Six years ago, my friend Jim and I did a road trip to Idaho, Wyoming and Montana before returning to British Columbia. During the ensuing years events occurred that kept us from doing any more road trips. But, this year, Covid-19 has receded somewhat, I have has my two boosters and Jim has taken care of business as well. So, now, in 2022, we have decided to relive our (relative) youth by doing another road trip through southern BC and other places that we haven't figured out. The big question is, 'Can we still do it?' I'm hoping the answer is yes.
I spent last evening putting everything together for the trip. With a different motorcycle things are different. I bought a Saddleman bike pack a couple of years ago but had not used it yet so this trip is a test run for that system. As I packed the bag I kept remembering things that I needed to add and by 11:00 p.m. I thought I had everything packed and went to bed. Wake up was scheduled for 4:30 a.m. with departure at 5:15.
On thing though. I always forget something even with my list. I kept running over things in my mind and came up with several items tom add to the list. At 2:00 a.m. I remembered that I had promised to bring a pad for Jim's side stand, so Up and to the garage I went. After a short search I found it. Last thing done I finally dropped off slightly before 2:30 a.m.
4:30 came very early but with a slight delay to fasten the pack to my Heritage Classic and was out the driveway at 5:17 a.m. only two minutes late. The ride to Nanaimo was easy but it was much cooler than I expected and by the time I pulled in to the Chevron station to refuel I was a bit chilled. The ride to the ferry was quite smooth, but when I arrived at 7:30 the ferry was already loading. I was directed to the lower deck at the stern but was happy to have made it. At that time I realized that I had forgotten to bring a bag of cherries for the ride. Good to have that out of the way.
Loaded Heritage on the Lower deck of the Coastal Renaissance
Lighthouse outside of Nanaimo harbour
The ride was uneventful and during the ride I spoke to a guy named Don who was interested in old cars. He told me about his 1958 Chevrolet Apache pickup truck and his 1973 Ford Mustang. It was obvious that he took a lot of joy from both vehicles. I told him about my bikes and for almost and hour we exchanged stories about the vehicles. He asked me about buying my Triumph Trident, but I quickly disabused him of that idea.
The crossing was very easy and I was off the ferry near the start of the unloading process. From there it was a run to Chilliwack. Traffic was heavy but at times we were rolling at the 100 kph speed limit then we would slow to 30 or 40 kph. It was frustrating but eventually things smoothed out and I made a brief stop for gas and a milkshake before getting back on the road. About 20 kilometres west of Hope, traffic slowed to a stop and go ordeal with top speeds under 15kph for more than 3 kilometres. Temperatures we in the high 20s and sitting on top of a 114 cubic inch engine wearing full leathers was not a pleasant experience.
I arrived at our meeting place at the Chevron station at 1:30 p.m., about five minutes after Jim. Great timing! We spent a little more than an hour at the White Spot just catching up before we headed to our room at the Swiss Chalet Motel. The place is rustic, but it has A/C, internet, two beds, and a television so we can watch the January 6th hearings. It will be a revelation to see how this situation is resolved, but I don't have great hopes. We shall see.
Tomorrow we will head east on Highway 3 to grand Forks, Castlegar, or some place in between. Time to find out if the two old guys can still put some serious kilometres on our Harleys.
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