At last

At last Kathie and I have reached our Christmas destination, thankfully only two days late given a succession of fierce windstorms that disrupted ferry service between the BC lower mainland and Vancouver Island. We are glad to have arrived safely in Langford on Victoria’s west shore joining son Cameron and partner Emm for their first Christmas in their first home together.

We don’t typically travel over Christmas given church responsibilities over the years. This year, for the first time, I had arranged to cover a sole service Christmas Eve allowing for a Christmas Day journey through the mountains to the lower mainland in order to cross the Salish Sea towards Victoria.

We cautiously looked at the weather but thought our travel would be unimpeded. Well ha, we were very wrong. Day by day forecasts of a series of winter storms paraded towards the coast boasting heavy rains and high winds. Wind speeds were described as “hurricane force” to the north of Vancouver Island up through Hecate Strait towards Prince Rupert. Further south travel initially seemed possible though the forecast grew more dire hour by hour.

On Christmas Day morning we travelled along Highway 3 through Princeton, Hope, and Abbotsford arriving at the Tsawwassen Ferry terminal around 3 p.m. There were no frustrations up to this point. The Ferry website, however, advertised a growing list of cancelled sailings including our reservations first on Christmas Day, and next on Boxing Day. After that, no reservations were available through to the weekend.

My sister, niece and family welcomed us warmly as we overnighted on the mainland. Early Boxing Day we studied the Ferries website which was rather confusing. Obviously, this series of storms challenged the system extraordinarily. We eventually made our way into the terminal compound where we embraced the prospect of a five-hour wait. This is of course nothing compared with what many travelers experience these days especially in North American airports. Still, not the merriest of Christmases at this point.

Eventually, on board (we were two cars away from an earlier sailing), we enjoyed a beautiful sunny day with only modest winds. Hard to believe the change from the heavy downpour of chilly, driving rain with winds that almost toppled me just a few hours before­. I must say the BC Ferries staff were courteous and most helpful. We are no stranger to travel in adverse weather events. There was the 2021 atmospheric river described by Juno here; we also navigated the residual force of Hurricane Beryl in Nova Scotia earlier this year.

Weather is part of the Canadian experience, shaped by our landscape through the places we call home and through which we travel. You can dress for the weather; you can prepare for it; you can and sometimes must struggle through it; we must live with it in all its variations and circumstances. Ask any prairie farmer what the most significant factor in their craft is: it’s weather. Adverse weather calls out resilience in us and commands ingenuity and compassion in all of us.

At last, we have arrived safely at our temporary home, soon to make plans to return home, in different climatic conditions in just a few days’ time. Safe travels everyone.