After almost two weeks of vacation, I m
ust admit that it feels pretty good! I have worked on my cyclist tan at Kitsilano beach in Vancouver and spent a lot of time reading and walking around the city. I have been lucky with the weather (luckier than the Roger’s Cup in Montreal!) and spent most of my days outside, under blue skies!
Mario and I also went to do some hiking at Grouse Mountain and climbed the Grouse Grind, a 2.9 km trail (or mostly a stairway in the mountain as it has 
an elevation of 2800 feet). Unfortunately it was a very cloudy and foggy morning, so when we reached the summit we saw nothing but clouds, but it didn’t rain.
There is a wind turbine on top of the mountain, though you can hardly see it on the picture (on the right). It was very cold up there, and the wind was blowing. We kept walking for a while and finally got to
se bit behind the clouds, and we actually had a very nice view of the city – see picture on the left.
There are also two bears (grizzlies) living in captivity on top of the Grouse, but of course they were both taking a nap in the woods when we tried to see them. My patience (that I improved a lot during this cycling journey by the way) was rewarded, and one of them showed up just before we headed down. I was impressed, 
and very happy to have my picture 
We took a shuttle (kind of gondola) which is called the skyride to go down, and this time we really had a nice view of Vancouver and of the area. There were many tourists and it was really crowded, but it was fun anyway as I had my private guide! Here are a few pictures of this day at the 
Grouse:
G
R
O
U
S
E
.
M
O
U
N
T
A
I
N
-
V
A
N
C
O
U
V
E
R
I spent one more day in downtown Vancouver on Monday and walked in a green and very big area called Stanley Park. I 
followed the 9 km path that goes all around the peninsula and even saw a few sea lions. I also had a nice view on the Lion’s Gate Bridge – more impressive by night but still impressive (see picture on the right) and the west end aka downtown (see picture on the left).
There were some nice beaches and a long cycle path, but I was happy that I hadn’t brought my bike there because it was overcrowded wit
h tourists who are not familiar with ‘how you should ride on a cycling path’. By now I have been through the first two Twilight novels in less than a week, and it is nice to have so much time to do simple things as relaxing and laying on the grass in parks, reading and sleeping…
I took the ferry and joined my friend John Michael and his friend Xander in Nanaimo (on Vancouver Island) on Tuesday, and we drove to one of the most beautiful and heavenly spot I have seen on the west co
ast: Tofino! I had planned on doing whale watching on the ferry, but I fell asleep as soon as we left, and took this only picture…
On our way we stopped to swim in a gorgeous lake and than in a provincial park where stand some of the oldest – and biggest – trees in Canada.
It was very impressive! We drove all the way to Tofino and saw a beautiful sunset on the pacific ocean. We talked a lot about my biking trip and all those people I met on my way. I have tons of crazy stories, it was nice to share them with both of them!
In Tofino we did some hiking (to find a crashed plane that has been laying in the forest since world war II), lots of laying down on the beach, big fire camps on which we cooked awesome meals, and we even had private surfing lessons by John Michael.
I made it to my feet on the board, but I could not stand up completely (kept m
y hands on the board). The water was just freezing cold, but the wet suits made it bearable. I was glad that I tried though, it was hard, especially the second day – the waves were bigger and I was fighting against each one, hardly made it on the board… The ocean did beat me up, but I still had a lot of fun and am proud of my persever
ance!
Here are some pictures of our journey.. a big thanks to JM for inviting us and trying to teach us surfing skills, we had lots of fun, beer, sand, sleep and sun and it was just great!
I will be going to Victoria, Gabriela Island, Salt Spring Island and Seattle in the next weeks, I am really looking forward to seeing you all again and sharing some more good stories of this trip.
Also we are still collecting donations, we have raised almost 6000 $ but still need your help. Thanks in advance!
See you soo
n
