Carpe Dory (2)

Well that was an incredible stay in a place that has everything. In fact, it had way more than we anticipated, or intended. It turns out there’s this thing called the “World Cup.” And it turns out we timed our stay exactly during the period when Vancouver was hosting some of these games. It also turns out Canada’s team had made it to the final rounds. “Historic,” apparently. We did not know any of that, but it explains a lot. For example, it explains the insane amount of traffic and the 3 1/2 hours it took to get to and through the city. It explains the premium level surge pricing I cluelessly paid on the reservations. It also explains why there were so many soccer ball shaped things everywhere, like, doughnuts for example. It all makes sense now. We have learned much. On our way out of town, and the country, we learned much about agriculture inspections and what you should really not try to take across the border. So much learning.

Our travel day from Hope to Vancouver was super chill because I took back roads. Yay me. I should have turned off avoid highways as we got closer to town though, because rather than routing me over the bridge that Trans Canada Highway 1 goes over, it took me on the bridge that goes right smack through the center of downtown Vancouver. That was unnecessary to say the least, but it wasn’t traveling at highway speeds with trucks on my tail, so that’s something.

You can’t beat the Capilano River RV Park for location. It is at the foot of the bridge that takes you into North Vancouver and was super easy to use to get in and out of the city. On bikes, that is. With just one wrong turn into a shopping mall, we found the RV park and started to get set up in our full hookup site. It was raining on arrival, which makes everything just a little harder to deal with, but right away we noticed the hookups were on the wrong side of Dory and appeared to be shared with the site that butts up with ours in an uncomfortably tight way. In fact, in order to make room for whoever is camping there, we’d have to pull Dory forward quite a bit. And there is no way she’d be reaching the sewer. And even if she could, we could see that whoever was in that adjacent site had a whole sewer hose system they were expecting to keep plugged in, as it were. We walked back to the office to explain the situation, which the guy at the desk didn’t really seem to understand, but he moved us into the one other site that was available. Did I mention this was World Cup week? We hadn’t finished the setting up process, but we had unhitched. I used the caravan mover to put Dory back on the hitch and we relocated to a back-in site around the corner. That was fine. It’s a slotty set up at this park, designed for big rigs, with no privacy or anything, but we were expecting that. The one thing was that when we tried to dump, the sewer was backed up, so the experience was…. unpleasant. I’ll leave it at that, and state for the record that they had someone come out and fix it before the next time we needed to dump, and everything was fine. I am just now realizing I didn’t take a single picture of Dory in the site, or the campground. Scenic is it not, but for convenience, I would totally stay in exactly that place again. Location, location, location. And they give you free little bags of freshly popped popcorn.

We were both pretty fried at that point, and proud of how we kept our cool through a bumpy entry. I wasn’t going to be into making dinner with our one remaining chicken breast, and that came up later when we crossed the border back into the U.S. Damn chicken I was too tired to cook. We decided to drive a short distance over to a shopping mall where there were many options for dinner. We chose Zaatar w Zeit and it was a good meal. I think it’s a chain place that serves Lebanese dishes. We then just walked around the mall. There was a Whole Foods and a well rated bakery to check out. We got a chocolate croissant at Angus T and it was very good. We could tell it would have been flakier when freshly baked, and Richard confirmed that by walking over and getting an almond croissant fresh the next morning. That one exploded with flakiness in the bag when he cut it in half. Great place! We wrapped up the day with a walk in the Park Royal Mall and a quick stop at Purdy’s Chocolatier. Their fancy truffles were out of our price range preferences, but they also serve ice cream that you can have them dip in their white or dark chocolate for an outstanding treat.

The next day, we hit the bike trails in Stanley Park. That was one of our targeted activities and it’s a five star experience. Going across the Lion’s Gate Bridge the first time is quite exhilarating, but you get used to it. You cannot beat Vancouver for bike friendliness. We’ve never seen an urban city put so much smart design into making bicyclists safe getting in and around a city. Really well planned. On exiting the bridge, I will say it was not straightforward to find the Seawall Trail, and it seems that if you don’t want to walk your bikes down a steep dirt pathway, you have to go a fair ways riding the park road until you come to “Second Beach.” There you can catch the Seawall Trail and take it all the way around the peninsula. It is so worth it. We did a full loop so we could see all of it. Bikes travel one way on a raised sidewalk, while pedestrians have an adjacent paved walkway. No cars. It makes for the world’s best bike ride, right along the water. You get views of passing ships, a lighthouse, little islands, a totem pole display, wildlife, and a beautiful little lagoon on the south side. That’s an E ticket ride and I highly recommend it.

