The Sunshine Coast

The Sunshine Coast

If you're like me and don't think you're ever going to see The Pearly Gates you have to check out The Sunshine Coast of British Columbia because it's the closest you'll ever get to Heaven. Those of you living there should wake up every morning and thank God you're not in Calgary. Or L.A.

The following blog was obviously written for those who have never visited the Sunshine Coast. For those of you living there I'd like to give a Shout Out to Tanya at the Upper Deck hostel in Sechelt. I had so much fun staying there last year. You meet the coolest people in a hostel. Some of the college kids staying at the Upper Deck were almost as cool as me. Tanya is great and I highly recommend her hostel to anyone visiting Sechelt.

The Sunshine Coast is a 45 minute B.C. ferry ride from Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver to Langdale. You won't see a single piece of ugly scenery the entire trip. I first visited Sechelt on the Sunshine Coast while a graduate student at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, which, incidentally, boasts the biggest nude beach in North America. I’ll devote a blog to Wreck Beach another time. Wreck Beach isn’t why I applied to UBC’s Creative Writing program but it didn't hurt.

The family of my girlfriend (M.R. Paine) at the time owned a beach front home on Redrooffs Road between Sechelt and Halfmoon Bay. Dr. Joe Paine, M.R.'s father, died a couple of years ago. Maybe some of you in Sechelt knew him. If you did consider yourself very lucky. That man could tell a story better than a drunken sailor. I couldn't have loved him more if he were my own father. Doc represented the finest qualities of the Canadian spirit.

The locals on the Sunshine Coast find it entertaining to pick out the tourists as they first set foot off the ferry at Langdale. It’s an easy game. The tourists are the only ones staring at the eagles flying overhead. I've been vacationing there for over 20 years and still can't help looking up at those majestic birds. Locals don’t give them a second glance.

While I was attending UBC the Creative Writing Department invited all of their students to submit scripts for a popular TV show on CBC at the time, “The Beachcombers”, which was taped at Molly’s Reach, a restaurant in Gibsons; the first town after leaving the ferry in Langdale. I’m usually in a hurry to Sechelt or rushing back to catch the ferry on time so I have to confess I’ve only visited Gibsons a couple of times but I highly recommend spending more time there. They’ve got a thriving artist community with some of the more fascinating people you’ll meet on the Sunshine Coast. There's always the Yuks Yuks comedy tour returning to Gibsons Cinema in June of 2009, often MC'd by the talented Norm Blair of Sechelt. The Heritage Theatre hosts many activities and performances.

In Roberts Creek you can study improv in the scenic surrounding on Earth. Viviane Houle teaches workshops near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, and is available to lead workshops around the globe. For more information, contact Viviane at info@vivianehoule.ca

Sometimes even Heaven has a few reality checks. Whenever I vacationed up there I always enjoyed tossing back a few pints at The Wakefield, which unfortunately, no longer exists. I met a young man there who asked me if I wanted to meet any local women. My enthusiastic answer probably had something to do with the four pints of ale but I would have been eager even if I was sober.

I drove my van a couple of kilometers south towards Roberts Creek and stopped outside this house sitting atop a hill. The kid suggested I wait in the van until he could talk with the women first. I pulled over to the shoulder and turned my engine off. I waited. And waited. Suddenly the ale was having its effects and I wished I hadn't left the pub. It was probably no longer than 30 minutes but feeling more like hours when I decided to drive back home. My back tire started to spin in the muddy shoulder and it was obvious I was going nowhere soon.

As I stepped out of the van the R.C.M.P.'s cruiser's flashing lights lit up and I knew the jig was up. Startled, I fell against my van. The officer asked me if I had been drinking and I wasn’t about to lie to him. He asked me why I was parked there and so I told him about the kid who was going to introduce me to some local women. He laughed and asked me if I knew what that house on the hill was. He told me it was a Crack House. In Sechelt? It's like finding out there's a brothel at Disneyland.

I try to keep in touch with the few people I still know from Sechelt. I email Laurie McConnell, the webmaster of BigPacific.com. There’s Tanya at the Upper Deck hostel. Norm Blair who invited my improve act up to Sechelt last year. Bree Carlin is the hottest professional diver in the world. I continue to look for creative work up there but being an American without a work visa makes it's doubtful I'm going to be living up there anytime soon. I guess that’s what dreaming is for.

For more comical info on the writer of this blog go to: WorldHumour.bravehost.com

Tom Neuhoff
World Humour
"Funnier Than You"

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