Ferries Mess Everything Up

Day 6: Ladysmith to Gulf Islands National Park Reserve: McDonald Campground

Today's Distance: 31 miles

Total Distance: 225 miles

I had ambitious plans today.  The BC Ferry system (and one Washington State Ferry) have proved to put a kink in my plans multiple times. I feel like they should be working around my schedule, but I guess they don't really care that I'm trying to bike through part of one country and 3 states.  Since I didn't make it across yesterday to my original destination (Sidney), that means in order to not lose a day I would need to go 33 miles, and get on 2 ferries, all before catching another ferry to Anacortes. The only issue is that the ferry from Sidney to Anacortes only runs once a day this time of year and it leaves at 12:05. I'll finally be heading back into the US which means I need to arrive about an hour early to go through customs.  I mapped out the ferry schedule and basically I'd need to be on the road at 6am riding hard to catch one ferry and then once on Saltspring Island I would need to ride even harder to catch a 9:50am ferry to make it to Sidney in time to go through customs. You get all that?  Well, it doesn't matter because when my alarm woke me at 5:30am I realized that sunrise isn't until 7:10am, which would mean I would be riding on Highway 1 in the dark and that was the whole point in not doing all this yesterday.  I thought the sun rose when I decided to wake up?  Guess not.  Damn Ferries and their stinkin' schedules.    

So what that means for me is that I'm stuck in Canada for one more day.  Not that I have anything against Canada, it's been lovely, I just want to feel like I'm making progress.  I'm not one of those people who does a marathon or a triathlon and is just happy to finish. Even if you walk it the whole time eventually you'll finish. No, I like the challenge of pushing myself and finishing as best as I can and hopefully better than the next guy.  I can't help it, I'm competitive.  Regardless, I'm here for an extra day and I'm gonna make the most of it. So after sleeping in awhile longer, I was off and headed towards Crofton.  Lots of unexpected climbing this morning and there were tons of lumber trucks on the way.  Eventually I rode past a huge lumber mill right before the ferry to Saltspring Island.  It was hard to look at that mill and not think about how much we're destroying the planet, but that's for another blog.

On Saltspring Island, I got off the ferry and let all the cars pass because it was a narrow road. It's a roller coaster ride on the island and as I got going cars just kept coming out of nowhere.  I literally waited for every car on the ferry to pass...where the hell are they even coming from?  I started to get pissed at my guidebook because they said the island was fun to ride on and the traffic is sparse... I don't like being lied to. My knee was still hurting and I felt like I was even losing speed going downhill.  Isn't that against the laws of physics?  A "Honey, I Shrunk The Kids", Wayne Szalinski looking guy cruised on by me on his electric scooter and I wanted to push him over.  In came the negative thoughts again so I stopped to have lunch. I connected to wifi and received this text from my bud Danne'.

He once rode a motorcycle from California to Argentina and has experienced these feelings before I'm sure, so he's been encouraging all along the way. Perfect timing my friend. I got out of my own head, adjusted my seat height to see if it would help relieve the knee pain and I was off again. 

Saltspring Island seems to be full of what I can only explain as steampunk/vagabond/backpacker/bad jugglers/bad musicians. Their terrible entertainment provided a laugh while on my way to catch the ferry at Fulford Harbor.  I passed several wineries and craft beer tasting rooms and the only reason I didn't stop is because I would've missed another ferry and didn't want to be setting up camp in the dark again.  I took the wrong exit and ended up in someone's yard and I pushed my bike uphill through dirt, rocks, and bushes to make it to the ferry with one minute to spare.  Got off that Ferry in Victoria and rode a couple miles to the McDonald Campground where it was just an RV and myself again.  The campgrounds looked brand new and clean and it wasn't as scary this time because there is a park next door where I can hear kids at their soccer practice.  I set up camp, skipped making dinner, and am in bed by 9pm.  Back to the States tomorrow!

What Did I Learn Today?

•The only person who can hold me back is me.