My Trans Canada Bike Journey

  Audrey with the Cruise America Rental RV Saturday, 9/10/22: Three years ago in 2019 my  annual Trans Canada bike journey abruptly ended when I spotted a bear sauntering down the trail perhaps 100 meters ahead of me.  Traveling without bear spray, it seemed like a logical place to end my 2019 journey.  So I returned home to my job at American Family, and began to dream about my return to the Trans Canada bike trail. My stopping point was a parking area along the trail up above the small community of Naramata on the east side of Lake Okanagan in British Columbia. Then in March 2020, Covid happened.  The pandemic closed the border between the US and Canada until late summer, 2021.  Two years without making progress on my cross country ride along the TransCanada Trail.  A lot happened in the three years since leaving the trail near Naramata on the eastern side of Lake Okanagan.   Firstly, I retired in May, 2020.  One of my retirement plans...

  Beautiful Lake Okanagan Friday, Aug.23 Penticton After taking a day off from the bike to do touristy things, I was looking forward to getting back on the bike.  So, the TCT continues on the KVR  (Kettle Valley Railroad - rail trail).  Lake Okanagan dominates the views today.  Leaving the support crew to do some shopping,  I left to take a dip in the lake, and I believe that is a first for me -swimming in a Canadian lake. Water temperature was very comfortable; I think as I continue on the trail, I will make a note to take a swim, in the notable lakes along the way.  So this one is lake number 1.  Then  it was time to get back on the bike, now on the eastern side of the lake.  And just as on the west side of the lake, now the trail climbs (and climbs) out of the Okanagan Valley. The trail uses a long switchback and a tunnel (not open) to negotiate the climb.  Fantastic scenery on a nice day; the view from  above the Naramata B...

  Looking down to Summerland Wednesday, Aug. 21 If one is traveling by car, the cities of Hope and Princeton lay along BC Highway 3.  The next stop is the Okanagan valley with the principal city of Penticton, at the southern end of Lake Okanagan.  This is a favorite vacation area for Canadians, and there are a lot of things for tourists to do.  Nice sunshine today, and I was able to enjoy some terrific downhills on the bike.  On the steepest ones, I had to use the brakes, something bicyclists don't want to do! The Okanagan valley is the top wine producing region of Canada with over 100 wineries.  35% of the Canadian apples grow in the Okanagan, Similkameen, and Fraser river valleys that we have been traversing.  (Not surprising:  Washington is the top state for apples, in the US.  Those apple orchards are just south of the border).   We decided to take a day to be tourists here.  The highlight was probably the ride on the Kettl...

  Tuesday, Aug. 20 Today I spent the entire ride on the KVR (Kettle Valley  Railroad) rail trail.  It  was a gradual climb in the morning, as we were climbing up Hayes Creek to the top of the Thompson Plateau.  Behind us,  the jagged Cascade Mountains of the Coquihalla from last year are a memory, and up ahead we anticipate arriving in the Okanagan region.  At the top of our climb was Osprey Lake, where the sun broke out and we were treated to some nice sunshine for the next few days.  After passing 4 small lakes, we started on the gradual descent to Faulder Station.  In this area  the roads diverted away from the rail trail, and while I was gradually descending, Audrey and Judy took a scary  (narrow, curving, with cliffs) as they topped a mountain pass.  Sounds like they got to see some nice viewpoints along the road.  Finally we connected again at Faulder Station. Osprey Lake, near Bankeir Station At Osprey Lake

  Tulameen River Entering Princeton Monday, Aug.19, 2019 2019 brought me back to the TCT at Tulameen BC,  our stopping point last year.  This year my road crew were my sisters, Audrey and Judy.  This first riding day was cloudy with rain likely.   And an hour into the ride, the rain did start up.  Somewhat disappointing because last year had rainy days too.  I always like the sunny days especially when the scenery is nice.  It's better for the pictures.  The trail followed the Tulameen River and the scenery was beautiful.  Around lunchtime I arrived in Princeton, but I was on my own for lunch, as the girls decided this was a good day to drive back to Hope to pick up some souvenirs.  I stopped at the Princeton Subway, and while eating the rain came down in a downpour.  Waiting the storm out I relaxed, and I was happy to see the clouds lighten up and I had no more rain for the second half of the day's ride.   The T...

