- Cycling & Cycle Touring, Gulf Islands and Sunshine Coast, Trip Reports, Trips with Kids, Vancouver Island
Discovery Islands Loop: Minimum Planning For the Win
Trust that things will work out, and they will. I’m an insatiable optimist, and that’s really my belief, but Maya and I sometimes disagree on this… Surely, COVID changes things? or does it? Could we still head out on an 11 day cycling trip with our two kids, without knowing where we would stay every night? Would Warm Showers hosts agree to host us, despite these difficult times…? I really believe that not booking accommodation in advance, and in general staying flexible and not planning too much, opens up our trips to new opportunities that present themselves. As you’ll see, this is exactly how it played out. Our trip started…
Cathedral Park: The Fairy Tale Lives On
If there was one trip I knew for sure I wanted us to do this summer, it was going to Cathedral Park. I remembered it being a magical experience with fairy tale landscapes when we were there four years ago. I also remember that we didn’t end up doing all the hikes we wanted to do and that there was so much more to see. With a five year old and an almost two year old, catching the ride up there seemed ideal. Alas, every time we called to try to arrange our ride up we were told a different reason why we shouldn’t come up. For early July we…
Salmon Arm: Tipi Getaway with a Rainbow
When we booked a tipi on a farm near Salmon Arm we didn’t really know what would be involved. The Airbnb posting had limited information and photos, but the description sounded nice enough and the price was reasonable. In addition, it was the only place available – of course, we only checked a week before we wanted to go away, with a driving distance that still sounded somewhat doable with two young kids. So on a Wednesday morning we found ourselves driving east. Neil was so excited about the trip, it’s not every day that he gets to sleep in a tipi, so he didn’t eat much for breakfast and…
Juan de Fuca Trail: The Mystical Trail
My backpack was VERY heavy. So heavy that lifting it required an orchestrated series of moves, which ended with an impossible to suppress grunt. So heavy that I chose not to weigh it so I wouldn’t know how heavy it was. Such is life for a family of four on a five (or six) day hiking trip along the Juan de Fuca Trail. Luckily our first day was short, and ended at the appropriately named Mystic Beach. Our mystical campsite, right on the beach, had wide views (of course), and a swing hanging from a precariously positioned down-sloping log, a waterfall going straight into the ocean, only accessible at low…
Viewpoint Beach: The Perfect Early Season Hike
We hadn’t left the city in three months and as much as we had started to get used to our new very local lifestyle we were also starting to get some cabin fever. COVID-19 restrictions were starting to slowly lift and BC Parks and campgrounds had reopened. We refused to take part in the BC Parks crazy camping extravaganza reservation system which crashed as soon as it opened and some very frustrated people were on their computers at 7am trying to book sites. So as usual we just decided we’d play it by ear and see where the wind blows with our summer plans. The first weekend in June was…
Taiwan: The Sun Can’t Shine Every Day (Video)
Taiwan was surprising. It was a mix of everything. Urban, rural, busy roads, quiet roads, tropical beaches & fruit, heat and rain. Even if it took us a bit of time to warm up to Taiwan we loved almost every minute of our time there, which now seems very far away. It’s home to some of the loveliest and friendliest people you’ll ever meet. Our kids aged 4.5 and 1 got the royal treatment there as you can see in this short video. Most of the roads and bike paths were safe enough for our older son to bike by himself which he loved. We also skipped some sections we…
Japan: It’s All a Dream to Me Now (Video)
In the Fall of 2019 we spent six weeks cycling in Japan with our two children, aged 4.5 and 1 (followed by six weeks in Taiwan). One of the lines in the song I chose for this video goes “it’s all a dream to me now.” Since this trip the world changed completely due to COVID-19. Everything that seemed doable and easy then is now out of reach, at least for awhile. How lucky were we to have done this trip before the world had gone mad? Hopefully, we’ll have more opportunities for cycle touring in the future and not just in our dreams. As for our route, we started…
Keeping Sane by Biking During COVID-19
We were sitting down for lunch the other day and Neil suddenly said “we still haven’t ridden our bikes today!” That needed to be fixed so we got ready and went on a bike ride. Yes, that’s what we’ve been doing lately, a lot of bike riding. People ask us how we manage during this time with two young children at home, and in a way I feel like we’re doing just fine, and a lot of it is thanks to our bikes. The beginning wasn’t easy. It started with canceling our two week trip to Israel to see our family, a trip that everyone was looking forward to. So…
Greece: Bike Hopping on Seven Magical Islands (Video)
We spent five weeks in winter 2019 bike hopping on seven islands in Greece with our four year old and four month old. It was a spectacular experience for everyone and a great bonding opportunity for the two brothers. We fell in love with the slow pace of the Greek islands, the food, and the low key atmosphere. Since it was winter the beaches were empty and the accommodation was cheap. Luckily it was sunny and warm almost every day. We can’t wait to explore more of the Greek islands on our bikes and perhaps even the mainland someday. Here is a short video of the highlights of the trip.
Taiwan (Part 2): Love at Second Sight (Taitung to Taipei)
One of the things people always wish cyclists is that the wind will be at their backs. I didn’t really understand the importance of this until the almost impossible headwind we encountered on our way to Taitung. So after a few rainy days in Taitung and checking the forecast and winds over and over again we decided that if the wind is not going to change directions then we will. We caught the train to Hualien, again sending our bikes and gear separately on the cargo train. When we arrived to Hualien it was still raining… We found a cute and cheap home stay and went to explore the city. …
