Vancouver Island Bicycle Tour

Most of the mountain biking is centred around Mt. Geoffrey Regional Nature Park. A trail map is available at the Hornby Island Off-Road Bicycle Shop for a $1 donation. The bike shop can also give advice on which trails to ride if you are unfortunate enough to not have time to ride them all. The trails are well-maintained and mostly intermediate level. Many of the trails extend onto private property, but these aren't on the map so plan on getting lost if you explore these. The trail with the best view is the Cliff Trail. We parked at the Slade Entrance, cycled up an old railroad grade called the Northwind, then up a steep climb on a trail called Lox's Bagel. This trail takes you up to the Cliff trail which traverses a steep bluff with fantastic views of Denman Island and the snow-peaked mountains of Vancouver Island. Note that the trail is hazardous in some sections so pay attention! At the end of the Cliff Trail you can descend back down on either Toad's Ride or 4 Dead Aliens, both are excellent. We stayed 5 days on the island which is probably a good amount of time if you want to explore most of the trails.

My brother Bernie had to return to work, so he dropped us at the ferry terminal, and we loaded up our bikes and started cycling North up Vancouver Island. The highway follows the East Coast of the island and is pretty gentle cycling, with nice views of the Strait of Georgia and its islands. The route goes through the towns of Courtney-Comox, which is a good place to get supplies. As you approach Campbell River there are more fantastic views across the strait to the Coastal Mountains of mainland Canada.

Campbell River is another good place to stock up on supplies. From here we turned left and headed up Hwy 28 to Gold River. The highway parallels the Elk River and is reckoned to be one of the steeper climbs on the island, with gradients of 12% at times. Most of the highway is lacking shoulders, but it is very scenic, especially as you near the top and cycle through Strathcona Park and along Campbell Lake. There are black bears in the area so it is important to keep a clean campsite. Vancouver Island is also home to the densest population of cougars in North America. There are quite a few free-camping opportunities and also some good mountain bike trails in the area around Campbell River. Logging trucks go up and down the highway at all hours though, so try to get off the road a ways if you want a good nights sleep. There is also camping at Elk River Provincial Park and at a private RV park a few K's further up the road. Before Campbell Lake there is a dirt logging road off to the right that parralels the highway and supposedly goes all the way to Gold River. We followed it for a ways and it was quite nice.

The descent to Gold River is good fun, and the visitors info centre is very helpful in providing maps and other info. Jody had broken her rear derailler cable coming down from the pass, so our first point of call was Trails End Cycle, where we organised with Jerry Cummings to have the cable replaced first thing in the morning. Jerry is the owner and head mechanic of Trails End Cycle, and I had been in communication with him over the internet while we were still in Australia regarding mountain biking opportunities in the Gold River area. So it was good to meet him and his wife Kathy in person. Jerry was just heading out for a ride with his friend Jack, but took a few minutes to assure us that there was some great mountain biking in the area and that he would be happy to show us around. Jack was from Eastern Canada, but flew over every year or so to visit his daughter and ride the mountain bike trails around Gold River. Jerry told us there was a campground, Peppercorn Campground and RV Park , just across the road, so we headed over to check in. Jerry said he would have coffee on at 9:00 the next morning and that we were welcome to drop by.

We were greeted at the reception desk by a young lady named Kate, who asked us all kinds of questions about our bikes and the trip. She explained that she was also a keen mountain biker, and that we should get together for a ride the next day. "No worries mate", we said, and organised a ride for the following day during her lunch break. Kate and her husband, Graham, had recently bought the campground and had done a heap of work on it. It was a great place to stay, and there was a nice tenting area in the back away from the RV's. There is room for about 5-6 tents. The showers were hot (and clean) and we were within walking distance of the town centre. We would do quite a bit of riding with Graham, Kate, Jerry, and Jack over the next few days.

We stayed at Gold River for 5 days, riding some of the legendary (to locals) and epic mountain bike trails. Recently the mill at Gold River had closed down and the town is trying to re-invent itself as a mountain biking destination. On our way up the trails we would meet many of the local townspeople, formerly millworkers, who had been recruited by the Forest Service to build mountain bike trails. It was quite exciting, and Gold River is a great mountain biking destination. It is surrounded by rugged snow-peaked mountains, and there are forest servive roads and singletrack trails that will take you all over the area. There are beautiful alpine lakes and great views of epic valleys. You will see some of this in the photos, but its not the same as being there.

