BRENTWOOD BAY, B.C. :: Kristie and I visited Victoria during a sunny Memorial Day weekend. The trip was great, but I wish it was easier to get there. We traveled to Sidney via a Washington State Ferry, which departed Anacortes at 7:45 AM and took three hours to cross the straits. When you add in the driving time from Edmonds to Anacortes and the time spent waiting in line for border screening, it's nearly a six hour ordeal each way. Although it costs a bit more, we realized the short flight via Kenmore Air from Lake Union to Victoria's Inner Harbor is actually a pretty good bargain. We'll definitely be taking that option next time.
After finally arriving in Sidney, we decided to check out the Butterfly Gardens on our way to Butchart Gardens and downtown Victoria. The Victoria Butterfly Gardens are essentially a gift shop and small theater attached to a large greenhouse. Inside, there are hundreds of butterflies, floating about or resting on the impressive collection of tropical plants. There are also a few birds in the garden, along with a koi-filled pond. It all looks very nice, and the climate is kept warm and extremely humid. It had to be at least 85 degrees inside, and several automated spray-misters frequently saturated the air with more water. We had to step outside a few times to cool off and breathe. I was just about drenched in sweat after an hour.
I was having fun with my macro lens, but I still need a lot of practice working the tight depth of field. Some of the more colorful butterflies were just impossible to capture with my camera. We chased Blue Morphos and Swallowtails throughout the garden, but they never seemed to land. Several monstrous Atlas Moths were resting on a tree. They're the world's largest with a 12 inch wingspan! I'm very glad they don't live anywhere around here.
