PETTINGER POINT
I’ve walked the sands of Cox Bay, just outside of the town of Tofino since the spring of 1984. In fact, my first supper in Tofino was at my friend Dick Close’s beautiful home on Cox Bay in the spring of that year. Virtually every year since, I’ve found my way to Tofino, and always a walk of Cox Bay is a must. I’ve always known there was a painting waiting for me. I could hear its call. But, I could never find it.
The wind-swept trees on the shoreline, truly bonsaied by nature’s hand, always had an alure to my artist’s eye. So too the never-ending surge of the surf demanded attention and respect. A distant horizon and distant sea fog present such a unique feel. Somewhere, somehow I had to find a painting. But it never came into focus in all those almost 40 years.
One inevitable destination for any walk on the sands of Cox Bay is at the north end of the beach, just in front of the Pacific Sands Resort. There, particularly at low tide, the jagged black rocks stand in defiance of the pounding surge. The stubborn and resilient trees and undergrowth above the tideline stand proudly. Their very presence speaks of the years of relentless weather they’ve endured.
It was a Saturday in May of 2023 when, with friends, we walked north on the beach. We’d check out the rocky gorge to enjoy the white foamy surf surge as it carved its way through the rocks. But, as we approached, we realized we’d not be doing that today. There was an arbour and white tent set up. We were witnessing a wedding right there at the very point we were hoping to visit. We’d come back tomorrow.
And when we did return the next day, I approached the scene thinking of what a magnificent backdrop that would have been for a couple and their guests to enjoy their wedding. I could only imagine the wedding pictures. And that’s when my artist’s eye opened wide. As I clambered up the rocks for a better view, I saw what they had seen. The painting, the very composition, came into focus. I saw it through their eyes. After almost 40 years, I’d found the painting that I knew was there all along.
If you were to Google “Cox Bay, Tofino”, you’d find it. Right there at the north end of the beach is the point that gave my painting its name. And, it gave some couple a life-long memory of a beautiful place where their marriage began. They’d been married there on the beach with a point in the background, a place called “PETTINGER POINT”.
NOTE: I had the pleasure of knowing the Pettinger family when I was transferred to Tofino in 1984 with the RCMP. They were the owners of Pacific Sands Resort, and good friends of my friend Dick Close.
