An opportunity recently came up that was really hard to pass up, and we have decided to move away from Salt Spring Island.
While my wife and I are in the process of moving all of our belongings into my mom’s house in the Merville area, I have taken the opportunity in some down time to try exploring the area a bit.
Merville is a small unincorporated community near Courtenay, B.C. It is home to some farms, cows and donkeys, as well as a few people. Immediately to the west are the Vancouver Island Ranges, which will be my playground for the forseeable future. To the east is the northern edge of the Salish Sea, and from there the mountains on the mainland of Canada.
I had a few hours to spare after work, and limited battery on my phone, so I decided to go for a small exploration trip in the valley.
So far I have found a long mixed-surface commuter trail with almost nobody on it, a #coffeeoutside spot, and a whole slough of weird country roads that may or may not go nowhere. Definitely ripe for exploration.
Not much from this first ride, but it shows that the area is brimming with possibility for weird mixed-surface country riding, and definitely lots of big climbs.
Click here for the Strava map of my ride.