Build Ozzi, 2000 HZJ78 in Canada - travel/maintenance/build

[janyyc]

We woke up in the morning to rain, the only day in our whole trip on which we were rained out.

We made breakfast under our awning and ate it sitting on our cooler, thereafter swiftly breaking camp to head on some adventures and warm up from the rain.

After stopping at the Port Clements Museum (very cool exhibit of logging and local memorabilia) I spotted an interesting boardwalk and we swung a U-turn to go and see it. Immediately I was struck by the amount of jumping fish and filmed this fascinating phenomenon. As we approached the few fishermen on the dock, it became apparent they were absolutely raking the fish in... soon enough one offers for me to try my hand, shows me the ropes, and a minute or two later I have a salmon on the dock. Canadian kindness continues when he fillets the fish for us...

Our drive for the day was on the unpaved trunk logging route to Skidegate, cutting southwards through the island. We stopped off in a few places along the way, such as at the former site of the infamous Golden Spruce. The weather was mixed, but the scenery was beautiful and it was a day well-spent.

For the evening, we decided to return to the same camp spot, as it had the unusual benefit of a cooking shelter, which could come in very handy in case of rain, which was always just around the corner.

We started our fire, and Canadian kindness shined upon us again - our neighbours walked up with a huge pile of repurposed cedar fencing they had brought as firewood and didn't need. Soon enough, the embers were warm enough to put our salmon on the fire.

After a final touch directly on the coals, dinner was served.

 

[janyyc]

The sunset was spectacular, a pod of dolphins swam by close to shore, the salmon was some of the best I've ever tasted, great company, a great vehicle - as close to paradise as one can get.

 

[janyyc]

The time has come to finally complete the stories about that September 2022 trip, before I have too many other stories to tell and the memories are lost in the deepest crevices of the mind.

———

The next morning we woke up to a fairly cold day. With an excess of wood available, we lit a fire and made breakfast.

The plan for the morning was to drive out onto the tip of Rose Spit. It’s a long beach drive, so checking the tide was crucial. This was more difficult than one would expect, since cell phone service was a sporadic one bar near camp. After confirming that low tide would be in the morning, we set out. At the end of the graded road is a little exit onto the beach, which at first is a flat, hard runway. We stuck as far away from the tidal area as possible and had a smooth as butter ride.

 

[janyyc]

Smooth sailing soon gave way to a beach of mixed sand and pea gravel, which necessitated a moderated speed to account for the undulating terrain.




The further we went, the worst it became, we started crossing mini-dunes of gravel. Apply speed to get over, let off to get down. We were between a rock and a hard place, or in this case the sea and a steep, rocky beach.

As the forest behind the beach disappeared, so too did the undulations. Suddenly, there was a beach laden with obstacles: large stones, logs, and mixed gravel & sand. Inland, the trees had given way to a vast, green grassland. At this point we decided to lower our tire pressures even more, as the sand was wet but soft.

 

[janyyc]

We would follow sporadic and barely discernible tracks when we could, but always preferred those closer to land.



Progressively the grassland gave way to chaos - a graveyard for large trees, between which some shrubs and grasses lived.

This also meant one could see the waves lapping the beach on both sides, and the land slowly disappearing into the water.

We reached the tip, in awe of the rugged, remote beauty.

For us, it was time to turn back. At the lowest tide, it is possible to drive further onto the spit, and the inevitable resulting drone footage shows your vehicle on a sandy beach, between the waves, seemingly in the middle of the ocean. To me, such an image was frightening, as if the sea were threatening to consume the intruder.

 

[cannedcruiser]

Amazing, what an experience. The potential of sinking into a patch of soft sand with nothing to easily attach my winch to while the rising tide waits for no one makes me feel very uneasy. Watching the tide rise to swallow up the Troopy would provide a lot to think about on the long walk back.

 

[janyyc]

Taking an exit off of the beach, marked with a brightly-painted water jug, we found ourselves within the grasslands. The wind was hypnotically swaying the vivid green grasses as we drove in a landscape straight out of Scotland.

After exiting the beach, we rushed to reinflate our tyres and make it to the ferry for Moresby, the other island accessible by car. Arriving in Skidegate with a few minutes to spare, we stocked up on essentials at the Coop and lined up for the ferry.

Sandspit is a little town, with only a general store and a few other necessities, but it’s also home to the principle commercial airport on the islands, to which Air Canada flies once daily. As usual, I had a few campsites prepared for the evening. There was only one problem - it was pouring. Luckily, likely due to the prevalence of such conditions on the island, many of the campgrounds had some sites with private, covered cooking shelters. However, we quickly discovered that these were occupied by long-term campers and also learned that the type of camper on the island was more - shall we say - "rough and rugged" than we prefer.

We explored a few sites, situated alongside a beach. However they had the big downside of being offset from the beach very slightly, and treed in. The rain made it all look rather uninviting, but we found one spot, complete with cooking shelter, which we liked. The first order of business after backing into the camp was to start a fire to ensure we were warm despite the circumstances. We made a nice dinner, prepared some potatoes to put into the fire for later, and hung out our towels, which could never quite dry in the constant dampness.

