Wednesday, July 8th – Friday, July 10th: Prince Rupert surprisingly different….

Yesterday afternoon  I reached Prince Rupert that will be sort of the last point on my Alaska–British Columbia-mainland tour ; after 3000km I just have positive memories  so far – in spite oft he small electronic and other difficulties. But they are sort of like „the salt in the soup“ J

Didn’t have any problems to find my B&B which turned out to be the oldest resident house of Prince Rupert (1808) and which is maintained by a really cool elderly lady. It’s overloaded with old bits and pieces but is nevertheless cute, has a perfect view over the harbour and is right in the middle of Prince Rupert. After7 days of camping again a night in a „normal“ bed and the landlady – she calls herself Auntie Fifi - promised me a fabulous Canadian breakfast the next morning. So I was sitting at the breakfast table together with an English an and a Belgium couple, enjoying a rich breakfast. But that was just the begining of what turned out to be the most weird breakfast I ever had – in a positive way. Auntie Fifi used to earn her l living in her young days as a Edith-Piaf-double touring around in theaters and Casinos and so she sung us 3 original songs while we had our breakfast. And she did that absolutely perfect with that unmistakable French rrrrrr-Accent of Edith Piaf. What a start into the day!

       

I had decided to do some exercise for a change and got the hiking maps at the tourist board for a roundtrip up to Mount Hays: 18km and about 1500 up-and-down. They just had a detailed copy for the first part oft he roundtrip, from the second part I had to make a picture out of their visitors-book with my cellphone. As I am used to hiking from back home I thought that wouldn’t be a problem. Now I know better and I know why they did not have any copies anymore! An easy way through the city, a short walk through a mystic forest and then up a gravel road -  which would be a dream for every offroader and even legally to drive! I walked up in a steady pace and reached the summit after 2 hours. What a view over the sund of Prince Rupert up there! 

I did not rest long and looked fort he connecting trail to get tot he other summit. No way. Even the help of two other hikers to look for it was unsuccessful. After a while I saw the tracks of a Quad into what I assumed to be the right direction. I followed that track slowly down the hill through a quite muddy area and when that tracks of teh Quad ended I finally saw the connecting trail – or what was left over from it. The wooden pannels that should lead over the marsh and the little creeks had been completely rotten, breaking at the lightest weight on it and rosty nails looking out everywhere. I gave me another 15 minutes to check whether it would get any better. But when I just with luck did not get a rosty nail into my foot (after going straight through my heavy hiking boots) I decided to go back. I sort of crumbled back up the hill back to the former trail and returned to the city the same way. Back I went straight to the visitors board to inform them about the desolete trail and suggest them to take the second trail better completely out of their hiking suggestions.

 

Fazit for today: the first sunburn on my shoulders, a big scratch in my leg, a hole in the hiking shoe but definitely the most funny, weird and adventurous day so far. And that even without driving the bike ;-) 

 

 

Now today I had to get up at 5 in the morning to get on time onto the Ferry that brings me to Vancouver Island. During that 15 hours on the Ferry we even saw some dump whales and bucket whales but apart from that it was just an easy day cruising smoothly along the shores and through the narrow sound of the Islands towards Port Hardy where I will stay again at a hostel. 

My last booking so far. From now on, everything is unplanned and I can go spontanously wherever I like to go. What a great feeling!!