The Tree to Sea Loop: 15 days in the Saddle
- Greg Luesink
- Sep 3, 2022
- 15 min read
Updated: Mar 26
Andrew, Sandy, Jesse, and I embarked on a new bikepacking route on Vancouver Island called the Tree to Sea Loop. In total, I biked for 15 days, totalling 1400km and 13,500m+ of elevation gain and descent.
We got to explore the island in a way that a car simply cannot. Slower, more random gravel roads, more stops, more views, and more experiences to share with friends. I'd like to share some of those with you!
What is the Tree to Sea Loop?
Before I get started, I suppose I should explain the overall adventure here. A dude named Miles Arbour made a cool route through the northern half of Vancouver Island, covering over 1,000km of mostly gravel roads. Starting in Comox, the route winds along the inlets and bays of the West coast of the island up to San Josef Bay, and then back to Comox along the East coast. Click to the link to learn more about it!
We weren't super tied to it, but wanted to follow the route most of the way, depending on how quick or slow our progress would be.
The route technically starts just below Campbell River on the map, but we started in Nanaimo. By the end, we'd biked from Nanaimo to San Josef Bay and back to Nanaimo. I carried on to Victoria to visit family and then back to Chilliwack. From Victoria to San Josef Bay is 560 km. So, after 1,400km, I biked the length of the island more than twice in two weeks!
The original idea was from my friend Andrew. He was planning this trip with his partner Sandy, and they were looking for some friends to join. So, they asked me! And I invited my friend Jesse. That's really all there is to it. Just a great big idea, and two weeks of time off work.
It was a good excuse to buy some proper bikepacking bags to kit out Al, my bike. And also a good chance to explore the island. Count me in! After some pretty long rides in 2022 already, including 200 miles for charity, I was feeling pretty solid with my bike setup. I'd purchased some aero-bars after inspiration from Jesse, and I used them on my charity ride. They were so comfortable! Along with the new bike bags, I was ready to rumble.
We Zoom called for a few team meetings to sort our shared and individual gear, as well as the itinerary for the trip. With all of the details sorted out, we packed up our bikes and prepared to meet at Horseshoe Bay to catch the ferry to Nanaimo!
Day 1: Nanaimo to Deep Bay
Jesse's parents kindly drove him and me to Horseshoe bay, where we bought tickets and waited for Andrew and Sandy to arrive from Vancouver where they spent the night. Just in the nick of time, they arrived to catch the ferry! Time to set off on our adventure. Landing in Nanaimo, we rolled off the boat and started pedalling along the coast northbound. We stopped at Sandy's parents' home for some lunch and a break before continuing on towards Comox, where the route technically starts. After some highway biking, I realized that my massive dry bag was causing some speed-wobble. So, I moved my sleeping bag to my aerobars, which balanced me out a bit. Deep Cove was the nearest recreation site as dark approached, so we stopped there and enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the harbour and a warm shower.
Day 2: Deep Bay to Miller Creek
After a decent sleep at Deep Bay, we packed up and carried on towards Campbell River. Along the way, we met another bikepacker named Bonnie and rode together for a bit. We also met Chris and Ariel from California, also embarking on the loop. They were very ultralight and were moving quick! All in all, it was a pretty good day out, aside from Andrew's chain breaking, and some expected tiredness from getting used to biking with weight every day. Also, we saw a black bear from afar along an FSR, and Jesse utilized heatmaps on Strava to get us back on course. We stopped about 15k shy of our goal and camped at Miller Creek, with a nice lake to dip in!
Day 3: Bypass Route: Miller Creek to Muchalat Lake
After breaking camp, we decided to take a shorter route with less gravel to Gold River. On the way through Strathcona Provincial Park, we stopped at Strathcona Lodge for their buffet. Yum! Jesse and I worked the legs for about 30k to Gold River, drafting and pulling each other; it was very tiring but very fun!! We waited for Andrew and Sandy at a gas station in Gold River. Meanwhile, I ate 2 ice-cream sandwiches, a popsicle, 4 packs of candy, and a Mars bar. Oh, and a bag of Pocorners chips. Might've overdone it... Found another sign that was almost my name. Then went up an FSR Muchalat Lake to camp. Best. Lake. Jump. Ever.
Day 4: Muchalat Lake, Gold River, to Tahsis
An Epic day to celebrate Andrew's 31st birthday!! We rode back from Muchalat Lake to Gold River for Andrew's celebratory coffee and had a 2nd breakfast there. Then we headed off up the FSR to Tahsis. The steep gravel was interrupted by a sweet cave stop at the highpoint of the day. After, we "enjoyed" (read, white-knuckled) the steep hills down to Tahsis and made it just in time for dinner at Sally's grill!! That burger really hit the spot. My ischial tuberosities were getting accustomed to their new reality - my butt felt pretty great! We camped in Tahsis: "Population more or less." The next morning, we'd take a water taxi to Zeballos.
