Saskatoon to Griswold

Distance traveled over last 5 days: 659 km
Total distance: 2736 km

Saskatoon has some scenic bike routes through its city. I took the Meewasin Valley Trail out of the city on a sunny Monday morning. I gained a tiny bit of elevation pedaling to Hanley, which, according to local knowledge, put me at one of the five highest cities in Saskatchewan. The weather got quite muggy and warm, and when I discovered that the town of Kenaston had a public pool, I was eager to use the showers (and I did!).

Saskatoon skyline as I leave the city

It's roughly 260 km between Saskatoon and Regina - a two day trip. Late into the first day, when I saw the forecast for day two called for stiff 30-35 km/h headwinds, I decided to hustle as far as I could with all the sunlight I had left. I passed by Craik, the midway point, and made it to Aylesbury, where I connected with local resident Ron, who offered me a shower and a place to tent out for the night (thank you Ron).

Nervous about the upcoming weather, I got a very early start, hitting the road at 6 am. The forecast proved to be correct. I think this ride, in particular, was more physically and mentally challenging than anything I have faced, even the Rockies; it was like riding uphill the entire day, but without the satisfaction of a downhill descent. I averaged only 15 km/h.

Riding into Regina was also very flat, except for the only hill I've found in the prairies! The town of Lumsden sits in a small valley, with short moderate slopes on both sides. There's a neat little confectionary where I ate some delicious gluten free crepes for lunch/snack-time.

The valley into Lumsden

I reached Regina around 3:30, and headed to Mosaic stadium to capture some shots of the most famous Canadian football stadium. Locals tell me the whole city gets in a craze for Riders games.

Afterwards, I was able to make one of the most anticipated visits of my journey. I made my way over to a care home where I surprised my pastor and teacher of 7 years as his dinner guest for the evening. At first, Lorne was incredulous that it was me because I was still wearing my sunglasses, but I slid them off my face, and in his predictable manner, he struck a grin and chuckled to himself because he was at a loss for words!

Me and Pastor Lorne

At the dinner hall, Lorne introduced me to all the servers as his friend who had cycled from Vancouver. We had an hour and a half to talk about the Bible, the Berean church in Vancouver, its members, and occasion to reminisce on old times. By 7 pm, he was ready to prepare for bed, so we said our goodbyes and shared our blessings on each other.

I spent the night at John and Judy's place, where I was treated to a fantastic chicken dinner with all manner of sides and fruit for dessert. Thanks Judy, that was truly a luxurious dinner!
I had all intentions of leaving Regina the next day, but after spinning my wheels over morning errands, I met up with brother Sonny for lunch, and decided to spend one more night in the city with his family. We had a prayer meeting with another family that evening, and on our return, the skies were filled with thunder and lightning. Apparently, very hot summer days bring evening storms on the prairies!

I left Regina without much of a plan. All I really knew was that I'd be on the Trans-Canada for a number of days henceforth. The ear plugs I picked up in Regina proved to be a wise purchase, as I had a four lane highway, lots of truck traffic, and a railway all in need of silencing.

Along the way out of Regina, I stopped at Wolseley, where I crossed the swinging bridge tourist attraction. In the evening, I reached Burrows, where I met grandparents Ewen and Phyllis. Their grandchildren (4 and 6 years old, I think) were visiting, and were eager to see what was in my bags, and how my tent went together. We all had a very fun time together, and in the morning, Ewen, Phyllis and I shared more conversation over breakfast. I felt right at home, so thank you both, again!

Sign outside Ewen and Phyllis' home in Burrows, SK.

Shortly after passing Wapella today, I saw the first wind turbine farm of my trip. There were probably 20 to 25 turbines in the region. Later in the afternoon, I crossed the Saskatchewan-Manitoba, where there were two visitor centers (one for each province), and cookies & juice at both! Not sure if that was a Canada Day special or not.

Wind turbines!

Tonight  I am in middle-of-nowhere Griswold. Kind of a hick-town around here, but don't let anyone know I said that! :)

Also: Happy Canada Day everyone! If there are fireworks in my town, I might wake up and snap a few pictures.

Drumheller to Saskatoon

Distance travelled over last 5 days: 497 km (and another ~40 km by car)
Total distance: 2077 km

Prairie weather is an fascinating thing. As I made my through Calgary-Drumheller-Chinook under fair-weather conditions, I was also dodging rainstorms left and right (or east and west, if you prefer). It seems like the storms around here can develop in a flash, and they can be over you before you know it (more about that later).

