Day 11 Golden to Field – 40 Miles

A short but beautiful ride today.

I awoke after a cool night to a picture postcard scene of mountains and cloud free blue sky, with the sun soon to appear over the mountains it was forecast to be a gorgeous day.

Leaving Golden behind us we climbed into Kicking Horse Pass, a fairly steep climb in places but some gentler parts also. Although we were still on the TCH there was little early traffic and we came across various forms of wildlife. I was climbing when I became aware of Kevin waving frantically ahead of me, assuming the worst I started to look around for an accident or someone broken down only to look to my side and see a huge Ram standing about 8 feet from me the other side of the barrier. The Ram had huge horns, (but he had to wear a bell as they didn’t work!!), and he just stood there looking at me as if I had invaded his land. Sadly before I could get my camera out he had moved off and I only got a distant photo.

A short while later we came across his harem, trying to cross the road, they seemed completely un-phased by us and just bounced across the Highway.

After about 18 km or so the road flattened out and we had a lovely rolling ride through the mountains. There was a slight headwind which was quite sold but compared to previous days it was heaven.

We arrived in field at about 1130am and with only 3km to go to the campsite we sat outside a coffee bar looking back down the valley across the Emerald Lake, (the water was Emerald in colour) and just watched the world go by for an hour or so.

I have to say I have been to some beautiful places in the UK and abroad but nothing could compare to today, snow capped mountains emerald green rivers and clear blue skies, sitting there in the sun without a care in the world having just climbed a mountain takes some beating, my only regret is that Zoe wasn’t with me to see it, but perhaps in few years?

We moved on to the camp site which is “rustic”; no power, no phone or internet and amongst the pine trees. After putting up the tent we had a cold beer and showered etc and as I sit here now I am looking up at Mt Stephen and watching the sun glisten off the glacier which appears to be several thousand feet above me.

There was an option of riding another 12 km to a waterfall but I’ve decided not to go and just relax and take in the view.

Tomorrow is, I think, another relatively short day as we climb out of Kicking Horse Pass, cross into Alberta and head for Banff. In a couple of days the Rockies will be conquered, I know there will be more scenery ahead of me but I think I’m going to miss the mountains.

Onwards and Upwards….and the weather forecast is good for a week!!! 

Day 9 - Albert Canyon to Golden- 72 Miles

The day dawned wet as usual, so after the usual high carb force fed breakfast I donned all the waterproof gear and headed off up Rogers Pass.

The climb was steady but the weather was awful, head winds and rain combined with the constant traffic made for a really tough grind up the 36km or so to the top.Having said that the clouds made the scenery quite menacing looking and the occasional glimpse of snow on top of the mountains still made for nice viewing.

A couple of bears were sighted by others on the way up but I had no luck.

When we got to the top we were freezing and soaked both from the rain and from the exertion of climbing for 2 hours. Luckily one of the lads tapped up a member of staff who took some of our wet clothes and threw them into the hotel drier. It was a real bonus as none of us were looking forward to a fast descent when wet as the wind chill would have been awful.

Having dried out we emerged from the restaurant into a dry sky and as luck would have it that was the last of the rain for the day. The descent was brilliant, 11km straight down through tunnels and round long sweeping bends. Once at a the bottom we took some layers off and set off  along a  series of steady climbs and descents for about 50km and then we plunged down into the river valley loosing 600ft in about 3km! The rest of the ride was along a relatively flat valley floor in warm sunshine, the only downside was the very busy holiday traffic which meant it was difficult to enjoy the countryside.

Along the way today I had another first; we moved into a different time zone “Mountain Time” and moved forward an hour I am now 7 hours behind the UK.

My main frustration to day was that my phone has given up the ghost, I couldn't get it on and when I eventually managed to get it working it won’t pick up a signal. I spent most of today trying to fiddle with it and eventually had to borrow another tourists phone just to contact home and reassure them that I hadn't been eaten by a bear. I hope to sort out a pay as you go tomorrow and at least I have internet for the rest day so I will be able to talk to the family.

We have a rest day in Golden tomorrow, Monday, I have already sorted my washing and as I type it is in the dryer, let’s hope it doesn’t shrink!

