Vancouver Island or Bust PT 3: “My itinerary is full the way I like it.”

[For example, The Canadian (train) cuts the duration of the trip in half, thereby forcing my wife to cancel several house parties and celebrations in honour of my absence. Vancouver Island or Bust PT 2, March 29]

I leave for Vancouver Island in 16 days, on Saturday, April 21. Train tickets, hostels, money for souvenirs - check, check, check. All preparations, except for the packing, are complete.

My itinerary is full, and not overflowing, and I feel it’s a wise move on my part to keep things that way. After all, I want to be in a relaxed mood while drinking in fresh scenery, flavours and experiences. I want to walk, not run, upon new pathways I encounter.

Already I know I will enjoy my first breakfast upon the train, on Sunday, April 22. Freshly squeezed orange juice in a crystal glass, a lovingly prepared ham, cheese and asparagus omelette upon fine china and linen, coffee and refill from carefully selected and roasted beans flown in from Nepal... or west-end Montreal... fantastic.

I know too I will settle in easily at the downtown Victoria hostel the following Wednesday and enjoy my first bike ride along the harbour front pathway. Hundreds of breath-taking and unique photos within the first hour, are almost guaranteed.


["I love the water!": photo of L. Superior by GHarrison, 2007]

The next day, I will enjoy pedalling to the Esquimalt Naval Museum to see WWII Canadian Navy artifacts and I’ll do cartwheels as the curator escorts me to a side room where a hammock from the SS Silver Walnut will be on display, upon my request.

About the hammock: It's from my dad’s ship, and 1943. Though it belonged to Stoker W. N. Katanna, it bears my father’s name along with those of the 16 other crew members that journeyed aboard the Walnut from Liverpool and Wallasey, around the tip of South Africa and on to the Suez Canal, Port Said, then Sicily. I’ll take 100 photos. I’ll offer to buy it. The curator will shake her head. I’ll double my offer. I’ll laugh and cry. I’ll really want to take it home with me.


[Photo courtesy of Esquimalt Naval Museum]

Already I know I’ll pedal back to Victoria empty-handed but not empty-hearted, and on the way I’ll stop at Spinnakers Brew Pub at 308 Catherine St. to have a cold pint of west-coast India Pale Ale and write a note home.

“The beagle has landed...” it will begin. “Every old dog has his days, and today will go down as one of mine.”

Oh, there will be other highlights too, a full itinerary of them.

More to follow.

***

Please click here to read Vancouver Island or Bust PT 2: “Yes, I can afford Paris. You can’t?”

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Zoom w a View: “Pancake Bay, Lake Superior”

The shoreline of Pancake Bay, Lake Superior presents a view worth conserving.






Photos by GHarrison, August 2007.

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Please click here for more Zoom w a View

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Zoom w a View: Hattie Cove sunset

Currently, I’m trying to put together plans related to biking or taking the train out west in a few months.

Perhaps my first view of the prairies, Kicking Horse Pass and Strait of Georgia (between Vancouver Island and the mainland) will be as spectacular as the first sunset I viewed at Hattie Cove, Lake Superior in 2007.

I’ll let you know what I find out.

[Photo by GH]

***

Please click here for more Zoom w a View

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Motorcycle Miles: PT 6 Vancouver Island or Bust

["As per usual, a snippet from a ’60’s song will be stuck inside my head, repeating itself as the miles disappear. And I’ll be singing as part of a skilled background chorus, my rhythm in sync with the Virago’s pistons." PT 5 Vancouver Island or Bust]

In July, 2012 I’ll leave Wawa with a full tank of gas in my motorcycle at about 9 a.m. The weather will be lovely (says the author, optimistically), as it was the first time I drove that piece of highway north of Sault Ste. Marie in August, 2007.


["A biker, having just past Wawa and its giant goose, heads toward me."]

I’ll head west 93 kilometers, so says my map, and reach White River about an hour later. While I sip coffee outside one of the town’s few restaurants, I’ll review a few photos I took back in Wawa. Maybe I’ll have one of a moose, if I spot one like I did in ’07 somewhere along the just completed stretch of lonely highway.


