My favorite time of day is right after I wake up and sit quietly with a good strong cup of coffee and engage in my morning routine. Time to read, study and reflect. Be still. I love this part of the journey even more than the biking itself - which I enjoy immensely. Put the two together and it has to be a good, if not great, day. Of course, at the end of a long, hard day - especially after facing challenging circumstances - I may have lost some of that "zen" I started the day with. Especially if I may have chosen to respond to those challenging circumstances in ways I wish I hadn't. Maybe I wasn't kind or didn't treat someone with the patience or respect I should have. Or, perhaps I became frustrated and impatient with myself. Whatever. The good news is that every morning I get the chance to start over and try again. And the even better news is that the grace, blessings and adventure I experience every day are not dependent on me and my responses. My job is to remain open to receive.
I left Port Renfrew a little before 9 am and headed for Lake Cowichan some 40 miles away. The first hour or so was mainly flat, and followed along streams and lakes.
However, the main thrust of this leg of today's ride was up, through and around multiple mountains and passes. Still on the Pacific Coast Circle, although no ocean. Blue skies and sunny, yet cool enough to keep my jacket on. Light traffic. Fortunately, while there were a number of long, steep inclines, they were not as severe or frequent as yesterday's killer hills. Those wildflowers were everywhere, as well as dense forests of pine trees. Evidence of the logging industry could be seen in huge brown patches on the sides of the mountains, a well as the many logging trucks that passed by. Whenever one of those trucks passes me, I frequently find myself inhaling the sweet smell of wood deeply through my nose.
Somehow, I had miscalculated in my mind that the Lake Cowichan leg was only 30 miles, instead of the actual 40 miles. So, it started seeming to take for ever to get there. Plus, my odometer went on the blink, so I couldn't actually track the mileage - probably need to replace the battery. I did finally arrive around 12:45 pm, and stopped by the information center for some maps, and A & W for a root beer float. Thus fortified, I got on the Cowichan Valley Trail for the 18 mile ride to Duncan, where I had reserved a room for the night. The trail was of crushed gravel, and ran the entire way so I did not have to ride any highways until I reached Duncan. Went through beautiful forests, and was flat, except for one or two very brief climbs over some creeks. Saw lots of people out enjoying the day, many walking their dogs. Even saw some people riding horses. I fairly cruised the entire way, and made it to my motel around 3:45 pm.
By the time I arrived in Duncan, I had decided to stay over Thursday to re-group and seriously start planning what the next phase of this journey will look like. I will bike to Nanaimo on Friday, then ferry over to Vancouver on Saturday or Sunday. After ferrying over to Vancouver, do I continue on to Banff as originally planned? Or, cut it short and head for Seattle or Portland from Vancouver. Still trying to figure it all out. Mainly, I need a day to rest after two hard days of riding, and a chance to just sit still with it all.
Had a wonderful chicken stir-fry dinner at a restaurant recommended by Max, the motel desk clerk. Settled in for the evening, looking forward to the rest day tomorrow.
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