B.C. Here I Come!

Hi everyone!  Sorry about the late post today, but I didn't get a chance to make a post this morning, and then ended up at work late.  Hopefully it's better late than never!

The big news this week is that I'm officially going to British Columbia next month!  I'm really excited to go see all my family out that way as it's been a very long time.  I'm also managing to get a visit with a friend in the fine State of Washington while I'm out West, since it's not every day that I find myself in that neighbourhood.  That adds a ton of excitement to an already awesome trip!

Here's the game plan:

I leave Toronto on September 8th bound for Vancouver.  I'll transfer there onto a quick flight to Portland, Oregon.  For those of you wondering why I'm flying to Oregon, my friend Debbie lives in Vancouver, Washington, which is right across the Columbia River from Portland.  I'll be staying in Portland just out of convenience sake... haven't booked a hotel yet, but there are lots of decent options between the airport and the border with Washington.  I should arrive mid-afternoon local time, but I'm not sure how much thirst for adventure I'll have after that day of travel.  Still, I'll have just short of a half-day to begin my trip, and hopefully I'll be able to make something of it because I'll only have two full days following that.  The hope is to just spend so quality time with friends, and with any luck drive up to Mt. St. Helens to admire the site of Nature's wrath.  Other than that VERY loose plan I'm probably going to be playing things by ear a little bit.

Early morning Saturday (the 11th) I'll be departing Portland, once again transitioning through Vancouver (B.C.) and making my way to Victoria.  I'll have a full week on the Island as I won't be heading back to Toronto until the following Saturday.  At this point I don't have any real concrete plans for what I'll be doing on the Island, but I've certainly got a head full of half-formed ideas.  When I was but a wee lad I spent a good amount of time out on the Island and I'm looking to re-visit some of my old haunts.  The sights that really stand out in my mind from those days are the Nanaimo River just for some good swimming, Cathedral Grove for some good hiking amongst HUGE trees, and just some monumental hikes along the coastline of that fair island.  Beyond that it will just be great to spend some time with my B.C.-based family and chill out for a week.

Of course, this is me we're talking about, so I've already started looking into alternate means of getting myself into trouble.  The fine people at http://www.cyclebc.ca/ will, I understand, be so kind as to rent me a motorcycle for a couple days.  I'm not sure if that will work out logistically yet, but it's certainly a consideration.  I haven't had the opportunity yet to ride through the kind of winding, mountainous terrain that the Island could offer, and I think it would be a phenomenal experience.  Also, I think it could do a lot to help inform me in regards to my next motorcycle purchase, even though I suspect that such an event is still far in the future.  Still, I've been checking out some of the larger, more touring-capable bikes out there, and renting something like a Suzuki V-Strom 650, or even their GS 500 would give me experience of a larger bike, and let me know if that style of machine is really what I want for my next ride.

I can be certain that my loosely-formed plans will begin to take shape as the next couple weeks pass by, and I'll keep you all posted on what my intentions for this mighty vacation are.  For the most part though, I think we might just have to wait and see what I end up doing while I'm out there!  It makes for more exciting blogging that way anyway.