Red Deer to Rocky Mountain House, Alberta

As of September of last year, I have now pieced together cycle trips from Winnipeg to the Pacific:

But, because I cycled the southern route across Alberta back in 2006, the routes have a gap between them that I want to rectify.  To do this, my plan is to cycle from the AB/SK border at roughly Macklin, where I ended off in 2012, to Saskatchewan Crossing at roughly the middle of the Icefields Parkway in Banff National Park.  Once I complete that stretch, my route from Winnipeg to the Pacific will be seamless:

• Winnipeg, MB to Yorkton, SK
• Saskatoon to Yorkton
• Saskatoon to AB/SK border (at Macklin)
• Macklin, SK to Saskatchewan Crossing, AB
• Saskatchewan Crossing to Lake Louise
• Lake Louise to Kelowna, BC
• Kelowna to Vancouver
• (ferry to Naniamo)
• Naniamo to Pacific Ocean (at Ucluelet)

The nice thing about cycling across Alberta is the logistics are a little easier than for out of province trips.  This meant that on Friday I could decide to begin this weekend.  I have never ridden "self-supported" before (i.e., driving myself), but I decided to try it out.

Yesterday, Saturday, I drove down to Sylvan Lake, which is more or less the closest point to Edmonton that lies on the route I want to complete.

I parked there in the Wal-Mart parking lot, and rode out.

Originally I was going to ride east to Red Deer first, then loop back and carry on to Rocky Mountain House, and then back to Sylvan.  In total that would have been about 170 kilometres.  But immediately out of the parking lot I realized the northwest wind was stronger than I thought it was, so I decided I would do the bigger piece first (Sylvan to RMH), and leave the smaller piece for later in the day, or else Sunday.  Part of my problem was that it was already almost noon, so I was getting a very late start.

The first five or so kilometres took me through Sylvan Lake Provincial Park, along the lake and through the town.  I have never been to the lake here before, and I was surprised how pleasant the setting was.

I think Sylvan Lake has a bit of a bad reputation, but it was certainly nice to cycle through.

I continued out of Sylvan on Highway 11A, and was disappointed how hard it was.  The route was nearly entirely flat, but against the wind I was struggling.

Ten or so kilometres out of Sylvan Highway 11A joins Highway 11, the David Thompson Highway.  From this intersection it was mostly due west and then a little north for about 50 kilometers to reach RMH.

Because my original plan was just for 45 or so kilometres, I had not packed much food or water, and was beginning to realize I was going to be VERY hungry and possibly thirsty by the time I arrived in RMH.  Luckily there is a gas station at the turn off to Alhambra, where I was able to buy more water and some sticks of pepperoni and cheddar.  I stopped down the road to eat.

Despite my frustration with the wind, the ride along Highway 11 was quite nice, and the weather (again, other than the wind) nearly perfect at around 23 degrees.

I cycled by countless cows and horses, and a herd of sheep, and lots of Canada geese and red-wing blackbirds, ubiquitously perched on reeds.

It was sometime shortly before 15:00 by the time I rolled into RMH.

I went to A&W for lunch of a big burger and onion rings; I was stuffed, but it took only a few minutes more on the bike for that to wear off!  I bought some more water before turning around and heading back to Sylvan.

Immediately out of RMH the highway runs southeast, so with the northwest wind behind me I was comfortably riding in the high 30 kmphs.  I was disappointed when I turned due east about five or so kilometres later and found myself fighting the crosswind again.  Thankfully I was able to average about five kilometres more per hour heading east than I had west, but by now I knew there was no way I would be getting in the Red Deer-Sylvan portion today.

I limped into Sylvan just after 18:00.  By the time I was back at the car my speedometer read 127 km exactly, but my body felt as if it had ridden 227!  I was disappointed to be so tired and sore.

I drove home to Edmonton, resolving to return today.

Mid-morning today I headed south again, driving to Red Deer this time instead of Sylvan.  

I rode this route, deciding a loop would be more interesting than a "there and back."

There was a little bit of wind today, but fairly light, and mostly northeasterly, and it proved to be a really pleasant ride, especially on the way out to Sylvan.

I made one stop once I was just outside of Sylvan on a range road, and then another outside of Sylvan coming back towards Red Deer.

Mostly though I just rode, trying to keep up a good pace.  The wind did become a factor on the way back into Red Deer, but I was still pretty happy to finish with a time well under two hours.

So with both days together, I covered the Red Deer to Rocky Mountain House piece, or maybe 1/6 of the total "across Alberta" route I want to do.

Hope, B.C. - Vancouver, B.C.

The rain had mostly stopped when I woke up this morning, but there was still a drizzle, so I delayed starting for an hour or so, until almost 9:00.

