Day 11, aka August 6, 2019, was largely a travel day aimed at getting us a day closer to Vancouver Island via Whistler and the scenic Sea to Sky Highway.
We were going from Vernon through Kamloops, Lillooet, and Pemberton. That route took us through some new geography. The environment became very much like that around Drumheller, very dry with scruffy grass and rolling hills.
We eventually got close to Lillooet where things got interesting, both approaching and after the little town. The highlight was Highway 99, a road that, by its shape on the map, held a lot of promise. It did not disappoint.
Huge elevation changes, long straights, tight hairpins, and great views… it had it all. If you’re in that part of country and you love driving cars, I strongly recommend you do it.
The fun was ruined by the seemingly endless fleet of rental RV drivers. Not only are these things cumbersome and slow on roads like these, but in the hands of inexperienced pilots, they are downright brutal to share the road with. Thankfully, Katja makes overtaking a painless experience, even in 29C to 32C weather.
We eventually landed in Whistler where we discovered that this place isn’t actually a municipality, it’s a resort. Essentially, a bigger, badder, Mont-Tremblant-esque fantasy. We were a bit disappointed about that, but it was still a nice place to hang out for an evening and enjoy some food and drink.
The mountain bikers made me nostalgic for days gone by when we used to rip around Gatineau Park every weekend on our bikes, fully rigid dinosaurs compared to the modern, highly specialized breed of dual squishy rigs.
We also spent some time in the hotel hot tub, where we chatted with a couple from Belleville who left Ottawa on July 27, flew to Calgary, drove to Tofino and were now on their way back to Calgary. We compared notes and they gave us some tips for the ride to Nanaimo.
How’s that for foreshadowing?
One thought on “Day 11 Report”
Comments are closed.