We landed in Horseshoe Bay in northern Vancouver across the river and biked along the scenic Marine drive to get to Stanley Park. Marine drive is a little road that goes along the coast through a beautiful coastal neighbourhood until you get to Lions Gate bridge. Lions gate bridge has was a good ride to get across and all with an amazing view. We then got into Stanley Park where we met up with Pat Mason, Mike's friend from Ottawa. Turns out he has the exact same bike as me. After we helped him patch a flat we did an easy tour of the Park. It's an amazing place for biking, essentially a National Park in the middle of the city.
After that we headed off to Jeff, John and Jaimie's place in downtown Vancouver. They have a sweet little pad right no the outskirts of the Hastings ghetto and beside the Cirque de Soleil setup in Vancouver at the time. That night we went to a Japanese restaurant close to Robson and Denman st with Jeff and some friends of Pat's. We order a bunch of skewers with different types of meat along with some Japanese salads. Very tastey, some of the crazier stuff included cow tounge and a strange marsmelowy tofu. My appetite has grown a lot with all
the biking, especially considering that we don't have much time to really fill up while biking, just enough to keep us going. On rest days I really feel it catch up and pretty much eat a horse. After the Japanese food we had some dairy queen and then realized we were still hungry, so Mike and I split a sub from Subway.
Next day was our only real day in Vancouver, and even that turned out to be very little. Our plan for that night was to stay with Mike's uncle in Surrey so we only had until 4pm to do any touring. First part of hte morning was devoted to a sendoff with the charity that Pat had hooked this trip up with - Rooftops Canada. It's an organization that provides housing overseas in areas with poverty, mainly Africa. They gave us some gatorade and power bars and asked a lot of questions. I was a little confused because I knew nothing about the organization or what the plan was at the time. It's fairly low key, the goal is to spread awareness and talk to local media to spread word, nothing elaborate.
After that we went to MEC to stock up on some gear. I am beginning to get fed up with MEC, we've been there so much lately and I am realizing that it's turning into a cult. People buy MEC gear almost obsesively and to excess. Next stop Granville Island! A little market island right in the middle of Vancouver filled with all sorts of goodies and the wondeful Granville Island brewery. Since I had tried this beer on Gabriola island I was eager to get a tour, but they were all booked out. Instead me and Pat split a taster round of their current draft beers. All around some good stuff there, although a bit of a pricey market. Soon it was 4 and we started biking to Surrey. Our plan was to take the sky train, but it is off limits to bikers during rush hour so we biked the long 40 km (more than 3 hours! with stops and all). Surrey is a shithole but it was interesting urban ride. This included the most brutal hill I have every climbed. The gradient must have been close to 25%, definitely more than 20. I was more stubborn, and killed my legs all the way to the top just so I can say i climbed it. Eventually we got to Surrey and stayed with Mike's uncle. He's quite the character and dabbles in all sorts of things including innovations and screenplay writing.
More on the journey to Kamloops to come.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Pictures
Here are some of the best pictures, not in order. Enjoy
Hand stand on the biggest tree in Cathedral grove (a douglas fir). Supposedly the biggest tree in Canada is not too far in Juan de Fuca Park on the southern edge of the island.
The view from our cooking, chillin, relaxing spot on Gabriola Island. Very soothing.
The straighest trees around at Kilby Park close to Hope. This is for the treeplanters. No treeplanter would ever spend the time to make it this straight.
A Group of Sevenesque tree on the highway north of hope towards Lytton.
On the highway towards Spences brdige just past Lytton. This part is called the hot spot of Canada. Scenery completely changes to dry rocky hills with only shurbs and few trees. This is one of my favourite pics so far and looks like a scene from a Western.
View of Olympic Mountains in USA from Victoria.
Inside cathedral grove.
The moss in the rainforest in Pacific Rim National Park.
The view from a little hill at a place we camped backcountry. It was one of hte sweetest camping spots we've had.
The beach at Pacific Rim National Park on the West coast of Vancouver Island. The beach is about 100 m deep which shows how crazy the waves get there.
Vancouver train yard
View from the ferry to victoria
Cool shot from the ferry
Another cool shot from the ferry
An awesome tree at Royal Roads University in Victoria. The castle at the university was used for the filming of X Men 2.T
Hand stand on the biggest tree in Cathedral grove (a douglas fir). Supposedly the biggest tree in Canada is not too far in Juan de Fuca Park on the southern edge of the island.
The view from our cooking, chillin, relaxing spot on Gabriola Island. Very soothing.
The straighest trees around at Kilby Park close to Hope. This is for the treeplanters. No treeplanter would ever spend the time to make it this straight.
