The expiration of summer on September 1st turned out to be a false alarm. I had Labour Day off like most people, but because I work Sundays, it didn’t translate into four consecutive days off work. To my luck, a planned power outage at my workplace closed the bike shop on Wednesday. That turn of events gave me the four-day break I’d almost been cheated out of.

Last week, I removed the cargo cages from my fork and swapped out the SPD pedals for flats. I reversed my decision on Tuesday afternoon, intending to head out to one of the Gulf Islands for my second ever solo overnighter.

Actually, I first asked Alexa, who’d recently become quasi self-employed, if she was interested in joining me for a last-minute adventure. As it turned out, she and Daniel had also made the last-minute decision to head to one of the Gulf Islands for some two-wheeled adventuring and had no desire for a third wheel. Fair. Only, it meant I had to rule Pender Island out as a possibility because even if I went on my own, our paths would definitely cross. To avoid this awkwardness, I chose Galiano Island.

I’d already done two cycling trips on Galiano Island, including that foggy January overnighter where I ended up pitching my tent in the darkness. The island is a long, skinny strip of land; the first provincial campground, Montague Harbour, is located 1/3rds of the way up the island from the Sturdies Bay ferry terminal. The other campground, Dionisio Point, is at the far tip of the island and is supposedly accessible only by boat.

I knew Yann and Burger had managed to get there by bike several times, and a colleague, Rory, was just there last weekend. To get there by bike merely requires some light trespassing. “There is a gate that blocks off the road. Just go around it,” instructed Burger.