Memoir of a Spa Trip across Canada

By Bess Hochstein

Among the lessons learned with every spa visit is the joy of slowing down.

Most of us are trapped on a treadmill of stress; just stepping out of our busy days and into the sanctuary of a spa reminds us to breathe deeply and enjoy the moment “to be taken care of, instead of being the caretaker.

In‚  many‚  ways,‚  slowing‚  one’s‚  life‚  down‚  is similar‚  to‚  train‚  travel.‚  It‚  may‚  be‚  faster‚  to fly,‚  but‚  it’s‚  always‚  a‚  hectic‚  trip,‚  more focused‚  on‚  the‚  destination‚  than‚  the journey. And while car trips also bring the landscape back to human scale, only the passengers can truly appreciate it; the driver must remain focused on the driving. Train travel, by contrast, is all about the journey; all parties on the voyage can fully share the experience, relaxing and taking in the peacefully passing scenery, together.

Combining the pleasures of train travel with stops at exceptional spas along the way was the idea behind my recent cross-Canada trek by train. My husband Kipp and I began our rail journey on VIA Rail Canada in the transitional season of spring. We set out from the west coast in the damp chill of early spring, still shaking off the effects of a long New England winter. Nearly three weeks later we had passed through six provinces, visited eight spas, and covered thousands of miles of landscape “ending our train trek re-energized and glowing in the sunshine of a summery day.

Our cross-country journey began with an Air Canada flight to Vancouver, where we boarded a Harbour Air seaplane to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, flying low into the setting sun. We were greeted in the light spring rain by Mike from Tigh-Na-Mara, who drove us to the seaside resort in Parksville and checked us into our log cabin “style Spa Bungalow Suite, a stone’s throw from the resort’s Grotto spa.‚

Encompassing more than 20,000-square-feet, with 17 treatment rooms including luxurious couples’ suites with fireplaces and double copper soaking tubs, The Grotto at Tigh-Na-Mara is the largest spa in British Columbia. Its centerpiece is the 2,500-square-foot Grotto Mineral Bath, a copious indoor pool rich with beneficial minerals and trace elements. With a hot whirlpool, a cold-plunge cascade, and a waterfall at the perfect height for a gentle shoulder massage, it’s practically a mini indoor waterpark for adults, with healthful effects.

My winter skin was stripped away with The Grotto’s Canadian Body Balancing Treatment featuring the Ancient Secrets Spa Line,‚  which is created in nearby Vancouver and based on indigenous ingredients. After a full-body dry brushing, an exfoliation with green tea and Pacific seaweed salt, and an application of Canadian glacial clay enriched with local seaweed, I was cocooned in cellophane and warm blankets and kept cool with spritzes of neroli mist. The treatment included a mini-facial and a mesmerizing scalp and facial massage. Unwrapped, I showered off the remains of the clay and returned to the table for a massage application of luscious, seaweed-enriched body butter.

The concept of dining immediately after such an intense treatment didn’t sound appealing, but the Treetops Tapas & Grill menu changed my mind. A recent addition to the spa “along with the adjacent relaxation lounge “and featuring the same dƒ©cor of chairs and tables locally crafted from Vancouver Island driftwood “Treetops is open exclusively to spa guests. The cozy restaurant boasts large picture windows with a pine-filled view that aptly reflects its name. There’s a strict dress code at Treetops “bathrobes only “and the food was as luxurious as the chenille robe I sported during our extended meal.

The menu boasts more than forty small plates, each more inventive than the next, which can be ordered a la carte. Most diners choose the Endless Tapas  option “as many as you like for $40 per person. Our stream of endless tapas was a symphony of flavors, colors, and textures, and every note was perfect. We enjoyed a multitude of dishes including tiny Vegetable Gyoza with Cucumber and Carrot Slaw and Asian Emulsion and Roasted Shallot and Portobello Mushroom with Pan-seared Spinach and Garlic, each of which revealed the chef’s talent and creativity.

The next day we explored the resort’s beach, but the cool, misty weather put us in the mood for hiking. At nearby Englishman River Falls Provincial Park, we followed a leisurely loop trail through mossy woods, passing over spectacular waterfalls. Back in the bungalow, it was difficult to choose between a bath in our en-suite double jetted tub or another frolic in the Grotto’s mineral pool “so we did both. The next morning, after a yoga class and breakfast in the Cedar Dining Room, it was time for our transcontinental journey to begin.