We took a complete break from any and all calorie counting for four full days and just dove in to all the culinary experiences we could pack in, both in terms of time, and stomach capacity. There is a place called Nine Dumplings Nine Dishes that serves rainbow colored filled potsticker type dumplings. We got the assortment of nine flavors containing either pork or chicken filling, and oh man, were they good! Then it was off to find another top rated doughnut place. This one was called Lucky’s Doughnuts and it is located in the 49th Cafe on Main Street. They were selling chocolate custard filled soccer ball doughnuts, which was another clue that we were there during a soccer themed time. Oh good lord, you guys. I know I’m talking a lot about food in this post, but you need to get yourself to Vancouver and get a chocolate filled soccer ball doughnut like right now. The custard was barely contained inside the light and fluffy doughy goodness. Sweet glaze and cocoa powder topped to look like a soccer ball. So damn good.

We of course had to work off all this sugar, so we continued biking along, either on protected and dedicated bike trails, or very well marked bike routes, all the way over another bridge and to the south side university area. There is an anthropology museum there and we had discounts we could use. The UBC Museum of Anthropology is a treasure trove of artifacts from all of the world, but it focuses on indigenous First Nations people in the region. They have an impressive display of totem poles, which I didn’t know until now, are exclusive to First Nations people of the Pacific Northwest. There are lots of kiosks explaining the history and how these house poles represent the passing of spiritual and worldly rights down family lines. They perform Potlatch ceremonies, which had been expressly forbidden until recently. There are quotes and first hand accounts from native people explaining the importance of these traditions and the deep meaning they carry across generations. In celebration of this rich history, we had a serving of “bannock,” which is a sort of biscuit that is traditionally fried, but is baked in the museum cafe, and very much like just a regular biscuit. Authentically themed carbs are always a must do. We had enough energy left to get ourselves to dinner at a Thai restaurant in the south district called Unchai Thai. We had the drunken noodles and it was excellent.

The next day was equally impressive in terms of how many food stops we hit on our eat-your-way-through-Vancouver tour. The day started with Richard going out and getting morning doughnuts from Goldie’s. One was a strawberry cream filled and the other a classic old fashioned. That got us sugared up enough to again ride across the bridge and try to find a faster way down to the Seawall Trail. We did find an unpaved, pretty steep trail that was navigable, even with walking an e-bike downhill, that lands at the parking area for starting the Seawall Trail. It’s an ok access point, but I would never want to walk my e-bike back up. It did give us a nice ride before heading into downtown to find yet another bakery. This time it was a place called L’Atelier Patisserie, which was said to have had some of the best croissants in town. I’m still thinking about how good their double chocolate and butter croissants were. The flakiness was not too explosive and they were airy and yet substantial at the same time. Delicious.

The trail systems, as I have mentioned, are really incredible. They have fully paved and protected multi-use trails that will get you most anywhere you want to go along the edges near the water. When the bike paths are not separate from cars, like when cutting across town, there are clearly marked routes on all of the street signs, so you know which streets are more bike friendly. Tourist information booth people happily hand you comprehensive maps of the system of color coded routes through the city. While navigating cities is still challenging, we were able to find all of our target spots with no trouble, even when they were in the heart of downtown.

We moved to the old part of town, past the stadium and Science World, which is currently sporting a gigantic soccer ball in case you have forgotten about the Word Cup. Gas Town is the historic area, with lots of brick buildings, a working Steamclock, and tons of bars and places to shop and eat. Because we were fully observing “calories don’t count” week, we stepped in to Chocolats Favoris, a great chocolate company from Quebec that sells tins of chocolate sauce you can heat up and pour over ice cream. We each got (very small) ice cream cones dipped in dark chocolate and they were fabulous. I left Richard to stare at the steam clock while I found a public restroom, and came back to him handing me half of a lemon doughnut from Lee’s Doughnuts. He said it was unreasonable to leave him alone in front of a doughnut shop, especially one mentioned on the “best doughnuts in Vancouver” list, and I’ll give him that one.

