Will paddle for truffles - a delicious soft adventure for the hedonistic camper

By CINDA CHAVICH

(VALDEZ ISLAND, B.C.) – Planning a great summer vacation often leads to a couple of mutually exclusive options.

Either you choose to get away from it all in the great outdoors, rising with the sun and the haunting call of the loon for a bowl of granola. Or you opt for the more urbane escape, a voyage aimed at discovering unique wines and gourmet dishes prepared by the hottest new chefs.

All this while moored with my kayak and a handful of like-minded adventurers, on a remote white shell beach on Valdez, one of the lesser-traveled Gulf Islands. There are no roads, no services, no cell phones here – but during our three days camping in the coastal wilderness we are never without artisan bread and cheese, fine wine or truffles.

We set out with Bray and his “awe-SOME” sidekick, French Canadian guide Alex Blais-Montpetit, for three days afloat in the warm, flat waters off the east coast of Vancouver Island. From the moment we pushed off from the shore near Nanaimo, this pair kept us amused, educated, safe and sated with some of the best food we had during our Vancouver Island vacation, with little more than a make-shift driftwood table and a couple of Coleman stoves.

They also patched up an accident-prone paddler, offered to get up at dawn to explore the glassy early morning waters before breakfast and lead yoga stretches on the beach. From their floating “cellar” came unique and rare B.C. wines – from Winchester’s Sharp Rock Chardonnay to Joie’s 2004 Noble Blend. It was like resort living in our own private paradise.

Bray, a saucy and energetic cook with a history of working in some of Victoria’s top eateries  (Canoe and Brasserie L’Ecole, to name two) came to kitchens and kayaking simultaneously, working the stoves while feeding his adventurous spirit.

“All killer, no filler – all gourmet, all the time,” quips the erudite entrepreneur while plating a dozen beautiful meals of pan-seared halibut, as expertly as any chef on a big city restaurant line, and pouring a bright, island-made Alderlea pinot noir to match. “My big passion is food and wine – on Vancouver Island, I think I’m the only kayaking chef.”

“This is comfort class soft adventure.”

The exposed earth beyond the tidal zone reveals shallow layers of broken clam shells, obviously a place where generations of First Nations families have also stopped to feast. It’s still a popular camping spot for boaters – part of the B.C. Marine Trail Association – but it’s quiet, too, with waves lapping the low banks and spectacular sunsets.

In mid-summer, the weather is picture perfect and the sheltered coves we explore by day are nearly deserted, home only to occasional cottagers and cormorants, endangered Gary oaks and twisted orange arbutus, bright sentinels against blue water and sky.  Eagles nest on the tops of the tallest trees and flocks of huge vultures soar overhead, while we paddle through shallow, electric green water, along rock walls that have been buffeted by water and wind into organic sculptures, eroded into honeycombs and spires reminiscent of ancient bones.

In the sea, seals sometime bob into view but it is bigger craft – like sailing boats or tugs hauling loads of containers and semi-trailers – which require more attention when you’re riding low along the waves in a kayak. Our guides are particularly vigilant, insuring this mostly novice group sticks together while crossing busy traffic channels and stays well hydrated. There are plenty of water breaks, and almost as many to refuel.

“I have all of my suppliers, FAS fish, Cowichan Bay Farms, Ragley Farms in East Sooke, local wineries like Blue Grouse and Alderlea,” says Bray, rattling off a list of the kind of local purveyors who supply Victoria’s top restaurants. “I drive all around the island to get ingredients because I want this to be a sustainable business, in social and economic terms, too. I want to support all of the places I love.”

Sipping Cherry Point Blackberry Port as the moon rises over glittering, phosphorescent waves, it’s hard not to be similarly smitten.

GOING COASTAL:

Victoria-based Blue Planet Kayak Adventures (www.blueplanetkayaking.com) hosts several gourmet kayak trips from June through September, and has several other itineraries, including Orca-watching kayak tours through Johnstone Strait and more challenging kayak adventures in the big surf around Tofino, all featuring chef James Bray’s regional Vancouver Island cuisine. The three-day Gourmet Kayaking Weekend costs $699 pp, including guides, kayaks, tents, food/wine and transport from Victoria to the launch point near Nanaimo.

The Blue Planet Gourmet Kayak Trips are just one of the culinary adventures marketed through Edible B.C. (www.edible-britishcolumbia.com, 1-888-812-9660) a Vancouver-based “culinary conscierge” business, designed to help locals and visitors book tables at the best local restaurants, plan personalized culinary tours and find the city’s hidden food gems. Owner Eric Pateman – a lapsed chef with an MBA – is always cooking up new ways to promote B.C’s food scene, with culinary walking tours in Vancouver’s Chinatown and Granville Island Market, and his new Edible B.C. retail store in the market, offering a variety of local gourmet food products.

West Jet flies directly from Calgary to Comox, so you can start your coastal adventure with a stay at a comfortable bed and breakfast, like the four-star Mission Ridge B&B (250-334-9411), expertly run by former Albertans Bill Bate and Hallmuth Novoa, who are seriously good cooks and in the know about local food. Dine at Martine’s Bistro for  seafood near the Comox marina, or for fresh fusion food, hit Atlas Café (250-338-9838) in downtown Courtney.

Explore local ingredients at the Comox Valley Farmers’ Market (www.comoxvalleyfarmersmarket.com), then head south along the Oceanside Route (Highway 19A) to famed Fanny Bay for your fill of freshly harvested oysters. Walk the miles of sand at Qualicum Beach, and stop for a casual lunch at Shoot the Breeze.

Then pick up picnic food at the well-stocked Qualicum Foods supermarket (the great cheese counter has local gems like Natural Pastures’ Comox Camembert and Little Qualicum Cheeseworks’ fresh cheese curds, Island Brie and nutty Rathtrevor) or head to Nanoose Edibles Organic Farm (Nanoose Bay, 250-468-2332) to see what’s fresh and in season.

Plan a post-kayak-trip stay at the incredible Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Spa Resort near Parksville – just the place to pamper those hard-working paddling muscles and relax in your own private spa bungalow tucked into the tall trees. Don’t miss the creative and delicious spa food featured at their Treetop Tapas & Grill – ice vodka scallop ceviche, pistachio-crusted sable fish or juniper-scented pears with red wine sorbet will help to keep your gourmet holiday on a tasty track. (www.tigh-na-mara.com)

For more information, visit the Tourism B.C. (www.tourismbc.com), Tourism Vancouver Island (www.SeeTheIslands.com) or Oceanside Tourism (www.oceansidetourism.com) websites.

(this story first appeared in Avenue Magazine, spring 2007)

©Cinda Chavich

www.tastereport.com