Joined: 15 Aug 2006Posts: 2666Location: No Fun Town, USA
Apologies in advance for all the vertical pictures; my phone touchscreen was only allowing me to snap photos vertically.
50 miles farther west than I've biked before.
As part of growing old, I decided to bike farther west than I ever have. More here. For various reasons, the best plan was to take the Clipper to Victoria and bike about 30 miles west, which I did on Saturday.
Sooke Basin.
Main problem was that the weather forecast was not cooperating. I took the Clipper on Friday and came back on Sunday, and I could theoretically have done it on either of those days, but logistically, it had to be Saturday. Those who were around Seattle know how Saturday went. It was supposed to be worse on Vancouver Island: I was basically biking out to a rainforest when the remnants of a tropical storm were supposed to hit.
Only one way to start a Canadian bike ride
To lessen the odds of being struck by some drunk Canadian in the pouring rain, I decided to take the Galloping Goose Trail, which probably adds at least 5 miles each way, but has the advantage of no cars running you down (except at the numerous road crossings), is fairly flat, and is much more scenic. The trail heads due north at Sooke, BC, which doesn't help, so I had to get off and ultimately take Highway 14 for the last 4 miles, which has no shoulder.
So many wooden trestles.
The day of the ride, the weather forecast said the rain would hold off until around noon, at which time the wind would pick up from the west. My plan was to get out there as fast as I can, count on getting wet, but at least going back with a tailwind. This worked out well. No rain until I got to Sooke, then it showered on and off until I got to the turnaround and back to Sooke for lunch.
I was heartened by reading in some tourist brochure on the Clipper that they recommend biking around the south side of Vancouver Island by taking Highway 14 up to some loop road that goes inland to Nanaimo. Having ridden only 4 miles on Highway 14, I doubt this is a great idea. BC drivers aren't assholes, but they don't seem to subscribe to giving bikes 3 feet of space. There was a soft shoulder the whole way, and I finally decided to just pull over whenever someone was coming from behind, particularly if there was someone else coming toward me; too many drivers thought it was okay to try to squeeze past.
Hot soup and Thanksgiving sandwich for lunch
After lunch, it poured intermittently, but that wind pushed me on. The worst part was a section heading south just outside of Sooke, when either it was pouring hard or I just noticed it because I was heading roughly into the wind.
Still, I started out in shorts and never changed to long pants. I did vary my shirt from a T-shirt to a long sleeve technical shirt to my rain jacket. Even before it started raining, the bike and my legs were dirty from the dirt and needles on the trail. It's paved for about 10 miles out of Victoria, then hard packed dirt.
I took my mountain bike, which wasn't necessary, except you definitely want fenders and will want to clean your bike when you're done. There are two sections that clearly used to have trestles that have been removed, where you get to go down steep dirt paths to a crossing and then back up. Apart from some road crossings early on, these are the only slightly difficult parts.
Roche Cove, east of Sooke
Signage is pretty lame, particularly at the road crossings. Fortunately, after 15 miles or so these crossings peter out. Sooke is a good spot to turn around; the road into town has a wide shoulder and they have lots of fast food, better food, and grocery stores. I had a 'Thanksgiving' sandwich and soup at a cafe (Canadian Thanksgiving is basically what they did with Columbus Day).
Farmland before you hit the provincial park
Views are suburban, then exurban, then forests (it runs through a couple provincial parks) and seashore. At one sunny spot I stopped to take a picture of the bay and discovered a sea lion swimming below me. Tourist brochures talk about the possibility of bear sightings, which I believe, but it's hard to take them seriously in the first 15 miles or so when every half mile you meet someone walking their dog. I imagine the part I skipped heading up the Sooke River is more bear-prone.
Sea lion, in Sooke Basin.
Victoria is pretty nice and bikeable. If you have trouble getting cell service, my advice is to pony up either for a drink at the Bengal Room at the Empress, or admission to the Royal BC Museum. Both these are worth the money, and you will also get a password for wifi that you can use for the rest of your visit (at this point: empress1908). 90% of your tourist time will be within a few blocks of these two points, and both have nice benches you can chill at for a while.
Double rainbow back in Victoria.
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Joined: 15 Aug 2006
Posts: 2666
Location: No Fun Town, USA
