Day 6 – Back to Vancouver
N49° 17.242’ W123° 06.778’
Today marked our return trip to Vancouver. Travelling back through Nanaimo to Horseshoe Bay, we had a choice of two sailings – a 12:30pm and a 3:00pm. The 3:00pm sailing would put us back into Vancouver just in time for rush hour. The 12:30pm sailing meant we need to be on the road by no later than 8:45am in order to catch the ferry. Early sailing it is.
We were out of the cabin by 7:45am. It was sad to see it go… the Terrace Beach Resort is definitely a wonderful little oasis from the world. Leaving at that time limited our breakfast options, so it was back to the Cynemoka Coffee House for breakfast. Two egg muffins and an Americano later for me, and a muffin and a pot of tea for Mom, and we were on the road.
Sadly, our incredible, traffic free run into Ucluelet was not to be repeated on the way out. We ran into cars pretty much from the outset. Some were easily passed, others not so much. Sadly, there are some in the world that don’t see themselves as being the ‘slower vehicles’ the signs on the side of the road are talking about. And they’re happy to merrily speed away in the straights, making passing perilous, while retarding to a crawl in the curves, where passing is impossible. Recognizing a no-win situation, I eventually decided to simply back off and ride my own ride, accepting that the Xterra in front of me was going to do whatever they were going to do, but letting me pass was not going to be on the list.
It seems sad to being leaving Ucluelet behind. But more adventure awaits…
Happy place recaptured, we settled into enjoying the ride, revelling in the scenery and absorbing the tunes. Switched it up to classical, this morning… Lucia Micarelli’s ‘Music from a Further Room’. (For those expressing shock here, just colour me complex and let’s move on, shall we?). To the sounds of soaring violins, we sailed over passes and around bends to Port Alberni. Mom started this trip being comfortable on the bike, and is simply becoming more so. She has adapted extremely well to the concept of hurtling headlong towards turns lined in concrete. I recognize that this isn’t a life skill many of us come to naturally, but she’s certainly a quick study.
Stopping and enjoying the scenery; the alternative to cursing at other drivers.
Fortunately, by the time we sailed past the RCMP motorcycle cop on the side of the road, all of his colleagues were chasing down other drivers elsewhere on the road and he didn’t even have his radar gun out. And so, footloose and speeding ticket free, we kept on going, only to get bogged down behind all the drivers for whom the sight of a cop clearly triggered latent feelings of guilt, anxiety and repression. Judging by the number of people that were quickly shamed into travelling the speed limit, the RCMP has a few things they could teach the Catholic church out here…
We got to the ferry terminal in Nanaimo in plenty of time for the sailing, and had a relatively uneventful crossing. The mist and clouds that started the day in Ucluelet finally gave way to warmth and sunshine, and we disembarked ready for an easy ride into Vancouver. Our planned route was via Marine Drive, some of the most exclusive and expensive real estate in Vancouver. These are the sorts of houses where ‘million dollar view’ isn’t a figure of speech so much as something directly factored into the selling price.
Approaching the coast; some of the work being done in preparation for the Olympics.
Sadly, this is where we encountered our one real hiccup of the trip so far. Taking the Marine Drive exit (no less than Exit 0 on the Trans Canada Highway) we found ourselves behind a tourist that chose to make a right-hand turn from the left-hand turning lane. As we were in fact turning left, this sadly put me stopped behind them, facing a sharp uphill slope and an even sharper turn. Motorcycles, of course, have clutches. Clutches, of course, really don’t like hills. Once the tourist cleared out from in front of us, our attempt at heading out was brutally cut short by me stalling the bike. Stalling, of course, has the unfortunate consequence of stopping the bike dead. Stopping the bike dead while leaned into a turn, of course, has the unfortunate consequence of hurtling the bike in the direction of travel. This would be in the direction that gravity pulls it.
Approaching Horseshoe Bay… the view from the ferry.
I managed to get my foot down fast, and was able to keep the bike from falling over. It should be noted, however, that 500 pounds of bike and an almost equal measure of me, Mom and baggage, makes returning said vehicle to a vertical position a far greater challenge. Realizing we weren’t going anywhere fast (or at least, weren’t fast returning to upright) Mom gamely jumped off the bike, turned around and helped me to get Wolfgang back on two wheels. A deep breath and a silent prayer later and turn attempt number two was far smoother and infinitely less embarrassing than turn attempt number one. And I have to say that I am deeply impressed with Mom. While she may in fact get fazed and stressed by some things in life, so far it hasn’t been by anything on the trip.
Lift that bike? You better believe I can lift that bike!
The rest of the drive into Vancouver was not only without problems, but was in fact spectacular. The drive into the city along Marine Drive was lovely, and more lovely yet was the complete absence of traffic as we headed for the Lion’s Gate Bridge. Normally traffic for the bridge is snarled for miles as a mass of vehicles converge from three different directions and attempt to jockey for position as they cross a three lane bridge that may or may not have more than one lane open. Today, for the first time in living memory, we sailed up the on ramp to the bridge and onto the middle lane. I don’t think I can ever remember a time where I’ve done 80 km/h on the Lion’s Gate Bridge. Even more magically, as soon as we were off the bridge they started switching the direction of the middle lane. 5 minutes later and our two travel lanes would have been one, and the traffic heading into the city would have been as snarled as the traffic we passed trying to head out of the city.
Dayton Boots on East Hastings. Mecca for motorcyclists.
We ended our trip back at the Fairmont Waterfront in Vancouver. I had one last errand that I wanted to run while we were in Vancouver, so after getting unpacked and changed we headed back out into traffic and onto East Hastings. Parts of this infamous street may not be the prettiest in the world, but the stretch out near the PNE is home to one of the best boot manufacturers in the world, the Dayton Boot Company. In business since 1946, if the footwear you are looking for is made of thick leather and chunky soles, they’re your company. I’ve wanted a pair of Dayton Boots for a couple of years now, but haven’t been sized for them to date. Passing through Vancouver with some time to spare finally provided me with my chance. These are serious boots, though. The advice from the salesperson was that in pulling them on you’d need to sweat a little. Once on, they’re incredibly comfortable. Getting them on, though – that does indeed take some work. Of course, storage capacity on the bike being what it is, these boots are made for shipping. But when I get home, two new pairs of boots should be awaiting me.
We finished up the day doing what we always do… finding somewhere to eat. Tonight it was the Steamworks Transcontinental, an extremely cool restaurant that has been built in the former women’s waiting room at the Vancouver train station. Steamworks has been around for years, and I’ve been there many times. The Transcontinental, though, is new… it opened up only about a year ago. It’s got an incredibly funky art deco style, lots of booths and a pretty decent menu. The plan had been for comfort food, and they certainly delivered. Tomorrow, we head for Kelowna. The mountains await, as does a rendez vous with Dianne.
Yes, we do more than eat. Really we do. We’re not kidding about this.