ferry travel,Prince Rupert to Vancouver Island

In article ,
wrote:

We also discarded the rocky mountain train because is really
expensive... so we are planning a drive round trip similar to yours.

Our plan is to start next 10th June a 14 day round-trip:

Vancouver- Penticton
Penticton-Revelstoke
Revelstoke-Banff
Banff-Jasper
Jasper-Prince George
Prince-George- Smithers
Smithers-Prince Rupert
Prince Rupert by ferry to Port Hardy
Port Hardy to Campbell River
Campbell River-Victoria
Victoria-Vancouver

Do you think it's to large to do in 14 days?

What do you plan to do besides drive? I'm a fan of road trips, but you do
need to get out of the car from time to time. In BC, that means hiking on
a trail--none of the towns on your route is worth much time, except maybe
Penticton for wineries. Any semi-serious hike will take up several hours
and leave you pretty tired, and has to be timed so you aren't hiking too
late (although June daylight will not be a big issue).

(To explain further: Banff and Jasper are tourist towns because they are
close to natural beauty, but they're not actually all that interesting
themselves, and can be crowded. Revelstoke and Smithers are small towns
with services but that's about it. Prince George is not a particularly
attractive city, and Prince Rupert isn't nearly as nice as it ought to be.)

The loop appears do-able in two weeks, but you have to plan where your
breaks are going to be.

Any suggestion ?

North of Terrace, you may want to visit the Nisga'a Memorial Lava Beds
Provincial Park.

http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/exp...gs/nisgaa.html

The catch is that getting there takes you on gravel roads. The Nass Forest
Road was okay in 1995 when I drove it; don't know what the current state
is.

.....Ed

"Keith Willshaw" wrote in message
...

wrote in message
...
On Mar 12, 3:33 pm, "Gerrit" wrote:
"Poptop" wrote in message

...

I am planning a trip to western Canada. Am considering fly to
Vancouver, Via Rail to Jasper
then Via Rail to P. Rupert. At Prince Rupert get on a ferry to
Vancouver Island & travel overland to Victoria.Can I get some advice
on this itinery?

Others have advised about the merits of train travel.

We did a car rental from Edmonton to Vancouver a few years ago.
(Edmonton
because we had friends there we wished to visit)
We then drove to Calgary to visit other friends and thence via Banff,
Lake
Louise, Jasper, to Smithers. A week later from Smithers to Prince Rupert
thence by day time ferry (the old Queen of the North) on the last trip
of
the year to Port Hardy. Then drove Port Hardy to Victoria and ferry to
Vancouver area.

This was a wonderful trip (except for the Edmonton to Calgary bit which
was
fairly boring.
The ferry trip was magic, but then we had a cloudless day. My brother
has
twice done the trip but had rain both times.

Thoroughly recommend the round trip but only by car!!

Gerrit - Oz

Hi All,

We also discarded the rocky mountain train because is really
expensive... so we are planning a drive round trip similar to yours.

Our plan is to start next 10th June a 14 day round-trip:

Vancouver- Penticton
Penticton-Revelstoke
Revelstoke-Banff
Banff-Jasper
Jasper-Prince George
Prince-George- Smithers
Smithers-Prince Rupert

You could do Prince George to Prince Rupert in one day
fairly comfortably and spend the extra day elsewhere

Seems to me that Jasper to Smithers in one day is better than Prince George
to Prince Rupert in a day. Most of the spectacular scenery between Jasper
and Prince George is at the Jasper end (especially Mt Robson) and Prince
George to Smithers is nice but unspectacular

The trip from Smithers to Prince Rupert is delightful as you will be driving
down the Skeena River valley. Last August whilst on a visit to our daughter
who now lives in Smithers we did the road journey to Prince Rupert and it is
definitely at least worth one full day. You could do side trips to Ksan
Village at (old) Hazelton, the lava beds north of Terrace, and Kitimat which
would make the trip longer than one day.

We did our trips (2004 and 2007) using maps provided by the Tourist
Authorities of BC and Alberta and found them to be adequate. Additionally we
did lots of preparation using various internet sites. We did not book any
accommodation ahead of time except a B&B in Prince Rupert and a hotel in
Stewart (for which you will be a little too early in the year) so that we
remained flexible.

Gerrit - Oz

wrote in message
...
On Mar 12, 3:33 pm, "Gerrit" wrote:
"Poptop" wrote in message

...

I am planning a trip to western Canada. Am considering fly to
Vancouver, Via Rail to Jasper
then Via Rail to P. Rupert. At Prince Rupert get on a ferry to
Vancouver Island & travel overland to Victoria.Can I get some advice
on this itinery?