Happily, my clothes, including my shoes, had dried overnight; that was a big relief, because I was not looking forward to putting on wet shoes.

When I planned my trip I left an extra day, just in case, so I did not have to make it to Vancouver today, but that was my plan, and I certainly intended to get there.  While it was my longest day in terms of kilometres, I expected it to be much easier than yesterday because the route is almost entirely flat.

The first couple of hours were a bit damp, but quite lovely otherwise.  There was very little traffic along Highway 7 and the rural setting was very relaxing.  

Unfortunately, the idyllic nature of my ride was entirely ruined by a horrendous downpour around 11:00.  I was really very mad about this, because I had delayed my start because I thought it would mean I would escape the rain, but here, entirely in defiance of the forecast, was a terrible rainstorm.  I was completely soaked in minutes and there really was no point in doing anything but pressing on.  I think the rain continued for about an hour, with varying degrees of intensity, and I was very angry and miserable, literally swearing out loud in between wiping my glasses and shaking water droplets from my helmet.  

Eventually and slowly it cleared and began to warm up, but it took a long time before the sun came out.  Once I reached Mission I was about halfway, and I stopped at a Tim Horton's to buy a hot drink and lunch.  After that I walked for a couple of kilometres, hoping the pressure would squeeze more water from my shoes, and giving myself a chance to stretch and drink my coffee.  

I got back on my bike and rode down to Silvermere Lake, where I stopped again to eat my lunch.  Now it was a nice day, although I was still damp and my feet felt awful.  I took my shoes off for a bit so that they could get some air, but really it did not help much.

Back on my bike it was another 30 or so kilometres of pretty lousy cycling through Maple Ridge--I even had a driver honk at me for cycling on the road!  I was thoroughly unimpressed with how poor this designated cycling route was for cyclists.

The Lougheed Highway crosses the Pitt River from Maple Ridge to Coquitlam, and for the first time all day I took out my phone to take a picture.

Coquitlam was not much better to cycle through than Maple Ridge had been, but once I got to Port Moody things got nicer, and I loved cycling north of Burnaby Mountain on the Barnet Highway.  

After 135 or 140 kilometres now I was getting very worn out and very hungry, so I began shoveling almonds into my mouth.  Then I realized I was extremely thirsty and out of water, but I was also really determined to finish up, so I pressed on.  Burnaby was basically another Maple Ridge and Coquitlam in terms of cycling experience, but once I crossed Highway 1 and entered Vancouver I joined the Adanac bike route and it was superb!  Soon I was downtown, cycling past Rogers Arena and into Gastown.  I locked my bike up outside The Cambie Hostel, and only then did it hit me that I was done!  

It was now 18:00, so it had taken me over nine hours to get here, but only 7:35 of riding, for an average of just over 20 kmph.  Still not very fast, even though most of it had been flat, but again I did not really care--I was done!

Now I've ridden across Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia, and from Winnipeg to the Pacific (albeit with a route that is not entirely continuous--a fact I plan to remedy at some point).

Once checked in at The Cambie, I drank some water, ate some more snacks, showered, and walked over to Winners to buy some new clothes and shoes.  Tomorrow I will spend the whole day off my bike, just enjoying Vancouver. 

Princeton, B.C. - Hope, B.C.

I was up early this morning, and on the road at 6:30.  It was still dark as I headed up the hill out of Princeton.  Several deer were on the highway as I rode out of town.

This was my route:

And the elevation chart I got yesterday from the tourist information in Princeton:

For the most part, the first 35 kilometres involved climbing, and climbing, and more climbing until I reached Sunday Summit. 

The climbing was slow, but I was making good time, and I was glad I had started early.  From Sunday Summit there was a great descent and then a more or less flat stretch that took me into Manning Provincial Park.  

There is a gas station just outside of the park entrance, so I restocked my water there.  It was about 10:30 now, and I had just covered 50 kilometres, but I was feeling confident now that I would make it, because much of the climbing was now behind me.

I was able to enjoy the natural beauty a lot more inside the park than I had early, mostly because I was getting more relaxed about making it to Hope.

About halfway through the park or so I reached my second summit of the day at Allison Pass, and after that the descent really got going.  It was so steep I was forced to brake occasionally, and could not take full advantage of the slopes.  Still, I broke 61 kmph at one point, and anyway it was quite the thrill.

As I exited the park on the west side I was tiring badly, but moving on steadily.  Meanwhile, clouds and moisture were rolling in.

