On the road again (heading east) part # 2

There were only three of us on the bus to Whistler. Which was a shame as the drive from the ferry terminal at Horseshoe Bay to Whistler is spectacular. It truly is a "sea to sky highway.

There are some very real advantages to taking the bus as opposed to driving . The most obvious is that one can sit on the left hand side of the bus, higher than most other vehicles, and look at the scenery without worrying about anything.. Of course taking pictures through a bus window leaves much to be desired and one can not stop the vehicle and look at the scenery but these are small things to complain about.

I generally do not like taking the bus. I avoid it when ever I can. They are torture chambers for people with long legs. There is never enough room for  my legs and the seats are specifically designed to make my bum go numb in about 5 minutes. But this bus ride was the exception.The seats were not anymore comfortable but I wished it could have last longer.The views were that exceptional.

Buddy, my driver to Duncan, had suggested that I take the bus just to Squamish and to hitchhike the rest of the way. The first part of the advice was good advice in that there really was no where to hitch from at the ferry terminal. I would have had to walk forever as the road designers had neglected to build any shoulders. But I am glad that I bought a ticket all the way to Whistler.  Squamish did not look that appealing. It  looked like any other small city clustered along the highway with all of the usual stores and fast food restaurants.

One of the remarkable things about the highway ( and I am sure it is a result of the Olympics) is that all of the creeks along the way are labeled in both their English names in in the language of the First Nations people of that region. it was neat to see these signs. Similarly all of the little towns along the way had rather impressive stone cairn like structures stating their names.

 I was excited about visiting Whistler. Not because of the Olympics that were held there but because it seemed to be one of those iconic Canadian monuments that should be seen at least once in a person's lifetime. On my first trip west I almost got a ride there from a ski bum and I have always wondered what it was like. I am glad that I went and saw it, but I see no reason to ever go back again unless I am just passing through. Whistler is an ugly town located in a beautiful setting. It in many ways reminded me of Banff without what little charm Banff has.

There was very little to see of what would have been the original town site, or at least if there was I could not find it. And I walked for most of the afternoon trying to find a place to store my pack (the hostel was not open until 4:00) and a place to eat a sandwich. The town is all concrete and stone, it is full of either tourists or people dressed as want-to-be-actors in a poorly done Star Wars type movie. The tourists appeared to be milling about somewhat lost or in shock in the complex shopping area designed to ensnare unsuspecting humans into spending money. (they have a couple of booths in this out door complex with people in red shirts giving out advice as to where to find stores. The want-to-be actor were in fact the down hill mountain bikers. Many of them had on full helmets with face guards as well as shin, elbow and chest and back protectors. They would take the gondola up to the top of the mountain and follow the paths down. I guess it is fun.

The town bus system is pretty good. It got me to the road up to the hostel without any fuss. What no one told me was that the .5 kilometer walk from the bus stop was all up hill.  I am pretty sure that is is more that 1/2 a kilometer. The road was steep enough to have the Olympic bobsled run on. I was in despair of ever getting to the driveway

The hostel is owned/operated by University of British Columbia students. I think it is primarily a winter thing but remains open for the handful of tourist who can find it in the summer. It has a huge parking lot so clearly there is an assumption that people will have a car to get there.

After climbing up the road to get here, the sight of these stairs was almost too much.

It was almost empty. I think there was one couple staying there plus two young women. There were some unusual rules including the one that closed and locked  the kitchen down at 8:00 pm. It was not a very welcoming place, the hot tub and the sauna were closed as was access to the balcony. But the living room was very nice and I was content to spent the evening there reading a book and looking out the windows.

I could imagine the place in the winter, full of red cheeked individuals back from a day of skiing or snowboarding. I think it would be a much different place.

The sleeping quarters were fine. The bunk beds were made of wood although as I was the only one in them it did not particular matter if the beds moved or not.

I got a good night's sleep and was out the door by just after 7:00. Not surprisingly, the walk down to the bus stop was much easier than the walk up.