June 7th, 2014 – Portland, OR, to Pemberton, BC ~410 miles
The next day, our primary goal was to get to the airport in Vancouver in time to pick up Vy, who was flying in from Los Angeles.
Almost immediately, we enjoyed an uneventful crossing into Washington – I thought they put a lot more effort into their sign that most other states I’ve seen, thanks to their recent anniversary.
When it comes to lunch and dinner, I always try to get a “locals-only” kind of meal, preferably with beer that I can’t find back in Los Angeles. But my theory about breakfast is that consistency is key, and that’s why I inevitably get a McMuffin, hash brown, and orange juice from McDonald’s for breakfast when I’m on the road. They’re everywhere, and they’re consistent, and I feel confident that I won’t have a stomachache that will ruin the next few hours of riding. (McDonald’s ad over)
Crossing the border into Canada. “Do you have over $10,000 in cash on you?” “I wish.”
You may have noticed earlier that the way my bike was loaded did not leave room for a passenger. Seeing as I was about to pick up the girlfriend, this presented a bit of a problem. We parked in the cell phone waiting lot and I shifted some luggage around. This finally yielded room on the back seat (and emptied the right pannier for my girlfriend’s stuff), but now my bike looked like it was the size of a small car.
The cell phone waiting lot allows for 30 minutes of free parking. We had cut it close, so once we got to the gate, I just found some empty space to split through. As a better citizen, Bui stopped at the gate, assuming that the attendant would take care of him. Instead, he got clocked at 31 minutes and was forced to pay an amount I can’t remember, though I remember it being way too much. I told him I’d mock him for this, but it hasn’t really happened yet.
Success! It’s the first time I’ve ever picked up someone from the airport on a motorcycle, and it was an interesting experience. Hopefully it won’t be the last.
Sea to Sky Highway – great winding road along beautiful scenery. Shame about the occasional sand in the road and the laughably low speed limits (though I’d soon learn that the latter was a problem endemic to all of Canada). In the corner you can see a local taking full advantage of the road. Update – apparently even British Columbia agrees, as they’ve recently announced that they’ll be increasing speed limits on the road.
Good news! I got a new phone. Bad news – because I lost my old phone to the highway gods because it flew out of my tankbag after I had connected it to the Sena headset via bluetooth. I never realized how much I needed a Sena until I borrowed Bui’s for this trip.
Within an hour of picking up Vy, we had spotted our first bear. I had told people that I’d be happy with the entire trip as long as I got to see one bear (relatively) up close. Took care of that goal early!
Once you spend some time 2-up on a bike with luggage, it feels like a rocket when it’s just you.
Pemberton is apparently famous for its potatoes. In fact, there’s a sign that greets you at the beginning of town saying you’re basically not allowed to even plant your own without permission, though I wasn’t able to get a photo of it. We found a motel run by a very pleasant Korean family, suffered through our first encounter with persistent mosquitoes, and called it a night.
Continue on to Day 5
June 8, 2014 – Pemberton, BC to Vanderhoof, BC ~435 miles
Go back to Day 3
June 6th, 2014 – Fort Bragg, CA to Portland, OR, ~550 miles