A Group of Sevenesque tree on the highway north of hope towards Lytton.
On the highway towards Spences brdige just past Lytton. This part is called the hot spot of Canada. Scenery completely changes to dry rocky hills with only shurbs and few trees. This is one of my favourite pics so far and looks like a scene from a Western.
View of Olympic Mountains in USA from Victoria.
Inside cathedral grove.
The moss in the rainforest in Pacific Rim National Park.
The view from a little hill at a place we camped backcountry. It was one of hte sweetest camping spots we've had.
The beach at Pacific Rim National Park on the West coast of Vancouver Island. The beach is about 100 m deep which shows how crazy the waves get there.
Vancouver train yard
View from the ferry to victoria
Cool shot from the ferry
Another cool shot from the ferry
An awesome tree at Royal Roads University in Victoria. The castle at the university was used for the filming of X Men 2.TTofino to Vancouver
I've been a bit lazy in updating, didn't get much of a chance in Vancouver. We left Tofino and hiked a trail through the Rainforest in the Pacific Rim as a last minute tour. All the rainforest out West is very dense and diverse. The trees are covered in moss and the ground is so uneven that the whole trail is on a boardwalk.
After that we headed off through known territory through the hills beside Lake Kennedy. These are the worst hills I've ever seen, steep and short. The worst one was an 18% grade, this may not seem very daunting but it is brutal, especially with 50 lbs of gear. Past the halfway point around Sutton summit we saw a black bear on the side of the road close to where I saw one on the way to Tofino. Yet again we passed by the gorgeous Sproat Lake where the road goes right by the lake with mountains on each side. We biked a total of 90 km and camped right of the highway by a little logging road.
Next day we biked into Port Alberni a little town between the mountains. We visited an old train station where a they still run a train from the start of the century. We had lunch at the harbour and devoured donuts from a local bakery. Delicious. The harbour area was pretty nice, all little wooden building from the train days. It was a nice long break, and after we began the climb to Alberni summit. It took us a good 40 min to climb to the summit which is at an elevation of 411 m. From the top its a smooth ride at 65 km/h down to Cathedral Grove. This is a little trail that contains some of hte oldest trees in Canada. We did half of the trail earlier, and now finished it off. We got some good pictures with the tallest tree in the park, a Douglas fir. It was tough because bus loads of tourists stop there to take pictures. Then we continued on to the East coast of the island where we stayed at Rathtrevor park with Mike's uncle. See the ocean again was awesome. We also witnessed our first of many West coast sunsets.
Next day we biked to Nanaimo and took a ferry over to Gabriola Island. It seems all the little island are gorgeous and undiscovered. There is a lot of sandstone on the island and it is a rock that erodes very easily. There's a spot called the Malasapina Galleries where the rock has been carved out so it there is a huge overhang overtop of a little cavern. This strethces for about 50 m so it looks like a wave from the profile. We sat there made dinner on my compace whisperlite stove, watched the sunset and rank local beer - Granville island cream ale.
Next day was a rest day also spent on the island. After that we took a ferry back to Nanaimo, did a bit of a tour around there, had an awesome nanaimo bar and then took a ferry to Vancouver.
More from there in a bit.
After that we headed off through known territory through the hills beside Lake Kennedy. These are the worst hills I've ever seen, steep and short. The worst one was an 18% grade, this may not seem very daunting but it is brutal, especially with 50 lbs of gear. Past the halfway point around Sutton summit we saw a black bear on the side of the road close to where I saw one on the way to Tofino. Yet again we passed by the gorgeous Sproat Lake where the road goes right by the lake with mountains on each side. We biked a total of 90 km and camped right of the highway by a little logging road.
Next day we biked into Port Alberni a little town between the mountains. We visited an old train station where a they still run a train from the start of the century. We had lunch at the harbour and devoured donuts from a local bakery. Delicious. The harbour area was pretty nice, all little wooden building from the train days. It was a nice long break, and after we began the climb to Alberni summit. It took us a good 40 min to climb to the summit which is at an elevation of 411 m. From the top its a smooth ride at 65 km/h down to Cathedral Grove. This is a little trail that contains some of hte oldest trees in Canada. We did half of the trail earlier, and now finished it off. We got some good pictures with the tallest tree in the park, a Douglas fir. It was tough because bus loads of tourists stop there to take pictures. Then we continued on to the East coast of the island where we stayed at Rathtrevor park with Mike's uncle. See the ocean again was awesome. We also witnessed our first of many West coast sunsets.
