Bruce & Maureen's 12 Summit Summer Cycling Vacation

Location	Comments
Home	Lots of last minute things to do. We packed the panniers last weekend and went for a test ride. Then, we had to unload most things so we could use the panniers during the week. Can't wait to go!
Valemount	We arrived safely at 8am and thank goodness it was dry. Valemount Station is simply a VIA Rail sign and an 8foot square slab of concrete. The train trip was nice. We had dinner with a couple from Long Island New York. Today we are just hanging out, reading, drinking coffee and picking up a few groceries. Tomorrow, it's off to Mount Robson.
Mount Robson	We left Valemount on July 2nd in sunshine and had a short day to Robson Meadows campground. Though the sun was shining the peak of Mt. Robson was in the clouds. The next day was gray as we began climbing up Red Pass. The grade was good and we averaged 7kph. After the major climb, we were in headwinds all the way and decided to stop for the day at Lucerne campground. The clouds were rolling in and soon we had heavy rain, thunder and lightening.
Jasper	After a wet evening at Lucerne, we packed everything up wet and headed for Jasper. Yellowhead pass was a little anti-climatic, as most of the climbing is done the day before to Red Pass. Within an hour of leaving camp, we were at the Continental Divide and crossing into Alberta. In Jasper we found the laundromat and got all our wet stuff dry and after lunch headed south on the Icefields Parkway.
Icefields Parkway	We stayed at Mt. Kerkeslin campground after leaving Jasper. Many warnings of bears, but other than the one we saw from the train, we haven't seen any. The second day most of the views were in the clouds. The highlight was the unexpected restaurant at Sunwapta Falls, where we had a wonderful lunch, coffee and cinnamon buns. We stayed at Jonas Creek campground for the night. We were both feeling a bit disappointed that at all the viewpoints, we could only see cloud. Occasionally, the sun came out, but it was generally a cloudy day. The next morning it was very cold. There was frost on everything, but the payoff was clear blue skies! The sun was shining as we made our way up Sunwapta Pass. Looking back, this was the most difficult of the mountain passes. The day before we met 5 men from Winnipeg at Sunwapta Falls, and we met up again at Columbia Icefields and lunched together. After lunch there was a wonderful switchback descent and amazingly, we had a tail wind!!! We made good time to Rampart Creek, where we planned to stay, but the mosquitos drove us on to Saskatchewan River Crossing where we splurged on a motel and dinner in the restaurant. We met up with a group from the Elbow Valley cycling club. Lost track of the days, but the next day was a long slow climb up Bow Pass. We stopped for lunch at the summit after 4 hours of riding and who did we meet up with but the guys from Winnipeg. After lunch it was a quick ride to Lake Louise, to the most bizarre situation in the campground. When we arrived, they said, technically, we are closed, but we're trying an experiment. We'll put you in the electric fence area....There are so many bears in the Lake Louise area, that Parks Can. is restricting people in tents, for their safety.. They have put an electric fence around 8 campsites, with a kitchen shelter, food locker and washroom building and that's where they put the cyclists and hikers. Interesting concept, but it sure felt weird as people walked past and took pictures. Now we know what it feels like to be in a zoo!!!! We shared our campsite with a couple from Holland and learned from them that our planned camp the next night at Marble Canyon was out of the question. The campground is closed. We packed up slowly the next morning, went into town for breakfast and then the rain started, so we hung out at the hostel for most of the day and spent quite a bit of the afternoon chatting with John from Moab about various cycling trips, living simply and generally, enjoying life. About 5, the rain had tapered off and we made a break for Castle Junction campground. We got a nice spot by the creek and a couple from Minnesota were in the kitchen shelter with a fire going. They had seen a grizzly bear that day, close to where we had planned to camp one night.. The Rockies have been brilliant - a wonderful few days of good weather and fabulous views.
Kootenay National Park	Because Marble Canyon was closed, we went from Castle Junction to McLeod Meadows, over Vermillion Pass, bringing us back into BC. It was about an hour climb up to the summit, at 7% grade. Then, we had a bit of a downhill and then we rode along the river valley for another 60 kms. We saw two bears along this stretch and a moose at the top of Vermillion Pass. The next morning we climbed Sinclair Pass, again an hour climbing at 7% grade, then the most thrilling descent into Radium. The grades varied from 8-11% and we had no cars behind or passing us until almost into Radium. It was fabulous. My max speed was 71kph. After a second breakfast in Radium, we came to Inveremere, where we are staying for two nights.
Invermere	Inveremere is a lovely little town on Lake Windemere. We hung out at the beach awhile this morning, and are generally taking it easy. The terrain has changed significantly since we came through Sinclair Canyon. It is quite dry and arid here. There is lots of sagebrush and it feels very Okanagan-ish. It's also very hot. We are planning to leave early Friday morning, and get some miles in before it's too hot.
