet Aquarium, located in the harbour, is worth a visit for an up-close encounter with the diverse local marine life. The aquarium offers a hands-on learning environment for children of all ages. Displayed specimens are gathered from the local waters on the aquarium’s doorstep, then regularly released back into the wild and replaced with new creatures.

22,000 grey whales migrate past Reef Point Cottages on their way to Alaska every March and April. Take a run out in one of the many charter boats and be prepared to be awe struck or watch for spouts from shore.

There is nothing quite like watching a 20 ton mammal, 50 feet long lift itself completely out of the water. You won’t see that every day, but it is special when it does happen. Keep your eyes open as well for humpbacks, orcas, porpoises, seals, sea lions, sea otters and more.

It’s whale watching season; Observe the annual migration of the Grey and Humpback whales, up close.

Our tours depart Ucluelet Harbour, to explore several Vancouver Island archipelagos, including the world-renown Broken Group Islands, in Barkley Sound. Our boat is one of only a few licensed to provide tours through the Broken Group Islands.

Ph: 1-866-726-7727
westcoastwhales.com

If you’re not the water-bound adventurer, Ucluelet has plenty of land activities to keep you busy while you’re staying at Reef Point Cottages.

The Wild Pacific Trail is an easy hike for most people with many small loops so that the hiker can tailor their hike to their own time and fitness level. Or, head down to the Pacific Rim National Park to explore beaches, bogs and rainforests on one of the many trails the Park has to offer.

Wild Pacific Trail

If you have never seen a wild, west coast storm, words cannot do it justice. The wind howls, the waves crash and the rain is horizontal – Mother Nature unleashing some of her power.

On a calm day, the angled growth of the trees and vegetation is testament to the fury of the wind on stormy days. The winter months are when these storms are most consistent, although a big one can hit at any time of the year.