Veritable
Active Member
Equipment is a Canon 50D, with a Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L USM, and a B+W Circular Polarizer. Car is a 2008 BMW E90 M3 Sedan, Melbourne Red Metallic.
Here's the Google Maps link of the route: http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=F...mra=dvme&mrsp=9&sz=14&via=1,2,3,4,5,7,8,9&z=9
Day 1 started in Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal....
Then, after disembarking in Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal, I took a route that I discovered by my usual means: "How do I go from here to there, without driving on the boring freeways?" "Ooooooh, that looks like fun on Google Street View...." The road goes through what is called the Highlands, and for lack of a better explanation, it looks like someone took a hiking trail and paved it into a road. Tight, twisty, plenty of elevation changes, huge trees just FEET from the road, and barely wide enough for 2 cars.
The ridiculous amount of tall trees meant the pictures were underwhelming, but they give you an idea:
After emerging from the Highlands, neatly skirting urban Victoria, then it's down to Sooke to do the Sooke Loop:
Then, onto the West Coast Highway, BC Hwy 14, to Port Renfrew:
Here's another one of those roads that I "discovered," which is a LOGGING ROAD that the BC government PAVED, in order to complete what is called the Southern Island Circle Tour. Logging roads always look like great drives on overhead maps, being deep in the forest with lots of twists and turns. They're usually dirt and gravel roads, though, so imagine what a gem this one is, being paved all the way through.
Overnight in downtown Nanaimo:
Day 2, here's the Pacific Rim Highway (BC Hwy 4) Westbound from Port Alberni to the Tofino / Ucluelet junction:
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve Visitor Centre:
Ucluelet waterfront, with a couple of my best pictures on the trip. It's one of those rare times when even the weather, lighting and scenery all cooperated. I'm actually in talks right now to trade my car in for a 2011 Interlagos Blue M-DCT sedan, trying to get one of the last ones to be built; but dang, Melbourne Red looked great here:
I took a wrong turn when leaving the town, and stumbled into a newly developing housing area. These epic scenes will be some lucky person's back patio view....
Looked for picture opportunities while driving Westbound on Hwy 4, so did the photo opportunities on the way back. Hey, the ferry was not for 5-6hrs anyways....
Here's the epic cliffside drive of the Pacific Rim Highway. Can you believe that they even drive 42ft tractor trailers on it? Well, the supermarkets in Tofino need their veggies and frozen meat....
More beautiful scenery alongside BC Hwy 4:
Finally, a quick rest stop in Port Alberni, with the paper mill in the background:
As usual, I'll be posting GoPro footages throughout the week. Here's the aforementioned "Highlands" with the bumper cam, which gives you a much better impression of how tight and how many elevation changes there are. I wouldn't call it a "great" road, because of the complete lack of scenery, but it's certainly technically demanding. I'd call it a rally route, but paved so perfect for my BMW
[video=youtube;Jy52-GGXXG4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy52-GGXXG4[/video]
...and I was going slow enough to not get much wind noise! Well, it would be quite hard to go much faster than I did on that road anyways... it's pretty insane, especially with the tree roots just feet from the road edge, and the threat of oncoming traffic. I haven't been on any of the rally stages, but I'd bet that route was pretty close to a WRC tarmac stage.
Thanks for reading, and expect more videos later on this week.
Here's the Google Maps link of the route: http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=F...mra=dvme&mrsp=9&sz=14&via=1,2,3,4,5,7,8,9&z=9
Day 1 started in Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal....
Then, after disembarking in Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal, I took a route that I discovered by my usual means: "How do I go from here to there, without driving on the boring freeways?" "Ooooooh, that looks like fun on Google Street View...." The road goes through what is called the Highlands, and for lack of a better explanation, it looks like someone took a hiking trail and paved it into a road. Tight, twisty, plenty of elevation changes, huge trees just FEET from the road, and barely wide enough for 2 cars.
The ridiculous amount of tall trees meant the pictures were underwhelming, but they give you an idea:
After emerging from the Highlands, neatly skirting urban Victoria, then it's down to Sooke to do the Sooke Loop:
Then, onto the West Coast Highway, BC Hwy 14, to Port Renfrew:
Here's another one of those roads that I "discovered," which is a LOGGING ROAD that the BC government PAVED, in order to complete what is called the Southern Island Circle Tour. Logging roads always look like great drives on overhead maps, being deep in the forest with lots of twists and turns. They're usually dirt and gravel roads, though, so imagine what a gem this one is, being paved all the way through.
Overnight in downtown Nanaimo:
Day 2, here's the Pacific Rim Highway (BC Hwy 4) Westbound from Port Alberni to the Tofino / Ucluelet junction:
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve Visitor Centre:
Ucluelet waterfront, with a couple of my best pictures on the trip. It's one of those rare times when even the weather, lighting and scenery all cooperated. I'm actually in talks right now to trade my car in for a 2011 Interlagos Blue M-DCT sedan, trying to get one of the last ones to be built; but dang, Melbourne Red looked great here:
I took a wrong turn when leaving the town, and stumbled into a newly developing housing area. These epic scenes will be some lucky person's back patio view....
Looked for picture opportunities while driving Westbound on Hwy 4, so did the photo opportunities on the way back. Hey, the ferry was not for 5-6hrs anyways....
Here's the epic cliffside drive of the Pacific Rim Highway. Can you believe that they even drive 42ft tractor trailers on it? Well, the supermarkets in Tofino need their veggies and frozen meat....
More beautiful scenery alongside BC Hwy 4:
Finally, a quick rest stop in Port Alberni, with the paper mill in the background:
As usual, I'll be posting GoPro footages throughout the week. Here's the aforementioned "Highlands" with the bumper cam, which gives you a much better impression of how tight and how many elevation changes there are. I wouldn't call it a "great" road, because of the complete lack of scenery, but it's certainly technically demanding. I'd call it a rally route, but paved so perfect for my BMW
[video=youtube;Jy52-GGXXG4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy52-GGXXG4[/video]
...and I was going slow enough to not get much wind noise! Well, it would be quite hard to go much faster than I did on that road anyways... it's pretty insane, especially with the tree roots just feet from the road edge, and the threat of oncoming traffic. I haven't been on any of the rally stages, but I'd bet that route was pretty close to a WRC tarmac stage.
Thanks for reading, and expect more videos later on this week.
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