Planning a 2-3 day trip to Vancouver Is. and looking for ideas/suggestions...

I am jonesing for a road trip but am on limited time and limited budget. Want to stay close to home (Seattle WA area) and hit someplace I haven't gone before so that pretty much narrows it down to Vancouver Island.

Preferred schedule is two days, might be able to stretch to a third. The only requirment is arriving in Sydney via the Anacortes ferry about 11am on day one and returning to Sydney about 4pm on the last day for the return ferry. Looking at the map, I am thinking Sydney through Victoria to Port Renfrew, then up past Lake Cowichan and into Port Alberni or maybe even Tofino on day one. Google map says that would be about 500km and estimates 10 hours drive time (seems a little high, are the back roads that slow going?...). Day two, Tofino or Port Alberni back to Sidney via Hwy 1, or if I do a third day, Tofino/Port Alberni up to Campbell River and maybe Gold River to Courtenay and from Courtenay to Sidney on day three.

Any thoughts or suggestions? I will be looking for budget ($50-$60/night) accomodations as well as scenic side trips, etc. Any "Must see" roads I should make sure to hit? I have been on the island before (years ago) and remember it to be a beautiful place, never been on the motorcycle though and would love to close out what is passing for a summer this year with a nice ride.

One last note, as to weather - is it fairly predictable to be "good" (certainly a relative term in the NW) through mid-September?

Any and all help, ideas, suggestions, and recommendations would be appreciated.

 

I haven't been on the Island for years, and was bikeless when I was. But the old island highway along the coast from Nanimo north I always thought would be a blast on a bike.

 

Hi,

I live on the Island - the trips you are planning sound pretty ambitious considering how much time you have...I have a few suggestions -

If you only have a couple of days:

Sidney to Port Renfrew along Sooke Road is a nice ride. You could over night in Renfrew, then ride back to Sidney. You might have to over night in Sidney as the ferry does not run that often from Sidney to Anacortes.

Or if you have a bit longer
Ride Sidney to Campbell River then into Gold River. Overnight in Campbell River than head back down island or make a run up to Port McNeil, depending on how much time you have.

The weather is similar to Seattle, and should be decent although they do get more cloud and rain north of Courtenay and especially north of Campbell River. For that matter, Port Renfrew can also be damp and foggy.

The best weather is on the East side of the Island. You could also ride from Sidney to Brentwood Bay, take the ferry over to Mill Bay and then ride the back roads through Cowichan Bay, Chemanius, Crofton etc. to Nanaimo, then take the old island highway as far north as you like - weather would likely be better, but there is much more traffic then what you would find riding to Renfrew.