With a little under twenty kilometres to go to Hope, the rain started; slowly, first, but then it began to pour.  There is another tremendous descent that begins about fifteen kilometres outside of Hope as Highway 3 joins Highway 5, and thankfully there was little traffic here, so I could take the lane and just coast my way down.  It was kind of scary though, because the cloud cover was making it very dark, and the hard rain was making visibility terrible.

The final ten kilometres were cold and wet, and fast, because now I had plenty of adrenaline.  I literally do not think I have ever been as wet on a bike as I was by the time I arrived at my motel.

It was 15:00 when I got to Hope, so I had made good time, but I sure did not regret having started so early, because it continued to pour for hours!  I had ridden the 133 kilometres in 8:30, with 7:18 on the bike, for an average speed of 18.2 kmph.  By now, I did not care about the stats, though, I was just glad to be drying out and warm!

The Travelodge did not have guest laundry, so I washed my wet and dirty clothes in the bathtub.  My shoes were dripping, even an hour after I had taken them off, so I set them up on top of a flipped over garbage can, and set up a portable fan to blow into them.

Meanwhile, I ordered in two pizzas, cheese bread, a salad, and drinks and spent the rest of the afternoon and entire evening in my room.

Summerland, B.C. - Princeton, B.C.

Today I cycled from Summerland to Princeton.

This morning I delayed starting as there was a slight drizzle when I woke up.  I hit the road at 8:00, not willing to wait any longer, but fortunately the rain stopped within minutes of beginning my ride.

I made good time heading south on Highway 97, backtracking the ten or so kilometres along Lake Okanagan that I had biked yesterday.

The Summerland Motel did not serve breakfast, so I stopped at Tim Horton's in Penticton and filled my panier with some food.

From there, rather than continue on the highway, I took the more relaxed route through downtown Penticton again before joining Highway 97 on the south side by the airport.

Penticton is bounded on the north by Lake Okanagan and to the south by Lake Saha.  The highway runs along the western bank of Lake Saha as well, and begins to climb up to the junction where 97 meets 3A.  At this point I was about 25 kilometres from Summerland and I was still making good time.

Highway 3A West leaves the Okanagan Valley and crosses a range of mountains before descending into the Similkameen Valley.  Almost as soon as I joined 3A I began climbing at what is for a highway an extremely steep grade.  

It was also an extremely desolate stretch, which was nice, because I would much rather be struggling over a mountain pass without having to worry about traffic.

Once again I enjoyed the climb more than I expected.  It felt awfully good to summit it and then, the real highlight, flying down the other side into the valley.  My speedometer topped out at over 60 kmph.

It was still before noon by the time I reached the village of Keremeos, where Highway 3A meets Highway 3.  I took a little shortcut around the village, past apple orchards, and met Highway 3 on the west side of the village.

After Keremeos it is about 65 kilometres to Princeton, and its more or less a false flat the whole way.  I think the total climb is only 250 metres, but there was some wind in my face as well, so it felt like a real slog.  

The old mining town of Hedley broke up the stretch a bit.

Apparently you can take tours of old gold mines around here, and the whole place felt like a bit of an historic relic.

Past Hedley the highway crosses the Similkameen River and then runs alongside it the rest of the way into Princeton.

I got to spend more time than I would have liked along the gorgeous river, because about ten kilometres out of Princeton I had to change a flat.

If there can be such a thing as ideal timing for a flat, this was it.  The weather was perfect, the view lovely, and I was close enough to the end of my day that I did not feel demoralized.  

I took my time getting the flat fixed, and got back on the road around 15:30.  I rolled into Princeton at around 16:00.  So including just under two hours of stops, it was an eight hour day of cycling to cover 125 kilometres, with an average speed of 20.7 kmph.  Certainly beat yesterday, but I was still disappointed it was so low.  

I made my first stop in Princeton at A&W for "lunch."  Here I met another cyclist, also working his way towards Vancouver, who had cycled from Keremeos today.  He had at least two, probably three decades on me, so I was embarrassed to tell him I was staying a motel while he was tenting!  We chatted casually about the next stretch, and he intimidated me a bit with how hard he made it sound.  

After lunch we wished each other luck and I cycled to the Deerview Motel to check in to my room.  I had laughed at the corniness of the name "Deerview," but I saw deer three separate times at the motel or close to it!  This was the most surprising sight, a whole bunch of deer right in the middle of the town!

The cyclist I met had mentioned he had stopped in at the tourist office to get information about the tomorrow's ride, so I headed over there as well to see what I could learn.  I was a bit taken aback when the lady said "there's no way you can make it to Hope in one day."  This was exactly what I intended to do, so now I was worried.  She gave me this little piece of paper to give me a sense of the climb:

Now I was intimidated and stressed, but probably more determined than ever that I would in fact make it to Hope tomorrow.