You can’t buy tickets at the Parksville train station “but you can buy pottery; the station houses a ceramics cooperative, and whoever’s minding the shop is likely to know whether the train is on schedule. It’s here that we commenced our train trek across Canada, and while it would have been quicker to hop back on the float plane to the mainland, the one-car train from Parksville to Victoria provided a glimpse of the countryside to come, passing through Pacific Northwest forests, over rolling hills, and crossing river chasms on narrow trestle bridges. In Victoria we boarded a West Coast Air seaplane for the short hop to Vancouver, where we were shuttled to The Fairmont Vancouver, one of Canada’s grand old railway hotels. A landmark smack in the middle of a hopping commercial district, The Fairmont’s dramatically peaked green roof distinguished in the city skyline.

In addition to its own health club with lap pool, sauna, and fitness center, the hotel is home to one of three branches of Absolute Spa. This subterranean location, designed to appeal to men, features private shower/steam rooms and deep chocolate decor with stainless steel accents and contemporary minimalist fixtures. Pedicure thrones face a wall of flat-screen monitors tuned to news stations that are also able to run video games. The strategy works “about 50 percent of the spa’s clientele are male “but women also appreciate the urban-cool design.

Before my Rainforest Body Buff, I took a quick steam and shower, after which my esthetician had me choose a flavor  from Vancouver’s all-natural Spa Binge product line. The treatment began in the wet room with an application of Cucumber Melon Nutty Scrub, followed by a powerful Vichy shower. It concluded with a massage and application of cucumber melon lotion in a room graced with multi-colored light therapy.

After only two nights in Vancouver, it was time to board VIA Rail’s flagship transcontinental train, The Canadian, eastbound to Alberta. We checked our large luggage, carrying on only what we needed for the overnight ride. Our Silver & Blue  class service included access to the station’s comfortable waiting lounge, and a choice of accommodations on the sleeping car. On this leg of the journey, we had a double room with a spatially economic sink, enclosed toilet, and two bunk beds that folded up during the day, transforming the sleeping cabin into our private drawing room. We made a beeline for the Park car, heading upstairs to take advantage of the panoramic view afforded by domed windows “perfect for enjoying the passing scenery and scanning for bears, mountain goats, and big horn sheep. The attendant offered us sparkling wine and hors d’oeuvres, which tided us over until the second call for dinner.

Tables in the dining car “exclusive to Silver & Blue ticket holders “are set with crisp linens, china, and fresh flowers. The eager-to-please waitstaff is efficient, friendly, and proud to offer gourmet fare and Canadian wines. I was pleased to find a vegan option “Thai Spring Rolls “among the menu choices our first night aboard (and indeed, there were vegan options throughout the entire trip, the train chefs were given advance notice of my dietary choices).

The next morning we awoke to find our views of the dense Northwest forest supplanted by the snow-covered peaks of the Canadian Rockies, the dramatic beauty of which kept us distracted from the books we had brought along for the ride. Late arrival in Jasper left us little time to explore this outdoorsy town nestled among soaring mountains. Our rental car was equipped with GyPSy, an automated, self-guided audio tour using GPS technology to highlight natural and historical points of interest along the Icefields Parkway as we drove toward Banff. We stopped at waterfalls and scenic overlooks along the way, soon realizing that every turn in the road revealed yet another spectacular vista. After driving sixty-five miles from Jasper we reached the Columbia Icefield, stopping briefly at the welcome center to take in the view of the massive Athabasca Glacier at an elevation of 6,676 feet and learn about the terrain. Covering 130 square miles, the Columbia Icefield is one of the largest accumulations of ice and snow south of the Arctic Circle. Straddling the Continental Divide, it feeds eight major glaciers, and its meltwater flows into the Pacific, the Arctic, and the Atlantic oceans. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to venture onto the Athabasca aboard the Ice Explorer,  a bus-size, all-terrain vehicle “we were to anxious to reach our final destination for the evening, the Fairmont Banff Springs.

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