Prince Rupert to Port Hardy, down the Inside Passage. Not SweetEster’s first ferry ride, but probably her longest. I know it was the longest ferry ride I’ve ever taken, longest one I ever want to take! After 16 hours, even a great vessel like the Northern Expedition starts to feel like a fish bowl. The staff on this vessel were amazing, though, and always smiling, always so willing to help. Did you know you can take a shower for $5 onboard? They provide a towel, body wash & shampoo, so you don’t even have to come prepared. We did take the bridge tour and that was cool. We saw whales (both from observation decks and from the bridge.) None of them were breaching, but still, very cool!
SweetEster was the belle-of-the-ball, though. And we got to meet some great people as a result. A group of motorcycle enthusiasts, cyclists (so many cyclists lately!), several other Volkswagon owners/past owners….the list goes on. So cool to meet so many great people from all over the country, all over the world even, just by driving a funky van!
As much fun as it all is/seems, we were growing a bit weary and not at all excited about getting off the ferry at 11:30 at night and looking for a campground where we would have to wade through the mess we had left the camper in, just to try to find a bit of room to sleep….we somehow decided to book a room in Port Hardy. We did this from the pursers satellite phone (no cell service down the inside passage) and managed to find just one place that still had a room for the night. We booked and felt a bit like wusses for doing it. And then, a couple of hours out of Port Hardy, the real fun began.
Randy was experiencing some gallbladder pain. Serious pain. He had turned that unpleasant shade of green which has been my indication in the past to take him to emergency. But we are stuck on the ferry for another hour. And here’s the kicker, I still can’t drive this van and taking it off the ferry is not the place to learn. And then driving in the dark through a strange town? Yikes! His brow was sweating, he threw up a few times (he’s probably wishing I wasn’t talking about that part!) And then, just before we docked, I suddenly had bars on my phone, so of course, I texted my sisters. OK, I asked them to pray, which they did. And almost simultaneously, Randy emerged from the bathroom, having blown chunks one more time, and he looked less green, less clammy. He actually drove off the ferry and to our rented cabin where we medicated him well and tucked him into bed and he started to feel a lot better. We actually got to enjoy this adorable cottage a bit.
When it was all said and done, there was an amazing sense of everything having been just as it was supposed to be. While Randy’s situation last night came rather sudden and unexpected, we had everything we needed already in place. A lovely place to stay that was just 1 Km from the ferry terminal, so he didn’t even have to drive far at all. I felt for a little while as if the Universe was holding me, reminding me that it’s all, as I said, just as it’s supposed to be.
We would have liked to spend another day here, relax a bit, get cleaned up before we head down the island, but the cottages are all booked for tonight. But it seems prudent to relax and believe it’s all in hand. I wanted to learn to go with the flow and trust more, this has been a great lesson!
#SweetEsther
SweetEsther Chronicles 