POWELL RIVER

DAY 90

SATURDAY 2 JULY 2016

COURTENAY – POWELL RIVER

1030 - 2045

12.13 km (7.54 miles)

Av. Speed: 14 km/h (8.7 mph)

Max. Speed: 52.9 km/h (32.9 mph)

Time On Bike: 51m 51s

All I really had to do today was wake up, get my shit together and ride 9km over the hill to Comox for the ferry crossing to Powell River and somehow, this took about 10 hours from door to door.

To be fair, 8 hours of this was spent waiting for the ferry to depart.

At least Courtenay had the public library open until 6 pm so I was able to while away the day quite successfully.

It all just seemed a little ridiculous though and ended up making for a pretty long day.

I guess it was my fault in the first place for assuming there would only be 2 – 3 hours at the most between ferries on a long weekend in the middle of summer, but they prefer to run them 8 hours apart apparently and from what I’ve been told, I was maybe lucky to be able to get the 7 pm service as I did.

BC Ferries currently operate under an ongoing veil of threats to discontinue regular services in all parts of their jurisdiction and it would seem that some of the crossings I’ve taken already may or may not be running this time next year.

To a degree, it’s all familiar noise in these economic times but no less exasperating and nonsensical to the paying customer who, I would have thought are the ones that keep the boats afloat in the first place.

DAY 91

SUNDAY 3 JULY 2016

POWELL RIVER

Although I’d been a late arrival in Powell River the previous evening, I’d kind of taken a liking to the place already.

The 90-minute ferry crossing on the "Queen of Burnaby", for a start was easily the most comfortable and relaxing of any so far.

The spacious cabin and big fat seats throughout the vessel lent a first-class feel to the occasion.

CROSSING TO POWELL RIVER ON THE QUEEN OF BURNABY

Staking out in the Courtenay Public Library for most of the day had worked up something of an appetite and rather than run the proverbial gauntlet in Powell River later on for an eating house to be keeping long hours, I decided to jump into some ferry food in situ.

For $14-something, I’ve certainly had worse and it also provided an opportunity to sample my first Poutine, which is something of a Canadian specialty I’m told.

With nothing else to compare it to, the dish mostly qualifies as an “appetizer” or “side” and consists of gravy-covered fries with a bunch of cheese curds sorted into the mix.

It was a suitable enough accompaniment to the cheeseburger and iced tea that I washed it down with.

When the ferry eventually docked just after 8.30, it was extremely good to know that the accommodation I had booked for 2 nights was only 100 meters from the terminal.

THIS WAS THE SCENE ON ARRIVAL IN POWELL RIVER

THE POWELL RIVER HOSTEL

So within 20 minutes of arrival, I was sitting up on the deck of the Powell River Hostel watching the sun set over the Malaspina Strait and after a short jog up the road to find an open Liquor House , I also had a cold local beer in my hand to enhance the experience.

In spite of a rock band firing up in the pub just behind us, my feeling was this was a quieter and much more relaxed part of the world than where I had just come from.

I’d left Vancouver Island very much with the sense that either I’d not seen the best of it or else it was just a little over-rated.

A little too early to call perhaps, but arriving in Powell River was at least giving me some perspective.

Taking a day off in Powell River involved all of the usual day off things – a nice, Sunday morning lie-in followed by a load of laundry specifically.

Once these very important items were taken care of, the rest of the day was mine to do with what I wanted.

As is my wont, I decided to go for a wander on such a fine day and take in my new surroundings.

Initially, a bite to eat beckoned at the hour of which there was no shortage of options.

For the rest of the afternoon, I took to the Willingdon Coastal Trail which gives great access to Powell River’s multiple miles of direct water frontage and also leads north towards the historical precinct known as “Townsite”.

Townsite is the former residential area which provided accommodation and services to employees of the paper mill.

The mill itself is still in operation but has been scaled down significantly over time along with the logging industry which traditionally supplied it.

Townsite is now a bit of a weird mix of ghost town, functional service centre and tourist attraction with the unsightly paper mill as its facade, perpetually belching its pungent output all over Townsite and the surrounding area.

PATRICIA THEATER @ TOWNSITE, ALLEGEDLY THE OLDEST OPERATING CINEMA HOUSE IN BC

THE OLD COURTHOUSE INN, TOWNSITE

MCKINNEY'S 1911 HISTORIC PUB IN TOWNSITE

I happened to notice that Sunday evening was buffet night at the Royal Zayka curry house so I just had to stop in to take advantage.

It really was a feast of colourful proportions and with the Townsite Brewery open across the road until 8.30, I would be dropping by for some take-outs before walking off the intake for 5 kilometers back to town.

THE ROYAL ZAYKA SUNDAY BUFFET WAS A RIGHT ROYAL WINNER

Timing is often everything and I like it best when I'm able to time my presence to take in the best parts of the day.

Arriving back in town around 8.20 with a beer in my bag and a wonderful sunset cooking up in the near distance, I hit the hostel deck once again and treated myself to the best Powell River had to offer.

QUITE AN AWESOME LITTLE SPOT, POWELL RIVER