A fairy door in a small cave
Fairy doors? Hobbit doors? I had no idea what the children were talking about as we set off for an afternoon hike up Mount Erskine on Salt Spring Island. Thanks to a wrong turn, we ended up first climbing Mount Maxwell and then crossing to Mount Erskine before descending along the 'fairy door' route. At the top of the mountain, we stopped to enjoy the spectacular view across the water towards Vancouver Island.
Another fairy door
Shaded walking trail
The descent was the most exciting part of the hike - we were on the lookout for fairy doors! Not knowing what to expect, I was both surprised and amazed when we came across the first fairy door. Perhaps the loveliest thing about finding the fairy doors was watching the delight of the children as they gathered and left offerings to the fairies - beautiful leaves, unusual rocks and odd shaped pieces of wood.
Flowers on top of Mount Maxwell
Mount Maxwell dotted with foxgloves
Despite the logical (and perhaps cynical) side of my brain not believing in the presence of fairies, the forest really did seem like a magical place. I almost expected 'The Magic Faraway Tree' characters, Moonface, Silky and Saucepan Man, to come tumbling out of one of the tiny doors.
The view from the top of Mount Erskine
Vancouver Island from Mount Erskine
When we returned home, I was intrigued about what I'd seen so I did a little research and found a lovely article about the fairy doors, which you can read here.
Another view ...
... and another
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