Wasa	The first 25km this morning was lovely as we took Westside Road on the west side of Windemere Lake (the highway is on the east side of the lake). There was very little traffic and we saw two deer and a very angry bull! Boy is it HOT!! and the mosquitoes are out in full force. Stopping is out of the question as we get swarmed as soon as we stop moving. At Canal Flats & Skookumchuk, we planned to make sandwiches for lunch & picnic in the shade, but ran for shelter in the restaurants to avoid the mosquitoes. The turkey sandwich we ordered at this tiny little place in Skookumchuck, was real roast turkey. Many surprises like this at little out of the way restaurants. We stayed in a motel in Wasa last night, after a 96km day. We've heard that there was so much rain in May that the spray was neutralized and that they couldn't spray in June because of the no fly zone that was in effect for the G8 summit, whatever the reason, there are far too many of them. We met two fellows from Nanaimo cycling a loop from Invermere.
Cranbrook	Short distance today - we left Wasa about 8am and arrived at Fort Steele shortly before 9. We spent about 3 hours looking around this restored historic town - the bakery had great cinnamon buns & coffee. About noon, we headed to Cranbrook, where we are going to stay for a night or two. It is still very hot - about 36C.
Creston	We spent 2 nights in Cranbrook & had a lazy time in the hotel pool and went to a movie - Men in Black 2. On the Saturday evening we walked over to the Prestige Inn and surprised Maureen's Mom, who was staying there on her bus tour. It was a really nice ride from Cranbrook to Creston - the road had some shade and although there were a few uphills, it was mostly down. If you are ever in Yahk, stop at the Kootenay Cafe for cinnamon buns - they are great! The best part of the ride was there was no bugs!! We arrived in Creston in the early afternoon and found a motel with a pool.
Boswell	We thought we were out of "bug" area, so we planned to camp halfway up Kootenay Lake at Boswell. Since it would be a short day, Maureen went for a morning swim, we stopped for groceries and we left Creston shortly after noon. Yes the hottest time of the day. It was quite warm and we ran into bugs again in a couple of spots. We stayed two nights in the Lockhart Beach area, one night in a cabin and one night in the provincial park. We met the Tour BC group at their lunch stop at the Prov. Park. Fun to visit and see a bunch of friends.
Nelson	We left the campground shortly after 6am and had a nice ride to the ferry. One major climb and then an 8% descent into the ferry terminal. We were early and sat at the lake, drinking coffee. The MV Osprey arrived and they packed as many cars & logging trucks as possible on. We arrived in Balfour about 10 and had a lovely 40km ride from there into Nelson. There is a street performers festival on this weekend and we are here for 3 nights. Nelson is a very pretty town, surrounded by mountains. There are many neat little shops, cafes and restaurants. We are enjoying our break here. We'll leave early Sunday morning for Castlegar. Although it was cooler yesterday morning, the forecast is for 37-39 degrees in Castlegar for Sunday & Monday. Yikes - we are planning very early starts and to be finished riding by noon.
Nelson	We had a lovely break in Nelson. We visited with Jeff who used to work at Cycling BC, enjoyed the street performers festival and the many restaurants. We met up again with Doug & Susan and visited a bit with them and several other Tour BC participants. Doug & Susan and Stephen & Carol recommended a nicer route than the highway to Castlegar. With directions memorized, we set off early Sunday morning for Castlegar.
Castlegar	The route suggested by Doug & Susan & Stephen & Carol was lovely. Pass Creek road is a quiet, windy back road. We arrived in Castlegar about 9ish, spent a bit of time at Tim Horton's, got some groceries and about 11 we started the climb out of town. It was very hot and I felt very ill. I had to stop several times - once in front of a motel. It was tempting to stay, but we kept on to the campground, at the top of the hill. The Castlegar RV park & campground is a nice little spot - the owners very friendly and gave us patio chairs, so we had something else to sit on, other than the picnic tables.
Christina Lake	Knowing how ill I felt climbing yesterday, I was a bit concerned about climbing Blueberry Paulson. However, all went well. We started at 6am and it's 20km of gradual climbing, then 2 sections of about 3km each at 7%. We were at the top within a couple hours and coasting down to Christina Lake. We found the public beach and spent the rest of the day swimming and reading in the shade.
Grand Forks	A very short ride (22km) today into Grand Forks. First stop at the bank, then Joga's coffee shop - good coffee and cinnamon buns. The municipal campground is quite nice, except at 9pm when the street lights come on and we realized they would illuminate our tent all night!. It was quite hot and even a rain shower didn't cool things down. After lunch at Kokomo's, we spent most of the afternoon in the air-conditioned library. Grand Forks is a very friendly town and it seems lots of people from the Lower Mainland have relocated here.
Greenwood	And one more for good measure - Eholt Summit 1028metres. We knew there was a climb out of Grand Forks, "relentless" was the word a passing cyclist told us the day before, but we didn't know it had a name. Once again we were up at 5 and on the road shortly after 6. A moderately steep switchback started about 6km out of Grand Forks and continued for about another 4-5km, then the grade lessens and it's like riding into a headwind. It doesn't really look uphill, but it is. Photos at the top and then a nice descent to the bakery & cappuccino shop in Greenwood. We decided to stay here a night, since we are a day or so ahead of schedule.
