Mile 4976

We had rain and thunderstorms all night, and when we get up this morning we just catch a window to pack  our bikes and leave without rain.  Even though the sky above us is gray and rain clouds are all around us, we are hopeful by skipping breakfast that we may outrun the wet from above.  We follow Hwy-3 from Creston, BC along the USA-CAN border West, crossing many passes between 3000 ft and 5400 ft on our way to Salmo, BC and further to Castlegar, BC.  The passes we climb are just spectacular, even though that we get some showers  in the Stagleap PP, but nothing dramatic.  We continue close to the border on Hwy-3 to Grand Forks, BC before at Rock Creek, BC we turn North onto Hwy-33 to reach Kelowna, BC. Along the way we see some breaking through of the sun near Christina Lake, and are hopeful that we won't get drenched again.  Now, this remained almost true until about 35 miles south of Kelowna, when we got a good downpour on us again.  But all in all we can't complain, the weather forecast was worse than what we encountered and our gear passed the test. 

                                                       Christina Lake

Along Hwy-3, Deadwood Junction, BC

Arriving in Kelowna, BC we fight the usual traffic of a bigger city, and after checking in at the hotel and parking the bikes we explore a little the surroundings.

Sails by Robert Dow Reid, local sculptor

Kelowna Marina, Kelowna, BC

Chief Sw'kn'cut's Legacy by Crystal Przybille, Artist

Serious talk, or what.....?

Pizza delivery 2022

"All men were made by the same Great Spirit Chief.  They are all brothers.  The Earth is the Mother of all People, and all People should have equal rights to live upon it."  -  Chief Joseph, Nez Perce 

Mile 4704

After some rain in the night we get up to some refreshed and crisp air.  We trace our way back on Trans Can Hwy-1 until we find Hwy-93 and follow the road through the Kootenay NP and along Mt. Assiniboine PP.  We make a stop at the Stanley Glacier to admire what is left of it before we continue our way to Radium Hot Springs, BC.

Stanley Glacier, AB

Unfortunately there is no time to enjoy the hot water, but I make a mental note to come back to soak the old bones in the hot water.

After a late breakfast in Radium Hot Springs, BC we continue South along the Columbia Lake PP  and the Kootenay River.  Finally later the morning the haze and clouds are burned away by the sun proving there is a blue sky after all.  There had been forest fires some years ago, and the changes and damages to the landscape are still visible today, even though nature is slowly recovering.

Passing Ft. Steele, BC we continue further South toward the US-CAN border turning West slightly north of Kingsgate, BC to Creston, BC for the night.

"The glacier was God's great plough set at work ages ago to grind, furrow, and knead over, as it were, the surface of the earth." - Louis Agassiz - Swiss born American biologist and geologist 1807 - 1873

Mile 4429

This morning we wake up at a crisp 47F in Kamloops, BC, and pack our Harleys early.  We leave Kamloops, BC with a murky sky and the smell of burned wood in the air.  Fitting to the environment my iPod plays "Smoke on the water" and we are reminded that the wild fires (189 in the province as of this morning for the season) are still ongoing.  It would be so much nicer without the haze as we follow crystal clear streams, which look really, really cold, and turquoise lakes which don't look much warmer neither, locked in-between mountains of which we only can see some contours, and whose beauty we only can imagine.  We stop at a historic point, the place where the last spike was hammered down to complete the railway stretch between the basins fo the Columbia and Fraser rivers.  1885 the Eagle Pass connected East with the West, celebrated at Craigellachie, BC.

We continue climbing our first pass for the day, 4200 ft, a piece of cake with all the horsepower of our bikes, and stop for lunch in Revelstroke, BC.  From here we climb into Mt. Revelstroke NP, and from there another climb to about 5200 ft to the Glacier NP (not to be confused with the one in MT) before continuing to Lake Louise, AB and through the Banff NP to Banff. AB.  It is once again a drive to die for,  the Tans Canada Hwy-1 being in good condition, even though most of the beauty around us remains hidden from us in the smoke of the forrest fires.

Impressions from Banff, AB 

Looks so much different than eight years ago

Elvis is leaving the building, ...

"Nature is ever at work building and pulling down, creating and destroying, keeping everything whirling and flowing, allowing no rest but in rhythmical motion, chasing everything in endless song out of one beautiful form in another."  -  John Muir - Scottish-American naturalist, environmentalist, botanist, philosopher, and "father of the National Parks"

Mile 4129

Today we wake up to a cool morning.  With 42F in the air, we find a place in Whistler for breakfast and after saddling our steel horses we are back on Hwy-99 out of town.  Our way leads us along a nice winding road to Pemberton, BC along meandering mountain rivers and lakes, before we climb to about 4200 ft elevation on our way to Lillooet, BC.  The sun this morning has really trouble to burn away the haze in the valley, and at 10:30 it looks almost the same as it did at 8:30.  But our mystery gets solved as we pass along to Seton Portage, BC and the smell of burning wood reaches our noses.  Forest fires and its smoke are trapped in the valley, and even though we can't see the fires, the haze is all over present.  We stop in Lillooet, BC for coffee, early lunch, and some gas for our horses, and leave some of the smoky haze behind us when we escape the valley and enter the agricultural plaines in Cache Creek, BC on our  way to Kamloops, BC.