I wanted to immerse myself in the whole World Cup thing, at least briefly. I mean, it did seem like sort of a big deal to a lot of people. The city had closed off to cars an area of something like six blocks on one of the most central streets, Granville Street, in honor of hosting the event. I read that they have decided to extend the closure actually, as it seems to be good for foot traffic business. This appeared to be Party Central, so we went and checked it out. It was packed with people and adorned with the Canadian flag everywhere. There were street performers and booths to buy things, and lots of raucous laughter and ambient music. I gather the Canadian team had lost their game that day, so I can only imagine what it would have been like had they won. As it was, there was a sort of impromptu parade by fans of the Moroccan team, the team that had beaten Canada. That’s some balls there, to march through the streets of Vancouver singing and chanting, surrounded by thousands of crestfallen, red jersey wearing fans. Canadians are nothing if not polite and hospitable though, so they were probably counting on that.

We rolled on back to the area where giant cruise ships take off and really expensive hotels boast incredible views above the water. Sea planes take off and land constantly, as do all of the cruise tour boats. It’s busy and exciting and as packed as Disneyland on a school holiday. We road through it all, aiming for the Aquarium in Stanley Park. Those tourist booklets come in handy and we had a discount for this place as well. It’s a small but very nice aquarium, with a nice rain forest exhibit, complete with a sloth and some little monkeys. They had two octopi, but they were both hiding from all the people, which I totally get. They also had a tank with Dory and Nemo fish, so of course, I had to take pictures of them. And lastly, just past the seals, there were some fluffy floating sea otters. It was nappy time for them, so we watched them just float around together, hands up, warming in the sun.

That was another big day. Somehow we managed to be hungry for dinner, so we drove to a place called Cornelia Fine Tacos in North Vancouver. This place was fun! It is a totally no contact concept, where you place your order on a touch pad, watch a screen that shows when your order is ready, and collect it from trays that move on a sort of conveyor belt. It’s a Gen Xer’s dream come true where you don’t even have to respond to a waitress asking how your day is. I got a mole chicken and al pastor taco with rice and beans and it was all super tasty. Richard had the tamal de muerto and it was delicious. We also shared a sweet corn ice cream, which I was surprised I liked. It did taste exactly like how you’d think corn ice cream would taste, and somehow, it made for a damn fine dessert. Yes, it’s a hip and fun concept, but the food was also really good.

Our last full day in town was a bit less city mouse, and more country mouse. Taking the bike trail westward, we passed through some fun neighborhoods with open markets and, you guessed it, bakeries. There was one, Savary Island Pie Company, that made all kinds of pies and scones, plus lots of different kinds of loaves and sweets. We stopped there and picked up a chicken basil sandwich to go and I strapped the box to my bike rack as a picnic lunch. It’s a long, hilly ride going that direction, and not as much of it is dedicated bike path. There are bike lanes along the main drag, Marine Drive, and that was safe enough. Eventually, the bike lanes disappear and you are just riding the road. It’s not a heavily trafficked street, nor is it conducive to high speeds, so it is a popular ride for bikies.

We stopped at Lighthouse Park and locked our bikes. We did a nice loop of around three miles through a dense forest with short out and back viewpoints to see the water. The first viewpoint designated as a lighthouse viewpoint really isn’t. There are too many trees there to see anything. If you go to the next one however, you can see it clearly. You can’t walk down to the lighthouse. There are so many islands and land masses out there in the maze of waterways, I’m not totally sure which islands we were seeing. I do believe we were looking at Vancouver Island in the distance, directly across from us. There are some small ones with homes built on them, a tiny one with a lighthouse, and larger islands with, I assume, whole towns. We sat on the rocks at a view point and ate our chicken sandwich. Man that was good. The chicken was flavorful and tender, while the thick slices of bread were toasted with butter and made the whole thing remind me of those perfect grilled cheese sandwiches. They make those too, but I didn’t think that would hold up. We’ll have to go back some day and try them fresh.

The forests have the deep dark feel of a redwood forest, and the cedars do resemble redwoods. We saw Junipers clinging to rocks on the edge of the land, and new growth trees covering old cut stumps like some kind of alien parasite. There is an accessible section to the trail, but once you are off that, it is rocky and rooty and steep in some places. Easy enough for me, but I was watching where I was stepping carefully. There are porta potties at the parking area, which is paid parking. They do enforce that by the way, because we saw an official parking officer go through and check license plates.

