Our long-time visitors will be aware that I'm one of those car guys equally fascinated by trains and boats and planes. I've had experience with three of the four though no one has offered the opportunity of driving a railway engine. You may also be aware from prior blogs that my computer desk faces a large window where I can spot frequent aircraft movements, inasmuch as I live across the highway from Victoria International airport. As YYJ is also a Canadian Forces base it is not unusual to see the occasional F-18 fighter or Aurora maritime patrol aircraft. And because it is the 3rd largest restoration center on the North American west coast, I'm occasionally treated to the sight and sounds of a vintage flying machine.

So today I'm sitting at the computer when I hear a rather unusual noise. I look up and there, heading north, is a huge 4-engine flying boat! Very few such machines still exist but in an earlier era they were the 747's of their day, pioneers in luxurious long-distance passenger flight from the UK to Africa and India and from the US to Hawaii and beyond. I quickly realised that I was looking at a Martin Mars converted to water-bombing duties because one of the two remaining Mars, based not far from here at Sproat Lake, near Port Alberni on Vancouver Island, had assisted in fighting the recent California fires.

The Martin Mars flying boats were produced for the US Navy and were used as troop and cargo transports among the islands of the Pacific but never saw service as commercial airliners. In 1959 a consortium of forest companies purchased the last four, ferried them to heavily-forested British Columbia, and fitted 7200 gallon water tanks in a conversion to water bombers. Sadly, one was lost with its crew during firefighting operations in 1961 and a second was destroyed ashore during a 1962 hurricane. The remaining two are operated by Coulson Flying Tankers and maintained with loving care, ready to fight fires when needed.

My glimpse of this magnificent flying machine was all too short, less than 30 seconds, but enough to realise I was watching transportation history fly by. I've never see a Mars up close (to be recitified soon) but if any of you are visiting Vancouver Island in 2008 you may be interested to know that visitors to the Coulson Flying Tankers base at Sproat Lake are welcome. Tours are available from Port Alberni, including a short trip by rail behind a vintage steam engine formerly used for short-haul work in forest lands. How's that for a magical trip to transport from an earlier era?