Hitch Hiking British Colombia the places i stopped

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At this Point i have hitch hiked across Canada twice now and been through BC three times round trip, stopping in different locations both times and Visiting Victoria BC every time. I Left Ontario the first time in May and the second in March very different times of years, very different temperatures, especially in Northern Ontario and the prairies of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. I will say that it was a little too cold for such a trip when i left in March and it was a more enjoyable adventure in May. There was more hitch hikers to meet and talk to the first time around. The most recent time around I left with my friend JP from Ontario to Banff AB it was a long cold adventure but we got there on St Patrick's day and were lucky enough to meet up in Banff with our mutual friend Liz and spent two night with her recuperating from our long cold journey. From Banff we went to Whistler BC where he had work and a place for us to stay I was going to leave him soon after and finish my trip home alone but got distracted and ended up in Dawson City YT. The First time around I did Ontario to Canmore AB with my sister, we made Canmore our home base since we had a mutual friend there and did our BC trips on our own so Travelling through BC the second time was a different experience not only because the first time i was a girl by myself and that has more risks, but because hitch hiking with a guy has its own downfalls it was a slower travel people seemed less likely to pick us up, and for the first time I had people stop and then drive away just before we tried to get into there car. I'm Going to add both adventures as one and I hope it doesn't get to confusing. I hope you enjoy the rest.

Penticton BC

wine country, hippy country, and my first taste of really staying with other hitch hikers. I was lucky enough to have a driver who knew exactly where i could camp for free with other hitch hikers, travelers and yes Hippies. It was late when I got to the Free Camping i set up my tent and got my stuff ready for passing out after I rinsed off in the river nearby, but when I got down to the river there was a small gathering of people playing music and drinking wine from the bottle and passing it around as i walked towards them they invited me to hang out with them. we talked, we laughed, and we told stories of our adventures it was like something you would see in a movie. For this experience alone i will always love Penticton. I had gotten to the area right after a liquor store had recently burnt down and they were handing out booze like it was nothing, they were waiting for it to get late before they headed back to do another run and see what they could find. I went with them and helped them dig through the debris, but of course tonight was the night that the cops busted us luckily i got off with a warning. I did manage to hid my booze in the bushes before i got caught and made it out with 2 bottles of white wine 3 bottles of red and some beer. We headed back to the camping area drank more and made the fire bigger deciding that we would all go skinny dipping and clean up the smell of fire that seemed to be sticking to everything i was wearing. I made a little tub to wash my cloths in with rocks around the river bank adding a liquid detergent pod to the water and cleaning my cloths in the river and hanging them to dry with some rope i brought for hanging my food in trees when camping in the woods . With the fire now raging we jumped in passed the soap around and all warmed up in our towels around the fire. There was no weirdness, no insecurity nobody hit on me to them it was just another bath with friends i went to my tent alone and in the morning there when i woke up there was only one girl awake we walked to town and had breakfast bringing back any extra food for the other travelers who might not be as lucky as me to still have money for food. I spent a few more days hanging out with some of the most amazing people I have ever meet drinking sharing food and singing around the fire before i headed back on the road. I never went back to the burnt down liquor store not needing to get arrested on my vacation but I would not have changed a thing about my time spent there.

Golden BC

It was still early when we arrived in Golden and we were trying to catch a ride outta town when we saw a car that had broken down and helped them push it to the nearest parking lot, by the time we finished helping them and got back onto the high way it was getting late and we just walked into the bushes off the highway and set up camp we found this beautiful little area near a stream and decided to go for a little adventure it was beautiful, but with the sun going down we decided to head back and set up a fire it was a little dry in this area so we found an old metal bucket poked some holes in the side and made our fire in that to make sure that we didn't cause a forest fire we cooked dinner chatted and slept for the night. The next morning we got a ride almost right away that was heading close to Whistler BC it was like fate we spent almost two days traveling with this old man who was visiting his son in lillooet he even let us stay with him at his sons house and fed us breakfast with his family in the morning. We were excited the next day we would make it to Whistler and a different kind of adventure would happen.

Whistler BC

So i arrived in a Ski and Snowboard town with almost no money to do those things, and slept in a 3 bedroom townhouse with 5 guys. They were almost all younger then me and still living the party life. I did things I hadn't done since i was a teen or maybe early 20s being now in my 30s i think it was a little to much for me, but it was a blast the booze flowed and any drug i wanted was offered free, probably because i am an attractive female. I danced on bars, went to clubs and played beer pong, hit all the locals after parties and realized i am really glad i didn't come here 10 years ago when i would have fully slipped into this life i saw people my age and older that came here when they were 20 and never left and are still living that life and im sure its been a blast but for me 2 weeks was just long enough to get it out of my system for at least another 5-10 years. I spent a lot of time walking the trails and seeing the sights I went to see an old train wreck in the woods that had been spray painted and turned into a bike park, I meet some amazing people in whistler village who wanted to know about my travels and tryed some amazing local craft beers from whistler brewing company MMMmmmmm there were a few that i wish i could have now. I usually did those things alone everyone i knew either had money to Ski and Snowboard or where heavy into the party scene and i would often need to take a day off stay completely sober and enjoy this place for more then what they saw it as.

I haven't been much into drugs since i was young but i have never had an issue with them being around and have been known to dabble from time to time so this next part will be telling you about my adventure in whistler that include drugs so if you are not a fan feel free to skip this next part.

