These are the Chronicles of Famous Surf Writer Ben Marcus and his trip into the Wilds of the Alaskan Frontier.
Latest Update: September 16, 2000

20:43 BAR OF THE HAIDA WAY INN

I'm in Port McNeill, Vancouver Island, British Columbia province, Sovereign Nation of Canada, in the bar of the Haida Way Inn watching CBC on a big-screen TV. A kid named Simon Whitfield won a gold medal for Canada in the triathlon, and he's pretty jazzed. I wore a gold medal not too long ago. I was jazzed, and I didn't even win it.

This Haida Way Inn is kind of a happening corner in kind of a dull corner of Vancouver Island. The Haida Way In offers free Internet access in their lobby, which is how I discovered the place earlier today. They also have a bar with several TV's, Keno, that bar trivia game you sometimes see, pool tables and loud Britney Spears music.

They also serve dinner. I just had a pretty good garden burger for dinner, and since there is absolutely nowhere else to go or anything to do around here, I'm just hanging in the bar, listening to music, watching two TV screens at the same time and boring all of you.

Today was such a memorable day, so chock full of memories, that I can scarcely remember them all. Yawn. Naw, today I drove from Campbell River to Port Hardy, a very uneventful drive in which mundane things were exciting.

Started the morning with eggs and sausage and toast in the Cholesterol CafÈ in Campbell River. Charged by all that, I sorted out the van, organized things for the millionth time and then hit the road north.

It was around 250 K's from Campbell River to Port Hardy, most of them through high, forested mountains, with a lot of logging all over the place. Seeing all the clear-cutting makes you want to go easy on the paper. Wasting papers means wasting trees, and that's not good. You heard it here first.

Along the way I listened to the first of four CDs of the Great Concertos. Today was Mozart, because I've been watching Amadeus on the DVD, and I'm kind of into the dude. Mozart rocks, but he doesn't rock as hard as Beethoven. You heard it here first.

Along the way I saw a motorist on the other side working on a flat tire. I turned around to do the Dudley Doright Good Deed of the Day. You never know when a guy is going to need a can of Fix a Flat, or a hydraulic floor jack, or a battery-powered air compressor, all of which I have in the van, somewhere.

He didn't need anything. His tire had shredded all of a sudden while coming around a corner, and it looked bad. It wasn't a Firestone, but that got me really thinking about all the fuss going on with that Firestone/Ford situation. Firestone is in deep dog doo. I have Michelins on the van, so fear not.

That was the only eventful thing in several hours of driving. There isn't much going on in the northwest top of Vancouver. Just trees and no trees and glimpses of water, which, like Norway, could be rivers or lakes or ocean, it's hard to tell.

Nice enough day. A little stormy.

Stopped in Port McNeill to see what has happening, and found the free Internet access at the Haida Way Inn. Went online for a bit. Thank you for the e-mails, everyone. They are appreciated, believe me.

Pushed on to Port Hardy, where the ferry leaves for Prince Rupert. The ferry terminal is a few K's before town. Pulled in and got a stand-by reservation for tomorrow morning. I have to be there at 5:30 AM. If I get on it'll be around $400 Canadian, but I think I can swing it. Hope I get on. I don't want to have to kill two days around here for a possible slot on Monday.

Shoulda made reservations, but that's not how aimless wanderers operate.

I'm thinking of getting a big bumper sticker for the van: "Some who wander are lost."

Spent the afternoon driving aimlessly around Port Hardy, where there isn't much happening. Plugged into the wall at a goldsmith's shop, and tried to convince him to get a web site for his business. Bought some pins and a bear bell at the sporting good store.

Saw a girl walking with a backpack and offered her a ride. She was a Kiwi and said she wanted to get her legs in shape, but she thanked me anyway. I waved Mr. Walther at her, but she just said, "Cheerie Oh! Tah!" and walked on.

There really was nothing to do, so I got my oil changed at the Ford Dealer in Port Hardy. It's only been three weeks since the last change, but I've already put on 3,000 miles in that three weeks. Also put in other $70 worth of gas, which I also did last night. That starts to add up, you know. The ferry is almost cheaper.

So now I'm in the bar at the Haida Way Inn, watching TV and typing this up Canada is on TV playing two-person volleyball against the U.S. of A. A guy just fired up the mirror ball and disco lights and he's playing loud Lennie Kravitz over the Britney Spears. The waitress said this place gets rowdy a little later. And here I am with my San Francisco 49ers leather jacket.

Oops. It's karaoke time. Time to go.

Not sure where I'm going to stay tonight. Probably in the van in a campground near the ferry terminal. I don't want to miss the 5:30 call. A little nervous about that.

Hoping hard to get on the ferry tomorrow, otherwise I'm shafted for two days. It's a 15- hour ride through the Inside Passage to Prince Rupert, then I'll decide whether to go to the Queen Charlotte Islands, or on to Alaska.

I hear Alaska calling me. I want to live in a nice house on a river near the sea, and get out of the world's way.

Ben