  Day 4 was my final riding day for 2018. It turned out to be perhaps the most difficult trail day so far along the TCT.  The day dawned grey and drizzly, with temperature of around 40 degrees.  The route today  was around 36 kms, about half of which was in a wilderness area with no roads at all, as the trail followed the KVR right of way. Audrey along with my friend Lynn were the support crew this year, and  we all realized this was going to be an area where they would not be able to follow me closely.  We decided on  a target time of arrival which assumed a reasonable pace.  The girls were going to be taking a very much longer track to get to Tulameen where I would meet them.  With no cellphone coverage, it would be a day without communication.   So my route followed the Coq Highway for the first perhaps five miles. The weather continued unchanged, with cold temperatures, and light rain. I arrived at the point where the trail dive...

Site of the Romeo Station on the KVR The next 2 days were involved in climbing.  4000 feet from Hope, nearly sea level to the top of the Coq.  These two days of cycling were demanding, but not as bad as I was concerned for.  I'm sure the climbs were much more manageable because it was on a rail trail, which requires no steep sections.  So very gradual climbing for  long stretches.  This is the reason rail trails in general are so popular, no steep climbs.  As a rider I was impressed by the route construction along gradual slopes in this very steep mountain area.  There were stretches of very tall trees around here, reminding me that we were travelling in a rain forest.  Most of the days spent in the Hope area had rain at least part of the day, and one day we were completely rained out and made no progress - I guess I am a wimp.  I am thankful that these two main climbing days were mostly dry weather. Finally I broke out of the gorge at t...

October 2018, Day 1: We return to Hope in October 2018, to continue the path along the TransCanada Trail (TCT).  Viewers of the cable TV program "Highway Thru Hell" will recognize Hope, as the homebase of the Jamie Davis Truck & Auto Company, a company which provides  rescue equipment  (wrecker service) for trucks and cars along  "The Coq".  The Coq is the Coquihalla Highway,  BC Route 5.  It is an important supply trucking route for Vancouver and the Pacific Coast.  The  westbound Coq climbs from Merritt BC, above 4000 feet at the top of the pass, and then descends through a gorge formed by the Coquihalla River to arrive in the City of Hope, at the bottom of the gorge.   It is a dangerous stretch of  highway, especially in winter, with rockslides and steep cliff faces along the road.  Upon arriving in Hope our first evening, we decided to have supper at a local restaurant in Hope, and we saw Jamie Davis at the restaur...

  I returned to British Columbia with Audrey and Judy in 2017 with a view to knock off some miles of the TransCanada Trail.  Picking up at the same exact intersection we had stopped at last year, amid the farm fields of the Fraser Valley.  The Fraser is BC's longest and most important river (completely contained in BC).  It is 854 miles long with its source near Mt. Robson, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. My trail this year would never venture far from the river.  Heading east, the immediate challenge was Mt. Sumas, which marks the northern limit of the city of Abbotsford.  Luckily the trail wound around the south face of the mountain.  While there were some steep slopes, the rise in elevation was not severe, and I met the girls for my first break, on the east side.  While not too bad, this mountain was a forerunner of much higher and steeper peaks I would encounter in the future along the trail! The next section of the trail served as a...

  TCT in 2016 Butchart Gardens I returned to British Columbia during the late summer of 2016;  this year my sisters Audrey and Judy accompanied me.  The trip was a combination of sightseeing with them and also some progress on the TransCanada Trail.  From a sightseeing standpoint we saw the Kinsol Trestle, rode the ferry from Vancouver Island to the mainland.  We checked out Butchart Gardens near Victoria and drove the Sea to Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler.   The progress we made along the TCT was short but important, as we navigated the trail through the  very center of downtown Vancouver, and through the urban areas of  Burnaby, Port Moody at the end of the Burrard Inlet, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam,  Maple Ridge, and Fort Langley. Unfortunately, I lost most of my photos for the 2016 trip, (probably, on the hard drive of some old laptop, long  ago discarded). Thinking back on my memories of 2016, I recall beautiful weather w...

  North Vancouver Downtown Vancouver from Lion's Gate bridge Tuesday, September 15 Only two days of progress on the TCT this year.  The route went through North Vancouver, then uphill along the Capilano River to Capilano Lake.  The lake is formed by the Cleveland Dam, and downstream is the Capilano footbridge, which is a very popular tourist landmark.  Then the trail descends to sea level through the town to the SeaBus terminal.  The SeaBus is a ferry which crosses the Burrard Inlet which separates North Vancouver from downtown.  The SeaBus wasn't running so that meant the end of the trail for me this year.  The stopping point was 16th Avenue. Not part of the official TCT, but now I had to return to my car somehow.  What separated me from the car was the Burrard Inlet and the Fraser River.  In order to cross the Burrard Inlet, I had to now take the Lion's Gate Bridge to get to the downtown area.  It is a massively high bridge  with ...