Post-Internship Pacific NW Road Trip
Post-internship planning
My summer internship in Seattle ended on August 15. I had a week of free time and hadn’t visited Olympic National Park. It’s a 2.5-hour drive from Seattle, and once inside the park, distances are even greater, so an overnight stay was necessary. I had tried planning an Olympic trip with some people I knew in Seattle, but nothing came of it. I’d have to go alone.
Looking at the map, I noticed that the Olympic Peninsula lies right across from Vancouver Island! I had always wanted to visit Victoria, and there was a 90-minute ferry from Port Angeles to get there. From Victoria, I could fly directly back to Toronto. Domestic flights are cheaper than cross-border ones, and the small 2-2 aisle aircraft from Victoria would be more comfortable than the 3-4-3 or 3-3-3 wide-bodies that fly from Seattle or Vancouver to Toronto.
My only way to avoid exhorbant young driver fees would be to rent a car with my company’s corporate code. Cross-border rentals weren’t allowed, so I’d have to drop off the car in Port Angeles, carry my luggage onto the ferry, and do the same again in Victoria. Lodging in Port Angeles was pricey this late in the season, so I settled for an old, stuffy motel—I’d survived worse on the waterless night I spent on Mount Hua 🥲. Ideally, I would have shared an Airbnb and car with friends so we could take turns driving and keep each other awake. I’d made a few dangerous mistakes driving at night, so on this trip, I promised myself to return before dark each day.
Even after finalizing my plans, I hesitated. But if I backed out now, I knew I’d forever regret missing the chance to visit Olympic National Park.
My housing lease ended the morning after my internship wrapped up, and I set out.
Day 0
My luggage
I could shave an hour off my drive by taking the Bainbridge Ferry. Though the route would be slower overall, reducing time behind the wheel mattered more. I arrived at 10:20 AM, half an hour before departure, but was told I was in the “maybe” line for boarding. It didn’t look promising—It really looked like I’d have to wait for the next ferry, 80 minutes later.
No way all these cars could fit onto the ferry
Line by line, cars drove aboard. I was the last in my line, and halfway through, they stopped us from turning onto the road to the ramp. A worker radioed the guys on the ship, letting cars in one at a time as he got confirmation. Finally, I was the only one left, praying for the signal to board. A minute later, he waved me forward, and I squeezed on as the final car—parked tight against the rear door.
What luck!
Bye bye Seattle, it’s been a nice summer
The 35-minute crossing was beautiful as ever. And after getting off, the country roads were far calmer than Seattle’s freeways. They were lined with tall trees and I could catch glimpses of the bay.
As I neared Port Angeles, low clouds rolled in and a light rain began. I wanted to visit Hurricane Ridge that day, but visibility dropped to near zero on the mountain road. I stopped at a turnout and almost turned back—but then checked a live cam at the summit. Visibility looked decent, with patches of sunshine breaking through!
Scary driving conditions
Rolling hills!
On the ridge
View from a peak
A deer stopped in front of me to check out a dog
I drove down to Port Angeles and checked into my motel. The door handle was broken, so I had to throw my shoulder into the door every time I entered. I didn’t even bother taking a photo of the room. Thankfully, it was just one night here.
I grabbed takeout and drove along the isthmus guarding the harbour. The air was thick with the smell of salt and fish, and the seagulls were everywhere. I waited for the sunset, but clouds rolled in again, so I returned to town.
Salty sea air
The town from above
Day 1
The next morning, I dropped my bags off at the motel office, located in the building across the street for some reason. I’ve heard that the beaches in Olympic were beautiful. I considered going to Shi Shi Beach, which has the most dramatic scenery and would have taken me past the northwesternmost point of the continental U.S., but it would’ve been over five hours of driving plus a detour to buy a parking pass for Indian Land. Instead, I opted for Rialto Beach. First, though, I stopped at Lake Crescent and hiked to Marymere Falls.
Marymere Falls
Lake Crescent
Rialto Beach
The waves were cold and powerful, but sunlight filtered through the mist, giving everything a surreal glow. The walk to the sea arches took a while, but the salty breeze was refreshing all the way. It was a kind of coastal air I’d never felt before.
My hiking boots were soaked on the way back. I’d planned to toss them right before my flight anyway, but since I couldn’t dry them now, I ditched them early.
The road back
On the drive to Port Angeles, I started dozing off. To stay awake, I sang (badly) to music.