Next day we biked to Nanaimo and took a ferry over to Gabriola Island. It seems all the little island are gorgeous and undiscovered. There is a lot of sandstone on the island and it is a rock that erodes very easily. There's a spot called the Malasapina Galleries where the rock has been carved out so it there is a huge overhang overtop of a little cavern. This strethces for about 50 m so it looks like a wave from the profile. We sat there made dinner on my compace whisperlite stove, watched the sunset and rank local beer - Granville island cream ale.
Next day was a rest day also spent on the island. After that we took a ferry back to Nanaimo, did a bit of a tour around there, had an awesome nanaimo bar and then took a ferry to Vancouver.
More from there in a bit.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Victoria to Comox to Tofno
Our day in Victoria was awesome, we went kayaking down a little river towards downtown where we parked the kayaks in the harbour and had dinner by all the houseboats. There were a few seals in teh harbour being fed by tourists as well. After that we walked downtown and got a backroad tour of Victoria with Mike's uncle. It was pretty neat, he took us through some old narrow roads through nice little residential areas. We also climbed up Mount Tolmie for a look at the town from above. Overall Victoria is a beautiful cities with some great views.
Next day we got a ride up to Comox where mike had a buddy in the army base. More of a relaxing day, we did a small hike and made sushi.
Finally the hardcore biking begins, next day we bike down the east coast and then started across the island. A total of 90 km, half of which was through pouring rain. We got into a little "honour system" style prov. park called Little Qualicum Falls which was quite nice. Quite and in the middle of the rainforest, although everything on the island is essentially rainforesty. The forests are very thick and full of ferns and moss. Most of our warm clothing was wet and it rained all night so we had no way to dry it. Pretty shitty sleep.
Luckily the next day turned out to be gorgeous. Sun shining, we biked to Port Alberni a gorgeous port town right in the middle of the island comletely surrounded by mountains. On teh way we stopped at Cathedral grove a little hiking route that contains some of the largest trees in CAnada, mostly Red Cedars while the biggest are Douglas Firs. Very impressive. We stopped in Port Alberni to dry ouir clothing and stock up on food. I wish we could have toured around the town more. Then we biked up towards the west coast for 4 hours. Amazing scenery right beside Sproat Lake. Found a sweet backcountry spot to camp with an amazing view of snow capped mountains.
And so the next day we biked 60km to Tofino through toiugh hills. Or Pacific Rim Natonal Park, not Tofino. To summazrize, today is sunny after a week of clouds, beautiful, mike went surfing, I took it easy on the beach. Tofino is a small litlle hippy town.
Future plans are to bike back to Tofino in 2-3 days and possibly do a 7 hour hike (with overnight) to see Della Falls, highest in North America at 440m.
Adios for Now
Next day we got a ride up to Comox where mike had a buddy in the army base. More of a relaxing day, we did a small hike and made sushi.
Finally the hardcore biking begins, next day we bike down the east coast and then started across the island. A total of 90 km, half of which was through pouring rain. We got into a little "honour system" style prov. park called Little Qualicum Falls which was quite nice. Quite and in the middle of the rainforest, although everything on the island is essentially rainforesty. The forests are very thick and full of ferns and moss. Most of our warm clothing was wet and it rained all night so we had no way to dry it. Pretty shitty sleep.
Luckily the next day turned out to be gorgeous. Sun shining, we biked to Port Alberni a gorgeous port town right in the middle of the island comletely surrounded by mountains. On teh way we stopped at Cathedral grove a little hiking route that contains some of the largest trees in CAnada, mostly Red Cedars while the biggest are Douglas Firs. Very impressive. We stopped in Port Alberni to dry ouir clothing and stock up on food. I wish we could have toured around the town more. Then we biked up towards the west coast for 4 hours. Amazing scenery right beside Sproat Lake. Found a sweet backcountry spot to camp with an amazing view of snow capped mountains.
And so the next day we biked 60km to Tofino through toiugh hills. Or Pacific Rim Natonal Park, not Tofino. To summazrize, today is sunny after a week of clouds, beautiful, mike went surfing, I took it easy on the beach. Tofino is a small litlle hippy town.
Future plans are to bike back to Tofino in 2-3 days and possibly do a 7 hour hike (with overnight) to see Della Falls, highest in North America at 440m.
Adios for Now
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Vancouver and Victoria Adventures
Good day lads and lasses, right now it is the morning of June 8th and we are in Victoria, preparing to leave for Comox. Heres a more detailed synopsis of the days so far.
