Victoria’s ‘Best’ Pub

We enjoyed the article by Travel Editor Jerry Hulse, “Victoria, B.C.--Everything But the Queen� (June 17), but believe he missed the best pub there. According to our experience (considering spirits, food and atmosphere) and recommended by the locals, the pub is Spinnakers, which is located just west of downtown over the Johnson Street Bridge.

At 308 Catherine St., the pub has a view of the harbor from its windows or outside tables. It is not a tourist hangout. The food is exceptional, the beer made in the on-site micro-brewery is excellent, and the place, as large as it is, is always crowded. Prices are set for the local market. It is not a conventional pub with a long bar and side benches, but a sort of grab-your-own-seats-at-sitdown-tables kind of place.

Also, Hulse’s article only mentioned access to Victoria from Vancouver. For many, easy entry is provided via Seattle and two year-round ferry lines. One offers a three-hour trip on the Victoria Clipper, and the other is four hours on the Vancouver Island Princess or Princess Marguerite. You also can get to Victoria from Port Angeles on the Olympic Peninsula, by sea ferry or from north of Seattle on state of Washington ferries.

CHUCK EHRLICH

Redlands