to Protection Mountain Camp, Protected by New Friends

Thursday 4 August 2011
Day 42
First day in weeks with No Rain at All!

From Jasper via the Icefields Parkway to Lake Louise and beyond, because all campsites in the Louise area were full, I pressed on into the evening.

I was whipped when I got to camp, and once agian the highlight of the day was the people I met, in this case, Marek and Jana, from the Czech Republic, both on a one year work visa to Canada, living in Vancouver, and on vacation just like me, in the next campsite.

Both in their 20's, I am impressed by their compassion and thoughtfulness. They offered their axe for me to pound in my tent stakes (I carry no hammer to reduce weight, and instead look for a rock or other object laying around, but this place was fresh out of rock-like objects!). When they went to inquire about how to pay camp fees, they brought back a second payment envelope for me, then later carried it back to the ranger. Being bears but no food lockers, they locked up my food in their car and then gave me a set of keys to it in case I wanted to leave before they got up. Marek built a fire the old-fashioned way (ie, without gasoline or other combustible material, only wood) which he started with one match, invited me to share it, then gave me beer to drink. How about that!

Here are some views from along the Icefield Parkway and a special note of mention at the end.

Processional to the glacier

the melting edge

Where it was in 1992

You can set foot on it...

...but it's pretty dangerous, only mm thick in places despite looking solid from above

Peyto Lake

Water cuts Rock

The Parkway

Motorcycle Lineup...there are lots of them!

These MUST be BEAR berries!

Mistaya slot canyon

yours truly at Mistaya

Lake Lousie Hotel

Lake Louise

Lake Louise

Once again I'm back to the theme of the people I've met, and I was able to enjoy the views above only by the generosity of Luke and Janet Weiser from Calgary, who I met on the Denali bus and offered to write out a route for me to follow from Jasper back to the US, which I did exactly and enjoyed greatly. Today's drive was part of that.

Luke is a fishing expert, guide and builder of custom rods, check him at lukeweiser.com.

A Very Expensive Day, or, Is the Canadian Ecomomy Booming?

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Day 40

 

The idea I had for today was to get up early, break camp, run down the road to Grande Prairie, AB, a pretty big town, city even, where there was a Yamaha dealer that would certainly have a chain for my bike. Of course, most cycle shops are closed Sunday and Mondays, so I was not able to call to verify. But since this was the route I wanted to go anyway, no loss.

Swan Lake was quite pretty this morning.

The Yamaha dealership in Grande Prairie

Before going in, I decided to pull the drive sprocket cover off myself... Being that the rear wheel sprocket and chain are visible and looked ok, I was worried I was going to find the drive sprocket all chewed up, it being the only remaining piece of the drive train that had been exposed to mud.

But it looked good to my untrained eye...

But I found the sprocket area and cover loaded with haul road mud, grit, gravel, all bound together by... chain lube! I am relieved that I've found the cause of the gravely noise. I will clean it all up and ask the dealer's tech to look at it just to verify it's ok. I probably don't even need a chain and will soon be on my way this morning...

So then a guy walks over, looks at what I'm doing, and says, "You need a new tire." I'm thinking he sees that the round profile of this sport performance tire has been flattened by all the road miles (which it has) whereupon lots of racer types will replace the tire even tho it still has miles left in it. Then he points.

Uh oh, what's this?

Cord showing, that's what. Not good. When did that happen?

Luckily, the cord itself had not been worn, just exposed, so the tire had not been structurally compromised, but it needed to be replaced. My expectation of making this trip on one set of high quality tires was obviously unrealistic.

Ok, so I'm buying a tire.

Service manager Michal (pronounced Mee-how) and tech Murray were good to work with, realized I was on a trip and worked me into their busy schedule. Murray also checked the drive train and showed me that the front sprocket was indeed worn out and needed replacing. Unfortunately, they did not have one in stock.

My last rear tire, installed just before I left, cost $200 installed. The total price to install this similar-quality tire was $412 Canadian, over twice as much, after a discount on their usual prices, which I believe was probably the price they charge anyone, not just a guy 3,000 km from home and in need. Maybe I should have shopped around, but I was there, they had the tire, and I wanted to get going. I was uncertain if I'd find another tire out here.

