Norte a Sur presented by Guayaki Yerba Mate is a series documenting segments of our journey from Maine to Argentina. The first three episodes document our three week #bike and van trip around Vancouver Island earlier this year. 

After a week in the saddle we were ready to take on something bigger than our usual day ride. While overlooking the Straight of Georgia, dotted with Islands and the Sunshine Coast beyond - one particular island chain stood out in my mind. Their proximity to Vancouver Island seemed close enough, yet it looked like a potential doable adventure for us. 

During our afternoon mate and croissant session, I checked google maps and sure enough there were ferries running regularly and it turned out that the sole mountain of Hornby Island made it a top mountain biking destination. Further, the campground is typically fully booked all summer by young families, but they had a spot of two nights opening up the next day and that would be their only opening available. Obviously we jumped on it and began the preparations for a two night, three day adventure. 

After biking 70 km a couple days prior, we knew we could handle the ride, except this time we knew, even with the bar minimum, we’d be packing another 75 pounds of gear between tent, stove, sleeping bags, basic clothing, food and of course the dog! Somehow we did it - we managed to get out of there by the next morning on the 10:00 AM ferry to Denman Island ready for something we had never done before. 

Stepping off the ferry at Denman was refreshing until the first hill - straight up out of the ocean to the island central plateau. We learned immediately that Lola would need to run the hills if we’d make it to the next ferry on time. All along the way fruit trees beckoned us from apples to pears we couldn't ride a few hundred meters without scrumping. Then of course the blackberries were literally covering the roadsides and Alfonso couldn’t get enough. 

We made the 1:00 ferry to Hornby and then really began to feel out there. There were people with bikes on their cars, but we still had yet to see a fellow cyclist. Committed we carried on over another mountainous island until we reached the central pinnacle and downgrade that took us all the way to the campground. Our site put us right in the middle with people on all sides of us within speaking distance. For us it felt very strange after spending so many nights usually alone in the van in beautiful spots. We did our routine - setting up our new NEMO Dagger 3 person ultra light tent, our sleeping bags and the rest of our camp, then strolled down to the beach just a few hundred feet down the road for our evening mate session. As we poured and passed the gourd, we overlooked the small town across the Straight of Georgia where we sat the day before conceiving the plan. It reminded me how simple but rewarding human powered adventures can be. 

The next days were relaxing. Without the van, we were limited where we could go and there was plenty to do just within a bike ride. We also forged fast friendships with our neighbors and their kids, who all nodded in amazement at our bike packing feat.

The trip finished before we wanted and we soon found ourselves back in the van, back to our routine and the comforts in our own minimalistic lifestyle. While driving that night, I found myself wondering when we’d do something like this again and in what shape it would look like. The challenges of taking an eighteen month old and four year old out on an adventure rife with discomfort are clear, however we seem to like that and I hope it wears off on our boys helping them to be more conscious of the footprint of their lives. 

Special thanks to our Presenting Sponsor Guayaki Yerba Mate. 

Along with our supporting partners: Specialized, Thule, Robert Axle Project, Patagonia Provisions, Justin’s, Good to Go, Topo Designs, Grandy Oats, and Freewaters.

Stay tuned for Episode 3 dropping next week.