Day 1

Victoria , BC – Sol Sante Nudist Resort, Mill Bay .
Link to Victoria photo album
Link to Butchart Gardens photo albums

After my little accident at the border, I got back on the road and headed for the Vancouver Island ferry terminal. But before I get there I have to stop somewhere and get some Canadian cash. The info I have is that the ferries are not equipped to accept credit cards. So I stopped at a truck stop and used the cash machine. My cash card worked just fine and I withdrew $300.

This ferry runs from Tsawwassen (south of Vancouver) on the mainland to Swartz Bay (north of Victoria) on Vancouver Island . The trip takes about 2 hours. The ferry is large (2 vehicle decks and 3 passenger decks) and has a restaurant, snack bar, and gift/news/book shop.

The cost is determined by the height and length of you vehicle. My Turtle/Toad rig measures out to be 50 ft long and “over height” so I ended up paying $136.50 Canadian (all prices will be in Canadian dollars from here on, unless I add ‘US” to the number). And, come to find out, they DO take credit cards, as do all the major ferry terminals.

I was trying to catch the noon ferry (they normally run about every 2 hours) and got there a few minutes before noon but found that, due to some kind of strike, the boats were running behind schedule. My ferry had been delayed until 1 PM. After getting through the toll booth and having lunch, they announced that the ferry was now scheduled to depart at 2 PM. Oh well, I guess I was actually lucky, you normally have to get in line at least an hour BEFORE sailing time to ensure you'll make that ferry, but due to the strike, ferry traffic was light. Unlike the stateside ferries, you CAN make vehicle reservations for the BC ferries. In fact, it's highly recommended! The website is www.bcferries.bc.ca

WARNING! There is another check for illegal items at the ferry terminal for anyone going to Vancouver Island . They are checking for chickens and chicken byproducts. This is due to the Avian flu, which hasn't appeared on the island yet and they're trying to keep it off. They weren't interested in my frozen turkey breasts though.

While waiting I had a gentleman from one of the numerous shops lining the waiting lanes come up and ask me if I had a bicycle pump (he saw my bike on the back of the toad). His fancy smoked salmon push cart had two flat tires. I broke out my little battery powered compressor and pumped up both tires for him. He presented me with a large slab of smoked salmon for my troubles. I'm sure I got the best of that deal but he insisted.

The ferry ride was uneventful but nice scenery. My destination was Sol Sante Nudist Resort at Mill Bay . That's about 40 km north of Victoria on CA-1. However, because Swartz Bay is on a peninsula you have to go south about 15 km to the outskirts of Victoria to pick up CA-1. There is a small ferry that runs from Brentwood bay (just south of Swartz Bay, but on the west side of the peninsula) over to Mill Bay but it is a very small, open deck, 12 car ferry that would be very hard to maneuver a large RV and toad onto. Plus the ramps are real tail draggers. RV'ers are better off going around.

ROAD REPORT: All the roads were in good shape, outside of the city they were mostly 2 lane with strategically placed passing lanes and frequent RV sized pull-outs. Inside the city limits they were 4 lane, divided until you got downtown. So far traffic hasn't been a problem. Vancouver Island is a very mountainous island so there is a lot of climbing and coasting, also a lot of pull-offs to take pictures.

Because of the delay on the ferry, I arrived at Sol Sante late and found the gate locked. I walked in and found a resident that gave me the manager's full name and I was able to call her at home (she doesn't live on-site) and she gave me the gate combination and told me where to set up. Come to find out, the groundskeeper was on-site and expecting me. Why that resident wouldn't give me the combination or point out the groundskeepers house is still a mystery. He was the only grouch I met here. My stay here is for 2 weeks. My comments on Sol Sante are on the AANR pages.

When I arrived I noticed that my Verizon cell phone was showing a “Roaming” symbol so I called Verizon and they informed me that I would have to change my calling plan to include Canada . I would then have to get within range of a Verizon cell tower to download some new software (a new PRL – Preferred Roaming List) to make the new plan work. This would require me to cross back over the border.