["The cold, wild water of Hattie Cove, west of Wawa and White River"]

After my last swig of coffee, I’ll detour north (103 km.) on highway 631 to Hornepayne. At 11:30 I should be standing beside an old CN rail station in that town (“now unused and in disrepair” says Wikipedia re the station), stretching my legs, sipping from a thermos, and wondering if my dad saw much of the town when he and at least five other merchant mariners (members of the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve) stopped there in January or February, 1944 on their way to Vancouver Island. I’ll look around, form some impressions, and wonder if he formed some that were similar.

Right around noon, my stomach will probably tell me to form an impression about how good a hamburger might taste at a local diner.

Off I’ll go to lunch. I’ll talk to a few locals. Maybe I’ll show them an old photo of five of my dad’s friends (‘oppos’ the sailors would say) outside their station. Maybe an old-timer will recall the year quite a few sailors passed through on their way west, while he lugged lumber in a nearby yard.


["From the side of the road, near Terrace Bay."]

After one last stretch of the legs I’ll ride back to the Trans-Canada highway 17, then point myself west and aim for Terrace Bay, about 460 km. total from Wawa, including the detour to Hornepayne. The bay is a pretty little spot, thanks to the fact it’s situated on the north shore of magnificent Lake Superior and has an unrestricted view of some of the prettiest wild, cold water in the world.

If, from my home base in London, I’ve biked to Massey, Wawa and then Terrace Bay, I’ll have covered about 1,350 km. in three days. I’ll be on my 5th tank of gas, down between $500 - 600 and sleeping like a rock, with thoughts of sugar plums - and the 3,500 km. still to go - dancing in my head.

[Photos by G.Harrison, 2007]

***

Please click here to read PT 5 Vancouver or Bust

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Motorcycle Miles: PT 5 “Vancouver Island or Bust”

[“If I notice any new metal sculptures beside the highway in Massey I’ll stop for photos. Adding an extra five minutes to my journey won’t bother me in the least.” G.Harrison, Feb. 10, PT 4, Vancouver Island or Bust]

This summer, in July, after leaving the unique metal sculptures of Massey behind me, I’ll ride toward Sault Ste. Marie, my first glimpse of Lake Superior and the town of Wawa on Trans-Canada highway 17.


["Sweet campsite" (one of many): Agawa Bay, August 2007]

My Virago 1100 will be humming like a finely tuned Swiss watch and with two days of riding behind me I’ll feel at home with the bike, the tarmac, my leather coat, gloves and heavy black boots. As per usual, a snippet from a ’60’s song will be stuck inside my head, repeating itself as the miles disappear. And I’ll be singing as part of a skilled background chorus, my rhythm in sync with the Virago’s pistons.


["View opposite my campsite": Agawa Bay]

Before reaching Wawa I will stop for certain at three places for breaks. The first - along the side of the highway near Batchawana Bay, for the view. The second - at Agawa Bay Park, home to some of the sweetest camp sites in Ontario, also for the view. The third - at a full-service center near Pancake Bay, for gas, because there aren’t too many places with gas along the way and in 2007 I only reached Wawa thanks to fumes.

While at the gas station I’ll also buy, as per habit, a few sundries for later in the day. (Definition - sundries, n., two cans of cold beer for the motel room in Wawa.)


["Sunset at Agawa Bay": Photos by G.Harrison]

And while in Wawa, I’ll walk down the street from the motel to one of the greatest old general stores in Ontario. Once inside I’ll take a few pictures of the camp and fishing gear on display from the early part of the last century, and one or two shots of the largest metal stove or store furnace I’ve ever seen.

I know I’ll drift off to sleep easily at the end of Day 3, with another 440 km. in the books, and with quiet thoughts about the next day’s detour to Hornepayne on my mind.

***

Please click here to read Motorcycle Miles: PT 5 “Vancouver Island or Bust”

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Motorcycle Miles: PT 2 “Vancouver Island or bust”

[Neys Park, 2008. "I camped just steps from the wild beach": photo GH]

After completing several complicated mathematical calculations, I learned the distance from my front porch to Courtenay, on Vancouver Island, British Columbia is 4,691 km. In other words, my trip to visit my dad’s old WW2 naval base, down the road from Courtenay, is a long one.


[Leading Seaman Doug Harrison, lower left. Comox, Vanc. Island, 1944 - 45]

The 10 or 11 day bike trip in July will be about 5 km. longer if I turn off the Trans-Canada highway at Neys Provincial Park, on the north shore of Lake Superior, to take more photos of its desolate beach. I can see myself doing that, especially if there is no charge for a ten minute visit.

