North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) to Merritt with a bike

My bike and I are in and we’d like to be in .

We show what transit connections accept bikes. Check with the operator for prices, schedules, and reservations.

Same place twice. You’re already there, so enjoy the ride.

Good news: buses, ferries and trains can carry you and your bike from North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) to Merritt.

For scale

As the crow flies250 km

Biking whole way352 km · 24 h 46 m

By car424 km · 5 h 49 m

We found five ways to get you there, ferries doing the heavy lifting.

Note: Most carriers carry only a handful of bikes, and summer weekends fill up fast. Reserve where you can. Where you can't, go early or have a backup plan.

Option one · five legs

The coach takes care of the long stretch.

CarrierRideYour bike

🚲First, get from North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) to Joan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan), about 8 km. Ride it, or take a local bus or taxi.

🚎BC Transit6 Crofton-ChemainusJoan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan) →Duncan11 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚎BC Transit70 NCX Nanaimo - Cowichan ExpressDuncan →Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch46 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚲Travel the short hop from Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch to Hullo Nanaimo Terminal (Port Way), about 1.4 km. If pedalling it doesn't appeal, A.C. Taxi, Yellow Cab Nanaimo might help.

⛴️HulloHullo (Nanaimo – Vancouver)Hullo Nanaimo Terminal (Port Way) →CXH (Vancouver)61 kmBook online ahead — 6 bike spots per sailing, 1 per guest$19.99 one way — $25 in personNo e-bikes — no trailers, 80 in / 50 lb max

🚲Travel the short hop from CXH (Vancouver) to Vancouver Canada Place, about 0.8 km. If pedalling it doesn't appeal, Black Top Cabs, Maclure'S Cabs might help.

🚝SkyTrainTransLinkVancouver Canada Place →Pacific Central Station (Vancouver)Roll on, free — 2 bikes per carAvoid rush hourE-bikes OK

🚌EbusVancouver – Kelownaor Ebus (Vancouver – Kamloops) or Ebus (Vancouver – Calgary (Hwy 1)) or Rider Express (Vancouver – Calgary)Pacific Central Station (Vancouver) →Merritt230 kmRides in the hold — bagged or cloth-wrapped (no plastic), or boxed$30 per bike

🚲You arrive at Merritt.

Option two · six legs

A little bit of everything.

CarrierRideYour bike

🚲First, get from North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) to Joan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan), about 8 km. Ride it, or take a local bus or taxi.

🚎BC Transit6 Crofton-ChemainusJoan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan) →Duncan11 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚎BC Transit70 NCX Nanaimo - Cowichan ExpressDuncan →Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch46 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚲Travel the short hop from Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch to Hullo Nanaimo Terminal (Port Way), about 1.4 km.

🚲Travel the short hop from CXH (Vancouver) to Vancouver Canada Place, about 0.8 km.

🚝SkyTrainTransLinkVancouver Canada Place →Lougheed Stn Bay 5 (Burnaby)Roll on, free — 2 bikes per carAvoid rush hourE-bikes OK

🚎BC Transit66 Fraser Valley ExpressLougheed Stn Bay 5 (Burnaby) →Downtown Chilliwack Bay B77 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚲Travel the short hop from Downtown Chilliwack Bay B to Chilliwack, about 1.3 km. If pedalling it doesn't appeal, Chilliwack Taxi might help.

🚌Rider ExpressVancouver – Calgary (Hwy 1)Chilliwack →Merritt139 kmRides in the hold — bagged, wrapped, or boxed$50 per bike — non-refundable

🚲You arrive at Merritt.

Option three · six legs

Buses bookending a beautiful sailing.

CarrierRideYour bike

🚲First, get from North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) to Joan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan), about 8 km. Ride it, or take a local bus or taxi.

🚎BC Transit6 Crofton-ChemainusJoan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan) →Duncan11 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚎BC Transit70 NCX Nanaimo - Cowichan ExpressDuncan →Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch46 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚲Travel the short hop from Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch to Downtown Nanaimo Exchange, about 0.5 km.

