{"id":8793,"date":"2023-08-26T21:31:45","date_gmt":"2023-08-27T04:31:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandysglobaleyes.blog\/?p=8793"},"modified":"2026-09-04T16:25:22","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T23:25:22","slug":"parksville-sand-sculptures-beach-festivals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandysglobaleyes.blog\/?p=8793","title":{"rendered":"Parksville Sand Sculptures & Beach Festivals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This blog post will explore the “Wonders of the World” from the Parksville Sand Sculpture\/Beach Festival held during the summer of 2023. (A World of Wonder<\/strong> was the winner of the People’s Choice doubles award).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The artistic creations truly took our breath away. I always found building sand castles using buckets, sand, seaweed, shells and various seashore items, enjoyable as a child until sections collapsed or the waves quickly eroded my ‘fortress’. Therefore, I am totally in awe of these artistic creations which manage to withstand weeks of display in varying weather conditions throughout the summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Vancouver Island hosts a wide variety of summer festivals and outdoor experiences. A popular event for families or individuals (which runs for over a month starting in mid July) is the Parksville Sand Sculpture competition and Beach Festival. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have arrived from the B.C. mainland via B.C. Ferry and are based in Nanaimo<\/strong>, the community of Parksville<\/strong> is a mere 35 minutes drive on Highway 19 North–only 40 km away. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The beaches are mostly sandy and during low tide, offer a wonderful area to explore. Locals and visitors enjoy playing in the sand or swimming in the Pacific ocean. Famous Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park<\/strong> has campsites, forests and sandy beaches. If you hope to camp during the summer months, book early! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parksville beaches<\/strong> have public access and a lovely easy boardwalk adjacent to the sandy beach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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These photos depict the Parksville beaches<\/strong> beside the boardwalk during an August low tide<\/strong>. There are multiple websites available to assist your planning when coming to explore our central Vancouver Island paradise. Here is a link to more information and photos promoting Parksville\/Qualicum beaches<\/strong>, lodgings, and upcoming activities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.visitparksvillequalicumbeach.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The photos in this blog post were taken during a visit to Parksville in mid August 2023<\/strong>. The location of the sand competition is adjacent to the Parksville beach\/boardwalk\/park area. The creation of the sculptures occurred from July 13th-16th<\/strong> when artists had 30 hours to create<\/strong> their elaborate sand interpretations. There are two main categories artists may select–solo or doubles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year’s theme was “Wonders of the World<\/strong>“. Karen Jean Fralich<\/strong> was the winner of the solo category with her “Great Barrier Reef<\/strong>” sculpture. Fred Dobbs and Ted Siebert<\/strong> won the doubles award for “Wonderland<\/strong>“. (Shown below). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Thomas Koet won the solo competitor’s choice award for “Two Wonders of the World<\/strong>“. Edith van de Wetering & Wilfred Stijger won the competitor’s choice for doubles with “Dreams<\/strong>“. People’s choice awards went to Peter Vogelaar in the solo category for “Age of Wonder<\/strong>” and Doubles went to David Ducharme & Susanne Ruseler for “A World of Wonder<\/strong>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The consistency of the sand is crucial to the success of the sand creations. I learned that the sand is actually transported to the competition site from a quarry in nearby Coombs<\/strong>. The sand requires fluvial deposits (river sand) a mixture of silt and clay. The competitors often commence using wooden forms; a strong ratio of sand to buckets of water is used (8:1 ratio was quoted by one of the volunteers); and when the sculpture creation is completed, a spray containing a type of glue is applied to harden the sand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the conclusion of the annual competition, the sand is returned to the quarry where the winter rains successfully break down the hardener enabling the sand to be re-used\/re-cycled the following year. What an impressive concept! Here are a few of the amazing sand sculptures this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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