So I can recommend the shop for its service and friendliness, but I don't know about the pricing:
http://www.red-linepowercraft.com

Knowing I was headed toward Jasper, they generously offered advice on the route, suggesting I could probably pick up a "cheap motel for around $150." I suppose that's the going summer rate in that area, but in general, it seemed to me that prices in Canada were much higher than in the US. It reminds me of the boom time in the US just a few years ago.

Thunder

Friday, August 5, 2011
Lake Louise, Alberta to St. Mary, Montana
Back to the US, Back to the US, Back to the US of A

Just an awesomely beautiful sunrise over the Banff National Park

Rocky Mountain Sheep
Early get-ups get you wildlife views that don't come later in the day

Riding in the rain, self portrait

The crack of thunder!
Thunderstorms make me smile.
Thunderstorms make me wet.
Ah, for the love of a pair of waterproof boots!
Back to the rain!
It couldn't last, could it?

Rode thru this one and a whole bunch like him today. It's a lot more pleasant getting wet here than in Alaska or Yukon. Here it's hot and the air relatively dry so I don't stay wet for long and the evaporative cooling is welcome relief to the heat.

What's this Santa Fe doing in Alberta, Canada?

A blast from the past, this old western Canadian town is the real thing, not some tourist facade recreation as found in the yuppie towns or theme parks.

Looking south to the pass to the US and Glacier National Park

Chief Mountain Border Station, where US Customs & Border Patrol proved once again to be as unfriendly as always. Over the years of traveling, and especially flying professionally internationally, I have crossed into and out of the US many times. In general, I have been treated respectfully when entering other countries, but rudely, harshly and even maliciously entering the US. This time was no exception. There seems to be something about law enforcement careers in the US that attract people with egos that are elevated by putting others down.

This evening after checking into Johnson's of St. Mary camp, I met Gereon, from Germany, who has toured all over the world by bicycle since age 13. We continued our conversation over dinner. This year he began his tour in Vancouver and is ending in Missoula, Montana. He has done a bicycle tour every year except for two years when he was recovering from surgery, one to his shoulder and another to a disc in his back. In Germany he is a Catholic priest and head of a 7-church parish. We discussed the environment, politics, children, the Catholic church and its recent challenges. Gereon is another person doing amazing things with whom I had a most enjoyable conversation.

To Jasper

Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Day 41
12,919 km ridden so far

My site at Grande Cache Muni Campground was nice, but the messy habits of some of the campers, especially the young ones, made the atmosphere seem a hybrid of hostel and homeless shelter, with trash and food strewn about, filthy bathrooms and showers, abandoned derelict luggage, firewood pilfering. But all said, it worked for me for the night I was there and even had a fire which kept the mosquitoes away.

Blocked up the bike on some of that strewn material so I could get the rear wheel up to do you know what
chain maintenance

The impressive Canadian Rockies

Road to Jasper, a national park adjoining and north of the Banff National Park

Wonderful is wonderful. I'm not so sure about the Formidable

 Fortunately, I was able to secure lodging in Jasper in a home "B & B" (but without the second B part) for $60 USD, which, thinking back to the advice of the guys at the Yamaha dealership, seemed quite a good deal. I stayed at the Greenwood Lodge, which I would recommend: http://greenwoodlodgejasper.homestead.com. Joelle does a good job there and gave excellent advice on restaurants.

Walking the streets, I was admiring this BMW GS with a lot of stuff on it...

...including this great sticker...

...when owners Sarah and Mike showed up. Very nice couple, we chatted for a while about their adventures. Everyone here has an interesting story. Hearing these stories has been one of the most enjoyable features of my trip.

Back on the Canadian pricing theme, this is representative. This is the "happy hour" price for Corona beer, A WHOLE BUCKET of FOUR, count them, 4, for only $19 CD. Such a deal! You might want to do some drinking at home before you go out to soften the blow.

Gasoline prices in Canada vary widely, from a low of about $1.10 CD (Canadian dollar) per litre to about $1.90 per litre, or about $4.16 to $7.20 USD per US gallon. I think the highest I've paid in the US so far was actually along the Coast Highway in Big Sur, CA, at ablut $5.70 per gallon.

