Canada | August 2023 |
As the fire and smoke season continued to rise in the Shuswap, I headed down to the BC coast to visit friends and family. The trip turned out to be longer than planned, with a great spontaneous tour of north Vancouver Island, which had been a long-time personal goal.
Day 1, left Salmon Arm for Mission, via Highway 97 and the Fraser Canyon, a route I had not taken since about 1985. One key stop was in Lytton, which had been largely incinerated in a 2021 forest fire. Aside from seeing the destruction first-hand, I also got a good view of the point where the mighty Thompson and Fraser rivers meet and mix colors (I saw this from the air on a flight in 2021 - a cool sight to see from any angle). The ride down the Fraser Canyon is full of epic views and there's not much traffic given most travellers take route 5, the Coquihala highway. Stayed the night in Mission BC with friends.
Next day, I set out from Mission to Tsawassasen to catch the BC Ferry to Victoria, via some nightmarish Vancouver traffic. Though the sentiment towards BC Ferries is terrible in the province, and one can expect the unexpected (long-waits, cancellations, etc), I rolled straight in and onto the next departing ferry. This was another route I had not been on in 30 years, so it was great to do it again and see the epic views of the Gulf Islands and narrow passage, and especially on a sunny day. Once there I rode straight to Goldstream cam[pground to see if I could get a spot, but it was sold out. So I did a quick ride around Victoria, then headed up to Nanaimo, to my ever-hospitable aunt Loreen's house; dinner was waiting! A few days later I stopped by again and met my cousin, long-time no-see.
Courtenay-Comox-Cumberland were next on the map, where I have many family connects. Did an awesome ride up the old coastal highway, past iconic places like Fanny Bay Oysters. Stayed one night a my cousin's amazing house in Courtenay, then one night at Kin Beach campsite in Comox, $20 right on the beach. Dropped in on my cousin's Whole Glow Cafe for a surprise visit, and met my uncle for the first time in 20 years.
On to Northern Vancouver Island. When I started this trip I was planning to head back to Salmon Arm from Comox. But given the terrible forest fire situation in the interior of BC, and based on some quick research I had done, I set off on the next phase of this road trip to a place I have always wanted to visit, especially by moto: northern Vancouver Island. That 3-day trip is documented in a separate post.
After heading north, I stayed another 2-nights in Nanaimo, then crushed the whole journey home in 1-day, with a diversion from Kamloops to Salmon Arm due to the Trans Canada highway being closed due to the Adams Lake forest fire.
The map shows the Salmon Arm to Comox and back portion of the journey
Ride: 1,500 km / 21 hrs
Stay: Kin Beach Park Comox $20 / 5/5; otherwise couch surfed