Others have advised about the merits of train travel.

We did a car rental from Edmonton to Vancouver a few years ago. (Edmonton
because we had friends there we wished to visit)
We then drove to Calgary to visit other friends and thence via Banff,
Lake
Louise, Jasper, to Smithers. A week later from Smithers to Prince Rupert
thence by day time ferry (the old Queen of the North) on the last trip of
the year to Port Hardy. Then drove Port Hardy to Victoria and ferry to
Vancouver area.

This was a wonderful trip (except for the Edmonton to Calgary bit which
was
fairly boring.
The ferry trip was magic, but then we had a cloudless day. My brother has
twice done the trip but had rain both times.

Thoroughly recommend the round trip but only by car!!

Gerrit - Oz

Hi All,

We also discarded the rocky mountain train because is really
expensive... so we are planning a drive round trip similar to yours.

Our plan is to start next 10th June a 14 day round-trip:

Vancouver- Penticton
Penticton-Revelstoke
Revelstoke-Banff
Banff-Jasper
Jasper-Prince George
Prince-George- Smithers
Smithers-Prince Rupert
Prince Rupert by ferry to Port Hardy
Port Hardy to Campbell River
Campbell River-Victoria
Victoria-Vancouver

Do you think it's to large to do in 14 days?
Must we reserve the ferry ticket now, or we can wait until some days
before the date?
Tomtom 6 GPS maps for this area are precisse ?

Any suggestion ?

Many thanks!

Joan
Barcelona

You may need to also balance the train fare against the cost of car rental
and the cost of the ferry for the car. Car ferry is about $335 for the car.
Does not include any people.

"Calif Bill" wrote in message
...

Our plan is to start next 10th June a 14 day round-trip:

Vancouver- Penticton
Penticton-Revelstoke
Revelstoke-Banff
Banff-Jasper
Jasper-Prince George
Prince-George- Smithers
Smithers-Prince Rupert
Prince Rupert by ferry to Port Hardy
Port Hardy to Campbell River
Campbell River-Victoria
Victoria-Vancouver

Do you think it's to large to do in 14 days?
Must we reserve the ferry ticket now, or we can wait until some days
before the date?
Tomtom 6 GPS maps for this area are precisse ?

Any suggestion ?

Many thanks!

Joan
Barcelona

You may need to also balance the train fare against the cost of car
rental and the cost of the ferry for the car. Car ferry is about $335
for the car. Does not include any people.
This seems to be an "All driving, all the time" itinerary; where do you
allow time for relaxing and exploring? Revelsoke has a small, excellent
railway museum, but not much more. Banff is worth a lunch stop and a
walk around, but I wouldn't stay there -- too expensive and too crowded.
And so on ...

The cost of car rental and gas will be high, and the insurance will be
exorbitant, unless you have the right kind of credit card. The ferry
will have to be booked well in advance.

OTOH, the scenery along the routes will be spectacular, and you will
pass through several different climates. I'm just concerned that you
will be "passing through" everywhere, and not having time to breathe!

On Sat, 29 Mar 2008 22:58:50 GMT in rec.travel.usa-canada, "David
Gee" wrote:

This seems to be an "All driving, all the time" itinerary; where do you
allow time for relaxing and exploring?

Europeans seem to have difficulty understanding the difference in
distances between communities in the Canadian and US West and
Europe. Even if the distances are listed in Km, they are just
not used to such large countries with such a low population
density.

"Dennis P. Harris" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 29 Mar 2008 22:58:50 GMT in rec.travel.usa-canada, "David
Gee" wrote:

This seems to be an "All driving, all the time" itinerary; where do
you
allow time for relaxing and exploring?

Europeans seem to have difficulty understanding the difference in
distances between communities in the Canadian and US West and
Europe. Even if the distances are listed in Km, they are just
not used to such large countries with such a low population
density.

Ha! You are perzackly write! Way back when the Earth was young, I
accompanied two Swiss pals on the Greyhound from Toronto to Vancouver.
Students who really knew how to party, they were "two wild and crazy
guys" indeed. By the time we hit Lake Superior they were restless, at
Winnipeg they were glassy-eyed, and by the time we got to Calgary they
were catatonic. I dragged them off the bus, got a suite at the Paliser
Hotel, fed them rare steak and rye whiskey, and tucked them in for a
12-hour sleep. The remainder of the trip, through Banff to Vancouver,
went smoothly enough, although they were a bit wobbly for a couple of
days due to the constant swaying of the Greyhound over one British
Columbia mountain range after another en route to the Pacific. Balboa
himself could not have been more relieved!