Leaving Haida Gwaii, on the remote North Coast of British Columbia may easily be a dream cruise or a hellish ride across one of the most serious straight on this planet, but dread wasn't going to be the feeling of the day as sunshine, smooth little waves and warmth were at the rendez-vous...
My first pit stop allowed me to enjoy the company of great friends in Terrace, B.C., for an unforeseen extended stay and TLC.
Spending some times with my now close fellow Steemians, 
After some safety measures dealt with, a long trip laid ahead of me, a two and a half day trip to reach Vancouver Island, some 19 hours of driving on some of the most scenic roads in the province. On that day, the rain had more the appearance appearance of a few spittle than what is commonly known as "rain" on a Haida Gwaii standards. The road was pleasantly unencumbered by traffic and, for some reason, a few hours away from Terrace, sunshine came through and proceeded to finally drive straight into this past summer's heat waves.
Over the years, the drive through has proven to be very enjoyable and thought I could share some of its highlights with you. the basalt formation found on the way to 100 Mile House is, in my books, definitely one of them. If one looks at the size of the fence at the bottom of the picture, one has the sense of the sheer size of this wall. I originally came across this view when I first stopped for some seriously good ice cream across the road and realized what laid across...
A little further, as the sun was setting, a beautiful field's expenses offered a well needed break from the drive before heading out for one more little stretch of road.
Since, I'd rather sleep in my 20+ year old tent, in which I have spent more than two and a half years of my life in, a very restful night was well deserved ahead of this last day of driving before meeting, once again and only for the second time in my life, with the Sweet Beloved One of my Heart.
On the following day, a warm welcome to another day, powered by Steemit.com and the nuclear momentum of our local star, not forget a half decent moca in the village, and I was on the road again. Between Clinton and Cache Creek you'll come across this geographic point which never ceases to surprise me, rain or shine, no matter what angle, with its colourful textures.
A few kilometres before arriving in Cache Creek, one may decide to drive through the Duffy Lake Road and save an hour on their way to Vancouver, turn right and get ready for some serious hill, breathtaking panoramas, solitude, wilderness and drastic climate and geographic changes going from a semi-desertic, warm and arid climate, to alpine surroundings all the way over to the "Wet Coast", the North American North Pacific Coastal climate usually more steadily humid and cooler in the summer than its inland counterparts, close to sea levels.
The drive through Marble Canyon as always brought back vivid memories of my first climb up its walls many many years ago where I had never been so happy to come across water in my entire life... The lake at the base of the wall offers beautiful waters to swim in and a most marvellous turquoise sand.
Nearing Lillooet , the sceneries become more and more colourful and the exposure of the road to the cliffs heightens the senses.
A strange feeling of serene desolation couldn't be helped and the ever present scent of sage engulfs your every breath. The sharpness of the colours, in spite of the cloud cover was surprising and offered some more photographic journeying.
Past Lillooet and its trolleys of visitors from Vancouver looking for a little adventures outside the city, I ventured up the steep hills of the Duffy Lake Road. On the road, I had to go for another little u-turn as I came across the sight of this hungry osprey fishing from its perch above the river.
It definitely knew I was there and we both continued on our opposite ways within minutes, but what a wonder to behold.
After going up an entire mountain side then dropping back down to the valley floor where the rapids of this river flow feverishly and driving for about 20 minutes, a smooth climb up a very long hill starts...
A quick session of photography brought forth such results as I contemplated the multitude of butterflies feeding like drunken Dervishes around this small group of flowers.
The name of this road is taken after this lake, Duffy Lake, as seen down below, in the very early morning light.
Reaching the visual and geographical apex of this drive makes you shake your head in disbelief from its raw beauty.
From one curve to the other the scenery keeps on evolving and you weave your way through the mountain top all the way to the very impressive Joffre Lakes Provincial Park, only 30 minutes from Pemberton area.
From there, your vehicles' breaks must be in order as the seemingly endless descent reaches gradients of up to 18%... As a matter of precaution I thought I'd give a little breather to my break system and enjoy another photography journey along the vivid Lillooet Lake and its inhabitants.
Arriving in the Pemberton area, one cannot ignore the omnipresence of Mt. Currie, 2591 m.
Some 40 km and a 30 minutes drive separated me from the world famous Whistler Village. The newly repaved highway made it a breeze and reconnected with the area for the first time in over 10 years. The view from Green Lake offers fantastic potentiel for a picture of both Blackcomb and Whistler ski hill runs, seen respectively on the left and right hand-side of the picture down below.
In spite of its attraction, and a very decent internet connection allowing me to Steem for a few solid hours, I kept on going blissfully to my Dolce Vita...
(I have now reached the end of Part 1. So, stay tuned as I'll be trying to post a slideshow of the next phase of this incredible Steeming summer journey of love in British Columbia.)