I spent a couple of days at a friend's cottage near Gibsons, on the Sunshine Coast. It is an area just north of Vancouver but you can't drive there because of the mountains and other rocky terrain. The only way to get there is by taking a ferry from Horseshoe Bay (near Vancouver). It is about a 40 minute ferry ride.
On Saturday, we went for a very nice bicycle ride. The weather was sunny and it was fairly warm outside. Unlike scootering, I rarely get cold when cycling because I create my own heat, so to speak.
We first made to 2 km from my friend, Randy's place to the town of Gibsons. It is a little town of about 5000 people that became very popular because of a long running -Canadian TV show called the Beachcombers. Molly's Reach was one of the main locales in the series and serves a nice pint, too, if I recall previous trips.
We took the lower road which more or less runs parallel to the highway. There were a number of stops along the way to take photos. The sun was very cooperative and the views of the ocean made me feel very good inside. We didn't push really hard as it was my first bigger ride of the year so there was lots of time to chat and joke as we rode.
The lower road ended at a beach just shy of Roberts Creek. We then pushed our bikes along the beach, no easy task, for maybe 20 or 30 minutes. It was pretty hard work. We then connected up with a trail covered in roots where we had to carry our bikes until we got up to the road. In the photo, you can see our tire tracks in the sand.
In Roberts Creek, we stopped at the Gumboot Cafe for a coffee and a snack. I had a samosa with tasty homemade chutney.
We continued on to our destination, Sechelt, which is a bigger town of about 10 000 people. We stopped at a park on the beach there and had a nice break, admiring the view. While in the park, I took Randy's bike for a ride. He has a "Bike Friday" which is a folding bike. He has taken it several times to Europe and really likes the mobility it gives him. Not a bad ride, either.
We then headed towards home, stopping at Davis Landing for a drink before we pushed it a bit on the highway back to Gibsons.
It was about a 50 km ride which was definitely long enough for me for a first ride of the year. Back in Gibsons, we headed into Gramma's pub and tucked into a well deserved halibut and chips with a frosty beverage, also well deserved!
1 comment:
That was quite a trip and thanks for sharing it with us. The water and the countryside is beautiful up there. And we envy you all the ferry rides you get to go on in your area. 50 km is a bit much for a first ride of the year. Would not want to be "you" the next day. Just walking in the beach sand in a struggle so pushing a bike too had to be a challenge. Great workout!
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