Travel kindness at home supports Good Tourism - and makes me happy!
Fishing for Pinks in the Campbell River.
A travel story not far from home.
There is a tributary of the Campbell River on Vancouver Island called the Quinsam. It is small and quiet, with a maze of beautiful riverside paths that wind through the forest leading to a fish hatchery. My husband and I often camp in the Campbell River area and love to explore this beautiful place not too far from where we live. I’m a nemophilist, a term I learned recently that describes someone who loves the forest for its beauty and solitude. Canada (and especially Vancouver Island) attracts fellow nemophilist visitors from around the world.
In August, Campbell River is jam-packed with people fishing for Pink Salmon who are making their final journey up the river to spawn and die. It’s quite a sight and, for fisherpeople, an exciting annual event. To avoid the crowds and enjoy some quiet river time, we decide to walk through the paths along the smaller Quinsam. A few people share the trail, but as the sun goes down most have gone home.
As we get deeper into the woods, we hear the high-pitched piping sound of an eagle and poke our heads out along the riverbank to see an eagle in a tree. He (or she) has spied some fish activity in the river and looks poised to swoop. We are enraptured. I see eagles regularly living on Vancouver Island, but they never cease to take my breath away.
The eagle makes a mighty swoop and changes location upriver.
We follow.
*not the eagle from the story - a gorgeous shot taken by my friend Russ.
Eventually, we find him (or her) again. This time perched with wings partially extended. It looks like a solid black triangle in the low branches of a tree. Our delight catches the attention of a group of walkers passing by. They come closer to see what we are staring at. There are 6 adults and 4 young teens. One of the men has significant camera gear with a powerful zoom lens and I point out the eagle to him. They are delighted.
We wander on.
Not 300 meters down the path, my husband grabs my arm and whispers - a bear! Indeed, it is a mid-sized black bear on the other side of the river completely absorbed in finding a fish. Not at all skittish, the bear seems intent on his potential supper. I leave my husband watching and jog back to the people still admiring the eagle. I detected some accents, made a quick assumption that they were travellers, and wanted to share this true BC moment with them. I’ve seen many bears, but like eagles, each sighting is a wonder. Most of my bear encounters have been fleeting, so watching this bear fishing was going to be thrilling for me, let alone visitors to Canada.
The group followed me quietly up the path.
The bear hadn’t moved. The cameras came out, the wide-eyed teens made videos, and we all inched closer.
*not the bear from the story but a local fellow posing for my good friend Russ.
It soon became apparent that this gaggle of people weren’t, in fact, travelling together. One family of four was from the Netherlands. The Dutch Dad had the camera and was thrilled with the opportunity for wildlife close-ups. The other family of four was from France, and the older couple were locals from Campbell River.
My husband and I hung back a bit.
1. I didn’t have my camera and while I kicked myself for being camera-less, my friend Carrie would remind me to accept it as a divine moment not a Kodak moment!
2. We were thoroughly enjoying being witness to the excitement of the travellers.
The local couple mentioned that they had been out the night before and watched the bear fishing from the middle of the river. Intrigued, we chatted with them until they diverted the conversation from the wonders of nature to complaints about tourists: the roads were busy, the fishing was impacted, “they” were “everywhere.” —- grump grump!
I politely and naively said - “Well, having visitors enjoy Vancouver Island is great for the economy!” Cue a big smile and Tracy-positivity.
—- grump grump!
Alas, I tried but this couple was put out having to share their “backyard” with others.
Are travellers kinder to other travellers?
On reflection, I wonder if this couple weren’t travellers themselves - or at least not to anywhere outside of North America. This might be an unfair assumption but the grumpiness and unfriendliness seemed like they had never experienced being a foreigner. I like to think that most people are kind but am convinced that when we share experiences, our empathy is further expanded. My husband and I are thrilled when we visit a foreign country and a local is friendly or goes out of their way to help us or share their culture.
I also appreciate that a lack of tolerance for tourists and travellers can be justified. Overtourism, careless and privileged attitudes of visitors, and damage to pristine areas are a reality! I’ve groaned watching cruise ships unload and have been horrified as the hoards of people are herded through a village or attraction. It feels far from authentic. Instagram-driven-travelling-influencers also rub me the wrong way. It is sad to see people focused on the camera’s image of themselves with little attention paid to the place, people, and culture.
I agree with many of the suggestions to limit overtourism: manage short-term rental markets; ban cruise ships in ancient cities; visit popular destinations during the off-season; and choose to travel to less visited places more often.
Kindness contributes to Good Tourism
Good Tourism is a term that includes approaches that accentuate the positive side of tourism while trying to mitigate the negative impacts. Tourism is a huge industry and like many large systems, change seems difficult. Efforts for travel to be more inclusive, responsible, sustainable, ethical, and community-based can make a difference. But as a travel writer, travel coach, and traveller, I wonder how little ole me can contribute to improving tourism. I’m still learning, and appreciate reading perspectives on responsibly promoting travel from writers like The “Good Tourism” blog and Rooted Storytelling.
My experience in Campbell River made me think that I can do my part to foster ideas behind good tourism, treat travellers I meet with kindness, and try my best to "be" a good traveller elsewhere!
I’m not so naive as to think that we should all be gushing, helpful, and going out of our way for every visitor… but tolerance, at a minimum, is a kind approach. In my travels to other countries, I have experienced the gamut of interactions with locals. I have felt tolerated, ignored, targeted, ridiculed, welcomed, and embraced. The latter two have been my favourites! I felt good to be welcomed. Similarly, it boosted my well-being to show these families the eagle and the bear.
We stumbled on the family from France one more time as we returned to the parking area where their campervan had a dead battery. As we dug out our jumper cables and helped get them going, we learned that they were headed through our hometown to visit the west coast of the island. It felt great (again) to give them some guidance about the forest fire-affected highway.
Meeting these visitors added a story to my day… and I have no doubt that they will share a similar story of the eagle, the bear, the engine troubles and even the friendly locals!
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