Heading to Campbell River
After a long ferry journey from Prince Rupert yesterday I woke a bit later than normal to catch-up on some much needed sleep. My hotel was approximately 10 miles from Port Hardy and overlooked a small busy harbor, which also provided the venue for breakfast.
After filling up on coffee and pancakes it was time load up the bike and head for Campbell River. The main road was very quiet, and the miles tumbled by as I sped along the beautiful tree lined roads. I was also very fortunate with the weather being warm with plenty of sunshine.
During a brief rest stop I was fortunate enough to get chatting to another motorcyclist on a journey across the island before heading back to Castlegar on the mainland. Yanive was riding a Harley Davidson and staying at campsites, and was following similar route, so we decided to ride to together until we split up towards the Campbell River city limits.
I arrived at my hotel in the late afternoon, and settled down for a late lunch at the nearby pub. I was also fortunate to have a lovely view overlooking the ocean. After lunch I rode in to town to secure a ticket for a whale watching trip the following day.
Today was a rest day from riding and I was looking forward to my day trip whale watching. The group was collected early by minibus from the tour office, and arrived at a picturesque jetty after a 1 hour drive.
The tour guide and boat captain were young and enthusiastic, and provided plenty of helpful information as we boarded the boat and headed out to the main observation area. The sea was a bit choppy in places but the sights that awaited us was worth the discomfort.
We spent the next few hours watching killer whales, dolphins and humpback whales breaching the surface. I’d never seen killer whales and dolphins in the wild and found it to be an amazing experience seeing these animals in their natural environment.
It felt all too soon that we were heading back to shore as the sun started to disappear behind the mountains, as we reflected on an amazing day and the good fortune to see these amazing animals.
Upon arriving back at my hotel I had a chance to reflect on the day over dinner at the local pub and how lucky I felt to be alive on this day in this part of the world.