Asking help from Geneva...

[cedric]

Hi,

Maybe someone could help us...:-)

We are planning to spend 3 weeks in BC next October and we thought that using BCFerries from Port Hardy to Bella Coola could be a good idea...

Even if doing this journey partially during the night, do you think that this is worthwhile ?

Furthermore, it is apparently complicated to find the right prices for the right season via their website. Do you get an email address where I can ask further details ? Planning everything from Switzerland is very hard… but hope to get some good news !

Thanks for your replies and advices !

Cheers,

Cedric

[Low Light Mike]

Hello Cedric:

The regular ferry that connects Bella Coola to Port Hardy only runs for the summer, and ends on September 7th.

For October 2009, to get from Bella Coola to Port Hardy would involve a very small & very uncomfortable ferry connection to a middle-port called Bella-Bella.

Be careful: "Bella Bella" and "Bella Coola" are 2 different places.

Here is the schedule for October 2009 which includes your 2 places:
www.bcferries.com/schedules/inside/prph.html

The ship "MV Nimpkish" is the small & uncomfortable ferry that I referred to. But, if you have a spirit of adventure and are expecting a small & uncomfortable ship and trip between Bella Coola and Bella Bella, that Nimpkish connection might be good for you. But it is very spartan and small.

You would need to find a Nimpkish trip from Bella Coola to Bella Bella, and then take the main ferry from Bella Bella down to Port Hardy.

[cedric]

Hi,

many thanks for your reply !

We would like to do Port Hardy TO Bella Coola indeed. It seems that there is a 1st trip from Port Hardy to Bella Bella. We need to transfer to that Nimpkish boat to do the second trip from Bella Bella to Bella Coola.

Do you know if we can sleep in this Nimpkish or do we need to sleep in our Motorhome ? Is there things we can see during this travel or not ? Is this interesting to do this by sea or is this better to use the "continent" ? We plan to see waterfalls near Bella Coola. THanks for your advices...:-)

wishing you a nice day / week-end,

Cedric

[D'Elete BC in NJ]

Apr 17, 2009 0:58:06 GMT -8 @cedric said:

Hi,

many thanks for your reply !

We would like to do Port Hardy TO Bella Coola indeed. It seems that there is a 1st trip from Port Hardy to Bella Bella. We need to transfer to that Nimpkish boat to do the second trip from Bella Bella to Bella Coola.

Do you know if we can sleep in this Nimpkish or do we need to sleep in our Motorhome ? Is there things we can see during this travel or not ? Is this interesting to do this by sea or is this better to use the "continent" ? We plan to see waterfalls near Bella Coola. THanks for your advices...:-)

wishing you a nice day / week-end,

Cedric

Cedric,

Two things to know about the trip to Bella Coola...as Flugel Horn pointed out the Nimpkish is a very small ferry that can only carry 16 cars. More about her here: www.westcoastferries.ca/ferries/bcferries/nimpkish.html

The other thing to know is that there is a HUGE hill coming into Bella Coola by land. It is not something you want to encounter if you are not ready for it. A little more information about the Hill can be found here: www.bcadventure.com/adventure/travelogs/discovery/discovery.htm.

We don't want to discourage you, but you need to be aware of some of the obstacles you will encounter traveling to Bella Coola. It will be a incredible trip, especially with sufficient planning.

[Ferryman]

There isn't really any sleeping accomodations. If it isn't too crowded, you might be able to get yourself a bench to lay on. Not my cup of tea though. Here's some photos from a trip that myself and a number of members from this forum took.

photosbychris2006.fotopic.net/c1207987.html

[timmyboy]

Apr 17, 2009 3:14:30 GMT -8 D'Elete BC in NJ said:

[
The other thing to know is that there is a HUGE hill coming into Bella Coola by land. It is not something you want to encounter if you are not ready for it. A little more information about the Hill can be found here: www.bcadventure.com/adventure/travelogs/discovery/discovery.htm.

We don't want to discourage you, but you need to be aware of some of the obstacles you will encounter traveling to Bella Coola. It will be a incredible trip, especially with sufficient planning.

Not to belabour the point Cedric, but I have to agree with D'Elete. I have a good friend who was doing a trip into Bella Coola in a Cubevan. About 1/2 way in from the top he found his brakes to literally be on fire. Coming out wouldnt be so bad but coming the Ferry would be the best bet.

[WettCoast]

Cedric,

You probably can sleep in your motor home. Ask the crew once you are on board the Nimpkish. They won't, however, let you do that when on board the big ferry that connects Port Hardy to Bella Bella.

As for the hill, its impressive, but not that big a deal. You are going up, not down, so no worries about the brakes. Big transport trucks go up and down the hill year around. Admittedly they are drivers who are accustomed to that sort of thing. Also, I understand that there are hills in Switzerland with impressive back roads on them. Perhaps you have driven such.

[cedric]

Many thanks to all for your replies... I really appreciate !!!

Of course we got hills and hills here in Switzerland but we do not drive a 26 feets ! :-))

I contacted BCFerries yesterday in order to get info and prices...

Thanks once again ! Best, c