My Trans Canada Bike Journey

  The Cokato community near Fernie; the Lizard Range forms a background Welcome to Day 3 for 2026.  I usually start the page with my favorite photo of the day, regardless when it was taken.  This happens to be the last photo I snapped.  It shows the community of Cokato, just outside of Fernie, my destination for today. Its a quiet little hamlet,  hovering close by Cokato Road, with a nice scenic background of the Lizard Range, the range of mountains that make up the western side of the Crowsnest Pass.  Here the Rockies begin to demand attention, as the backbone of the North American continent. Today the climb to the Continental Divide began in earnest, with no downhill at the end of the day to erase the elevation gains made earlier.  Starting at a low point of 2625 feet by Baines Lake, I ended at 3460 feet in Fernie.  So 835 feet of progress today, over a ride of 38 miles. Those are the facts and figures; however, the most interesting part of the ...

Lake Koocanusa  Today we leave the village of Wardner, and head southward toward Baines Lake, and our nearest connection to the US border, for  this year.   At the end of the day, we cross Lake Koocanusa, another milestone on our trip across Canada.   Our route leaves the village and climbs steeply for the next couple of miles on a gravel road.  However the condition of the road deteriorates, and it becomes questionable whether Audrey, driving the Escape will be able to navigate the same path I am biking upon.  (When Audrey and I can travel the same route, it promotes security that we can remain in close contact, especially if I find myself in need.)  As we are traveling along, we both became concerned whether we were actually on the path of the TCT, due to lack of signage and ambiguous directions ("left at a fork") in the guidebook.  The road surface had  become quite rocky with some potholes  which stretched across the road, ...

  View from Chief Isadore Trail; the Steeples in the background Today was my final day for riding the TCT in 2025.  The trail zigzags its way on streets and paths in Cranbrook.  After a couple of wrong turns,  I leave Cranbrook on the Chief Isadore Trail heading toward Wardner.  It follows a former railroad grade between Cranbrook and Wardner, so I get to enjoy the mild railroad grade slopes.  These railroad grade trails make up some of my favorite sections of the TCT, and this section is no exception.  At points, the trail was high above Highway 3, and it afforded nice views of the countryside, including the Rockies in the distance.  The first range of the Rocky Mountains that eastbound travelers see are called the Steeples. They are steep, pointed peaks that foreshadow the steep climbs coming up on the TCT. But for now, they are just scenery, as today brings to a close, my tour of the TransCanada Trail for 2025.  The hamlet of Wardner is 27...

Mark Creek, the main water source for Kimberley When I arrived at Cranbrook, technically the detour was completed as the TCT runs through the city. However up the trail lies the city of Kimberley, which is the first community the TCT visits after leaving the wilderness road from Gray Creek.  It was 19 miles away and uphill, but I felt I should take a day to visit Kimberley. On the way I cross the Kootenay River, which seems odd, since the Kootenay River also was at Creston, on the other side of the Purcells.  This Kootenay River provides the direction for the next several days on the TCT.  At Maryville, the trail starts to seriously climb, and continues to climb from the city limits to the downtown area.  The Sullivan Mine, in its day one of the largest lead and zinc mine in the world, was the major source of income for the residents until the 1970's, when the mine closed.  When the mine closed, tourism became a major factor in the local economy.  They adop...

  On July 4, I celebrate the US Independence Day by arriving in Cranbrook, BC, a city of 20,000 residents. It is the main shopping, healthcare, education and transportation hub of the East Kootenay region.  It is an outdoor recreation base with many lakes, hiking trails, and ski areas in close proximity.  And for me it is the site where I pick up the main TCT again.  Highway 3 has been a safe detour for me with a nice paved shoulder in most areas.   Getting a later start today, Cranbrook is situated 26 miles from my starting point.  Nice scenic riding with some elevated views over nearby lakes made for a pleasant trip to Cranbrook, and I was able to secure a motel room for the next few nights.  However, around 7:00PM, I was faced with the decision of riding into the evening in order to return to the truck, or saving the return ride for tomorrow.  I have a good lighting system on the bike with a strong headlight and two red taillights.  C...

  Scenic Moyie River In eastern BC, the mountain ranges run into each other, as the Monashees, Selkirks, and Purcells, take center stage respectively, on my eastern journey.  Now in the Purcells, these are the last mountains before the Rockies.  In this area the Purcells are quite tame; I reach an elevation of around 2200 feet as I cross them in extreme southern BC. On the other side of the Purcells lies Cranbrook, the major urban center in southeastern BC.  Today my journey takes me through Yahk, and Moyie, little hamlets that serve as good respite stops, on this second of three days riding to Cranbrook, 107 kms from Creston.  Yesterday, I sought refuge from a rainstorm in a rest area along Highway 3.  Today I found out that  the store was more severe than I realized.  As I reached the Yahk intersection,  just 11 kms north of the US border, I saw that the road to the border was closed.  It turns out that yesterday's storm took down powe...