District 69 Scooter Club: Some Damn Fine Up-Island Rides!

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Like on the previous cowivespa trip, we decided it would be much more relaxing to take a ferry from brentwood to mill bay. This time I was with Jarrod and his girl, Natissa.
The scooter gods smiled on us this weekend. Instead of getting drenched, the weather was strikingly beautiful. Some rustic old ships lay in the waterway between Brentwood and Mill Bay.
We picked up the third member of the convoy, Maury, at Nanaimo. He tore around on a PGO (a Vespa clone) keeping right up to our pace. PGO's kick butt.
We stopped to wait for members at "the Helipad". Francis joined us on his Suzuki road bike. He was cursing his Vespa V90 because it ate a clutch instead of behaving.
The first food stop, since this trip was all about riding on 2 wheels and eating like gluttons, was the Cola Diner. This place was like a jump back to the 50's: working jukeboxes, antique coca cola paraphenalia and big ass food.
The interior of the diner is cozy and inviting... if you like coke. If you hate coke, then this is probably your worst nightmare.
Sean (bottom center) entertains us with stories of his vast knowledge of scooters and his trials and tribulations therein. It's amazing to hear some of the stuff this guy has done to Vespa's in his life. Unfortunately, Sean's scoot broke down on the way to the Diner. He blamed his kid :) really.
This meal is called the "Dagwood." The burger is a 1/2 pound patty with cheese and a weiner split on top of it. Then they top it off with fries and a couple onion rings. mmmmMMmmm I can almost feel my blood congealing.
"What doesn't kill you only makes you stonger," and "When in rome..." are cliches that instantly come to mind :)
Behind the restaurant is all this weird sculpture. The sculptures seem to be formed from driftwood and then painted. Many have weird, scary eyes on them. others are supposed to look like marine life, I guess.
As we rode to Parksville and Coombs, we noticed a huge amount of bikers travelling the roads. A famous biker event called the Pig n Fin was happening in town. I've been told it is called the Pig n Fin because one night they eat pork and the next night is Salmon. Jarrod thought he might run in and get a shirt, but they had packed up all the shirts by the time he got there.
We set up our bikes so we could look cool outside the bikers cafe ;) We went to the next door military surplus shop instead.
A few of us headed to the water for a dip. This place was a part of Englishman river, but the slow running waters make it a fun place to get a little wet. The hill down to the river is quite steep, so we had to bound from tree to tree to make it down.
I was trying so hard not to get soaked...
But I slipped on a rock while wading and got a little wetter than I had anticipated. Luckily, I ride a 12 hp clothes dryer. I was dry by suppertime.
As the shadows grew long, Sean worked on the Francis' disabled bike. We also tried to get Maury's PGO running without the choke. His carb was just rattling back and forth on the manifold and the plug was so worn, the ground electrode looked like a fang and you couln't see the center conductor. Unfortunately all the magic in the world couldn't get Francis' V90 to behave.
We got back to riding as dusk fell over Parksville. As we rode down the main drag, we spotted a fireworks display. The fireworks were a part of the sandcastle celebration the Parksville is famous for.
Shortly after the dispay, we went to a secluded location and built a nice big bonfire.
Can't have enough pictures of bonfires.
The next moning we headed to the Quallicum Beach seawall. We decided to go for breakfast at a greasy spoon restaurant called the shady rest. We sat next to a window where you could see the entire beach.
After breakfast we headed our separate ways. I took the backroads to Jarrod's place out in the country. His folks were out with the horses that morning. It was entertaining to say the least :)
When we finally tired of the heat, we got back on the bikes and went to Cameron Lake. The lake has a mountain fed water supply and is still fresh water even though it is close to the sea. I had picked up some "shorts" after the last encounter I had with water. The shorts were actually military khakis with the legs cut off.
We stopped at the gas station to fill up on candy and meet up with some of Jarrod's family. Supposedly, this gas station is famous for ice cream. Damn... maybe next time.
We spent the rest of the night riding like bats out of hell and got up the next morning to head back home. On the way we saw this place and pretty much had to take some pictures in front of it.
Heres a pic of the cut down honda with all the baggage attached. I don't think it would be too hard to do a wheelie in this state.
Another pastoral image from Vancouver Island. I never want to leave this place.
Our final food stop was for dinner a Christies Carriage House. I chowed on Nachos while Jarrod and Natissa changed sunglasses. The total trip is about 950km and we're so damned tired. Thanks to the D69 crew for some of the best riding I've had and for all the hospitality.



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