Day 5: Water Taxi to Zeballos, ride to Atluck Lake
We woke up in Tahsis to a wonderful little coffee shop that also made chocolate from scratch. Incredible! After the morning water taxi from Tahsis to Zeballos, Jesse and I waited for the post office to open at 1 pm to restock on snacks. We played catch-up to Andrew and Sandy, starting about 40 minutes behind them. Jesse and I jumped in an epic water hole in the river after hoofing it up the steep hills. Then we jumped in again. And again. Finally, we found Andrew and Sandy up near the "summit" and continued on together.
Our new friends that we made in Tahsis, Bob and Barb from Vermont, caught up to us and then we all rode into Atluck Lake to camp. The day turned out to be about 10k shorter than we were expecting since we bypassed some caves. Chronic over-packer that I am, I received affirmation for my tendencies when Barb had a persistent flat tire, so I gave her one of my three spare inner tubes. And, while they had one matchstick remaining to light their stove, I let them use one of my three lighters that I brought. I guess sometimes packing too much stuff comes in handy! I slept in my hammock that night, which was much more comfortable than my air mattress.
Day 6: Atluck Lake to Alice Lake
The day that made us all walk. NC3000... the steepest and chunkiest FSR. Up to this point, Jesse, Sandy, and myself had all dismounted our steeds more than once to walk up steep gravel hills. But, Andrew, with his super low gearing, was able to spin up just about anything... except for NC3000. The three of us shared a bit of "schadenfreude" when Andrew was finally forced to walk. That morning, Bob and Barb quickly left us in the dust, limited by their vacation days to finish quickly and fly home. They were training for biking the Tour Divide in 2023 - over 4,400km!!! Thankfully we had lots of days ahead, and we took our time, finding even more river spots to jump in. Along the way, we met Hugo and Elisa from France, who biked from Tuktoyaktuk in the Northwest Territories all the way to Vancouver Island... and were on the way to South America. I wonder if they made it!? We stopped for lunch at the shady high point of the day before continuing mostly downhill. On the way down, we happened upon what appeared to be an abandoned factory or mining facility. It made for some interesting exploring and break from our bike seats. That evening, we made it to Alice Lake for another beautiful water jump in and camp.
Day 7: Alice Lake to Port Alice to Marble River - the Gift Fish
In the morning, we biked to Port Alice for breakfast, since we'd heard rumours of the local Canadian Legion serving a fabulous brunch. I was absolutely famished, and proceeded to consume eggs Benny, an omelet, French toast, and a scone. Still hungry after, we went to the grocery store to restock on food. Then I ate 6 (stale) donuts, then I ate a bagel and a wrap. Shortly after, I settled into a deep food coma for a while.
At this point, we were all realizing that we had packed far too much gear, and since Port Alice had a post office, we decided to ship some items in flat rate boxes back home. I sent back my book, extra puffy jacket, pinch block (yes, I brought it so that my climbing finger strength wouldn't fade... and used it only once), a couple freeze-dried meals, and my down booties. I still had mounds of extra food in the form of dehydrated meals, but I might need those later!
A well-meaning fisherman saw our bedraggled faces at a coffee shop, and decided to gift us two beautiful fish filets...
What were we supposed to do with raw fish?
While I asked around if someone wanted free fish, Andrew started to plot a way to cook it. He decided to try "Sous vide" in his Jetboil! Andrew and Sandy cooked up one filet, and we got some ice to keep the other half fresh, putting it on Sandy's bike.
On the way to Marble river campsite we ran into some massive dump trucks which was scary. But eventually then we got past them. Zipping down a a loose gravel hill, I saw Sandy fish-tail in front of me in some deeper gravel, and I then proceeded to hit said gravel patch and crashed on the sharp turn.
I shoved my biked out from under me and did an epic ninja-roll. I only bruised my hip and scratched my knee and elbow.
Jesse was right behind me and stopped to see if I was okay. "Dude that was so crazy, I can't believe you landed that! My bike, Al, was a little worse for wear, with a bent handlebar and some scratches. Other than that, he was a-okay! As we got closer to our campsite, Jesse and I were bombing down another hill and spooked a bear into the bushes! We stopped not long after to let Andrew and Sandy catch-up and told them of our sighting.
