This summer, we were lucky enough to ride Bikepacking.com's Alberni Bam Bam bikepacking route on Vancouver Island over 8 days.
We started from Seattle, Washington, taking the Victoria Clipper Ferry and then connecting to the Alberni Bam Bam route in Lake Cowichan.
This is the route we took. (It more or less follows the Trans Canada Trail.) It would also make a fun weekend or overnight bikepacking trip: follow the route out, spend a night (or two) at Lake Cowichan, and return by reversing the route.
The Victoria Clipper Ferry was a unique and super fun way for us to leave from our doorstep in Seattle and start an international bikepacking trip from the US without using a car at all! Taking our bikes was easy: we just handed them over at check-in and collected them again when we disembarked in Canada. (Note: We did have to make reservations well in advance, and tickets aren't cheap!)
The Canadian trails from Victoria to Lake Cowichan were incredible. Of the 60 miles, very few were on roads, and all the trails were free of motorized vehicles.
The Galloping Goose Trail gets you out of the city, and a particular highlight was the Selkirk Trestle Bridge, which crosses the Gorge Waterway, a narrow saltwater inlet curving northwest from Victoria's Inner Harbour to the Gorge and Portage inlets.
The E&N Rail Trail was an excellent connector, leading to the beautiful Langford Lake and Ed Nixon Trail, a two-mile section with great swimming infrastructure and trails surrounded by Douglas fir, cottonwood, and cedar trees. The Ed Nixon Trail is remarkably nice and flowy, but note that it's popular with pedestrians and people walking dogs.
The standout sections for iconic Vancouver Island scenery are the Sooke Hills Wilderness Trail, Niagara Main, and Cowichan Valley Trail. All are lushly forested and feel quiet, shaded, and remote. In general, the trail surfaces are perfect for a gravel bike. There are suspension bridges, trestle bridges, iconic totem poles, and views of beautiful rivers and lakes, among much more to enjoy.
There are services along the way, making it easy to bikepack without carrying a huge load. In Victoria, at the start, there are great restaurants and cafes for food and coffee, along with public restrooms and water refill points along the trails. The town of Lake Cowichan has more limited options, but there's a good pizza place and a few other restaurants.
The Victoria Clipper has limited sailing options. It left Seattle at 8:00am and arrived in Victoria at 11:00am. By the time we got off, got oriented, and grabbed lunch, it was after 12:00, which meant we arrived at our campsite at Lake Cowichan late in the day. (If you want to take your time, you could either stay a night in Victoria or find a campsite partway through the route.)
Since we were doing the Alberni Bam Bam route and had planned for 8 days, we didn't really get to fully enjoy Lake Cowichan.
While we appreciated the connectivity of the trails getting out of Victoria, the first 12 to 15 miles are more of an urban adventure. It's not until you reach Langford, Humpback Reservoir, and beyond that you start to feel like you're in a wild place.
We like a good challenge, but with the bikes loaded down with bikepacking gear, the 12 to 15 percent pitches from the Humpback Reservoir area up into the Sooke Hills Wilderness Park (approximately miles 17 to 20) felt pretty stout. There was a bit of chunk, but it was more or less rideable if you're strong, maintain momentum, and keep pedaling. Some will likely find this section a sufferfest that requires some hike-a-bike.
Do this ride if you want a fantastic weekend bikepacking adventure on Vancouver Island or if you want a nice way to start the Alberni Bam Bam Loop from Seattle.
We started this route from Seattle and took the Victoria Clipper. Since you start in the US and travel to Canada, don't forget your passport!!
The best time to do this route and enjoy Vancouver Island for biking is mid-summer through early fall, July through September. At this time of year, you get the warmest temperatures (15°C to 25°C / 59°F to 77°F) and the lowest risk of rain, in addition to long daylight hours for all-day riding. (In mid-July, there were over 15 hours of daylight, and we had daylight until almost 9:30 pm!)
Shortly after you enter the Sooke Hills Wilderness at approximately mile 16, you'll find a fairly new, shaky, and narrow suspension bridge. Signs indicate you're required to get off and walk to cross.
At about mile 22, the trail dead-ends onto a road, where you'll need to take a right and follow Goldstream Heights Road. (When you come out on the road, you might notice a trail across the street, but it's for hikers only!) You'll pick up the trail again in less than a mile.
As you can see from the elevation profile, almost all the climbing happens in the ten miles between miles 15 and 25. After mile 25, the trail heads downhill and eventually becomes pretty flat and smooth.
At about mile 37, you'll cross the iconic Kinsol Trestle over the Kinsol River. Stop, take pictures, and soak up the views. It is insanely cool! Vault toilets are available here too.
Water is available at Glenora Trails Head Park (mile 45). It's a little off the main trail and the water pump isn't super obvious, but we were glad we had flagged this as a water stop!
If you want a little side quest, stop at Skutz Falls. It's not on our route, but you pass it at about mile 53, and trails just off the route will get you nice views.
This route ends at the Lakeview Park Campground, where there are flush toilets, showers, garbage containers, and lake swimming. There are no bear bins, so remember to bring a bear bag for safe food storage. We stayed at one of the walk-up sites, which was away from the water, but if we had to do it again, we would have paid a little more and chosen a larger site closer to the lake.
While we didn't see any bears on the trip, you'll still want to carry bear spray with you for this route.
Bugs were really not an issue for us on this trip, but we did carry mosquito repellent patches, which were lightweight and effective for bikepacking.
Food Recommendations:
In Victoria, we had a delicious lunch to fuel us at Foo Asian Street Food, followed by coffee and pastries at Crust Bakery.
In Lake Cowichan, we had dinner at Little Town Pizza. They have a walk-up counter, and we were able to eat outside at a picnic table. The pizza was delicious and they had gluten-free options, but note that it took about 30 minutes from order time to pickup. Another option we had flagged but didn't try was a nearby restaurant called Jake's at the Lake.
For breakfast, good espresso coffee, a market, and a weekend outdoor artisan market, bike about 6 miles past the Lakeview campsite to the Honeymoon Bay Market and Cafe. We had great breakfast sandwiches and coffee, and were also able to stock up on supplies here.
The mixed surfaces on the route made this ideal for a gravel bike. Our group had tires ranging between 45 and 55mm, and they were perfect at a tire pressure of around 25 psi.
Laura & Rose
Laura Karpinski and Rose Barcklow are the creators of Gravel Bike Adventures. Click on the About page to learn more about them.
