Hunting for Singletrack
It all started with a vague idea, the connection of a destination with the faint promise of singletrack. Salt Spring Island offers all the elements of a great weekend get-away; ocean, funky town, amazing farmers market, and a laid-back island culture. The only thing missing from the picture was confirmed and recorded existence of sweet trails.

Knowing nothing of an existing bike scene on the island, I started in the place where all searches start these days: Google. The lack of information that popped up was surprising, but I continued to investigate. Armed with a couple phone numbers I started dialing. My phone calls led to very little, as the girl at the kayak store seemed to have never heard of mountain bikes, the tourist board had closed early, and the mountain bike association contact was the voice mail for a physiotherapist office.

Many of the best discoveries happen by chance, so I discarded my technological aids and went with the old fashioned way: show up and hope I run into a knowledgeable local. When we arrived on the island we went straight into the cozy town of Ganges to take in the amazing farmer’s market that happens every Saturday. As we perused the fresh produce and funky crafts that the market had to offer I kept my eye out for anyone wearing telltale bike clothing, or sporting chainring scars, or the more obvious clue of flashy bikes hanging off a truck tailgate. I spotted no such signs, as the predominate choice of attire at the market was long scarves, dreadlocks or “sporty” West Vancouver polo shirts.

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