The trip will be hundreds of km. longer if I detour from my route in order to visit a CN train station in Edson, Alberta. The Edson station is but one of many that my dad and other sailors ‘posed in front of’ while travelling west from Ontario in 1944, before embarking on their final months of service to the Canadian Navy. I can’t see myself making the detour. It would add another day to an already very long trip.


[Don 'Westy' Westbrook from Hamilton: photo from collection of Doug Harrison]

My body - read, ‘my butt and feet’ - will thank me later for just getting to a hostel in Lake Louise, stepping off the bike and pealing off my hot leather boots as quickly as possible.

[Yeah, thoughts of my 2010 trip to Halifax - half the distance - are coming back to me now.]

***

Please click here to read more Motorcycle Miles.

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Motorcycle Miles: “Vancouver Island or bust”

I’ve saved the money. I own the right motorcycle. I have a sturdy pair of jeans, a leather coat and four rugged bags for gear. My wife says, “Go.”

In July I’ll ride to British Columbia, to visit the naval base at which my dad served in 1944 - 45, and to visit a naval museum in which some mementos from his ship are found.


The road to Thunder Bay will be familiar and exhilarating at the same time as I make my way west, one step or mile at a time.


Will the sunsets at Hattie Cove again fill me with wonder? I bet they will, as will the vast prairies, the Rocky Mountains, several wicked mountain passes, and the hammock with my dad’s name on it in a navy museum in Esquimalt, B.C.

Thousands of photos to follow. Set aside a few minutes to view them around the first of August.

[Above photos - beach at Pancake Bay, sunset at Hattie Cove on Lake Superior: by GH, 2007]

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Please click here for more Motorcycle Miles.

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In the Workshop: Dreamin’ of more motorcycle miles

While tidying the workshop today my mind started to wander.

Each sweep of the broom took my mind farther west.

When I opened the shop door to flick dust outside and onto the deck I wished it was summer and my motorcycle was packed and in the back laneway - engine running.


["I can hear the sound of my old bike. I want to go."]

Normally, I take what I get and am happy to be where I am at the time. (Unless I’m in an expensive restaurant and it’s my turn to pay).

It’s January and I don’t mind snow and cold weather.


But I want to see Lake Superior again on my way to British Columbia. I want to sit on familiar rocks and burn toast over a campfire and watch scenery go by as my odometer counts off mile after mile.


[Photos by GH, from London to Thunder Bay, 2007]

Do I ever.

***

Okay, I need to more patient. Build my birdhouses. Save more money for the trip west.

Do I have cabin fever?

(Usually I’m so well-balanced. Yeah, right!!)

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Zoom w a View: A breeze blew through my hair

Or, it blew through what’s left of it.

After doing a bit of birdhouse spotting I parked my motorcycle in the shade of a tree near the shores of Lake Erie in Pt. Bruce and put on my always-flattering swimsuit.

(Though it draws some attention to my short pale legs it does make me look taller. That’s what I say to myself at any rate).


I spread out a towel, sat down and reveled in the breeze and sound of the waves.


I took a few pictures then said to myself, go jump in the lake.


["How could you not jump into the water?": photos GH]

I did, and 15 minutes later I was totally refreshed.

***

Another lake, another time.

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Motorcycle Miles: Hattie Cove, Lake Superior, Canada

Yes, I stayed home on Friday the 13th and missed the bike rally in Port Dover, Ontario. The rally’s 50th anniversary, no less.

However, my car is packed (yup, so is my heavy-duty lunch bucket; don't leave home without it, eh) for Saturday’s adventure, i.e., Art in the Park in Strathroy, and if I make a few birdhouse sales I’ll be able to put another $10 into my mayonnaise jar and have gas money for the motorcycle for another month or so.


[“Hattie Cove is on the south side of the Trans-Canada Highway, east of marathon”: photos GH]

Maybe I’ll ride to Fenelon Falls to help my son build a new dock. Maybe I’ll ride to Port Dover and have the streets to myself.


Better yet - maybe I’ll return to familiar roads farther north and revisit Hattie Cove on Lake Superior.


I will remember certain scenes for many more years; rocks, trees, cold black water and sunsets.