June 5th
We landed in Vancouver and spent about 2 hours assembling our bikes from the mess that they were in the bike boxes. Vancouver was rainy and gloomy, which threw off my dreamy illusions of it being sunny wherever we went. We biked to our hosts place through some pretty nice neighbourhoods. Turns out Vancouver has a lot of really nice, well kept neighbourhoods and everyone spends a lot of time tending to their hedges. After some dinner we went to MEC to replace some gear. Im getting pretty sick of MEC right now to be honest, frankly its becoming far too popular, almost cult-like. Then we did a power tour of Vancouver downtown by bike. It was still pretty gloomy weather but nevertheless we explored all different parts of the city from the ghetto (hastings st) to the core area and waterfront. Maybe it was the bad weather but Vancouver didnt capture me yet, however a lot of our sightseeing was as it was getting dark too. Next time we will explore Stanley park and do a more fitting tour.
PS. Lakers lose to Celtics in Game 1, much disappointment follows.
June 6th
Yesterday was more of mental test with the shitty wheather and all. It was a different feeling to actually be out here knowing that you cant turn back as opposed to the happy daydreaming that took place in Ottawa safe from the elements and surprises of the road.
Today on the other hand would prove to be a physical test. We left late at 11 am and underestimated all of the distances. Just getting to the ferry took 3 hours. At first it looked even worst when we found out that we would have to take a 1.5 hour detour becuase we couldnt pass through the tunnel cross the fraser river, but we then found a shuttle bus that takes bikes across. As we would find out, the western cities (at least van and vic) are much much more bike friendly than anywhere else ive been. Victoria even goes as far as calling themselves the bike capital of canada.
The ferry ride was peaceful and a well needed rest. We ate some food, drank lots of water. Once we got off, we rode to Victoria, which took 4 hours, also a lot more than initiallyl anticipated. The lochside trail which follows the coast was absolutely gorgeous and I recommend it to anyone in this area. However, in these 4 hours i ate very little and forgot to fill up on water. I crashed and burned and the whole thing was pretty brutal. Near the end we stopped for subway, which was a saviour. The inital veiw of vic was amazing, more details to follow on our vic adventure. right now we have to leave for comox.
PS. Djokovic loses to Nadal in tennis, disappointing, but Nadal is the clay champ. NBA game 2 tonight.
For pictures, check out the group Mike created on facebook, it is in my groups, i havent had a chance to upload any to my albums.
June 5th
We landed in Vancouver and spent about 2 hours assembling our bikes from the mess that they were in the bike boxes. Vancouver was rainy and gloomy, which threw off my dreamy illusions of it being sunny wherever we went. We biked to our hosts place through some pretty nice neighbourhoods. Turns out Vancouver has a lot of really nice, well kept neighbourhoods and everyone spends a lot of time tending to their hedges. After some dinner we went to MEC to replace some gear. Im getting pretty sick of MEC right now to be honest, frankly its becoming far too popular, almost cult-like. Then we did a power tour of Vancouver downtown by bike. It was still pretty gloomy weather but nevertheless we explored all different parts of the city from the ghetto (hastings st) to the core area and waterfront. Maybe it was the bad weather but Vancouver didnt capture me yet, however a lot of our sightseeing was as it was getting dark too. Next time we will explore Stanley park and do a more fitting tour.
PS. Lakers lose to Celtics in Game 1, much disappointment follows.
June 6th
Yesterday was more of mental test with the shitty wheather and all. It was a different feeling to actually be out here knowing that you cant turn back as opposed to the happy daydreaming that took place in Ottawa safe from the elements and surprises of the road.
Today on the other hand would prove to be a physical test. We left late at 11 am and underestimated all of the distances. Just getting to the ferry took 3 hours. At first it looked even worst when we found out that we would have to take a 1.5 hour detour becuase we couldnt pass through the tunnel cross the fraser river, but we then found a shuttle bus that takes bikes across. As we would find out, the western cities (at least van and vic) are much much more bike friendly than anywhere else ive been. Victoria even goes as far as calling themselves the bike capital of canada.
The ferry ride was peaceful and a well needed rest. We ate some food, drank lots of water. Once we got off, we rode to Victoria, which took 4 hours, also a lot more than initiallyl anticipated. The lochside trail which follows the coast was absolutely gorgeous and I recommend it to anyone in this area. However, in these 4 hours i ate very little and forgot to fill up on water. I crashed and burned and the whole thing was pretty brutal. Near the end we stopped for subway, which was a saviour. The inital veiw of vic was amazing, more details to follow on our vic adventure. right now we have to leave for comox.
PS. Djokovic loses to Nadal in tennis, disappointing, but Nadal is the clay champ. NBA game 2 tonight.
For pictures, check out the group Mike created on facebook, it is in my groups, i havent had a chance to upload any to my albums.
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