One of my first nights in Whistler we hit a club and I did a drug i hadn't touched since i was 16. GHB in small doses it makes you feel amazing and want to move I got into a dance off with a few people and danced to music i wouldn't listen to without it, for that night i was someone else, when you are in an atmosphere with people in the same mind frame it can help you lose yourself in the music and all of my self consciousness about being old or not knowing how to dance to this odd music just drifted away. I think in losing myself i found myself that night maybe it wasn't the Drugs maybe it was just that night but i think it made it easier for me to feel like i was a part of that town when i was there. I do not however recommend anyone ever do this drug there is a reason I did it once when i was 16 and not again for 14 years its very dangerous and knowing what could happen while on any drug is very important. I made a choice for that night for me it was the right one.

The next adventure involving drugs was with my good friend JP we hitched from Whistler to Squamish to climb a mountain called the Chief we stopped and I bought some bubbles for our adventure since we had decided to do it on Shrooms we Climbed the mountain with the drugs kicking in everything became brighter and more beautiful i blew bubbles adding almost a magical feel to the already magical visuals we were getting. when we reached the top we made it in time to stop to and watch the sun set it was better then i could have expected. Climbing back down as it was getting dark and while tripping had its difficulties, but it was worth it. The only problem is that Shrooms makes me a little anti social with people not in the same mind set and we were not ready to hitch hike so we walked around some amazing trails in the dark listening to the sounds of the night and eventually stopping to cuddling watching the lights of the cars on the highway pass by while we talked and came down but as it gets darker it becomes almost impossible to hitch hike we were both unwilling to spend the money on a hotel so we found a hostel but it was closed, we found a way in through a backdoor and slept in the common room with the hostel workers waking us in the morning very confused. We made it back to Whistler the next day with stories of our adventures and seeing the world in a new light which shrooms seem to always leave behind with me after i have done them. I honestly have nothing bad to say about them yes there are risks but honestly probably one of my favorite mind altering substances.

Victoria BC

The only thing i don't like about Victoria is the Ferry ride after taking it 6 times it has lost its magic i can only imagine how the locals feel. You see some beauty in the ride across but once you actually hit Vancouver Island the magic of the ride is shadowed by the beauty of what they call the garden city. The peacocks that wonder around and the beauty of the area make you feel like you have walked into a fairy tale, the people are friendly there is music all around. I loved to walk around the rugged shoreline, beaches and harbor and the one day walking around the harbor i got to talking to this group of people who let me see the inside of there sailboat they were getting ready to sail from Victoria to Sidney and they asked if i would like to come along. I of course jumped at the chance and went on my first sail boat ride it was beautiful the sailing was smooth and the sky clear the trip took 6 hours and we laughed and talked the whole way. They bought me dinner and paid for my Cab back to Victoria which was only a 15 min ride, for them it was nothing for me it was the world i can never thank them enough. I spend lots of my time in Victoria having beach fires and Kayaking in the ocean and spending time on the beach and soaking up the sun. I am lucky I have a friend who lives here that i stay with, he loves to show me the historic buildings and great places to eat. Without him and the fact that he hires me for the weeks i visit so i can make extra cash, i would not be able to do these amazing things while on such a limited budget.

Tofino BC
sadly i have only been here once. Its the only place I have been Surfing, the only place I have seen wolfs in the wild, The only place that i understood what they were talking about when they talked about how nice the sand is, and the only place that I have been that is considered a rain forest and truly made me feel like i was in the rain forest. Its so green and lush you can feel the wildness of the place when you are wondering in the woods on your own. Its the only place i wouldn't have been surprised to see a cougar stalking me, because you lose yourself here and that can easily make you prey in a place this wild. So i'm glad i didn't come alone i came with some buddies of mine from Victoria that wanted to try surfing and we all drove up together.
Surfing was an amazing experience we rented equipment and just winged it on the ocean my bud Adam was a natural which shouldn't surprise me he has always been the type to try something and pick it up, me on the other hand should have probably paid the extra for lessons. eventually i got the hang of it and after a full day of surfing and hanging out on the beach we decided to leave and camp for the night... that would have been nice are car broke down on the beach...after flirting with a guy who i offered to watch his jeep while he quickly took a look at the beach i convinced him to help my friends he drove my buddy Doug to Port Alberni and back with the parts we needed to fix our car. To thank him we asked him to camp with us and we made him dinner he has become a friend of a few years and even drove me back to Alberta from Tofino a few days later.



How I got From Kelowna BC to Dawson City YT

While i was in Victoria BC visiting my friend Adam, I got a message from my friend Chase who i grew up with, we have known each other for 22 years and only see each other randomly every few years since he moved away from our home town Havelock ON. He told me he noticed i was hitch hiking across Canada again and was wondering where i was i said Victoria BC, he said he was in Kelowna for a few days visiting his sister and that we should meet up before he heads north to the Yukon Territory. I decided to leave the next morning to meet up with him. I got back on the Ferry and found a ride while i was on it, but he was only going as far as East Vancouver tonight the next day he was heading to Penticton he was staying with a friend but after talking for a bit he called another friend who was willing to let me stay there till he picked me up the next day and yes even to me it sounded like and iffy situation but I check it out and was comforted by the fact that his friend had kids and was going to give me his daughter room for the night i stayed there and the next morning went for a motorcycle ride around the mountains before my driver picked me up to continue our journey. I finished my ride with him and hitch hiked the rest of the way meeting people who went out of there way to drive me all the way to Kelowna and right at the front door of my friends sister apartment. Chase and I talked we decided to wait for his sister and her boyfriend to get ready and we hit the local bars getting drunk enough for him to offer to take me on an adventure to Dawson City and being drunk myself i took the offer... I've been here ever since April and its now September.



I hope you enjoyed my journey



Shawn

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