I moved back from BC a few years ago, so may be able to add a few items. All I can say re selling vs shipping is to have a look at what people are asking there vs here for what you want to sell and buy. Anecdotally, I think used bikes are cheaper there, but I haven't paid much attention for a long time. I will say that Craigslist is much more prevalent out there for used/private sales vs Kijiji here. (Personally, I much prefer the simplicity of CL, but some inexplicably like Kijiji better.) If you want to ship a bike, choose carefully, as some cheaper carriers don't have the skills or equipment to properly protect a bike from damage, especially if it gets wedged into the back of a trailer with a bunch of other random stuff. I ended up trailering mine on the reverse trip a couple years ago because anybody decent who specialized in bikes wanted about $1500, and I didn't trust the cheap guys. I was driving anyway, so I spent $1500 on the trailer instead and got to keep it.
Other notes:
- Insurance is heavily dependent on individual situation. Both my wife and I paid a good bit less for more out there (at least if I only rode for 6 months), but others find Ontario cheaper. You have to get liability through ICBC, but can get comprehensive through private insurers, usually for between $4-600/yr. If you have a good record here, make sure you bring all that data with you, as ICBC uses a reduction rating system that offers a percentage discount off the base rate based in years of claim-free driving. When I moved there, I didn't bring the right info, and so started at zero, similar to a new driver (that was over 15 years ago, so I don't know what has changed). You can also insure for less than a year, all the way down to just a single day. I used to get 6 months, which would take me from May to October, but some hardy souls ride year-round. It's pretty wet in the winter, so not for me.
- Roads are mostly in better shape (less freeze/thaw) but there's a lot fewer options out of the Lower Mainland than north or northeast of Toronto. Basically, if you exclude longer trips to the US, you can go north (Sea-to-Sky, Whistler, up to Lillooet), east (there's a few decent stretches between Maple Ridge and Harrison), or hop on a ferry to either the Sunshine Coast or Vancouver Island. My personal favourite for a sporty day ride is the northern half of Sunshine Coast, but if you're willing to go further, getting into the interior opens up some incredible routes in the mountains. For longer trips into the US, Washington State mostly has awful paving, but Oregon is absolutely incredible. Eastern Oregon is mostly empty, surprisingly hot and dry, and has impeccable asphalt with amazing twisty roads. You can also get into California in a day or two, and some of the routes between I-5 and the coast are spectacular.
While the mountains are spectacular and create some of the curves, it makes BC a functionally much smaller place than Ontario, so really limits the number of roads.
One big difference I didn't expect coming back to Ontario is just how much busier the roads are here on a typical summer weekend. In BC there's still weekend traffic, but it's nowhere near as heavy within three hours of the Lower Mainland.
- Policing is less widespread, but the penalties are similar. The impound speed is 40 km/h over, and they have similar road-side rules around conviction. Some routes are very heavily enforced, specifically the Sea-to-Sky on weekends. Since the Olympics changes, the speeds needed to get a lean on there are so high that it's best to just coast until you get past Pemberton, then attack the bits up to Lillooet. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy the stunning scenery. Lastly, as
@GreyGhost notes, they love to sit at limit changes, at the bottom of steep hills, or at the end of passing zones in the mountains where all the frustrated cars desperately try to get around the RV's and trucks lumbering up the slopes.
- Dealerships are hit and miss like anywhere else. Burnaby Kawasaki is incredible, almost worth buying a Kawi just to get to deal with them. For Italian bikes, Moto Meccanica is by far the best for service, but like most good but small shops you have to be willing to wait (the owner is a friend, but even that aside, he's a wizard with Ducati, Aprilia, and MV). International is growing, but unless they have made some changes, I'd avoid them. Typical shady stuff, and no good mechanics. The High Road chain caters to the monied and charge accordingly, though if you want branded BMW or Ducati gear, they've got you covered. Holeshot is good but huge, so you get the big box shopping and service experience. Lastly, Imperial Motorcycles is used bikes only but they have some great mechanics and fair prices.
- For tracks, it's terrible. Mission is the only spot nearby, and it's a bumpy go-kart track. Beyond that, you're looking at weekend trips to places like the Ridge (similar to Calabogie: fast and not much run-off), Area 27 (expensive, far, some corners with little run-off), and then further to places like Portland International, OMP, and down into California.
