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Cycling America Adventure of Yvonne

Page 5: July 10 - July 15

July 10: (Monday), Vancouver
This day spent without a lot of cycling, as I left it at the bike shop, where they checked it so fast, that I couldn't see they did anything at all, except noting I needed a new front derailer changer and charging me 26 C$. I looked up Mr. Kaneen, a local esperantist, and we went to that famous place, called Mountain Equipment Co-Op, where I became a member and bought an overbag, a compass, and new inserts for the Cébé-sunglasses. (finally a store that carries them). I took the famous Sea Bus, which is an enclosed passenger-ferry, which shuttles loads of people back and forth between North and Central Vancouver. Was impressed by the efficiency of it, the gates used, resembled the gates they use for loading cattle though. As usual, I tend to chat with everybody I meet, and I had a lengthier chat with the lady selling me a cheap feta-pizza slice, who happened to be Ukrainian. "I thank God everyday that I'm living in Canada, and not in the USA" she said, as we were discussing how happy I felt in this city. She was from Odessa, so we talked a bit about Crimea and the trip I'd made in April-May.

Tuesday July 11, Vancouver
For romantic reasons I had to move to another place, so much of the day was spent in relocating my bags elsewhere. On Monday I agreed with Jason Malysh to stay in his parents' house. At midnight I was called by Leon McDonald, another WSL-member , also offering hospitality. While this was no longer necessary, Jane and I suggested to meet at the Seabus exit to have a bike ride to the university. He agreed, as he had planned to go there anyway. We dropped bags at Danelle Laidlaw's house (the RM1200 organizer and a BC randonneurs member), cycled to the university, picked some thimbleberries en route, and found that the person I was going to see had forgotten he wouldn't be working today. I said goodbye to Jane and felt happy to have met such a wonderful person. Leon is also a way cool guy, he rode with no hands, and no helmet, so it wasn't a surprise he was heading for the 'no swimming costume required' beach ;-).
In the evening, I went for a 40K bike ride out and back to Horseshoe Bay with Danelle and some other club members. It was fun, but it clearly showed why it was a good idea to do a DNS on the RM1200, I was dropped immediately uphill. It was hard to convince the others that I won since I dropped them downhill... ;-). We had a very good time together during the after-ride-dinner with some excellent pasta, salad and real strawberry pie. When I met the Malysh family, it was nice to hear stories from 60s/70s twens. The parents had been h-hiking and travelling lots in the past themselves, and still enjoyed travelling.

Wednesday July 12 Vancouver- Horseshoe Bay - Langdale- Garden Bay
I had almost harassed Jason into taking me to Whistler, but realised that I'd been pushing it too much, when he said that the truck would be too cramped. Also, it was just his 3rd day on the job: making hiking trails in the Whistler area! I accidentally saw him, as he was getting up at 4.30 am which isn't my normal wake-up time. I was glad to have met this nice young man... The whole family was a bunch of hard-working people as everyone left before 8.30 am, to various jobs. I left Vancouver in good spirits. Although I hadn't seen a single 'sight' that's in the tourist guides, I'd met wonderful people instead. So, instead of going to Whistler and Pemberton, I rode out to the ferry for the Sunshine coast. The ride along the coast was very nice, but again done in a hurry, as I had decided to 'squeeze in' the Charlotte islands after all, meaning that I'd h-hike from Comox to Pt. Hardy. While I'd planned to hug the coast line, I finally did the harder inland ride. Just the ride up from Langdale was 12%, too steep to ride with so much gear for over 2 K. Further on, there had been an accident, and all traffic was directed over the normally quieter coastal route. So, by cycling the blocked off route, I'd have peace of mind and also satiate my curiosity. It had been a car with a boat trailing behind that had toppled off the road.

Thursday July 13 Garden Bay - Saltery Bay - Powell River - Wildwood.
Today was a shortish day again. After having camped wild near Garden Bay, it wasn't very far to the ferry. On the ferry I got into a conversation with a man, carrying the latest Harry Potter book, which he had ordered for himself "wonderful storyteller". He spontaneously offered me a ride to Powell River, as I wasn't sure whether Erna Sheppard, a local esperantist, would be at home and willing to accept me as a guest. If not, I'd have limited options in making another ferry ride over to Comox. Now I could still catch the 6 pm ferry if she wasn't home. But she was. She wasn't living directly in town, but 8 km up the road in Wildwood, which involved a stiff climb uphill. But it was a rewarding climb, as mrs. Sheppard is just one of the most remarkable women I ever met. Erna is a 78 yr old lady, who taught herself rollerblading 3 yrs ago in the kitchen, she also still kayaks and windsurfs. Something for Kieg, one of my elderly sport loving friends? I was also elated to find a Queen Anne cherry tree in her garden, just like 'our' chopped down cherry tree, with the same slightly sour taste. I ate nearly all cherries that could be reached by standing on the toes!

