Bridge across
the Columbia River on US90
Saturday, August 23rd, 1997
View off of
the bow of the Ferry to Vancouver Island.
I start driving again around 4:00am local time. I feel pretty good but I need to sing to myself to stay focused.
One of the GPS batteries explodes in the charger though I don't realize it at the time. It makes a faint sort of a squirt sound. Later when the battery low alarm comes up on the GPS I try to swap them in while I'm driving. They don't seem to fit properly and they're a little greasy. I finally realize that at least one of the four is leaking acid over my hands and they have all expanded to the point that they won't fit in the GPS. I drop them into the map pocket on my door and a bit later I hear another one explode with a hiss. I pull into a super-station a bit early and gas up while Sean sleeps on like a rock.
I continue driving through Western Montana, sorry that it is dark. In the flashing reflections of headlights I can tell we are passing through some truly majestic lands. Dawn comes as I drive through deep valleys and climb up the east side of the Rockies. The sun is well above the horizon when we cross the continental divide and enter Idaho. Immediately after cresting the Rockies an incredible vista unfolds across the Idaho panhandle. I don't react fast enough to pull over into the only stop that ever presents itself. I missed an incredible photo opportunity with the sun blasting down into the valley from behind us- burning the mist out of the cool pine valleys. The Northern Idaho lake region is magnificent.
We enter Eastern Washington- incredibly arid and desolate looking. Reminds me of pictures of Mars I have seen recently returned by the NASA mission. I drive out the tank of gas and we stop in the middle of nowhere to switch and fuel up. It is breathtaking, but very harsh.
Sean pulls into a small overlook at "Horse (something)" Canyon and we get some great pictures. The binoculars again prove their worth.
Bridge across
the Columbia River on US90
We push on, and I sleep fitfully until Sean stops about one hour east of Spokane, Washington. Suddenly we aren't making good time. We stop and eat tuna sandwiches for lunch (again) and torment the little yippy dogs in the car next to us. I drive on through North Bend and into Seattle. We are definitely behind schedule now, though I don't know why.
We arrive in Seattle around 1:30pm. Odometer reading: 133,995 miles (2425 elapsed miles in 45 hours, 54mph average)
Seattle is cool but characteristically overcast- it reminds us a bit of San Francisco. And the traffic sucks. We make a poor stop for gas (gas stops are so crucial) about one mile shy of the Canadian border. We somehow only get 3/4 tank of gas and then accidentally head south back towards Seattle.
The border crossing is supposed to be easy, but US customs sends us back to Canadian customs, who inspects the truck very thoroughly, and sends us back to U.S. customs who OK's everything. An hour later we're through.
Canada is clean and seems well maintained- almost european-looking in that regard. A half-hour later we easily find the BC Ferries terminal at Tsawwassen. There is a slight delay when they make us fill our totally empty 2nd jerry can with water. The concept here is to make sure there are no explosive gases wafting about on board the ship. But since the tank has never even held gasoline it is really a waste. They provide us with the free use of a hose and we are soon in line and ready to board the ferry. At about 5:45 we are sailing for Nanaimo.
The sunset
as viewed from the upper deck.
The two-hour ride is pretty quick, and the weather is gorgeous (above). The approach to Nanaimo as the sun sets is breathtaking: a quaint port town framed by a huge rainbow against a dark blue sky. We drive off into Nanaimo and immediately start driving North for Port Hardy. The roads are great but this island is very hilly. In the evening I stop the truck at a small park and back up to the sound to make dinner as the sun sets over the water. The setting reminds me alternately of Catamaco and Calderitas, Mexico. We eat an excellent meal of some sort of beef stew concoction we whip together.
Sean starts driving after the sun has set. It is hard to ignore the ever increasing 4th-gear rattle from the transmission. I worry about it to the best of my ability, given my sleep-deprived state. I struggle with genuine exhaustion for the first time during the trip. My head lolls from side to side as I drift in and out. The signs of life are getting very sparse and we are concerned for a while about running out of gas before reaching the north end of the island. We rejoice when we finally find a friendly station still open at this late hour. The attendant says we have about four more hours to Port Hardy. There is no way we can do it in this condition.
We finally give in at 11:30 pm local time. We park in a small gravel lot next to some sort of shop, backed up against a tall pine forest on the side of a steep hill. I begin to fall asleep as soon as I lay down, sticking to my clothes and marveling at the incredibly loud ringing in my ears. Caused no doubt by two and a half days in this rather loud truck. The engine has not stopped for more than about 30 minutes since we left Tennessee. I am absolutely exhausted. I set my watch alarm for 3:03am, and check it at least five times. If it does not wake me there is no way we will make it to Port Hardy before our ship leaves the dock at sunrise.