Rock Creek	We left Greenwood shortly before 8 for a short ride to Rock Creek. There was highway construction a just outside of Greenwood, but the grooved pavement only lasted for about 2-3km and the rest of the way to Rock Creek was brand new black (hot) pavement. A short stop in Midway to wait for the grocery store to open and we chatted with a group doing the KVR from Castlegar to Osoyoos, via Myra Canyon. We thought about staying at a motel in Rock Creek, but the only one is a couple km away from the restaurant and the river (swimming) so we kept going. Stopped at the Gold Pan cafe (really good pancakes here!) to have a (second) breakfast and think about our options. We ended up going to the provincial park about 8km up Hwy 33. We have camped at this park before and enjoyed it. This time, the only enjoyable thing was swimming in the river. The campground was noisy, very few sites available with shade (most sites are on the reservation system). We decided on one, locked the bikes & spent the afternoon at the river. When we came back and decided to set up the tent, we couldn't find a spot that didn't smell like...pee!!! We ended up in the driveway of the site, and jumped in the tent about 8 to avoid the mosquitoes and missed the campground attendant.
Osoyoos	We left KVR park later than planned at 630, and fortunately there was some cloud cover. That burnt of fairly quickly as we climbed the switchbacks of Anarchist Summit. It was a long hot climb and the summit is a false one. After reaching the summit sign post, we continued climbing for about another 10km, then it was 16km of 6-7% switchback descent with strong cross and head winds. It was kinda scary. We stopped part way down at the view point, took a couple photos, and started off again. Soon, we were down into the heat of Osoyoos and seeing many "No Vacancy" signs. We stopped at Smitty's to eat and decide what to do. (Does this sound familiar?) We decided to take a motel for two nights, as we wouldn't feel comfortable leaving our bikes at a busy campground to go to the beach. So, we are at the Plaza Royale for two nights, paying too much in a busy tourist town. C'est la vie. Tomorrow, Richter Pass.
Stemwinder	Climbing Richter Pass went ok. It's 12km of climbing from Osoyoos and then a nice sweeping descent, then it's a rolling ride into Keremeos. It was a bit cloudy and a very strong headwind. We stocked up on groceries at the IGA and headed back into the wind to Stemwinder. It's a nice little park on the Similkameen River and joy oh joy, there were no bugs.
Princeton	A short easy ride this morning in misty rain to Princeton. We're staying here for two nights at the Villager motel. The sun is out and now, it's time to go to the pool!
Manning Park	We sent all our camping gear home on Greyhound from Princeton, so it was an easier ride up Sunday Summit. It was a cooler day and for the first time in weeks, we wore our jackets. As usual, there was quite a headwind from the summit down to Manning Park lodge. We had a lovely two days staying at the lodge here. Jean & Dennis arrived Weds. evening & Mom arrived Thursday morning. We went up to Blackwall peak and walked a couple of the short trails - the alpine flowers are in bloom and it's very pretty. Much as I tried to discourage singing, the servers in the restaurant sang Happy Birthday at breakfast and dinner, Jean & Dennis made a poster and brought a cake (with a bike on it!). It was a fun way to spend my 40th b-day.
Hope	We reluctantly left Manning Park shortly before 10 and seemed we were at the top of Alison Pass in no time. We chatted with a fellow from Langley at the side of the road for awhile, then headed down into pretty strong headwinds. After a lunch stop at Sumallo Lodge (west gate), it's a short but tough haul along the flats of Sunshine Valley, then it's mostly downhill into Hope. We thought about trying to get to Mom's but another 80km into headwinds wasn't appealing, so we decided to stay.
Home	138km - our longest day on this trip. Total trip distance: 1671 km. There was literally no wind when we left Hope at 6am and we made good time to Agassiz, where we stopped for a (second) breakfast. I think we crossed Nicomen Island in record time and we were in Mission for lunch before 11am. At the Starbucks in Maple Ridge at 1pm, I could hardly keep my eyes open so we stopped for a latte and a rest in the "comfy chairs" and then we were off again. I told Bruce in my tired state I was nervous about 2 lane changes we would have to make - at the Mary Hill by-pass coming off Pitt Bridge and across 4 lanes at United Blvd. Much to my surprise, both times it was clear sailing. The cats gave us a lukewarm welcome but now that we've been home a day, I think we are friends again..

Itinerary	Distance (km)	Summit	Elevation (metres)
Train to Valemount BC	32
Arrive Valemount	0
Mount Robson	80
Jasper	50	Red Yellowhead	1100 1130
Icefields Parkway (4 days)	230	Sunwapta Bow	2035 2065
Castle Junction	30
McLeod Meadows (Kootenay Nat'l Park)	83	Vermillion	1639
Invermere	47	Sinclair	1400
Wasa	96
Cranbrook	36
Creston	111
Boswell	57
Nelson	65
Castlegar	57
Christina Lake	62	Blueberry-Paulson	1535
Grand Forks	22
Greenwood	42	Eholt	1028
Rock Creek	45
Osoyoos	62	Anarchist	1234
Stemwinder	82	Richter	670
Princeton	34
Manning Park	66	Sunday	1282
Hope	70	Alison	1342
Home	138	Mt. Woodside	100