A Jasper towne view

I finished out the day with some new friends. Did you know that ice cream is an excellent ice breaker? Well, it is. After dinner I went to the grocery to get food for the morning and could not pass up the freezer case, and the big container was same price as the small, so I went big... and shared, with Maik, a teacher of framing carpentry, and his wife and daughter from Germany, and John, a rancher from down under, all of whom shared passion for this cold desert.

Solitary Sun

Sunday, August 1, 2011

Day 38

It's after 6 pm and I'm at Swan lake Campground about 20 km SE of Dawson Creek eating an eclectic dinner of Thai chicken noodle salad and quiche purchased from the Safeway in town.

My campsite at Swan Lake.
Here I was fortunate to meet Larry and Markie Runnalls, a fine and generous couple who have hosted this camp this summer. The rest of the year, Larry produces the Abbotsford International Airshow, one of the largest and most prestigious in the world. Check it out at www.abbotsfordairshow.com.
Both Markie and Larry were concerned and discouraged by the apparent disregard of many campers for their environment and cleanliness.

There seem to be few or no mosquitoes here. Whether that's because there are none, or because the 50 kph wind is blowing them away, it is welcome, just as was the sun today.

Yet, for the first time on this trip, a heavy feeling of melancholy gripped me and I've been trying to identify why.  

Road construction and delays for one-way pilot car zones have been frequent ever since I began driving north along the California Coast Route 1. It's just an expected part of a trip like this. All of these areas experience extreme winter weather and the roads take a beating, consequently in the short summer months the construction crews are everywhere at once!

I drove thru an hour of rain to begin the day. That was a bit disappointing and a contributing factor. The first TV I've watched in a long time was The Weather Channel at the hotel last night, and their forecast for Fort nelson was for rain ending by 8 am, a partly cloudy but dry afternoon, and then sunny days for a while, with my route to the south and east expected to be outside the rain zone for some days to come. The rain was light but my boots and socks did not dry completely last night despite my best travelers tricks using materials found around the spartan hotel. I was tired of putting shopping bags over my boots so I did not do that, and after a while the wetness soaked thru and my feet went from damp to cold and clammy. Even though the rest of my body didn't feel cold, I turned on the vest so that part of me could feel really warm, but it didn't balance out.

The rain ended and ahead looked drier and the clouds seemed to be breaking up. I stopped to pee and the rest area did not have the usual green outhouse pit toilets but instead a real bathroom with running water, flush toilets and heated air hand blow dryer. I don't care much about what kind of toilet I use, but that hand dryer really put out...hmm, I'll bet that could dry my socks and boots in a hurry. The way I was feeling, it was worth it to take off most of my clothes so that I could remove my boots and socks and dry them , even if the relief was temporary and they just got wet again. I am quite tired of wet feet.

 

These BC rest area bathrooms are a definite step up from the green with white trim jobs in Yukon, tho less frequent.

A Welcome Amenity!

Things are looking up, weather-wise

Fields and fields of flowers, as if by going south time is reversed with the seasons going backwards, from winter to fall and back to summer

It turns out it did not rain again, and though driving away from the rest area there were threatening clouds ahead, the road soon tuned in a brighter direction. I saw more sun this afternoon than in all of the last several weeks combined.

Visited the Alaska Highway Museum as I came thru Dawson Creek. It's free and does a good job documenting its purpose and construction history.

Aha! The explanation of the name of the place I camped a few nights back, Contact Creek.

The woman who ran the museum, a first-year triathlete, kindly came out and took this photo.

Of greater mood affect are loneliness and a nagging suspicion that the noise my bike makes when starting off in first and second gear, which is becoming louder and more gravely in tone, is indicative of a serious problem that I have yet to discover and will soon manifest its cause via a serious failure that will render the bike undrivable. The thought of having to delay to find parts and make repairs multiplies my sense of isolation and feeds the loneliness.

It's been great fun to go far from home by myself, but the trip back is just as long, and at some point the desire shifts to returning. I seem to have reached that point.

I seem to be going backwards!
It matches today's theme.