 

[janyyc]

Of course, soon thereafter the rain dissipated and nature gifted us with a spectacular show.

For an evening snack, our delicious potatoes did the trick.

 

[janyyc]

Waking up to sunshine, the beach looked spectacular in this warm morning light.

It was still rather cold, so a morning fire was lit. Certainly there is no shortage of firewood on Haida Gwai’i!

Morning engine check before departing for our Moresby Island adventuring.

 

[janyyc]

Our drive took us through tall forests, green from the ground to the sky, and to lakes and inlets with spectacular views. At the southernmost road-accessible tip of the islands, not even halfway down the archipelago, we witnessed parks officers arriving in a rib boat from even further south. True adventuring starts here, only accessible by boat and best explored by kayak, with the southern islands also being more topographically dramatic, with layer upon layer of forested, green mountains plunging straight into the dark waters.

 

[Gun Runner 5]

While all of your photography is top notch, in my humble opinion this is the “money shot”.

 

[janyyc]

Though Moresby Island somehow wasn’t quite our vibe, it was certainly beautiful. Evidently it rains much more than in the North, many of the campgrounds have private cooking shelters and beautiful view, and the sites are green with moss.

Our drives would take us next to logging operation staging areas, where there would always be always some interesting machinery to inspect.

 

[cannedcruiser]

Hard to imagine that beautiful land not being your vibe. What about it was turning you off? I do recall that you mentioned some long term campers that seemed a little rough to you or was there something else, perhaps the near constant rain?

 

[janyyc]

Hard to imagine that beautiful land not being your vibe. What about it was turning you off? I do recall that you mentioned some long term campers that seemed a little rough to you or was there something else, perhaps the near constant rain?

This was a comment specifically about Moresby Island, and particularly when compared with Graham Island. Probably a combination of the crowd (hunting/survivalist), wetness, and less opportunity to explore - relatively speaking, there’s very few roads to get “lost” on.

 

[janyyc]

For our last night on Haida Gwai’i, we crossed back onto Graham Island.

An epic wrecker - and yes, it was registered and plated!

 

[janyyc]

We camped near the main village, which during our stay was still called Queen Charlotte City - the islands were known as the Queen Charlotte Islands until 2010: sometime in 2022 the village was renamed Daajing Giids. It was actually a very nice recreation site, except, due to its proximity to town, it was quite popular. A while after we arrived, a big Mercedes bus pulled in, and during dinner we were treated to the sound of their generator keeping their lights on.

Now you can see why I like having the awning on the rear of my Troopy - often Canadian campsites are narrow (too narrow for a 360 awning) and the rear area is where all the cooking is done. Here, we could basically create a little pergola, and have a cooking/sitting/eating area in case it rained.

We took advantage of the nice weather to wander up the road a little bit, where we explored another logging staging area - including a big semi with the keys in the ignition. I was super tempted to take it on a joy-ride, but common sense prevailed in the end.

We also used our Snowpeak kettle for the first and only time on this trip... but it looked great!

Dinner...

 

[janyyc]

Another beauty shot of the kettle on the fire...

After a good nights' sleep, we woke to more rain, of course. Because of the early departure of the ferry, we weren't having breakfast, just packing up and heading straight to the ferry.

Registration and boarding was more efficient this time, and I took a seat on the outside deck to observe the interesting vehicle loading procedures.

Firstly, I present to you a spotless Mercedes Sprinter. I can tell you with confidence there isn't a publicly-available car washing facility on Haida Gwai'i, and you've seen in my pictures how dirty the vehicle became after driving it around the island on the many unpaved roads (no offroading involved).

Then we have a gigantic trailer, which was expertly backed onto the ferry (at least if you're getting such a behemoth, know how to drive!).

While still in port, I had breakfast, a decision I came to sincerely regret a few short hours later...

 

[janyyc]

Soon after leaving port, we were treated to a beautiful rainbow.

I still managed to take this beautiful video...



Unfortunately, the seas became quite rough after that, and while I'm not an "experienced" seaman, I've been on my fair share on ships, and luckily I don't get seasick. Still, it was not pleasant, things were flying out of the kitchen, water was sloshing, waves were hitting the bow of the ship, all the outside decks were locked shut. This also meant we couldn't take the shortcut, so the suffering was protracted.

Upon arrival at the port I spotted a LC Defender 110, so we did a full loop of the parking to take a picture next to it. The owner came out from the ferry office and didn't even say hi... Ugh.

Unfortunately, the ferry was a bit late and sunset was imminent, and the only established campground near town was closed the season... or was it? We slowed down when passing it, and the gate was still open! Driving in, some people camped, we passed by the caretaker and he confirmed he stayed open a few extra days since there were still people around. Nice, no need to sleep in a pullout!

Awning once again saving the day from the intermittent rain:

A very, very simple dinner indeed...

 

[bcsteel]

Hey if you’re driving through Terrace pm me and stop in for beverage.

 

[janyyc]

Hey if you’re driving through Terrace pm me and stop in for beverage.

Thanks man, this trip was September 2022 (and of course, we drove through Terrace!) but later this month we are planning another adventure. Not sure where it'll take us but I'll be sure to ping you if we are driving through!