Archive for June, 2009

Foggy Start with a Sunny Ending

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009


It was a foggy start to the day today for our hot springs guests. West Coast Aquatic Safaris guests were at our office early for the 7am departure to the hot springs. WASCO’s heated indoor cabin was perfect for the foggy departure and kept our guests toasty warm as they enjoyed a drive up to Hot Springs Cove. The early departure time is great for getting to hot springs before all of the crowds. Especially during peak season times (which is right now!) the springs can get a bit crowded.

Rain and Orcas

Saturday, June 27th, 2009


As forecasted today is a rainy day! West Coast Aquatic Safaris guests really appreciate the Helly Hansen waterproof jackets and heated indoor cabin on days like today. This rain is expected to only last today and we are back to sunshine tomorrow! Oscar, Ellie’s golden retriever has been exceptionally lazy on this rainy day and has made very little effort to move or greet most people. Sometimes the rain has that effect!

The summer sun keeps on coming!

Friday, June 26th, 2009



Everyone here at West Coast Aquatic Safaris is loving the summer sun that Tofino has been having. So far it has been a stellar summer weather wise! Tofino is known for the large amounts of rain that it gets. But for the last month it has been nothing but clear skies and sunshine! After a couple rainy days this week the forecast for next week is sun, sun sun!

New Photo of the Week!

Thursday, June 25th, 2009



West Coast Aquatic Safaris has a new winner! Daniel Sigg from Switzerland sent us some amazing photos from the bear watch that he was on. We had a hard time picking which one to put as the winner and I’m sure you can see why! WASCO gives bear watchers a great opportunity to get up close with black bears in the inlets. Our walk around deck allows our guests to get as close as 10 to 15 feet! The bears don’t mind us stopping by and often just continue looking for crabs under the rocks.

Keeping DRY on with WCAS in the Rain!!

Wednesday, June 24th, 2009


Well it was long overdue but Tofino finally had a day of lots of rain! It has been coming down steadily since early this morning. West Coast Aquatic Safaris guests were loving our indoor cabin on WASCO today! Our 7:00 am and 9:30 am bear watches appreciated our indoor heated cabin on WASCO. With the heating system we had installed this season our windows stay fog free and passengers are toasty warm!

Canada Day!

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009


Canada Day is fast approaching! Here in Tofino there will be some great events that Parks and Recreation will be hosting. There is the annual Tuff City skateboarding competition, a bbq, family games and a salmon bbq dinner. West Coast Aquatic Safaris is happy to be donating again to the silent auction. We will be donating four passes for a bear or whale watch. There will be tons to do and it will be a fun day for the entire family! Be sure to book accommodations early!

The Difference a Day Makes

Saturday, June 20th, 2009



A common question that staff get here at West Coast Aquatic Safaris is what the weather forecast is! Of course people want to plan ahead and pick the best day for whale watching/bear watching. If there is one thing that we always emphasize here at the office is that the weather forecast can change every two hours here! The forecast for today was gray and rainy. But to our pleasant surprise the sun came out! And of course it can also work in reverse and start sunny but change to rain. So when booking for a whale or bear watch one thing to consider is that the weather forecast may not be accurate. This is why WASCO is a good option. We have the seating outside for those days when you want the sun and wind in your hair. And on those rainy days our Helly Hansen jackets work well if you would prefer be outside too. Our heated indoor cabin gives our customers a place to warm up and still have a great viewing experience. The best of both worlds for the every changing weather in Tofino!

It Really is a Dog’s Life

Friday, June 19th, 2009




Here at West Coast Aquatic Safaris we are a dog friendly environment and staff bring their furry friends to keep them company at work. Customers love the greetings as Juliet is always eager to give kisses and expects that everyone coming in wants to say hello. Henry treats everyone as his long lost best friend and will regularly go into full body wiggles when greeting people coming in to the shop. Oscar, who is visiting for a couple of weeks, is a little more laid back but is always sure to pick up a toy and bring everyone a gift. It’s a retriever thing.

New Maui Jims!

Thursday, June 18th, 2009


At West Coast Aquatic Safaris we are happy to announce we have new stock of Maui Jim! We received some of the newest styles and some old favorites as well. Maui Jim are polarized sunglasses and offer different lens tints to suit your needs and style. These polarized glasses take away the glare which gives you better depth perception and heightens the colour around you! Come by our office and try some on. You will be amazed at the difference! Keith is pictured here getting ready to drive WASCO wearing his pair of Maui Jim.

We have added some more photos to our gallery. Be sure to go and check them out. We have received some great photos from our customers and staff and want to share them with you. Thank you to Paul and Victor who just sent us the great photo of Keith and some really cute photos of Henry and Juliet!

Pod of 4 Orcas

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009



The orcas have been making some fairly regular appearances around Tofino lately. West Coast Aquatic Safaris guests were very please to see a pod of four orcas yesterday passing through. With orcas being transient in this area seeing these animals every week has been really great. The seating up top on WASCO and the walk around deck provide our guests with some great ways to view these orcas as they pass through.