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Bikepacking the Cowichan Valley Trail · Sat. Oct. 9th, 2021 - Mon. Oct. 11th, 2021
Warning: This is an old trip - it already happened
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Start: Saturday, Oct. 9th, 6:00 am
End: Monday, Oct. 11th, 6:00 pm
Pre-trip meeting: Wednesday, Oct. 6th, 5:30 pm
Pre-trip meeting location: meet.google.com/zvc-hzxw-pqg
Description:
[Sept 29 Update]: Now with an itinerary
With travel restrictions still in place in many parts of the world, I'm sure those stuck here will be down for some adventure over Thanksgiving.
Having cycled along South Vancouver Island on roads twice, I want to return to bikepack the Cowichan Valley Trail (CVT).
The Cowichan Valley Trail is a beautiful gravel trail as part of the Canada Trail route on Southern Vancouver Island. It runs from Victoria, north to Shawnigan Lake and the Kinsol Trestle, west to the Lake Cowichan then north to the Nanaimo.
https://www.cvrd.ca/121/Cowichan-Valley-Trail
There are a few ways we can do it and I am open to discuss options. We can bike to Victoria and follow bikepacking.com's Cowichan Valley 8 route. Or, we can also go from Victoria to Nanaimo and return via Horseshoe Bay. Or in reverse. Or just go and see how we feel.
All of these routes will likely take 3 days, 2 nights of camping, and cycling 100km a day.
If the prospect of camping in the rain does not sound fun to you, splitting a hotel room is also something we can consider.
[Update] Itinerary:
The following is only a suggestion, the actual itinerary may be subject to change and discission.
Day 1: 133km, 1,080m incline
- Road ride from UBC to Horseshoe Bay
- Take the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo
- Road ride from Nanaimo to Duncan with lunch/ brewery visit somewhere on the way
- Gravel/ road ride on the CVT from Duncan to Gordon Bay Provincial Park, Lake Cowichan
Day 2: 92km, 840m incline
- Scenic gravel ride on the CVT from Lake Cowichan to Goldstream Provincial Park, Victoria
Day 3: 104km, 510m incline
- Road/ gravel ride on the Galloping Goose Trail to Victoria
- Short tour of downtown Victoria
- Road ride from Victoria to Swartz Bay with lunch stop along the way
- Take ferry to from Swartz Bay to Tsawwassen
- Road ride back to UBC
Things to See/ Do:
- BC Ferry
- Restaurant/ pubs in Victoria and along the way
- UVIC
- Breweries
- Nature
- Gravel riding/ Road cycling
- Hike-a-bike
Potential Camping Sites:
- Goldstream Provincial Park
- Bamberton Provincial Park
- Cowichan River Provincial Park
- Gordon Bay Provincial Park
- Other private campsites
Bike:
A gravel or mountain bike is recommended. However, I did the Duncan to Shawnigan Lake section last year on only 30mm tires, and some people said it could be done on a road bike, but I suspect that would involve a lot of faffing.
Gear:
- Summer camping gear
- Method of carrying said gear on a bike
- Spare tubes
Please feel free to drop your thoughts and questions in the discussion thread :)
Posted: 2021-09-21 13:34:35
Last modified: 2021-10-03 18:51:13