The final day of all good adventures must eventually come,
but it is always nice when that particular day starts with shining sun. To
begin with I had a leisurely breakfast of noodle soup (the only edible thing
left in the “For share” shelf at the kitchen) and coffee in the veranda of my
lonely hostel, and then packed for my last ride. I had about 125 km to go to
the ferry terminal, so I figured that leaving at 8 am should get me to Nanaimo around 11 am.
The ride to the ferry terminal was an almost zen experience,
with the sun rays piercing through the dancing foliage. The air temperature was
quite low, so when I went through a shady portion of the road I could feel the
bite of the cold air, but as soon as I came unto sunlight the air became
pleasant. I ended stopping quite a few times to take photographs because the
morning light was simply perfect (it may have helped that I was listening to The Education of Little Tree by
Forrester Carter, which is one of my favorite books).
By the time I approached Nanaimo , at about 11 am, I saw a big
electronic board announcing the departure of the ferry at 12:30, so I actually
had time to stop at a supermarket and buy a sandwich for the ferry crossing. We
loaded without problems, and for the next couple of hours I dozed on a front
row seat (the crossing, alas, is across open water and not navigating between
islands, so the landscape—albeit impressive—does not change that often.
After landing at Horseshoe
Bay I still had another 25 km or so,
and a bridge to cross, to get to Vancouver .
Once there I scootered once around Stanley Park (for old times sake), and then
followed the waterfront all the way to Main Street, and from there a few blocks
to Cycle BC Rentals and the formal end of my trip. It was about 4 pm, so I had
plenty of time to get to the train station, six blocks away, for my 5:45 pm
train to Bellingham .
And so ends this little adventure. All things considered
Lady Luck smiled on me with good weather, good people, and a beautiful country.
I have no complaints, no regrets, and much to be thankful for.
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