Day 240 – An Afternoon Delight

We rode the motorcycles up to Squamish for a coffee and stopped at Porteau Cove on the way home.

Riding that highway was a bit of a mental hurdle. Although commonly known as the “Sea to Sky Highway”, it is also referred to as both the “Killer Highway” and the “Highway of Death”. This road leads to newspaper headlines and tales of death. It is the most dangerous highway in B.C. It is a gorgeous drive, and in the right car, is a thrill because of the banked corners.

The highway was redone for the Olympics and we have only driven it once since its completion when we went to Whistler in May. It is a favourite with riders and they scream up and down it simply for the enjoyment of the ride. It is a destination highway for riders. And being a new rider, it made me a bit nervous.

From 1998 to 2004, when the rebuilding began, the Sea-to-Sky averaged 574 accidents a year, about 300 more a year than comparable highways in the province. During the same period, about eight people were killed each year.

A Canadian government study found 123 reports of the highway being blocked by rockslides, flooding or snow avalanches since its opening in 1958. A 13-day blockage in 1990 ultimately forced an evacuation of stranded tourists from Whistler by ship and helicopter. Cars have been crushed by boulders and, on at least two occasions, have plunged into the sea.

Taming British Columbia’s least-wanted thrill ride for the Olympics eventually involved spending 600 million Canadian dollars, about $570 million, for improvements and conquering several extraordinary engineering challenges.

For the first 28 miles between Vancouver and Squamish, the Sea-to-Sky is squeezed between mountains on one side and a railroad and Howe Sound, a deepwater fjord, on the other. It is such an unlikely route for a highway that until 1958, the boats and the railroad were the only links to the outside for communities along that section.

The new road is smooth with lots of passing lanes so the lunatics can fly on by. On this particular day the lunatics consisted of a line of about 20 Camaros of varying vintages from original years to modern day. Some respectful, some so pumped full of testosterone we were happy to see them disappear into the distance. The Sea to Sky Highway is fabulous now, a huge improvement over what it was and it was a blast to ride. It was a fabulous road to get my wheels under me at reasonable highway speeds (the highway has a maximum speed of 80km for most of its length between Vancouver and Squamish), relax, and learn the feel of the machine as it leaned through the corners. It was a confidence builder and made for a fun afternoon.