Friday July 14. Wildwood - Powell River - Comox - Port Hardy
A hectic day. After a leisurely start, though not that leisurely as Erna showed me the workout tools she uses frequently , which I also tried to use, we said farewell, and I was off for the Comox ferry. On the ferry, I already had an offer for a ride to Campbell River, by Bill 'the Barbarian' and Kyle his son. Bill was a BC Ferry captain, and thus entitled to a fair amount of free BC Ferry rides. So, it wasn't a surprise when the captain came over for a chat. After another 6 K of cycling to the exit of Campbell River, I got a ride from Jaclyn who talked to God and felt that it was safe to take me to the turnoff for Pt. Alice. What God failed to do, was to communicate back about the vehicle troubles ahead near Sayward.. A pity, since it would have been an interesting ride with her. Instead, I rode on with Doug, a fisherman from Tofino, who told me how clever dolphins are. These smart creatures already had 'told' their cousins at the west side of the Pacific about the dolphin-friendly nets, so there was no learning curve once the method crossed the Pacific. The last ride was from Bill and Gladys, who were actually heading for Port Alice, but were so sweet to take me Port Hardy first. I had thought to treat myself on Pacific salmon but failed to find a restaurant that would serve it. Finding a place to camp near the ferry was hard. Not having an alarm clock you can hear, is a distinct problem when the ferry leaves at 7.30 am. Even the campground seemed deserted, while the parking lots where people were parked illegally for the night were too exposed. Instead I found a hangar with wood-working equipment. Thinking that nobody would come in at midnight, I pitched the tent.. Wrong, I was spotted 30 mins later, and the guy who found me, wasn't pleased. But he wasn't too upset, as he let me stay, as he saw I wasn't doing any harm. I had even swept the floor!

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July 10: (Monday), Vancouver This day spent without a lot of cycling, as I left it at the bike shop, where they checked it so fast, that I couldn't see they did anything at all, except noting I needed a new front derailer changer and charging me 26 C$. I looked up Mr. Kaneen, a local esperantist, and we went to that famous place, called Mountain Equipment Co-Op, where I became a member and bought an overbag, a compass, and new inserts for the Cébé-sunglasses. (finally a store that carries them). I took the famous Sea Bus, which is an enclosed passenger-ferry, which shuttles loads of people back and forth between North and Central Vancouver. Was impressed by the efficiency of it, the gates used, resembled the gates they use for loading cattle though. As usual, I tend to chat with everybody I meet, and I had a lengthier chat with the lady selling me a cheap feta-pizza slice, who happened to be Ukrainian. "I thank God everyday that I'm living in Canada, and not in the USA" she said, as we were discussing how happy I felt in this city. She was from Odessa, so we talked a bit about Crimea and the trip I'd made in April-May.

	Tuesday July 11, Vancouver For romantic reasons I had to move to another place, so much of the day was spent in relocating my bags elsewhere. On Monday I agreed with Jason Malysh to stay in his parents' house. At midnight I was called by Leon McDonald, another WSL-member , also offering hospitality. While this was no longer necessary, Jane and I suggested to meet at the Seabus exit to have a bike ride to the university. He agreed, as he had planned to go there anyway. We dropped bags at Danelle Laidlaw's house (the RM1200 organizer and a BC randonneurs member), cycled to the university, picked some thimbleberries en route, and found that the person I was going to see had forgotten he wouldn't be working today. I said goodbye to Jane and felt happy to have met such a wonderful person. Leon is also a way cool guy, he rode with no hands, and no helmet, so it wasn't a surprise he was heading for the 'no swimming costume required' beach ;-). In the evening, I went for a 40K bike ride out and back to Horseshoe Bay with Danelle and some other club members. It was fun, but it clearly showed why it was a good idea to do a DNS on the RM1200, I was dropped immediately uphill. It was hard to convince the others that I won since I dropped them downhill... ;-). We had a very good time together during the after-ride-dinner with some excellent pasta, salad and real strawberry pie. When I met the Malysh family, it was nice to hear stories from 60s/70s twens. The parents had been h-hiking and travelling lots in the past themselves, and still enjoyed travelling.