Tomorrow I will try to do as little as possible, catch up with Zoe and the kids and sort my gear out ready for Tuesday. We have two more days of mountains and then we hit Alberta where it levels out a bit. I will hopefully get hold of Alex this week just to check all is OK for his planned meet in Drumheller next Saturday.

Onwards and Upwards!

Day 8 Mara to Albert Canyon 79 miles.

Despite my hope of improving weather the rain returned overnight and I awoke to a soaking wet tent to pack away.

I headed out of camp at about 8am and pretty soon realised my new saddle was going to give me a few problems. After a few km my left thigh was rubbing against it and I had to stop to adjust it. I persisted up until we got to the Last Spike exhibition at about 40 km and then moved it backwards to try to stop the rubbing but the damage had been done and the rest of the day was quite sore. Thankfully I don’t appear to have done much damage to my skin so I’m hopeful all will be well in the morning. 

The last spike museum is to commemorate the driving in of the last spike (which holds the rail to the railway sleeper) on the east/west railway line. This meant that the railway was complete and they could get all the way across Canada rather than just to the east of the mountains.

After a quick stop we headed off along the Trans Canada Highway, the main motorway which runs coast to coast across Canada.

The ride was relatively flat early on with only the odd climb to get me warmed up. Once again we were cycling along the valley floor and occasionally climbing over small passes between valleys. The scenery is huge and photographs just don’t do it justice.

At about 90km we pulled into a café for lunch and a rest as we knew the last 30km or so would be a stiff challenge. From this point on we were climbing up Rogers Pass, named after the man who discovered a train route through the mountains, which is a steady climb for about 70km, 40km of which we will complete first thing tomorrow. Today was about 5/6%  in places with the odd descent but sadly the head winds we seem to have been plagued with got even stronger and we were having to pedal hard even going downhill in places.

I have to admit I was pretty pleased to get to camp: 80 miles had taken us nearly 6 hours and I was knackered and my bum was sore from the new saddle.

The campsite is nice though, green grass to pitch on and a hot spring fed pool which I had a soak in. Dinner was Chicken and Asian Noodles which was very nice, the wind has finally dropped and the sun come out which has given us a chance to dry some stuff out. Sadly the railway once again runs alongside the camp site so we are in for a noisy night I fear.

Phone signals and Internet have been problematic over the last few days but hopefully when we get to our next stop in Golden tomorrow that will be easier.

We move into Mountain time tomorrow about half way through the ride which means we move forward an hour, the first time I have cycled across a time zone.

Golden will be the location for our second rest day and I am looking forward to the rest and a chance to get my washing done and hopefully the tent dried out. The weather forecast is for rain on Sunday and then it should start to warm up from Monday.

Tomorrow is only 72 miles but most of it is up!

Onwards and upwards!

Day 7 Prichard to Mara 58 Miles

Rain overnight made the pack up a pain and my tent was full of water, however I had had a good nights kip even with trains rolling past, (they are up to a mile long I am told) and a chorus of snoring around the camp.

Breakfast was plentiful and we broke camp about 8am heading east along the Trans Canada Highway. There was lots of highway today but the scenery was great with mountains in the back ground and lakes to weave around.

I was feeling much better today and a stiff climb early on reassured me that I was back on song. I think I need to eat more during the day, its quite hard to force yourself to feed but if you don’t you just run out of gas and then its really unpleasant. The down side I think I’ll end up putting weight on rather than lose any.

Today’s route was a rolling one, we skirted a couple of large lakes and then had the odd climb or two until we got to lunch at Salmon Arm. One of the tour, Nan, lives in Salmon Arm so the locals were out to welcome us with water and cheers after which we all went to Tim Hortons, A Canadian Coffee/sandwich shop, which is a bit of a national institution.

I took the opportunity of civilisation to visit a bike shop for a few bits and pieces, notably a new saddle, as my trusty friend split yesterday and although I tried to tape it to stop it ripping any further I kept catching the sticky tape on my shorts which was even more annoying than a split saddle. My old one was about 12 years old so I can’t complain about value for money!.

I have bought a new split centre gel saddle which feels quite comfortable but I am a little worried what impact it might have on my bum as I get used to it.

I have had a few gear issues today also. The weather has been foul for most of the last week and although I have been cleaning the chain etc it has been getting some severe abuse from muck and dust so it started skipping a bit today. As soon as I got to camp and had my tent up I got the bike straight onto a bike repair rack and gave the chain and gears a good clean and changed the saddle so hopefully it will be ok tomorrow.