Looking eastward while tenting at the outskirts of Drumheller, I witnessed some of the most dynamic skies I've seen along my trip. The night proved to be dry and warm for me, but as I headed eastward the following morning, the Delia cafe owner told me about the two inches of rain that hit their town in a span of 15 minutes. I'm pretty happy I didn't have to tent out in that!

Looking eastward from Drumheller towards Delia

The wind is a love/hate relationship. First the hate: Drumheller to Chinook, and Chinook to Kindersley were back-to-back days of moderate headwinds. On a windless day I might average close to 25 km/h on such terrain, but in the wind with my bulky and weighty load, I could only manage 18. "The invisible force" elevates the demand on the body, and requires extra power and energy to get from A to B. I was very pleased with my effort and determination, after arriving in Chinook, to have covered in excess of 150 km. It was a very long day of cycling through flat terrain and straight highways. As much as I wanted to hit the imperial century mark of 100 mi (160 km), which I would have attained by persisting until Cereal, I knew it would be better for me to tent and rest up when I reached Chinook. That evening, I met Denis and Sonja at their quiet residence in Chinook. They were very welcoming: I tented in their yard, and we shared a range of conversations both in the evening and the next morning. In their backyard, a whole range of birds take sanctuary, and start their morning singing at about 4 am. The only bird I could identify was the mourning dove, which was unmistakable thanks to Mom and Dad's bird clock which hangs in the kitchen.

Like I said earlier, storms can develop in no time at all on the prairies. Day number 21 from Chinook started out with fair weather. I crossed the line from Alberta into Saskatchewan, passing the border town of Alsask along the way. A little ways further, and thunderstorms started to appear on the horizon - both to the east and the west. The skies started to darken around me.

The calm before the storm

It started to spritz a few raindrops. Getting ready for an "adventure", I donned my rain jacket and shoe booties. The rain intensified, and the winds started to blow crosswise. Sooner than I could expect, the rain was pelting down sideways. It was about 3 pm, and I was enveloped in darkness! The wind forced me to lean my bike in order to hold my balance, and finally, when the gusts challenged my ability to stay on the shoulder, I decided I had to stop for my own safety. I couldn't be seen in the rain and darkness, and I couldn't even hold a straight line!

Thankfully, I had two helmet-mounted strobe lights. I flipped them on and swivelled my body around, signalling down the first pair of headlights coming my way - it was a truck. The driver stopped, and I ran up to the window; I didn't even have to explain myself: "Get your stuff in the back, I'm getting you out of here!" she said.

I stepped into the cab wearing a soaking wet jacket. The rain was so loud on the windshield that we could hardly hold a conversation much of the time. Shannon, as I found out, was on her way to Kindersley for an appointment. She lives in that tiny town of Alsask I had passed up just a little while earlier.

Roughly 40 km to the east, the rainstorm never really hit Kindersley. It was fairly sunny, and certainly quite warm. The two of us stopped at Timmies for drinks and conversation before she took off on her business. I regret not having the presence of mind to get some form of contact information so that we could have stayed in touch.

I found residence that night with a last-minute couchsurfing request to Teagan. We had a fun hour or so of conversation while preparing and enjoying a chocolate fondue before I took my rest. Fondue is quickly becoming the comfort food of choice for this trip - it started in Calgary.

After a rest day to regroup in Kindersley, I took off for Rosetown... or so I thought. With heavy tailwinds, I made it to Rosetown by about 10 am. After eating an entire roast chicken for lunch, I decided to go for broke and set my sights for Saskatoon - one day ahead of the plan. Even 200 km isn't too far when you're sustaining 35, even 40 km/h down the highway. All the way to Saskatoon, the weather was sunny and bright. The riding was easy; my only job was to keep the cranks going around.

207.2 km from Kindersley to Saskatoon

Needless to say, I surprised my host in Saskatoon, Brad, by showing up a day early. Armed with an incorrect phone number, I wasn't able to get a hold of him to let him know about my amazing pace for the day.

Today, I rested in Saskatoon to attend a local church, visit the downtown district, and listen in on the jazz festival. In the evening, Brad, his fiancee Christina and I cooked up some butter chicken and (of course) chocolate fondue for the all the guys staying at the shared home.

In other news, my chinstrap tan-line is coming in real nice.

Fairmont to Drumheller

Distance traveled over the last 7 days: 530 km
Total distance: 1580 km

The rockies were really amazing. Although vistas were hidden by overcast skies for most of my two-day journey through Vermilion pass, there were many animal sightings, including rams, mangy-looking mountain goats, and a bear cub.

