I was thrilled when the person in the room opposite started playing country music exceptionally loud at 4.30 to rob me of a precious final few minutes of sleep.

 

The hotel caters for ferry guests so I was able to get some breakfast before the short ride over to the port. They like getting everyone there early, so despite getting there before 6 it was after 8 until the boat departed. Very easy with the bike though which I just wheeled on and leaned up in the car deck.

 

The boat was nice and comfortable so I claimed my spot and settled in for a long day. The rain which arrived yesterday was due to sit over much of western Canada for the next four days. I was really looking forward to the views from the boat, so again, it was a shame these were reduced to mostly misty shorelines and little else. There was a real treat however, when the captain announced that a whale was visible from one side. Really amazing to see it breaching the water and slapping its fin, as if waving to those braving the elements on the deck with their cameras poised. Later, we also saw the black dorsal fins of two Orcas which we slowed to allow to pass in front of the boat. So this made the day despite being able to see little landscape-wise. 

 

Spent the rest of the day napping, reading and listening to podcasts but it had felt like a very long day by the time we docked at nearly 1am. Port Hardy is located in a big cove and for a brief moment I thought we were docking right in town next to the hostel I’d booked. However once my phone had regained signal and worked out where it was, I figured we were on the opposite side of the cove so would need to do the 6 mile ride round horseshoe. This was the first time on the trip I’d properly ridden at night, which I wouldn’t have minded but for the torrential rain. I clearly looked a sorry sight rocking up to the desk at 2am as the owner kindly upgraded me to a private room, rather than having to disturb the other people in the dorm room. 

 

I hung up the wet clothes and went straight to bed. 

 

Day 87 - Port Hardy 

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I’d already decided I was going to spend at least another night here given the late arrival and the fact the poor weather was forecast to continue for the next few days. 

 

Spoke to some fellow cyclists from France who were also staying at the hostel. I said I was feeling pretty tired as I got towards the end of my trip. However, this was put into perspective when they said they were nine months into their trip having ridden all the way from Costa Rica. 

 

Not loads going on in port hardy so I went to get a coffee and some lunch. There was quite an interesting exhibit in the visitor centre about the community’s campaign to have the paved Highway extended up here, which was not completed until the 1980s. Before which, the main routes in and out were air and sea. 

 

Went back to the hostel to hang out and watch bits of TV on my phone. They had a full kitchen so I was able to make some pasta for dinner but was still struggling with nausea/lack of appetite so couldn’t eat much. Moved into a dorm room to share with a couple of Canadian guys who have been hiking round the north of the island. All of their stuff was completely soaked through meaning the room was filled with a pungent damp smell as it dried out on the radiators. 

 

Day 88 - Port Hardy

 

The rain is still falling heavily in Port Hardy, so I decided to stay at the hostel another day and try to recover a bit more and let the worst of the weather pass. I’d pretty much exhausted all of what Port Hardy had to offer a stranded tourist waiting out the rain - so returned to the cafe for a coffee and cake. I had a call with my parents which was a nice boost. 

 

I’d been storing my bike in a closed down shop next to the hostel. I went to collect it to start prepping for getting back on the road and got talking to a guy who seemed to be living in the shop and keeping an eye on all manner of stuff which was stored there. As I was re-lubing the chain he offered some spray which would apparently help with the water. I assumed it would be something like GT-85 but it turned out to be something thicker and blacker. Probably not the best idea but should at least prevent any more rust on the chain. 

 

The next few days are going to be pretty remote again, so I stocked up on food from the supermarket and headed back to the hostel to chill out. Tried, and mostly failed, to eat some more pasta.