Ferry to Victoria
I picked up dinner, returned my rental car, grabbed my luggage, and hauled everything onto the ferry. The crossing through the strait was breathtaking. I could feel the rough currents and see both Vancouver Island’s calm skies and the stormy clouds hanging over the Olympic Mountains behind Port Angeles.
The line for the ferry
Bye bye Port Angeles
Customs was quick, and my hotel was a short walk from the terminal.
Day 2
Victoria morning walk
I explored Victoria before picking up my rental car. I’d heard it was beautiful, and it truly was—a quaint city with luxury apartments, gardens, and a picturesque harbour filled with boats and seaplanes. It was also, unsurprisingly, expensive.
The Olympic Peninsula in the distance
Rebooking my flight
While picking up my car, I discovered that my flight had been cancelled. The previous Wednesday, the Air Canada flight staff union gave 3 days notice for a strike. Half a day into the strike on Saturday, the government forced the union and Air Canada into binding arbitration. The union, however, defied the order and continued striking. Now it was Monday and the government declared the strike illegal, but the union didn’t back down. The Air Canada rebooking portal showed no available flights and other airlines charged over $1000 CAD for multi-stop, red-eye journeys from Victoria to Toronto. Booking last-minute lodging in Victoria would be pricey—especially since other stranded travellers were doing the same.
After hours of research, I narrowed down my options:
- Fly to Seattle, stay with a friend, and wait for Air Canada flights to resume.
- Fly to San Francisco to stay with another friend and wait for an Air Canada connection home.
- Fly to Seattle or San Francisco, then onward to New York, where flights to Toronto were plentiful.
Then, suddenly, a new WestJet flight appeared—Wednesday morning, one stop, $1600 CAD. My original Air Canada ticket had cost $370, but this was my best realistic option. I booked it immediately, and after coming back to refresh the search, I saw that it had sold out.
By regulation, Air Canada was obligated to rebook affected passengers within 48 hours, even on competitors. Customer service was unreachable, so I booked myself and expected reimbursement. I searched online and typically, Air Canada denies initial claims. Passengers would then file a dispute to the Canadian Transportation Agency (which has a five-year backlog) or small claims court. I saw on the news that a lawyer had just launched a class-action suit for this exact scenario during the strike.
A few days later, Air Canada announced it would reimburse passengers who rebooked on their own. 🙃
As I’ve said before, the Air Canada + Westjet duopoly sucks. The government had used a labour law to force essential industries back to work. Indeed, with the lack of airline competition, loosing one airline broke the country’s air travel. Canada has two major airlines. Air Canada which flies between large domestic cities, international (+ transcontinental) routes, and regionally in Eastern Canada. Westjet flies regionally in Western Canada and to large North American cities. They keep clear of each other in regional routes. There aren’t many foreign airline routes into Canada, and foreign airlines are not allowed to fly domestically within. On comparable domestic East—West Coast flights, it’s cheaper in the US than in Canada. There’s just less competition and higher airport and government fees in Canada.
Oh well, I was just relieved to have a flight home this week.
Victoria night walk
With my afternoon gone, I took it easy and went on a walk across the bridge to West Victoria, then returned by water taxi. I lost most of this day to the flight rebooking ordeal, but I’d get a day back as my new flight was one day later than my original.
I found a highly rated Indian restaurant—and it was incredible. I hadn’t had North Indian food in ages, and it felt that I was back in Canada. 😌
Day 3
This would be my day to drive around exploring the Southern tip of Vancouver Island.
Mount Douglas
This was a small mountain with sweeping views of the city and nearby islands. It wasn’t supposed to be a difficult hike, but without my boots, the steep dirt trail was a challenge.
View atop Mount Douglas
Niagara Falls
A tiny waterfall in a scenic area. There was also a mountain to climb but I didn’t feel up to it in casual shoes.
East Sooke Coastal Trail
A windy coastal trail with a view of the Olympic mountains across the strait.
I drove back to Victoria for one last sunset walk. 
Day 4
The Victoria airport is quite far north of the city, by the ferry terminal to Vancouver. Luckily, I had arranged to drop of my rental car there.
The smallest plane I’ve flown on
It was time to fly back to Toronto. My road trip was over, and so was summer—the temperature had dropped early this year. Though only four months had passed since I left Toronto, all the travelling I’ve done made it feel much longer.
Update: Two months later, Air Canada reimbursed my Westjet fare as well as my extra hotel night!