Welcome To Vancouver

After nearly 5,600 km and more than 275 hours on the saddle, I woke up today with the realization that the end was near. VERY near. But not in an ominous way. If all went well I would be spending tonight in Vancouver. As the the title of this update would indicate, all went well.

The ride from Mission to Vancouver is only 80 km. Despite my desire to get to Vancouver, the relatively short distance removed any strong sense of urgency to get moving. Gary suggested I take a more scenic route along Dewdney Trunk Road where I could stop for breakfast at a small restaurant about 15 km along the way. Again, considering the short distance to Vancouver, the scenic route seemed like a good idea. So, the plan was set. I set out on my bike towards Dewdney Trunk Road and Gary would follow a bit later in his car. We would meet up the road at Hotties Emporio.

I say “up the road” but there really should be more emphasis on the word “UP”. Scenic routes are frequently synonymous with hilly routes and this route was no exception. From Gary’s place, it took only a couple of minutes to reach Cedar St. where the first climb began. No, it wasn’t on par with the climbs on my way out of Princeton but it was definitely a notable climb and certainly got my heart pumping. The climbing continued once I reached Dewdney Trunk Road but remarkably the climbs were not the most challenging part of the ride. It was the descents. There were only a couple of them but they included multiple 180 degree turns. Did I mention the roads were wet? Well, the roads were wet. Wet roads, steep descents, and 180 degree turns can more than a little challenging for a cyclist who doesn’t have disc brakes. I don’t have disc brakes.

With gravity doing its best to send me into oblivion, my brakes took more than a little abuse this morning. In fact, they may have been used more this morning than over the entire trip combined – with the possible exception of the big hill in Medicine Hat. The one with a stop sign at the bottom. Fortunately, my brakes won out and, after about an hour of pedalling, I eventually arrived at Hotties Emporio. It was definitely worth the trip. Gary had passed me along the way and was enjoying a coffee when I arrived.

Upon my arrival, I met Alessandro who was very interested in my travels and was eager to feed me to prepare me for today’s journey. I don’t have an official ranking system for omelettes but the one I was served was definitely one of the best I’ve ever had. Hotties Emporio is a family owned restaurant specializing in Italian fare and based on the quality of the omelette I can only imagine how good their pasta must be. Thanks so much to Alessandro and everyone at Hotties Emporio.

By 11:00 it was time to start my final push for Vancouver. I was now only 65 km away and the lack of urgency I felt earlier this morning had disappeared and I was becoming more and more eager to get to the coast.

The next 20 km or so to Port Coquitlam went by relatively easily although I think the excitement of my pending arrival in Vancouver made time go more slowly than I would’ve liked. And time didn’t go any faster over the final 35 km. At times it went even more slowly although it had little to do with excitement.

My arrival in Port Coquitlam pretty much ended the more rural aspect of my cross country trek. Gone were the long stretches of open road and I now found myself readjusting to cycling in the city. The amount of traffic increased. As did the number of traffic lights. After 2.5 month on the road, my luck with traffic lights didn’t change as I still have the ability to hit red lights about 90% of the time. Yes, that’s just an estimate.

My ride slowed down even further as I made my way through Burnaby and, more specifically, where I used to live in the late 90s. I felt a nostalgic need to take a few photos of places I’d not seen for more than a few years.

With that mission accomplished, the only thing standing between me and my Warm Showers host in North Vancouver was about 10 km, a bridge, and one more climb. Considering what I’d accomplished so far, that sounded well within reason.

Crossing the Second Narrows bridge was uneventful as there is a separate path for cyclists and pedestrians. Generally I don’t really mind riding with traffic but considering how much traffic is on the bridge I was happy to see the isolated path. From there I had a rather significant climb on 3rd St. It was a climb I apparently could’ve avoided by taking the Low Level Road. What can I say, I’m a high road kind of guy.

At about 4:30 (PDT) I arrived at the home of Jan and Rick, my Warm Showers hosts. And with that arrival my tour to Vancouver was officially complete. Sadly, there was no “Welcome to Vancouver” sign along the way to help me commemorate the occasion but I was still very excited.

That said, it’s still a bit hard to believe that I’ve been on the road for nearly 2.5 months including 21.5 days in Ontario, 5 days in Manitoba, 8 days in Saskatchewan, 22 days in Alberta, 6 days in Philadelphia, and 13.5 days (and counting) in B.C. (Yes, I made a spreadsheet containing such information).

The ride has been everything I hoped it would be and more. There have been so many similarities and differences between this year’s ride and last year’s, but the biggest similarity is how amazing the entire experience has been. Of course, not being one to plan too far ahead, I’m not really sure what happens next. For now I’ll enjoy my two nights with Jan and Rick and work out the future over the next 48 hours.

As for Jan and Rick, they have been so incredibly welcoming and generous. After enjoying a bowl of homemade soup and a beer (or two), we headed over to Lynn Valley to watch a free concert before going for a beautiful walk which included the Lynn Valley Suspension Bridge. They’ve been a lot of fun to talk with and hang out with and I look forward to spending more time with them tomorrow. Jan has offered to take me up the gondola in Squamish tomorrow which I’m very much looking forward to doing. Beyond that, we’ll see what else tomorrow brings. Whatever it may be, I am SO happy to be in Vancouver again. Seriously. So happy.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 80.07 km
Ride time: 4:09:30
Average speed: 19.25 km/h
Maximum speed: 59.44 km/h

Kitchener to Vancouver totals:
Distance travelled: 5661.31 km
Ride time: 279:45:47
Average speed: 20.24 km/h
Maximum speed: 64.00 km/h
Cycling days: 54
Longest day: 173.29 km