In Transit

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Day 1
It was a pretty drive up to Port Angeles, and the two-hour trip passed quickly.  We had a very good lunch at Kokopelli Grill, which specializes in hand-crafted Southwest cuisine.  (Go figure!)  Rob had fish tacos, the best he’s ever had he declared.  Diane had blackened salmon, also very good and we both had charro beans and cilantro rice.
   
We had reservations for our ferry ride, so we were able to enter the ferry lanes early, and were directed to the front line of Lane 8 – excellent position for boarding. The weather was gorgeous and we took a leisurely walk, exploring some of the city streets and along the shore of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, one of the major bodies of water forming the Salish Sea.  Some people were pole-fishing from the public pier, and others were baiting their crab pots hoping to catch some delicious Dungeness Crab.

Then it was time to board.  It was a smooth 90-minute crossing (sometimes the Strait can be rather choppy).  We’re staying at the Red Lion Victoria, which is a short drive from the Ferry Dock.  We have a kitchenette/studio suite with a jacuzzi tub.  Pretty nice! 

By the time we got our luggage upstairs, and the Transit parked, it was a little past 8:00 pm and dinner options were limited.  So we settled (in more than one way) on the Chinese restaurant in the hotel basement (should have given us a clue) -- it was very mediocre, over-spiced chicken and sad noodles.  We didn’t bother taking our leftovers upstairs.  Now we know we need to plan better for the remaining dinners in Victoria! 

For the next few days, we have potential rain.  For now, our plan for tomorrow is to motor up to Botanical Beach, unless the weather in the morning suggests otherwise.  

Wishing you all the best and hoping for more weather like today’s,
Diane & Rob


The boarding process for the Black Ball Ferry was interesting. The Ferry pulled up to the terminal and disembarked the on-foot passengers then swung itself around and backed into the vehicle ramp, opened up its rear and out streamed the cars. Then we drove straight onto the ferry with all of the cars facing the front of the boat. When we reached Victoria, the crew directed the drivers of the cars in the very bow of the boat through a set of fairly complex maneuvers that allowed theses cars to leave the Ferry through a large door in the side of the boat.  With these cars out of the way, the rest of us simply just drove our vehicles out the side door.  Below are few pics that may help the reader understand what took place. Rob

Diane waiting to drive the Transit on the Ferry.






















Black Ball Ferry approaching dock. Note, large door on side of boat. This the door used to disembark cars in Victoria. 
Ferry positioning itself to back up to the vehicle ramp. 



















Now backed up to the dock ramp, the rear of the Ferry opened up and cars streamed off and we streamed on. 
Our little Transit parked with the big boys in the belly of the beast. :)

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