Before fall really kicks in I decided to get another Gulf Island trip under my belt; this time to Gabriola. As stated in previous reports, the s24o (sub 24 hour outing) is a term created by Grant Peterson to describe a short overnight trip to just get away and/or test gear for longer trips.
Leaving my trusty mini van in long term parking at Horseshoe Bay, I boarded the Nanaimo Ferry and then rode quick along the shoreline to catch the Gabriola Ferry:
Along the Nanaimo boardwalk
Aboard the Gabriola ferry. Gone already are the summer throngs.
On Island I decided to do the approx. 23km loop going up island on South Road and back along North Road (very creative names), making stops along the way. Camping was back near the ferry at Descanso Bay Regional Park.
A map I snagged from a brochure on board the ferry describes the route. I have superimposed numbers to correspond to stops I made along the way. 1. being the ferry dock
The gulf Islands are hilly
and part of the main road was gravel due to construction
The first stop was Brickyard Beach (2.) This is about half way up island and a nice stop to watch boats struggling against the current of Gabriola Passage. The water squeezes between Gabriola and Mudge Islands (seen opposite) resulting in a strong tidal flow. The beach is littered with brick fragments from a depression era manufacturer.
After that I motored on to a spot where there are old indigenous pictographs carved into sandstone in the forest (3.). To get there I did a little single track riding
A pictograph on the ground just beyond the bike
A nice old Garry Oak
A fun little area that locals have adopted as a small species refuge
Continued next post...