The mountain pass is characterised by two summits separated by a long valley. At about 100 km in length, the whole pass can be negotiated in one day; however, I decided to camp at Mcleod Meadows on the advice of my previous host, Dave. I also wanted to play my chances to see if I'd get better weather on day two. At camp, rain hit, and I ended up pitching my tent in the downpour. It was poorly timed, because a little while later the rain let up, but I was still left with a wet tent.

There were a few other campers in the park on the night of the Canuck's game 7 match-up. I shared a fire with Jason and Naomi, which I used to dry out my soaked clothing. I also heated some rocks to warm my sleeping bag - it was going to be a cold night.

The next morning I found some very tame deer wandering the campgrounds for food - I couldn't scare them away. Thankfully their roaming about wasn't a nuisance. Around the noon-hour I crossed the continental divide (which delineates the Pacific ocean drainage basin), and after descending into Castle Junction, decided to push onward to Banff. Turns out I probably traded a quiet hostel at the junction for a noisier, more expensive one.

Like the rockies, Banff was also overcast, so instead of hanging around to do touristy things, I left the next day for Calgary. Both the weather and the view improved as I went on my way. I passed by a pair of other cyclists - Jason and Isabella - who had left from Whistler and were headed to Montreal. They were traveling much heavier than I, each with panniers and a trailer to boot. Alberta sure is flat in comparison to BC - there seems to be one exception, however: Calgary. I would spend the next three nights in the warm company of the Wiebes, who live on one of the hilltops in Calgary. They were wonderful hosts, and were receptive to my desire to extend my stay in order to connect with the rest of the saints in Calgary on Sunday.

Since leaving Calgary, I've had fair skies. In Beiseker, I met Verlin (three separate times, actually). A semi-retired school teacher and singer-songwriter, he's trying to launch sales of his first CD. I told him to get a myspace webpage and keep in touch. Verlin, post a comment with a link to your myspace page if you're reading.

A touring cyclist once passed along the advice that "the difference between an adventure and an ordeal is attitude." If I had remembered that after leaving Beiseker, it would have helped me manage my detour around impassable construction on hwy 9. My "home-brew" detour consisted of 10 km of farmers' roads of various textures: from gravel to muddy patches! After lugging my bike through several mud-slicks, my shoes, wheels, fenders and brakes were in need of a serious cleaning!

I didn't quite make it to Drumheller in one day, so I camped in Carbon. Verlin had spoken affectionately of the place in a passing comment that afternoon. It was great tenting weather, and camping in Carbon set me up for an easy ride into Drumheller the next day, with lots of time to go sightseeing.

Riding into Drumheller was stunning. The natural erosion of the mountains, and the desert-like foliage fit the Jurassic-mania that fills the city. While in Drumheller, I climbed up the 86' tall dinosaur outside the visitor center, and visited the Tyrell Museum, where I saw enough dinosaur replicas to make my eyes weep from exhaustion.

Tonight, I have pitched my tent a few kilometers north of the city, on a plot of grass kindly provided by a farmer. It's windy tonight!

Osoyoos to Fairmont

Distance over last 7 days:  618 km
Total distance: 1050 km

Clouds, rain, thunderstorms, and hail! When I pulled into Princeton, I placed a call to home and pondered on the telephone how much longer the sunny weather would last. The answer - enough to make it to Osoyoos, and not a day longer!

Anarchist mountain, heading east out of Osoyoos, makes for a challenging climb - 30 km of 6% grade, with about 5 km of downhill relief. Near the summit, I got caught in the flash rain with the wrong jacket on my back, which left me pretty wet and cold. To my relief, however, a coffee shop provided shelter and hot food/drink until the rain subsided. It had only been in business for about 3 weeks! Amelio, the operator, gave me the name of the park ranger at Johnstone Creek Provincial Park, which worked to my advantage that night!

Day seven took me through a number of small towns on my way to Christina Lake: Rock Creek, Midway, Curlew (Washington) and Grand Forks. I met up with Dave, and spent two nights at his getaway to rest up. Thanks Dave - I enjoyed the tour of the area, and catching a glimpse of that brown bear was fabulous!

From Christina Lake, I climbed Paulson Summit and descended towards Castlegar, and then Nelson. It was perfect climbing weather - overcast, and not too hot. However, I thought I was having a bad day on the bike: the gradual 4.5% slope and winding road concealed the fact that I was gaining significant altitude over the 30 km of slow pedalling. Too bad about that weather, though... as I started my descent from 1535 m, I was pelted by hail, which soon turned into rain. Never in my life have I wanted a descent to be over so badly! Unfortunately, that would not be the case. An hour later, I was still going downhill, and the windchill had worked into my body. From Castlegar to Nelson, I recovered my body heat with some hill climbing, and the sun made another guest appearance. The hostel I stayed at was great: a full-featured kitchen and barbecue. I took advantage of the nearby grocery store to cook up enough food for two, and promptly devoured it all.