Very few people know about Gold River, so there are not many tourists (yet!) and the locals are friendly by nature. During our visit we developed the routine I had dreamed about for this trip. Every morning, Jerry and Kathy would have us over for morning coffee, and we would talk about mountain biking until late in the morning. We would also watch the Tour De France which Kathy's mother had taped for us the night before. Then we would head off and ride the trails all day with Jerry, Kate, and Graham, finishing in time for a late dinner and beers with Jerry and Kathy. We also got to listen to their music collection featuring talented but lesser known muscians from different parts of Canada and also some from Australia. On one night Kate and Graham took us to a local restaurant for dinner.

The trails around Gold River are mostly advanced level, although there are plenty of intermediate level trails and fire roads to ride too. There is also a fair share of "North-shore B.C." type riding with steep climbs, steeper descents, gnarly roots, and huge drop-offs. At the time of our visit, there was not a trail map available. This isn't a problem though, just call into Trails End cycle and ask Jerry where to ride. He knows the trails like the back of his hand and has been involved in building most of them. Kate and Graham at the Peppercorn Campground and RV Park are another good source of info.

Jody had a bit of bad luck on one of our rides. She got a stick caught in her rear derailler, which did quite a bit of damage; damaging the derailler, bending the derailler hanger, stripping the derailler hanger threads, and pulling about 4 spokes right out of the rim. Obviously we weren't going anywhere real soon and we were glad there was a bike shop nearby. Jerry generously donated the parts and labour (which were both substantial) to get us back on the road. He also donated a 6 month supply of his house brand chain lube, Black Satin. We found this lube to be noticeably better than other lubes we had tried, especially in wet weather.

Although we could have stayed for ages, eventually we had to hit the road, and we were excited about riding a logging road that went North about 80 K up the island to the small logging town of Woss. We saw the road on our map, but hadn't got any info on its suitability for cycling. After asking around in Gold River, we decided to give it a go. The road is absolutely beautiful and turned out to be perfect for off-road bicycle touring. There are a great views of the mountains, and the road crosses a few rushing rivers along the way. There is some logging truck traffic along the route, but they are the most considerate logging trucks we have ever met. Most times the trucks would come to a complete stop until we went by. They would always wave, and one trucker even slowed to a stop and said, "Sorry about the dust" as we cycled past him. Amazing! Toward the end of the road we surprised a herd of Roosevelt Elk hanging out on the road.

The town of Woss is tiny but there is a store and a pub. There is also a free primitive campground just before you reach the township. You'll see signs for it as you ride in. We stocked up on supplies and found a nice spot to free-camp right next to a lake after riding about 1/2 K up an abandoned road off the highway. At this point we were still nervous about using designated campsites because of the bears. The next day we rode up the highway through Port McNeill to the town of Port Hardy on the very Northern tip of Vancouver Island. This part of the island is very heavily logged, and there is very little traffic. The terrain is mountainous, but the road goes through a valley and the cycling is mostly gently rolling. A few stretches are undergoing construction and are temporarily unsealed. I enjoyed this part of the tour, but some people we met were turned off by the occassional clear cuts you can see from the highway.

Although the ferry is advertised as departing from Port Hardy, it actually departs from Bear Cove, which is about 5 K away. It is highly recommended to cycle the extra distance into Port Hardy to get supplies as food on the ferry is very expensive, and the campground at Bear Cove only has limited supplies (mostly canned stuff). The campground is nice though - the location is right on the bay in a heavily forested area with eagles flying overhead and many international backpackers waiting for the ferry, which runs approximately every other day during the summer. It is also one of the best-value campgrounds you will find anywhere - we paid $4.60 (CDN) for 2 people. For that we got a good picnic table, hot showers, a good tentsite, and great views of the bay. Set your alarm as the ferry leaves early. It is about a 3 K cycle from the campground to the ferry terminal, mostly downhill...