Sandy was not very stoked that we left her at the back of the group. "I have a freaking fish filet strapped to my bike, I'm basically bear bait!!!"
With that, we took up the rear of the group to make sure Sandy felt okay. We made it to camp later and shared the fish with all our trail friends: Mike & Rebecca, and Chris & Ariel.
Day 8: Marble River to Holberg to San Josef Bay!
The turning point of the trip, halfway through our journey on the Tree to Sea Loop! Jesse and I hoofed it on ahead of Andrew and Sandy to Holberg, where we stopped for snacks at the only grocery store in town. There were some unexpected steep and relentless hills, but also some fun downhills! We met a guy from Oregon named Nunzio, biking the route solo. He had his systems dialled, and a really cool pizza-themed bike bag. Once Andrew and Sandy arrived, we departed for San Josef Bay, our next camp spot. Along the way, we reached The Scarlet Ibis - the Northernmost pub on the island. Andrew was very stoked about this and his was condition was that he needed to get a beer from it. I got a burger and fries... sooo delicious.
Reluctantly, we left the warmth of the pub into the overcast outdoors and hopped on our bikes for the last stretch to San Jo. Rain clouds were looming overhead, so geared up in our jackets and rain pants until the beach. After a very long day in the saddle, we relented to a cold bivy in the sand. I skipped my hot dinner and ate half a loaf of raisin bread. That night was a low point of the trip, cold and wet amidst the stormy night in our waterproof bags. Mentally, it was also a pretty hard day, as we had to ride back through Holberg to get to Port Hardy the next day.
Day 9: San Jo to Port Hardy
It poured rain overnight, and the condensation soaked us and our sleeping bags. Suffice to say, none of us slept very well. At 7am, we quickly packed up camp, and went on a walk along the beach, determined to solidify some enjoyable memories from San Jo. We found some pretty cool features of the landscape.
We hiked our bikes back up to a covered picnic area for breakfast. The next 20k to Holberg was the worst 20k of the trip for me. I was so tired and hungry and absolutely drenched despite my rain gear. And, to top it all off, my bike was dirtier than I ever could have imagined and making scary sounds. We still had a long long way to go! We rolled into Holberg around 1230 and decided to wait for the pub to open for some food. I ate a delicious pulled-pork sandwich and took a 40 minute power-nap on the bench, gone to the world. Best sleep I had in 9 days. We met Shelly and Genevieve at the Ibis - they were continuing on to San Jo, but staying at the adventure huts at the Ibis that night. Smart! After, I washed my biked at the general store, which made it a lot more confidence inspiring. The only thing keeping me motivated was the thought of warm shower and bed at a hotel in Port Hardy. We had unanimously voted that an indoor sleep would be of great importance. I set off solo at a persistent pace, and eventually caught up to Mike (Rebecca and him just kept biking thru Holberg). He and I kept one another distracted with conversation along the washboard gravel highway. At the famous shoe-tree shrine, I donated the sandal that I found on the gravel road up from Zeballos. Mike and I made it to Port Hardy much faster than expected, and the paved roads never felt so good. My crew was not too far behind, and we put ourselves up in the inn for the night. Our bikes had all seen better days, but we were relieved to dry out our gear in the hotel and sleep in dry beds.
Day 10: Port Hardy to Telegraph Cove
After we woke up in the inn, we stopped at Save-On Foods to restock on food. As we cycled out of Port Hardy along the highway, Jesse noticed that I had some speed wobble again. I pulled over to investigate, and quickly realized that I had a broken spoke on my rear wheel! Shoot, I needed to get that fixed. We diverted to the nearest bike shop in Port McNeill - The Shed. Eva was able to fix my spoke and gave me a spare just in case.
On the way, we stopped at the Largest Burl, and the other Largest Burl. I guess one must be the newer edition.
In a last minute change of plans, we biked to Telegraph Cove, where we stopped at the Museum of Whales. This turned in to one of our collective highlights of the trip, and we ate a solid meal at the restaurant on the wharf.
That night, we set up at a small campground, which had a shower. I recall that the bugs were SO bad that I hid in the laundry room to eat my dinner before running back to my bivy to hide for the night.
Day 11: Telegraph Cove to Woss to Montague Creek Rec Site - Last Day with Andrew and Sandy.
After a lovely breakfast at Telegraph Cove Pier, we set off on a late start. Quite sick of gravel roads, Jesse and I realized that we could get home a lot quicker taking the highway back to Nanaimo. Andrew and Sandy were content to continue on the route. Along the way, we had arrived at Bonanza Lake, for a wonderful lake-dip. We had intended on camping there the night before, but Telegraph Cove was too lovely to leave. We continued from Bonanza, and about 70 km in, we stopped at a gas station in Woss and said our goodbyes. We were sad to part ways, but Jesse and I were eager to get home. We biked another 40km that evening to a rec site that we found on a map: "Montague Creek." To our dismay, the "rec site" was a singular picnic table off an FSR in the middle of the woods. Thankfully there was a creek to wash up in, but we felt a little "bear-anoid" alone in the woods.