I left Nelson very early in the morning in order to catch a short ferry ride across Kootenay Lake. It was a scenic ride from Kootenay Bay to Creston, but the rolling hills near Creston were challenging. I spent the evening with a fabulous family that I contacted on couchsurfing. Thanks again, Nelson and Nancy, for being such amazing hosts!

Riding from Creston to Cranbrook was easy terrain, and I met some interesting cyclists along the way! I have already met my share of bicycle tourists going one way or another, but Rodger and Soe Naing are the first I have met who are also going west-east across Canada. They are raising money for the Burmese people as they chronicle their travels on their website www.justride2011.com. Once in Cranbrook, I stopped at a bike shop to clean my bike and replace the brake pads, which were nearly expired after a month and half of use. I stayed at Fergus and Andrea's place, where I got pampered like family - thanks, you two! One year old Maisie is adorable, and very bright; I'm sure she'll be a handful (as if she isn't already)!

Today was an amazing ride under sunny skies as I headed to Fairmont. The mountainous landscape around here runs like the imagination of a painter, creating a dreamworld beyond expectations. The painting also includes lots of "happy little trees" (Bob Ross reference). Tonight I am staying with my warmshowers host, Dave, who has a beautiful log cabin by Columbia Lake. We shared cycling stories, and I got some advice for my trek to Alberta.

Tomorrow I'm into the Rockies. I'll find out about the Canucks game in about 3 days, I'm sure!

Looking out over Kootenay Lake from Nelson

View leaving Cranbrook

Not so many happy trees in this photo!

Delta to Osoyoos

Distance over last 5 days: 432 km
Total distance: 432 km

Well now! Look at the stupid thing I've done - forsake a comfy bed and house, regular meals, and the presence of family. All in the pursuit of "expedition". But I'm finding out this can be a lot of fun and a real test of determination.

Naturally there was that lump in the throat that hung around for what may have been a couple of hours after leaving home. As I approached my destination for the day, though, I knew that my hosts would be like a home away from home, and they were!

Day two meandered through Chilliwack and Agassiz before ending at an affordable riverside campground in Hope. Along my way I met several other cyclists. Ron and Coreen, on their blue custom-built tandem bike, caught me snacking on trail mix. We rode together until Rosedale, where the couple treated me to lunch (thanks again you two!). After sharing about their many tandem touring trips across Canada, they gave a word of warning about the steep climb out of Hope that I would be facing on day two. At camp in Hope, I met Nico, an Englishman touring from Vernon to Mexico. It was great to compare experiences, and learn about the jacuzzi waiting for me in Manning Park! I took a side trip to visit the Othello tunnels at the edge of Hope - a great sightseeing trip that I'd recommend to others.

Day three, Hope to Manning Park, was the truest test of my climbing ability with a fully loaded bicycle (coming in at roughly 100 lbs). Most likely the greatest single-day elevation gain of the entire trip, Allison Pass is roughly 1300 m above Hope. The route swung past Hope slide, the site of a large landslide in 1965. A couple of kilometers from the summit, the air took on an alpine quality, and the water infused the air with an ice-cold mist. Snow still covered the ground at the summit, where it was time to throw on a windbreaker for the freezing 8 km decent into Manning resort. It was a testy 70 km, but the jacuzzi helped me relax for the descent into Princeton.

What has been perhaps the most beautiful day of travel yet, cycling to Princeton took me past dramatic cliffs, beautiful ranches, and over a range of ups and downs. So farI slept by the similkameen river, which is unusually high and fast this year (hmmm, I wonder why?).

Now I am writing from my couchsurfing host's place in Osoyoos. I was aided by a strong tailwind, narrowly escaping the rain that I sensed was chasing me all day. My tired legs patiently scaled the final set of hills 20 km out of town, before making the short, famous drop back to the river that offers views which frequent the travel brochures. Now I just need to get enough rest for tomorrow's difficult climb up anarchist mountain.

Shake-down ride to Squamish

On the May long weekend, I did a test ride out to Squamish and back. I got a good dose of weather: sunshine on Friday, rain on Saturday. Both days I stopped at a nice little restaurant and general store in Lion's Bay.

The terrain wasn't too difficult, but provided for some fun descents of 65+ km/h.