So we finish the day relatively early here in Kamloops, BC, and unfortunately I can not provide any pictures which would do justice to the beauty of this stretch of our trip.  One reason more to come back and see the beauty when a blue sky illuminates the crystal clear or smaragd green lakes.

"I will take what is mine, with fire and blood." - George R.R. Martin - Game of Thrones

PS: And a special greeting goes from the wilderness of Canada to the beauty of Greece to Gabi and Jochen from a well known traveller lost in the woods.

Mile 3937

Today we complete our vehicle park and fetch Matthias' bike at Eagle Rider at the other side of town.  Since there is the RBC "Gran Fondo" bicycle road race from Vancouver, BC to Whistler, BC today, totally unknown to us, there are many road closures on our way.

Not to be affected too much by that, we decide to visit the Capilano Suspension Bridge.  After fighting our way through town again, we arrive at the park and park our bikes for $8.00 each.  This is the cheap portion off the visit, as the ticket booth is asking for $65.95 per person to visit the park.  We look at each other and decide we will not support this ripp-off and change our plan to visit the Lighthouse Park at the Marina Bay.

At the Lighthouse Park we park our bikes and take a stroll to the lighthouse to get an early afternoon hazy view of Vancouver and Stanley Park, and learn a little about the lighthouse and their keepers.

Secure footing is required at the Lighthouse Park for heavy motorcycles

The Lighthouse

After a very good lunch at JJ's Kitchen on Marine Drive in West Vancouver, BC we go onto Hwy-99 to Whistler, BC.  It is a relatively short ride along the bay and the gentle up and down of this twisty road would certainly justify more pull out locations to enjoy the nice views,  There are still some cyclists on the road from the Gran Fondo race, some going on their last grains of energy or already have given up and waiting for someone to collect them, but the lane restrictions and detours don't make it easy on us neither  to find to our destination for today.  We arrive at our hotel drenched in sweat getting our bikes there, and are more than happy when they are securely parked in the garage.  

Whistler has changed a lot since my last visit almost 20 years ago, and the 2010 Olympics have certainly created a whole new town.  It has become a vibrant tourist and vacation /  summer outdoor adventure / winter ski resort destination, something which keeps you entertained and engaged all year round.

All in all this was a very interesting day, and certainly a learning experience in the basics of tourism industry.

"The thing about tourism is that the reality of a place is quite different than the mythology of it." - Martin Parr, British documentary photographer

Mile 3853

Today is returning back to Vancouver, BC and meeting up with the fourth member of our little group, Matthias.  We take the direct route from Victoria, BC to Nanaimo, BC to get the ferry over to Horseshoe Bay west of Vancouver, BC.  The ride up to the terminal leads us through some winding roads in forested area and give a good impression of what  the route all the way up to Port Hardy, BC (see my blog from the Alaska Trip 2014) would like like.

Arriving in Horseshoe Bay we follow the Marine Drive (because we don't want to pay the toll for Hwy-1) which leads us through a very nice residential area along the shore line and on to the Lions Gate Bridge to Stanley Park.

View from lookout to the Bay and Lions Gate Bridge

From there is goes down to Stanley Park and the scenic drive through.  Always a welcome oasis of tranquility from the hustle and bustle of the town.

The Teahouse

Vancouver, BC

Totem Pole Park

Not very much miles today, but nice scenery and a very relaxing day indeed.

"If the white man wants to live in peace with the Inidan he can live in peace." - Chief Joseph

Mile 3743

Today was an easy day.  After a good night sleep and breakfast we start a relaxing ride up the west coast of Vancouver Island up to Port Renfrew, BC.  The ride leads along the shore line through Sooke, BC and Shirley, BC to Jordan River, BC.  But that's where the enjoyment ends, and the attention span increases as the road condition changes drastically.  The road is plastered with hives over and over again, and it is more than once that one of those almost throws me out of the saddle.  It is no fun to ride this stretch north of Jordan River, and we "crawl" the winding road up to Port Renfrew at reduced speed and at best we can.  It's a pity as the road deserves better and would be a dream for everybody enjoying a curvy and winding up and down stretch of Pacific Coast road. 

Unfortunately in Port Renfrew is as well the end for us and we need to turn around and retract our route as the cross over on the dirt road to Rt-18 is not really something we want to conquer this morning.  After a lunch at the Coastal Kitchen Cafe we make our way back to Victoria, BC for a kayak tour in the Upper Harbor area.  Some relaxing paddling is forcing some other muscles to work, and is the perfect off-set to this morning's exercise.

"Keep close to Nature's heart ... and break clear away once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods.  Wash your spirit clean." - John Muir - Scottish-American naturalist, environmentalist, botanist, philosopher, and "father of the National Parks"