The Bicycle Adventure Club - Come Ride With Us!

Vancouver, Whistler and the British Columbia Coast

September 1st to September 12th

Ride Director: Linda Taunton
Ride Co-Director: Gerry Taunton
Ride Driver: Ash Abhyankar
Report by: Ed Browne

Twenty six of us joined Linda and Gerry for a dozen days of adventure, of friends leading friends on rides. Most riders were from all across the U.S. and our group was diverse with couples, singles, long-time friends, and first time members. We typically joined at some great lunch spots such as at Fanny Bay where the fish and chips were made with Red Snapper—delicious; there was plenty of fresh seafood choices at both lunch and dinner—I recommend you take advantage.

This tour explored some wonderful towns, staying in very nice accommodations, most of which were resorts, with fantastic vistas of British Columbia. Making the Pinnacle at the Pier in North Vancouver the place to start and finish was a great location in many ways. Another favorite was staying at the two places along the Sea-to-Sky corridor to Whistler, but the crown jewel was the Painted Boat Resort in Madeira Park. At nearly every stop people said “I could just stay here for a long while”—we’ll be going back. The staff at all hotels were most accommodating, but particularly at the Qualicum Beach Inn on Vancouver Island.

Seeing the many and spectacular waterfalls was a group favorite.

One of those "Best Night Ever!" evenings came early on with (as usual for Linda and Gerry) a 1st Class Happy Hour and then a fabulous dinner of local cuisine at their home, including live local music by Qristina Bachand and Charlie.

We got a special treat coming down from Whistler; we got to see a bicycle race. There was a GranFondo race up the opposite side of the highway so we got to see them all plus a bonus--half the highway was closed. While we had ridden up the course on two previous days, this was a one day 76 mile race along the stunning Sea-to-Sky corridor from Vancouver to Whistler.

There are many aspects of touring, and Linda planned for all of them e.g. there were several strategically planned opportunities with laundry right in the rooms--most convenient. Additionally due to her attention to detail and follow up, all the rooms were nearly always ready upon arrival, so nice when all you want is a shower and a chance to relax!

Cue sheets were spot on and the GPS guidance worked well. Of note there were only 16 total flats; black berry vines along the edges of the roads and trails were the culprits—avoiding them avoided any further flats.

All enjoyed making and hearing of animal sightings, bears at a safe distance, and everyone saw a pair of humpback whales during one of our ferry rides. After first hearing their chorus, we saw a large herd of sea lions; we also saw deer with fawns, alpacas, horses and cattle. OBW the BC wildlife must be intelligent-no roadkill.

As a car buff I have to mention that south BC has as many if not more exotic cars as any town I’ve been to.

The four ferries were timed well; the total cost was around $35 US; these ferries were nice respites from biking and good for sightseeing.

We had typical BC weather and although there was some rain, it didn’t fall while we rode our 361 miles and climbed our 29,450 feet; note that’s higher than Mount Everest, but it was all doable as scripted.

This was our third trip in a row to Canada, our first trip to the BC, and as before the Canadians were ALL gracious friendly, hosts.