On June 30th we took the Vesuvius Ferry over to Crofton and drove south to the town of Lake Cowichan. Here we rode our bikes on the Cowichan Valley Trail all the way to the south end of Shawnigan Lake. The trail follows the gentle grade of the former turn of the century CN railway line that served pioneer logging and settlement communities. It was a pleasant ride through the trees and over eight trestles, with the largest one at the end called the Kinsol Trestle, here we turned around. The historic Kinsol Trestle is one of the tallest free-standing and most spectacular timber rail trestle structures in the world. At 614 feet in length and standing 145 feet above the Koksilah River, it is an incredible structure. Coming back was harder and longer than going and we were happy when we got back to the car, not sure of the mileage but it had to be at least 60 miles.
We drove north to Chemainus where we stopped for the night. As we walked the streets, we enjoyed all the beautiful murals painted on the buildings through out the town.
The Murals in the City of Chemainus
