Our hiking/backpacking/surfing trip to Tofino had got a little bit out of hand. The Boyfriend’s sedentary sister had decided to tag along for the holiday weekend, which meant duvets, cool boxes and absolutely no walking, anywhere, at any time.

I wondered what we would do with ourselves in this adventure sports mecca, without the adventure sports. As it turned out, the dramatic and lovely Pacific Rim National Park region has plenty to offer the unadventurous traveller.

The sunset ferry ride through the Gulf Islands from Vancouver was spectacular. We spotted humpback whales and bow-riding porpoises, then camped for the night at a luxurious site outside Nanaimo. The next day, we set off across Vancouver Island for the lovely drive via Port Alberni to Pacific Rim.

Stopping at Little Qualicum Falls (just metres from the car, no problem!) and other pretty spots along the way, we got a sense of the relatively untamed nature of the Island. It’s like a microcosm of BC, all crammed into an accessible space, with branches of Tim Hortons en route. This, I thought, might work out pretty well! A picnic lunch on the beach at hot and sunny Sproat Lake suited everyone.

We arrived at the park to look for a campsite for the night but, being the holiday weekend, every pitch from Ucluelet to Tofino had been booked up weeks ago. Gleefully, the Boyfriend and I scouted for backcountry spots, and eventually found one on the kind advice of a park policeman. He suggested with a wink some locations he wouldn’t be patrolling for a couple of nights, and we found ourselves bouncing the old Ford Explorer down 10 miles of forestry road to Kennedy Lake.

Now, don’t tell anyone, but Kennedy Lake seems to be the locals’ well-kept secret. Long sandy beaches, bordered by rainforest for firewood and a shallow, sandy-bottomed lake for swimming, make a perfect summer hangout for large groups of college kids with ATVs and kayaks. There’s plenty of space for everyone though, and we easily made a cosy camp to suit even the fussiest duvet-and-coolbox camper.

The rest of our long weekend was spent chilling on sunny Long Beach, browsing the funky surf shops in Ucluelet, and even more chilling on Tofino’s pub patios.

The Boyfriend and I are going back next week with our kayak and our lightweight gear, and we’ve booked a morning’s sport fishing, for which the region is world-renowned.

But don’t underestimate the simple pleasure of a long sand beach, a cold Kokanee and a spot of sunbathing.