🚎BC Transit20/20A Hammond Bay / Doveror the 25 Ferry ShuttleDowntown Nanaimo Exchange →Departure Bay (Nanaimo)3.3 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

⛴️BC FerriesHorseshoe Bay – Departure BayDeparture Bay (Nanaimo) →Horseshoe Bay53 kmRoll on, free — no reservation neededE-bikes OK — no charging on board

🚎TransLink257 Horseshoe Bay ExpressHorseshoe Bay →Downtown Vancouver (Dunsmuir at Cambie)19 kmRack on the bus, free2 bikes — first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚌Rider ExpressVancouver – Calgary (Hwy 1)Downtown Vancouver (Dunsmuir at Cambie) →Merritt231 kmRides in the hold — bagged, wrapped, or boxed$50 per bike — non-refundable

🚲You arrive at Merritt.

Option four · seven legs

A long haul, but it all connects.

CarrierRideYour bike

🚲First, get from North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) to Joan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan), about 8 km. Ride it, or take a local bus or taxi.

🚎BC Transit6 Crofton-ChemainusJoan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan) →Duncan11 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚎BC Transit66 CVX Cowichan - Victoria ExpressDuncan →Legislature Terminal (Victoria)54 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚲Travel the short hop from Legislature Terminal (Victoria) to Douglas St at Pandora Ave (Victoria), about 1.3 km. If pedalling it doesn't appeal, Bluebird Cabs, Sidney Taxi might help.

🚎BC Transit70 Swartz Bay / Downtownor the 72 Swartz Bay / Downtown (via Saanichton)Douglas St at Pandora Ave (Victoria) →Swartz Bay (Victoria)29 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

⛴️BC FerriesTsawwassen – Swartz BaySwartz Bay (Victoria) →Tsawwassen (Delta)41 kmRoll on, free — no reservation neededE-bikes OK — no charging on board

🚎TransLink620 Bridgeport Station / Tsawwassen Ferryor the 900 Bike Bus (seasonal)Tsawwassen (Delta) →Bridgeport (Richmond)22 kmRack on the bus, free2 bikes — first come, first servedE-bikes OK

The 620 is year-round, roughly hourly, timed to sailings, with two bike-rack spots. On busy summer ferry days the seasonal 900 Bike Bus can carry an extra 10 bikes.

🚝SkyTrainTransLinkBridgeport (Richmond) →Pacific Central Station (Vancouver)Roll on, free — 2 bikes per carAvoid rush hourE-bikes OK

🚌EbusVancouver – Kelownaor Ebus (Vancouver – Kamloops) or Rider Express (Vancouver – Calgary)Pacific Central Station (Vancouver) →Merritt230 kmRides in the hold — bagged or cloth-wrapped (no plastic), or boxed$30 per bike

🚲You arrive at Merritt.

Option five · six legs

The same idea as Option two, on different routes.

CarrierRideYour bike

🚲First, get from North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) to Joan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan), about 8 km. Ride it, or take a local bus or taxi.

🚎BC Transit6 Crofton-ChemainusJoan & Queen - Saltspring Ferry (North Cowichan) →Duncan11 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚎BC Transit70 NCX Nanaimo - Cowichan ExpressDuncan →Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch46 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚲Travel the short hop from Bay D at Downtown Nanaimo Exch to Hullo Nanaimo Terminal (Port Way), about 1.4 km.

🚲Travel the short hop from CXH (Vancouver) to Vancouver Canada Place, about 0.8 km.

🚝SkyTrainTransLinkVancouver Canada Place →Lougheed Stn Bay 5 (Burnaby)Roll on, free — 2 bikes per carAvoid rush hourE-bikes OK

🚎BC Transit66 Fraser Valley Express (FVX)Lougheed Stn Bay 5 (Burnaby) →Abbotsford50 kmRack on the bus, free — 2 bikes · first come, first servedE-bikes OK

🚌Rider ExpressVancouver – Calgary (Hwy 1)Abbotsford →Merritt166 kmRides in the hold — bagged, wrapped, or boxed$50 per bike — non-refundable

🚲You arrive at Merritt.

Route facts last checked July 2026. We check that every leg here carries bikes, but policies and seasons change. Check times and book with the operator. Something wrong or out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it.

Explore more

Heading back: Merritt to North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) (best: bus + SkyTrain + ferry)

Connections from North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton): Galiano Island (best: bus + ferry) · New Westminster (best: bus + ferry + SkyTrain) · Hope (best: bus + ferry + SkyTrain) · Prince Rupert (best: bus + rental car + ferry)

Connections from Merritt: Kamloops (best: bus) · Richmond (best: bus + SkyTrain) · Golden (best: bus) · Haida Gwaii (best: bus + ferry)

Check out BC Bike Stops in North Cowichan (Chemainus & Crofton) and Merritt