Wednesday July 12 Vancouver- Horseshoe Bay - Langdale- Garden Bay I had almost harassed Jason into taking me to Whistler, but realised that I'd been pushing it too much, when he said that the truck would be too cramped. Also, it was just his 3rd day on the job: making hiking trails in the Whistler area! I accidentally saw him, as he was getting up at 4.30 am which isn't my normal wake-up time. I was glad to have met this nice young man... The whole family was a bunch of hard-working people as everyone left before 8.30 am, to various jobs. I left Vancouver in good spirits. Although I hadn't seen a single 'sight' that's in the tourist guides, I'd met wonderful people instead. So, instead of going to Whistler and Pemberton, I rode out to the ferry for the Sunshine coast. The ride along the coast was very nice, but again done in a hurry, as I had decided to 'squeeze in' the Charlotte islands after all, meaning that I'd h-hike from Comox to Pt. Hardy. While I'd planned to hug the coast line, I finally did the harder inland ride. Just the ride up from Langdale was 12%, too steep to ride with so much gear for over 2 K. Further on, there had been an accident, and all traffic was directed over the normally quieter coastal route. So, by cycling the blocked off route, I'd have peace of mind and also satiate my curiosity. It had been a car with a boat trailing behind that had toppled off the road.

	Thursday July 13 Garden Bay - Saltery Bay - Powell River - Wildwood. Today was a shortish day again. After having camped wild near Garden Bay, it wasn't very far to the ferry. On the ferry I got into a conversation with a man, carrying the latest Harry Potter book, which he had ordered for himself "wonderful storyteller". He spontaneously offered me a ride to Powell River, as I wasn't sure whether Erna Sheppard, a local esperantist, would be at home and willing to accept me as a guest. If not, I'd have limited options in making another ferry ride over to Comox. Now I could still catch the 6 pm ferry if she wasn't home. But she was. She wasn't living directly in town, but 8 km up the road in Wildwood, which involved a stiff climb uphill. But it was a rewarding climb, as mrs. Sheppard is just one of the most remarkable women I ever met. Erna is a 78 yr old lady, who taught herself rollerblading 3 yrs ago in the kitchen, she also still kayaks and windsurfs. Something for Kieg, one of my elderly sport loving friends? I was also elated to find a Queen Anne cherry tree in her garden, just like 'our' chopped down cherry tree, with the same slightly sour taste. I ate nearly all cherries that could be reached by standing on the toes!

Friday July 14. Wildwood - Powell River - Comox - Port Hardy A hectic day. After a leisurely start, though not that leisurely as Erna showed me the workout tools she uses frequently , which I also tried to use, we said farewell, and I was off for the Comox ferry. On the ferry, I already had an offer for a ride to Campbell River, by Bill 'the Barbarian' and Kyle his son. Bill was a BC Ferry captain, and thus entitled to a fair amount of free BC Ferry rides. So, it wasn't a surprise when the captain came over for a chat. After another 6 K of cycling to the exit of Campbell River, I got a ride from Jaclyn who talked to God and felt that it was safe to take me to the turnoff for Pt. Alice. What God failed to do, was to communicate back about the vehicle troubles ahead near Sayward.. A pity, since it would have been an interesting ride with her. Instead, I rode on with Doug, a fisherman from Tofino, who told me how clever dolphins are. These smart creatures already had 'told' their cousins at the west side of the Pacific about the dolphin-friendly nets, so there was no learning curve once the method crossed the Pacific. The last ride was from Bill and Gladys, who were actually heading for Port Alice, but were so sweet to take me Port Hardy first. I had thought to treat myself on Pacific salmon but failed to find a restaurant that would serve it. Finding a place to camp near the ferry was hard. Not having an alarm clock you can hear, is a distinct problem when the ferry leaves at 7.30 am. Even the campground seemed deserted, while the parking lots where people were parked illegally for the night were too exposed. Instead I found a hangar with wood-working equipment. Thinking that nobody would come in at midnight, I pitched the tent.. Wrong, I was spotted 30 mins later, and the guy who found me, wasn't pleased. But he wasn't too upset, as he let me stay, as he saw I wasn't doing any harm. I had even swept the floor!