The next day I went to the local Telus store (they are the roaming partner of Verizon), to find out what could be done about my laptop Aircard. The girl there called the Telus data techs and had me talk to them directly. The techs informed me that Telus and Verizon had signed a “Data Roaming” agreement 4 days earlier (May 4 th ) and I should be able to download a new PRL for the Aircard from a Verizon tower which would allow my datalink work with the Telus towers.

The following day I drove into Victoria and walked onboard the ferry Coho, which runs from Victoria , BC to Port Angeles , WA . Once in range of a Verizon tower, I downloaded the two software patches, one to my cell and one to my laptop's Aircard. Of course I couldn't tell if either was working until I got back into range of a Telus tower. So I had lunch in P.A. and got on the same ferry back to Victoria .

Once I was back in Canada I found that the cell phone worked fine (it now showed “Extended Network”) but the Aircard still didn't work. I called Verizon and asked about the “Data Roaming” agreement with Telus and why wouldn't my Aircard work. They had never heard of the agreement!

I then inquired of all three Canada-wide cell companies about signing up for one of their data plans. It was going to cost me $400 for the Aircard, $120 for initial sign-up and activation, and $100/month for 10mb airtime. However, that even fell through because I didn't have a Canadian address for billing purposes. Even though I would be receiving my bill and paying it on-line! So it looks like I'm stuck with using WiFi hotspots until Verizon gets its act together on that “Data Roaming” agreement.

These are things I should have taken care of BEFORE crossing the border!

Two days later, the battery in my cell phone died and I had to make another trip to P.A to get a new phone! Come to find out, phones are unique to each cell company and batteries for my phone are available in the US only. Verizon owed me a phone anyway so I just picked up a new one rather than buying a battery for my old one.

Customs checked my ID on both trips, both ways. They also needed something other than my drivers' license, something that would show that I'm a U.S citizen. I showed my passport the first time, which worked but also created a bunch of questions because of the Saudi Arabia stamps in it. When the agent learned that I was retired military, he suggested that next time I just show my Military ID. On the second trip I did and it worked; no questions, no problems at either end.

As far as internet access, I tried to find a WiFi hotspot in the Mill Bay area but was unsuccessful. I did find two places where I could hook up using a CAT-5. One was in a used book store in Mill Bay and the other was an internet cafe in Duncan, about 16 km up the road from Mill Bay. Both charged the same, 17 cents a minute ($10.20/hr). I decided to use the cafe for two reasons; I could get a Latte and donut and I could watch the people walking by on the sidewalk.

I was able to get a mail delivery but I had to go over to the Sidney FedEx distribution center to pick it up. FedEx can't deliver to Sol Sante for some reason I never found out. My "second day" package was there on the second day.

Another thing I've discovered, Visa is not widely accepted in this area. Mastercard is the most common credit card. Also, my cash card does not register as a debt card in the stores, it shows as a Visa credit card, even though the money comes out of my checking account. Consequently I can't get cash at the supermarkets. Most ATM's don't recognize the cash card either. I have to find a bank machine or an ATM that accepts the "Plus" or "Visa" cards.

The rest of my stay was uneventful, I spent most of my time sightseeing and sunbathing. I did most of the tourist things, including the museums, art galleries, Parliament House, inner harbor, and Butchart Gardens . I was early in the season for the Gardens so the roses weren't in bloom but the rest of it was beautiful. I've devoted an entire photoalbum for the Gardens, the rest of the pictures are in the Victoria album. I never got the chance to see the rest of the island. But that just gives me another reason to come back. The scenery is spectacular on the Island!


WEATHER REPORT: 15 - 21° C most of the time, about half of the days it rained. But never on the days I was riding a ferry.

STORY CONTINUES ON THE VANCOUVER PAGE!