Last month, we embarked on a Five Dads Go Wild adventure on Vancouver Island. Except, two of the dads injured themselves just before the trip and we called in a local sub. So, it was just four dads on this #5DadsGoWild excursion. And maybe it wasn’t all that wild, because we stayed at a resort? Maybe we’re just getting older. In any event, I thought I’d take a moment to recap a few highlights from Five Dads Go Wild 2024 in Sooke, BC.

SookePoint Ocean Cottage Resort

For our time in Sooke, we were graciously hosted by SookePoint Ocean Cottage Resort. It’s managed by True Key Hotels & Resorts, the same company that took care of my family at Sunrise Ridge Waterfront Resort in Parksville, BC. SookePoint is literally perched at the end of the world, perched up on rocky cliffs with out-of-this-world ocean views in every suite.

The incredible ocean views are obviously one of the biggest highlights of staying at SookePoint Ocean Cottage Resort. But, this is truly a resort too in providing luxury-style accommodations. The gourmet kitchen is really well-appointed with everything you need to prepare and enjoy delicious meals. Just pick up some groceries on your way into the resort. We also learned later on that Save-On-Foods will deliver to the resort if you forget anything.

Exploring the BC Ale Trail

Along with SookePoint, the BC Ale Trail also provided their support for our trip to Vancouver Island. The appeal of the BC Ale Trail is that it pairs “craft brewery experiences with super, natural British Columbia.” We’re always up for checking out some of the local craft breweries and visiting the options in Sooke was definitely a highlight of Five Dads Go Wild 2024. We planned at couple of days around these visits.

Along with Sooke Brewing Company above, we also visited Sooke Oceanside Brewery and Bad Dog Brewing Company. They each take a slightly different approach and offer different vibes in their respective tasting rooms. Bad Dog is a bit more off the beaten path, for example, while Sooke Oceanside Brewery has live music on select days.

More #5DadsGoWild Adventures in Sooke

One of the reasons why people visit the west coast of Vancouver Island is for storm watching. Sooke certainly lived up to that reputation for us. The front-row seats from our SookePoint Ocean Cottage Resort suites — plus those massive windows — were something… and stepping outside was something else altogether! Check out this perspective from Stephen Fung.

What’s remarkable is how much can change in a day. After the storm passed, we went for a short hike to the Pike Point lookout in East Sooke Regional Park. This is literally steps from the resort, as Scott Graham showcases in the video below.

To keep up our battles with our dad bods, James Smith hit up the gym at the resort for a morning workout too.

For a bit of sightseeing in town, we also took a stroll down Whiffin Spit. The easy walk is popular among dog walkers and beachcombers. We spotted a group of sea lions out in the bay too.

Scott was nice enough to put together this summary video of our Five Dads Go Wild 2024 adventure. It gives a good sense of how those few days on the Island went for this group of lads.

Where Should We Go Next?

It’s safe to say that our Sooke trip was a far cry from the first Five Dads Go Wild camping experience in 2018. Not to mention the second year when my tent collapsed under the snow with me in it. More recently, we’ve gone horseback riding in Kananaskis Country and road-tripping down the Oregon Coast. The hope is that we can get in one more #5DadsGoWild trip later this year.

The question, then, is deciding where we should go. More likely than not, we’d like to keep it relatively local. This means no airplanes (unless someone wants to fly us out). I’d say something within five hours or so of Metro Vancouver would work. Driving from Vancouver to Kananaskis took too long. If you have any great ideas, please leave a comment below to let us know.

‘Til next time!