Come join us as we visit Sointula, a former predominantly Finnish town and utopia on Malcolm Island, BC. The crossing from Port McNeill to Sointula was just 25 minutes, so an even shorter journey than the previous day’s trip to Alert Bay. You’ll want to check the BC Ferries schedule since sailings aren’t very frequent.
We kicked things off by stopping at Bere Point is because we had been told by fellow hikers that you can sometimes see orcas rubbing on the pebbly beach, so we sat on a log and waited with umbrellas in hand, but the orcas eluded us!
Our next stop on Malcolm Island was Pulteney Point Lighthouse over on the west end of the island. Built in 1943, this is both a lighthouse and a fog-alarm building that provides navigational aid to boats travelling between the Queen Charlotte Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound. The lighthouse isn’t open to visitors, however, we still enjoyed the beach walk to get there, so we’d recommend it for anyone looking for a short hike.
But now, let’s go back to the reason why we came all the way to Sointula: to learn about it’s Finnish past! The most logical place to start? the Sointula Museum.
Sointula’s history started when a group of Finnish settlers rowed up from Nanaimo, looking to escape the brutal working conditions in the coal mines and create a self-sustaining place of their own.
That’s how in 1901, the new utopia of Sointula, meaning place of harmony, was established on the island. Their guiding principles included ideas like communal ownership, decision making by consensus, equal pay for women, and a separate children’s home.
The commune began to grow and for a short time it appeared to have a bright future, but then, a series of unfortunate events brought things to a halt. After our museum visit, Sam couldn’t resist going into the co-op to see if they have some Finnish products in stock, namely his favourite salmiakki.
It was then time to get on the ferry and head back to Port McNeill. This was our last day on the north end of the island, but don’t worry we still have a few more Vancouver Island videos in store for you.
A special thank you to Trover for making this trip possible: https://www.trover.com/
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GEAR WE USE
Panasonic GH5: http://amzn.to/2yqTUyi
Canon G7X ii: http://amzn.to/2yqtM6B
Rode Video Micro: http://amzn.to/2wTguTM
Joby Gorilla Pod: http://amzn.to/1PgoY5F
SanDisk 16GB Extreme Pro: http://amzn.to/25KEErs
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SOCIAL MEDIA & TRAVEL BLOGS
AUDREY:
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SOINTULA: Visiting a FINNISH TOWN 🇫🇮 + Former Utopia on Malcolm Island, BC
Come join us for an epic road trip to Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada where we partner with Trover to cover the island from the south all the way up to the north.
Our trip to Vancouver Island starts off with a flight from Toronto to Vancouver, followed by the shortest flight of our lives from Vancouver to Victoria. From Victoria, we head to our base of Mount Washington in the central part of the island, where highlights include spotting black bears, hiking in Mount Washington and visiting vineyards in Comox.
Our journey then continues to Gold River, Sam’s hometown, where we board the Uchuck III en route to Friendly Cove. We also go to nearby Campbell River where we walk along a beautiful fishing dock, tour a hatchery and come across a black bear, and hike in Elk Falls which was our favourite hike on this entire journey.
Heading to northern Vancouver Island, we base ourselves in Port Alice and visit the nearby towns of Port McNeill, Port Hardy and Telegraph Cove. For separate day trips, we take the ferry to Malcolm Island where we visit the former Finnish Community of Sointula and take another ferry to Alert Bay where we have the opportunity to appreciate First Nations totem poles, artwork and museums.
Our Vancouver Island road trip concludes with visits to Parksville, Nanaimo and Victoria. Overall, it was one of the best road trips we’ve ever done focusing mostly on nature, outdoor adventure, wildlife spotting and visiting off-the-beaten-path villages and communities that have a lot to offer but aren’t that well known.
If you are thinking of doing a Canada road trip, Vancouver Island should be at the top of your list. For more information and tips on all the places we visited on Vancouver Island, you can check out this Trover list: https://www.trover.com/l/6aKkU
Music We Use: http://bit.ly/SamAudreyMusic
37 Comments
I know it looks funny to finish that whole box at once, but seriously Sam.. that box looks like 250 grams of product inside! which is like 4 times the dose of ammonium chloride considered to be dangerous for your heart!