The weather finally picked up today and at about lunch time I was able to introduce the Canning skin to Canadian sunlight.  The second half of the day was warm and sunny and the forecast is for more of the same for a few days.

The second half of today was brilliant, a couple of cracking long descents and then we had about 20 of us in a pace line working against a head wind. Its quite exhilarating whacking along at about 25 mph with about 2 feet between you and the person in front. The idea is the leader rotates every 1km and whilst they work quite hard the others get a bit of a rest out of the wind in the line behind.

When it works properly those about 4 or so place back hardly have to pedal as they almost get sucked along, but you have to really concentrate and watch the hand signals that come down the line telling you about debris of a change in direction etc or you risk hitting someone up the rear and catastrophe.

Tonight’s camp site is amongst a pine tree wood, very nice but a little cramped and the Mosquito will no doubt make an appearance tonight so I have slapped the Deet on early. As I sit here typing I have a bubbling stream running behind me and the dinner crew are hard at it preparing Chicken Paprika for tea.

Tomorrow is a longer day, about 80 miles but with some “bumps” in it as they describe climbs here, and we start Rogers pass, a famous pass named after the man who discover a route for the railways to get across the Rockies.

Hopefully the weather, saddle and gears will all work for me, if so the bonus will be a hot spring to bath in at the campsite in Albert Canyon.

Onwards and Upwards.

Day 6 -Merritt to Prichard 80 miles

My rest day was spent doing bits and pieces; catching up with washing, blogs and sorting clothes out in my trays.

The evening got cooler and I hit the sack at about 8pm and was fast asleep by 9pm. I awoke in the early hours as it was fairly cold and windy but I had managed to get through until about 6am when I heard the morning chorus of zips being opened so I got up and packed away my tent ready to perform my morning kitchen duties.

After a heart breakfast of pancakes and porridge I set off at about 8am for the days ride. I was expecting a gentle riverside run with a following wind however we had a head wind and the flat course was in actual fact gently climbing of falling all the time. Having said that thought the scenery was fantastic, I saw an Eagle swoop and take a fish out of the lake, cowboys lassoing cattle and a very old (for Canada) general stores which had loads of old photos on display.

Today is “Canada Day” so everyone wears red and the lady at the country store gave us all flags to ride along with.

About 90km into the ride we took to the back roads and for the remaining 30km we were on and off dirt roads. The bike handled it all very well but the roads were rough and every now and then I would get my timing wrong and get quite a jolt. One descent was so dusty that I had to go down it with my feet unclipped as the wheels kept slipping out from under me, quite scary I can assure you.

The arrival in camp was welcome, I had found the day quite tough as my legs never really switched on and I am really tired now. Dinner was lentils and rice with brochette which has gone down really well. 

I manage to catch Zoe on Skype and whilst I am typing the blog the Canada Day celebrations are beginning, I can hear them singing their National Anthem and I think fireworks are planned for later.

Not sure what tomorrow will bring as I haven’t seen the map yet but I’m sure it will be beautiful.

Onwards and Upwards!

Day 4 Hope to Merritt 68 Miles

Today was the first real test of the tour.

Having done the usual housework and feeding duties, a group of us left the camp site at about 8am. The instructions were fairly simple; turn right and climb up Coquihalla Pass for 22 miles, then descend for 18 miles, turn right and pedal along the valley for 28 miles and pitch your tent next to the wood mill.

Sounds simple doesn’t it; I can assure you it was not. The climb literally started as we got out of the camp site and just got progressively steeper as we got higher. (Ranging from 8-10%)  After about 10 miles we were all down in what I refer to as baby gears and then it was just a case of hanging on and willing yourself to the top.

The weather was kind though and although it was cloudy and cold there was a slight tail wind which helped a little and the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. About two thirds of the way up we went past gun emplacements which they use to fire shells into the snow during the winter to prevent avalanches, and then rode through snow sheds that protect the road from rock or snow fall.

Having eventually ground my way to the top I soon realised that although I was boiling and sweaty it was not a good idea to dis-robe as it was only 10 degrees, after about a mile I had to stop to put something over my ears to prevent them being frozen off.

As we ate lunch near the top the sun came out and for the first time since we arrived we were able to get some of the extra layers off.