Please click here to see more “Postcards from the side of the road.”

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In the future the price of gasoline may shorten or even bring an end to my motorcycling days.

Hey, maybe I'll rent a bus and have a seat sale.

Does a $100 a night seem fair? Are you "on the bus?"

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Zoom w a View: Lake Superior revisited

In 2007 I crossed the following items off my bucket list:

Motorcycle to Thunder Bay. See the Terry Fox Memorial. Sleep on The Sleeping Giant. Swim in Lake Superior.


[“Hattie’s Cove; my first dip in Superior - it was freezing!”: photos GH]


[“The rock surface at the edge of the cove”]

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Motorcycle Miles: Postcards from the side of the road

In 2005 I took my first overnight camping trip to the Bruce Peninsula alone and by motorcycle (Suzuki Marauder 250cc).


Fortunately, I took a camera and stopped at the side of the road on occasion because my memories of the two or three day trip aren’t as clear as the digital photos that follow.




[“Gray clouds dampened the colour of vast fields of mustard”; photos GH]


[“I stopped for tea beside Big Bay Rd.”]


I finished the book ‘Long Way Round’ during the short holiday and was inspired to take longer trips in the future by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman’s round-the-world adventure.

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2006 - Gatineau Mts. and Algonquin Park, on 650cc Suzuki Savage

2007 - North Shore Lake Superior, on 1000cc Yamaha Virago

2010 - Halifax via the St. Lawrence River, on 1100 cc Virago

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CBC News: Can we afford lifeguards at provincial parks?

I woke up slowly this morning and began to tune in to a story on the radio about a woman who almost drowned at Sandbanks Provincial Park (south of Belleville and Picton in Prince Edward County) and the call for lifeguards or park staff at all the beaches in such parks.

Though drowsy, my mind began to churn.

I could understand why the caller wanted more safety measures put in place. It had been traumatic for her to watch a swimmer get dragged out of the water. It had taken some time to reach a phone to call 911. The 911 operator didn’t recognize the name of the park and wanted a definite location, e.g., a major intersection, and the park isn’t at an intersection. It took 50 minutes before an ambulance arrived on the scene.


["Sandbanks Provincial Park, Prince Edward County, Ont.": GAH]

I thought, sure, madam, the park system could hire more staff if that’s what the community wants.

But that opened up a few doors of discussion.

First, Canada is huge, isn’t it? The number of parks, the miles of beaches - it boggles the mind.

New staff will be expensive. We want taxes to rise? People are willing to pay?

If the present staff has to include ‘life-guarding services’ to their itinerary then something else would have to go, e.g., finding tourists who get lost, warding off bears, manning the gates, etc. Are people ready to wait longer for other park services? (“If you are phoning to reserve a campsite please press 3, and be prepared to wait until our lifeguard returns from the beach. It’s a very big beach.”)

Personally, I think it’s too easy or just habit to think on a big scale, e.g., “we want more staff on all the beaches.” Over the last 65 years, as our country grew wealthier, we funded more and more services for the public good on a regular basis. Want more hospitals? You got it. More paved highways? Right away. More services? Ditto.


["Neys Provincial Park, Lake Superior. Not a lifeguard in sight."}

Even as individuals or as families we’ve put our wealth toward bigger this and that, e.g, more square footage, more horsepower, more appliances, more clothing, more food on our plates, more types of mustard inside a fridge the size of a small nation. To the point of bursting at the seams.

We may be at the point in history when we need to say the following:

We can’t keep adding on and adding on, growing bigger as parks, public works departments, governments, homeowners, etc.


["Pancake bay, Lake Superior. No lifeguards": photos GH]

We need to learn to prioritize.

You want something? What are you willing to give up in order to fund it?

I think, if we lived small (small house, car, meals, closets, etc.) we’d have more money for things related to the public good, for services all could benefit from and enjoy. If we de-emphasized our individual wants there would be more money for community-based services.

But we’re a long way from that philosophy.

***

And now I’m awake. And it’s time for coffee.

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Halifax Bound: Seven more sleeps

I’m excited about my upcoming motorcycle trip to the East Coast of Canada (2,200 km, one way) but between now and June 8 I’m sure I’ll sleep like a rock each night.

I’ll be busy every day this week and on the weekend, but details re The Trip are falling into place nicely.