Take care of yourselves guys, you are not in your late teens anymore 🙂
What Daniel says at the 12:30 mark is totally right. I've seen those machines in action, at my grandparents' finca, and they were still in use well into the 80s. People used to call it “Flit” and it's not a mispronunciation as one could expect. Years later I discovered that it's a brand and the name is in fact spelled that way but everyone employed the name as a generic term to refer to both, the machine and the bug-killing liquid! Funny sidenote, here in Argentina there's also an old fashioned saying for when a woman rejects a man: “Le hecho flit” (She ‘flit’ him. As in, she stopped his advances with a swift cloud of bug-killing spray). 😂
As per usual, another great video guys!!!
Need a video on the dogs, cats n animals of your world travels.
Wat a beautiful place!
Audrey I love your dads commentary! What a dad! Okay we live in Seattle hut I am dying to go there now, never been to Vancouver island, only Vancouver, Whistler and Victoria. Time for some travels.
NAture is really unreal, I really love it 😊😊
Great information .. Thanks
Hi guys,
I absolutely enjoy your outdoor activities.
Thanks for sharing this great video.
Canadian landskape,
Italian food,
Argentinian wine…
Beautiful people…
A perfect combination…
Thank you!!!❤🌷
Best place to grow up. Thank you for such a great video, although it made me very homesick
Hey guys please make the full travel guide video on Vancouver city and Victoria city as you did for London and some other awesome cities, this video is also amazing as rest are !!
One small correction on the Island names. Alert bay is the name of the Village and it is on Cormorant Island…Thanks for the great memories as I lived on Malcolm Island for several years and also Port Mcneill as well!
Too bad, I couldn't be there to enjoy Sam's Finnish treats on the way back 🙂
Thanks for sharing your adventures, makes me want to visit!
Another great video Sam and Audrey loved the area
Great stuff, thanks! I have some Finnish family living in Vancouver, I've visited the Vancouver Island but never been to Sointula. To my Finnish eyes Canada looks like Finland on steroids 😉
Gorgeous!
Moiture look like Finland deep forest … how about mosquitos? heh heh i am sure there is and a lot.
Yeah, Audrey's dad is spot on. We use the same mosquito spray in Singapore in the 1950s &1960s.
My parents refrigerator is the same Westinghouse type. Bring back lots of memories of my growing up years
was there for our hunny moon
SOINtula the accent is always on the first syllable in Finnish.
The liquid was probably DDT. We used that at home
I straight up live there
Nice car.
What is the make & model?
When you walked the shore to the lighthouse was there a boat motor that was deteriorated from the sea? I was there 2 years ago to visit my cousin on the island.
Your Father is so enthusiastic and well versed, I love him being forward and sharing the experiences… he is such a pleasure to watch .. alongside you two of course!
Kiitos. Bangkok-Jomppa, Suomessa syntynyt, Ruotsissa kasvanut. Kolmekymmentä vuotta THAIMAASSA
It was nice to see a picture of Annie Tynjala, she was a good lady and treated me well when I was young. It is painful to hear the CBC's guy hack the name of the town over and over again. I suppose he has always had difficulty with words like Coin and Loin too.
I wrote a song about Sointula, the last verse reads:
If you don't know the place then I won't say,
You will have to find it in your way,
But don't you worry and don't you fuss,
One of these days you will be one of us,
And no matter how long it takes, I know someday you'll find the place,
and then you'll stay,
Welcome to my home.
People have a way of showing up there and never leaving, so be careful going there because you may never go back to where you are from. Malcolm Island is like a magnet.
Halakesa. Ni
Mispronounced the name, it's actually pronounced swayn tula
My parents are from Finland and have laughed about Sointula and its people, but I feel a closeness and want to visit and pay my respects
I live in Victoria. My grandparents are from Finland. After watching this video I definitely want to see Sointula. 😀
Ha ha the Salmiaki
Island adventure footage🤟
https://youtu.be/JmS0ZCtY-Qs
My Mother in law grew up in Sointula in the 1920 right from Finland with her parents and a bunch of others.
Oh man… That finnish accent.