Day 19 – September 20, 2015

Fun start to the morning – I realized that I locked the keys in the car… good one Andrew.

Lesson learned: Keep those keys on you at all times!!!

CAA and Parkville Towing pulled through for me, especially at 8 am on a Sunday morning.  The sound of a lock being popped open never sounded so sweet!

Since I splurged and bought myself a cooler, I had a proper breakfast at the camp (not that there’s anything wrong with instant oatmeal…).

As cars began to pour into the park, my curiosity was sparked.  Oh yeah!  September 20th = the Terry Fox Run!

Down at the beach, a 5k/10k race was being set up.  Seeing an opportunity to lace up my runners and support a great Canadian, I wolfed down my eggs, ham and onions and registered.

It was a beautiful course through the Park and along the beach, and a lot of fun!  I finished the 10 k course in around 40 mins, breathing heavy – a small tribute to pay for Terry.

Who needs a shower when you’ve got the salty Pacific Ocean?!

Back on the road.  I merged onto Highway 4, heading West toward Tofino (echo: TOFINO!!!) when a torrential downpour hit.  It brought me back to our trials on the Trans Canada in Northern Ontario on the way to Kenora.  It took all of my focus to keep the car steady.

However, once the rain eased up, the sights from the road were magnificent.

 

 

I reached Long Beach, about 15 km from Tofino at the perfect time – just the Sun was beginning to set.  Glorious.

At long last, I had reached the Pacific.

Now, it was time to find a place to camp.  I was determined to find a special, secret campsite using directions passed onto me from Sandy.

Down a rough logging road I went to find the fabled “Rainbow Beach”.  As I continued to drive at 15 km/h to avoid destroying my suspension on the 2-foot deep potholes, I began to get nervous.  Negative thoughts pulsed through my mind… Did I find the right logging road?  What if there are no other campers out here?  Will I get eaten by a bear?  Will my car get stuck??  (Losing cell phone service did not help to calm my nerves)

My I was determined to find this place.  I continued onward.  This is what adventures are made of.

I crossed two sketchy bridges, as advised by Sandy, and came upon a camp of woodspeople from Manitoba.  They were very friendly and explained how they were out hunting for chantrelle mushrooms for the season (they also showed me their impressive collection).  I was encouraged to continue down the road – I was almost at the “camp”.

Heeding to their advice, I stumbled upon “Redneck Beach”, a camp of other mushroom pickers.  I was welcomed and told to pitch my tent anywhere along the beach.  I was then invited to the campfire for beers and other activities.

Although I never did find Rainbow Beach, Redneck Beach was in itself a beautiful spot on Lake Kennedy.