["I visited many rocky shores on the Bruce Peninsula, 2005": photos GH]

It helps that I’ve done this before, with more work involved too (i.e., in the not too distant past, I biked and camped along the north shore of Lake Superior in 2007), so this upcoming trip feels easier already.


["On my way to Algonquin Park, 2006"]

As well, I’m in tune with the goals of the trip and have included extra rest days at the halfway point and on the way home.

This afternoon I attach a luggage rack to the bike; later I apply a second coat of varnish to a wee boat; after that I buy a few groceries for breakfasts and noon time meals. All easy stuff.


["On my way to Thunder Bay, 2007"]

I mean, how hard is it to attach a luggage rack? Four bolts. And varnish a boat? 10 minutes. And buy Muffets, juice paks and canned beans? Stand aside - I’ve got it.

Now, don’t tell my wife. I’ve also had time to scout out craft brewers in most of the cities in which I’m stopping. A sample here, a sample there - all before reading bedtime stories written by my dad.

And by booking hostels instead of campsites, I’ve cut 2 - 3 hours of set up and decamping time from my workload each day, compared to my 2007 trip.

Yup, I’ll be sleeping like a rock.

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In My Workshop: I may have to get out my oil paints

My oil paints sit in a small cardboard box under my basement work bench - collecting dust.

They’ve been there for a long time, ever since my brother the artist said he needed space for one more in an art class, so could I switch to the next year. (I guess he was thinking 2018).

However, I may dust them off.

One of my older sisters sent me photos yesterday of her latest abstract oils, and a red light went off in my head.


After changing the battery in the smoke alarm I thought, I could use that technique to depict some of the sunsets I admired while visiting Lake Superior a few years ago.


Can you see it? Can you dig it?

***

And if I get to Halifax and back in one piece in June, I’ll retrace my miles along the North Shore of Superior because those sunsets and highway views are still in my mind.


What happens if you click on Lake Superior below?

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Motorcycle Miles: How should I handle Montreal while travelling east?

Spring is in the air, the idea of motorcycling is entering my head and I just finished studying routes from London to Halifax.

(I have a promise to fulfill in Halifax and this is the year to check it off my list).

Like the experienced traveller that I am (insert laugh track here), I’ve looked at different routes to Halifax, but each one has a big scary part that involves Montreal on my way to the hostel in Quebec City.


["I encountered more rocks than people on my way to Thunder Bay, 2007. But Montreal is different, and intimidating.": photo GAH, Hattie's Cove]

I just can’t ignore Montreal. So, what to do?

Should I blast right through the centre of the city on Highway 40, without even stopping for so much as a cup of coffee or the opportunity to make people laugh about my Grade 9 French language skills?

Should I add miles and hours to my trip east by venturing north at some point before reaching Montreal and connect with Highway 158, then travel more safely and slowly toward the 40/158 junction well east of the city?

Should I cross over to the south side of the St. Lawrence River, e.g., at Cour de Lac on Highway 201, and zigzag my way east, then north on one of the tamer highways, e.g., the 133 to Sorel?

Or, are there other tried and true ways to get through or around Montreal for someone not eager to practice rudimentary French skills at a wee cafe on a Montreal side street?

Just asking.

***

More details about the trip later.

I’m busy saving up $1,300 dollars to add to what I already have stashed in the bank.

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Zoom w a View: Just getting my feet wet

In August, 2007, I travelled the north shore of Lake Superior on my 1984 1000cc Yamaha Virago.


["The clear water of Pancake Bay": photos GAH]

I enjoyed the 10-day solo trip immensely and still look at the snapshots on occasion, especially whenever prompted, which was the case after reading my sister’s Facebook entry yesterday.


(Her entry pertained to the following: Before I die, I want to: Travel around the world. What do YOU want to do before you die?

www.socialvibe.com

The true life story of four regular guys on a mission to complete a list of '100 Things To Do Before You Die' and to help and encourage others to go after their own lists.)

My thoughts:


Stay closer to home than the other side of the world. Stay-cations are catching on.

Re-visit the north shore of Superior. Get my feet wet again in Pancake Bay.

***

What spot close to your home is worth a revisit?

Do you think the desire to ‘see the world’ is overly-ambitious, too costly, too wasteful of limited resources?

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