Date:         Mon, 15 Jul 1996 16:43:07 PDT
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Shawn Wright" <VWNUT@smus.bc.ca>
Subject:      Re: canadian road trip

On 15 Jul 96 at 1:29, Rick Gordon wrote:

> Warning: the only VW content here is that I'm planning on driving it!
> 
> Anyway, I've been thinking about a road trip, I have about 12 days, and I'm
> thinking about either:
> 1) going up to Vancouver Island, driving out to Tofino, then back to the
> east shore and working my way north to Pt Hardy. Maybe then swing back to
> Comox, over to Powell River via ferry, then down the coast.
I'd take the island choice, but I'm a little biased since I grew up 
here. Unfortunately, the island is not quite as remote as it was, 
but it's still not as busy as the Okanagan trip. Depending on how 
you like to camp, there are lots of ways to avoid the crowds. In the 
summer I prefer logging roads, many of which have BC Forest service 
campsites for free. Long Beach is very busy in the summer - there is 
now a info booth at the start of the coast hwy where you can stop 
and check for available sites, they will phone for you & reserve. On 
weekends it will be near impossible to get a site near Tofino unless 
you reserve before leaving.
If you don't mind backroads, however, you can avoid the crowds and 
still see Long Beach during the day while camping nearby. If your
interested in trying the backroads, I'd suggest picking up the free 
Govt maps in Victoria at the Min of Environment office on Govt St. 
They show most passable roads and indicate developed camping areas.
You can also try the BC Parks, which are among the best govt 
campsites around imho. They have a reservation system and tollfree 
line also. (don't have it at the moment - let me know if you want it).
Most are booked on weekends, but you can usually get a site during 
the week. 
As for weather, the east coast of the island is about the same as 
Seattle (with less rain ;), but the west coast *can* be very wet, ie: 
Tofino gets over 200" of rain /yr, Cowichan valley is less than 40". 
We've had temps in the 80-100 range for a week or so now. 

> 2) out to Eastern Washington, up 97 through Omak, crossing into Canada then
> up into Penticton, Kelowna, then maybe heading east to Revelstoke and
> perhaps even seeing how close I can make it to Lake Louise ( while still
> leaving enough time to get back, I figure 3 long days Lake Louise to
> Vancouver.)
Also a very nice trip, although especially off the main roads.
Expect a *ton* of people at Lake Louise at this time of the year. I 
think the hwy from Lake Louise south is more enjoyable actually 
(going along the border). 

> So, never having been in either of these areas before I'm wondering what to
> expect in the way of towns, road conditions/congestion, camping
> availability,
> overall pleasantness at this time of year. Any detours, suggestions,
> warnings, etc would be most welcome.
> 
> Oh, just out of curiousity - anyone know what kind of condition the road
> between Bella Coola and Williams Lake is? From the maps I've seen, it
> appears to to 150+ miles of gravel, I'm just wondering if that's true or my
> maps are out of date?
I believe it is gravel, but I've never done it myself.
 
 Shawn
'88 Westy 332k (Kyra)
'85 Jetta TD 350k (Jenni)