Tofino, first day

Bonjour,

Fun day. I miss biking though. Tomorrow will be the first bike day – ahead of previously planned. After thinking ahead, I've decided to change things around a bit. I hope things work.

Fun day today. I walked around town quite a bit, got to know some spots around here. I even found a chiropractor, where I checked to see their availability so I can get a few cracks. (I can hear a few physios cringing at the moment). They were not in town today, so no pops. The burning question of the day is - How many degrees rotation is possible at the OA joint (pure and/or with side bending). Oddly enough, that is bugging me a bit.

I did some hiking near a beach just outside of town. The big event today was the kayak trip I did. I lucked out, as the ocean was fairly wavey (is that a word?), that they would not allow anyone out in a single-seater kayak. So, the instructor, Andy, went out together. Nice work-out. Saw many sea starts (star fishes) of all kind, crabs, porpose (spelled correctly?), many different birds (including a soaring eagle over the kayak). Pictures will be added as soon as I can figure out how to upload a folder (instead of tons of pics). If anyone can forward me that info on how to upload them in one folder in Picasa (so it's divided in folders, not just a bunch of unorganized pictures), that would be great – send me an email.

I had a great supper – a full report on places to eat in Tofino will be written at the end of the day tomorrow. For those who are wondering – yes, I have been keeping up my minimum 1-2 beers/day since the 18th. I could be classified as an alcoholic, oops. But, I can stop anytime I want...

During supper, I was staring at some of the mountain tops of some islands nearby. The clouds were right above one of the peaks, and at one point, just “impose” themselves on the peak, and form a ring around it. That ring would revolve around the peak, seperate from the cloud above. Weird. It would be at a different speed than the cloud above. I have no idea how long that lasted, as I went to a presentation at 8pm.

Andy was presenting of his trip to Nunavut. He lived there for a few years, and had a power point presentation of his experiences. It's quite breath taking – 2000 feet waterfalls, 1500 feet cliffs that are used for base jumping, freaky ice formation, noon moons, etc.

Tomorrow – surfing, some trail hiking, starting to bike, and camping at night. I should have access to Internet at night – it might be the last day that I have Internet access for a few days. So, mom, dont worry if you dont hear from me for a few days. I dont think there's going to be any phone reception either. Just a heads-up.

Oh, who's MT? Is that you Dawg?

Chady (aka Chad) – there can only be one purple fast beast with flames on the side. You're a flamer.

Alright. Time for bed. I'm almost chillin' in am/pm. (At this point, I can picture seeing Dave starting to rap. Makes me think of when I was part of his broomball team, he's getting dressed before a game, he was only wearing his full-body long johns. Dave is probably weighing at 220 lbs and standing 6'2”. He then proceeds to ballroom dance by himself in the dressing room. Fun site to see.) I miss that guy.

I like this B.C. time, as I feel I have regular hours – I go to bed at 11 pm (so 2 am Ottawa time), and feel it's time to get up at 7-8 am.

Ciao, and I get to hit the road tomorrow!

p2

Arrival in Tofino

Hello all,

I'm safe. I feel far away from home too. 7 hour flight (2 planes), and a 4 hour bus ride (with a 15 minute taxi ride too - more on that soon).

Hell, more on that now. My adventures started earlier than I thought. The taxi driver had Tourrette Syndrome. Not verbal (well, minimal), but physical. He was driving, jerking all the time (gas pedal and brake, even when we were stopped, he would pump/jerk the brakes). To make it more interesting, I didn't even put on my seatbelt. It was fun. Super nice guy.

Tofino is quite lovely. Actually, the whole island looks swell. I realized today a few things:
1-This is the earliest I've started a bike trip - there's still snow on some spots (and +++ mountains with snow-covered peaks). This earliness concerns me a bit - I do not want to get injured due to ramping up the miles soon.
2-There's going to be some fun days ahead of me. The first bike day will be short, mainly a test to see how the bike is. The second day will be more of a test for the body - some hills were at 8%, another one I saw that I'll have to hike up was at 18%. Fun, fun. Day 3 will mainly be a test of how traffic will be between Port Alberni and Nanaimo (and to see how this old body is doing too). We'll see.
3-This trip, I hope, turns out well. I'm sure I'll have my few ups and downs (hopefully the down will be minor). But, nothing worthwhile comes without a fight, gotta kick at the darkness 'till it bleeds daylight. Right?

Well, just a quick post to say thanks to all the people who have posted a comment and/or emailed me directly to cheer me on (and have a few laughs too). Thanks, means a lot to me.

I am safe and sound. Let's see what tomorrow brings - I think I have planned some kayaking (possibly near whales), and/or some surfing in a tsunami region.

I'm off to possibly eat sushi.

Take care.

p2
(oh, lots of those damn frenchies around here too - Belgium, France, even Montreal - I guess I can't get away from them).

Leaving Ottawa

Hi all,
Here goes.

The end of a big part of my life, and the start of another one.

The bike trip actually starts in 4 days. I'll be "resting" in Tofino until then.

Be patient, and I'll add a post here and there until the biking starts.

Cheers, take care,

p2