Day 12: Burning the Midnight Oil - Montague to Nanaimo - biking half of the island in 17 hours
The original plan was that Jesse and I would bike 150km along the highway on Wednesday, camp, and bike the remaining 120km to Nanaimo to catch a ferry home.
Waking up from Montague, we got straight to work, reaching Campbell River quite tired. We stopped at some gas stations to refuel and put in the headphones to listen to music and podcasts to pass the time as we pedalled. In Campbell River, we tried to see if we could catch a bus to Nanaimo, but they all left the next day. So, Jesse suggested an audacious idea:
Should we just bike all the way to Nanaimo right now?
Yeah, let's do it
And thus, we pressed on, motivated by the crazy idea. It would be a massive day, especially with weight on our bikes. We went into diesel mode, drafting and pulling each other along the highway. We lucked out for about 10km and got in behind a tractor doing 45km/hr - just slow enough for us to catch up and stay on it's tail! We arrived in Courtenay, jumped in the river, grabbed some food, and pressed on along Highway 19A.
At this point, I started considering visiting my Aunt and Uncle in Victoria, so I called them to see if they were home! They were, so I planned to continue on to Victoria the next day. What was another 100 km day after 12 days straight of biking, right?
It was pretty blissful biking in the dark with tunes blasting and fewer cars. We made it to a campsite in Nanaimo after midnight, and thankfully a staff member was milling around and let us pay in the morning and gave us some shower tokens.
Day 13: Nanaimo to Victoria
Jesse was up long before I was to catch an early ferry, so I paid at the front desk and left for Victoria. I biked to Mill Bay and caught a short ferry to Brentwood. On the galloping goose trail in Victoria, I lost all my bike-manners and had a minor collision with another cyclist. It was mostly my fault, I forgot to signal left on the bike path, just as she was passing me on the left. I arrived at my Aunt and Uncle's house after almost 100km, ready to take a break and sleep in a nice bed.
Day 14: Tour de UVic
The next day, I waited for my cousin Camryn to get back from a trip and for my Aunty and Uncle to finish work. In the meantime, I went on a little tour of UVic. I was boasting some pretty amazing tan-lines at this point, and showed them off while I did some laundry at their house.
That evening, we went on a little hike up Mt. Doug. It was fun to catch-up after a few years of not seeing them all!
Day 15: Victoria to Home! The Finale
My last section of my journey was biking home, so I left early from Victoria to catch a ferry back to Tsawwassen. The way went mostly smoothly and I caught the ferry on time to get back to the mainland. I took a familiar route, which I used biking my 200 mile charity ride around the Fraser Valley. I arrived at home that evening to my parent's house, happy to be home and off my bike.
Over the last two weeks, I biked over twice the length of Vancouver Island, a total of 1,400km and 13,5000m of elevation gain. What an incredible trip!
Epilogue
It's quite hard to do justice to such a long and eventful trip. I hope you enjoyed reading parts of some of the journey, or even just flipping through the photos. Friendships grew from it, and so did my appreciation for Vancouver Island. I hope to one day explore more of the rugged mountains and landscape that we briefly passed through.
Thanks Jesse, Andrew, and Sandy for an amazing experience and so many precious memories!
In terms of bikepacking, a big lesson I learned from this trip was to look at the restock locations along the way. I could have left most of my food at home and just bought supplies along the way rather than tote around so much excess food. This would have made for a lot less speed wobble and a lighter load to go up the hills.
Another factor is that the type of bike really matters. I think that part of the reason my rear spoke broke was that I was riding too speedily on a lower-calibre steed with not enough suspension in the tires to support the heavy load. My entry-level gravel bike was not equipped with the right gear ratios or big enough tires to accommodate the steep hills and loose gravel. Yes, it got the job done, but if I were to do a trip like this again, I'd want to get a more gravel-specific bike with beefier tires and lower gearing. Something like the Salsa Cutthroat comes to mind, or the Kona Ouroboros. Otherwise, with my current setup, I'd probably stick to more road riding on bikepacking trips. It's quite fun to move quickly and cover a lot of ground, made possible by paved roads.
Anyways, that's pretty much all I have to say about this trip - it was really fun writing this post and looking back on a grand adventure with good friends!
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