Then came 18 miles of steady and at times steep descending; at one point I got up to 47mph without needing to pedal.  I held on as long as I could but I sat up after a huge lorry went past me and its' wash caused me to have a little wobble.

At the bottom we turned onto a more rural road and the last 28 miles took us through beautiful rolling Cowboy Country. The smells of the flowers, trees and Indian reservation fires  all made for a really pleasant ride.

Merritt is a cowboy town; mostly based around beef and wood. There is a massive wood mill on the outskirts of town and then the town itself is just what you would imagine a 1960’s Western town to be even down to the swinging doors on the entrance to the pub.

I was on cooking duties today so we had a busy couple of hours and then a group of us headed into town for a wander about which turned into a Karaoke session in the local bar.

Tomorrow  is a rest day and a chance to catch up on laundry etc and then we hit the road again on Thursday; I will be cooking breakfast for the group so will be late leaving but I’m told it’s a flat day with only one climb of about 2 miles at the end; with a tail wind we should shoot along, after all its only about 87 miles!

I finally managed to Skype Zoe and Lois today, it was really good to see and hear them rather than relying on texting; hopefully over the next few days I will have better internet access.

Day 3 Mission to Hope 68 miles

After a pleasant evening with a trout dinner overlooking the Iake I hit the sack at about 9pm and had a fairly decent night’s sleep. The tent was warm and the mattress comfortable and although I had a couple of coughing bouts all in all I had a good night sleep and woke at about 6.30am.

I got dressed into the days riding gear, which in itself is no easy feat in a tent, and emerged to find half the group had been up for ages and breakfast was already well advanced. The weather was overcast but the mist was low so having learned from yesterday I made sure I had all my waterproofs to hand.

Breakfast consisted of what they call French Toast, I call it “eggy” bread, it was very good and a pleasant change from oatmeal.

At about 8am a group of 12 set off , all wrapped up against the rain, and headed east along Highway 7 through Dewdney and Errock before stopping for a warm drink at what can only be describes as a rather strange Café. I fear they had been marrying their own parents for a number of generations, it was quite weird.

We were in the valley and on both sides of us there were some spectacular hills/mountains swathed in mist and looking quite menacing. The conditions were filthy , made worse by  some of the riders in the group not having mudguards; when you are tucked up close behind them trying to get out of the wind you end up getting a face full of water sprayed up from their rear wheel.

We were tonking along at around 20 mph when all of a sudden after about 30km I started to feel as if I had no energy left.  I was dropped by the group as we went up a slight climb and had to ease off and eat a few of my power bars in order to get a burst of energy. It was the strangest feeling, my legs just started to wobble and I couldn’t keep up. I think the cause was that I hadn’t eaten enough breakfast; I don’t care much for cold cereal so I went for the French toast only and with the back to back days of riding I think I just ran out of energy.

I did have a bit of laugh though; I stopped off at a garage and had an interesting encounter with a Chinese woman who clearly didn’t understand my accent or understand what I meant by cereal bar.

After a while my legs came back and I was able to get going again. I joined another few riders and after a few km I caught up with the larger bunch as they had stopped to get their wet weather kit off.

After a couple of gentle climbs I had my first significant decent, I managed to get up to 45mph, the fastest I have ever been, and had to negotiate a near 90degree bend, interesting in the wet, but all ended well.

About 50km into the ride we took a quick detour to Harrison Hot Springs for lunch. The views were quite impressive but because of the weather the lake wasn’t its famous bright blue. I quaffed a mushroom and cheese burger and chips and then we set off for Hope.

The rest of the ride was relatively flat with the odd gentle rise until we got to Hope; the world famous home of chainsaw carving. There was carved wood everywhere and I have to admit it was quite impressive.

After Hope we took to an old railway track and cycles through some fantastic old railway tunnels which almost defy belief in terms of how they were built. They were blown out in the 1850’s I think, the combination of tunnels and the river canyon below was very impressive.

I got into camp and got straight to work getting the tent up, which only takes me about 10 minutes, and then sorted out a shower and changed into fresh clothes. I cleaned the bike, which was absolutely filthy and then settled down to blogging and beer.

Tomorrow will be a challenge, we have a 30km climb up Coquihalla Pass. Vegetarian shepherd’s pie awaits!

Onwards and upwards, tomorrow literally!