Satisfied with a nice hike, we turned back with our bikes and rode Marine Drive until we got to Temper Chocolate Pastry. Here we acquired a nice Canadian gift for our daughter, plus we had to sample a banana and a lemon ginger truffle, for, you know, quality assurance. These are those truffles that look more like works of art than anything edible. We confirmed they are in fact quite good.

We thought for a moment about making our own dinner, but then, nah. Instead, we tried a place that was walking distance from the campground, in the Park Royal shopping center. I’d never heard of Peri Peri chicken, but I guess it’s a popular Portuguese specialty. Nando’s Peri Peri Chicken is a chain and they serve half chickens with a spicy rub and hot chili spiced sauce. We watched the cook grill a whole bunch of half chickens and ours was fall off the bone fantastic. For our last culinary hurrah, we walked around the mall a bit, gaped at the variety of asian food items you can buy at Osaka Market, and landed again at Purdy’s Chocolatier for a small banana ice cream scoop dipped in dark chocolate. What a finale!

One footnote I will include in this post: next time we need to be more careful about what food we have when we cross the border. You’d think us Californians would be more savvy, considering how many agricultural checks we go through coming back into the state. We forgot really, and the culprit that got us sent to the agriculture inspection line was the uncooked chicken. There is a current outbreak of African Swine Fever, so if you say the word “chicken,” you’re gonna get stopped. All told, we were delayed at the border while waiting for someone to go through our refrigerator for less than an hour. They confiscated grapes and the chicken, and that was it. We didn’t have all that much food left, and we didn’t mind really. We do understand the efforts to stop things like invasive insects and infectious livestock diseases. We’re just kicking ourselves for not having thought about that, like at all. For the future, we have a website we can check to see what items are on the most wanted list and make sure we don’t have any of those. Here is the link: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/traveling-with-ag-products

They say Vancouver is known for three things: 1) natural beauty, 2) rain, 3) great food. Yes, yes, and yes to all three. We can’t complain about #2 because we mostly got nice weather. The last day in fact was all blue skies and quite warm. The food was off the charts, as I assume my weight will be once I gain the courage to use the scale again. Don’t care, it was worth it. It is honestly the best thought out city I can think of in terms of being bike and pedestrian friendly. For a big city to commit to so many non car routes, it must have taken a huge amount of planning and negotiation. That’s urban engineering done right. It makes for such an enjoyable experience and creates a whole economy around bike and scooter rentals. Businesses thrive from all the foot traffic and the city can support a dazzling array of international restaurants, shops, and services, making more and more people want to come. It was a World Cup time to visit, but I was amazed at how easy it was to see the whole city without a car. It was four packed days and we really loved it. So glad we came, but maybe next time we don’t have to time it so we’re there at the same time as the entirety of Canadian soccer fandom.

Total miles from Holiday RV, Hope: 98.6, 3 hours 35 min (tons of traffic in the city), 15.8 mpg. Site 81 full hookups (put first in 26, but hookups on wrong side and shared with 27). Great cell, great wifi. Laundry, pool, vending machines, popcorn in the office. Sewer in site was backed up when we got there, but they cleaned it out and it worked fine. It’s at the back of the site, but low down. Good electric and water at the back of the site. Dump station is free and kind of just a depression at the curb by the pool.

This was our last moving stop; a place to get us along the way to Vancouver, but not a destination in and of itself. I want to note that I really preferred taking Highway 5. It was an easy, no stress drive, even with gentle rain and a bit of wind. The key for me is those passing lanes. It may not have been spectacular scenery, but it was plenty pleasant, despite a rainy start to the day as we left Lac Le Jeune.

We got to the campground around noon, with lots of time left on the day but rain in the forecast. We were both a bit thrown by the RV park because I think we were expecting “resort” to mean more like a KOA or something. The people there are very nice and friendly, but this is a really small place. The hookups were not 30 amp, but rather regular 15 with an adaptor they provide. The first time Richard plugged in, the weight of the 30 amp cord pulled it out of the outlet. He had to fiddle with it to make it stay put, and it was raining, and Dory needed a charge. So that threw him. He got a little vapor locked on what to do, so I pushed him out the door and told him to go walk it off. That always does the trick.

It was July 1st, which is Canada Day. There was a vintage car show going on in the park and there were signs of community celebrations, like a small open market and some food trucks. Richard sent me a picture of a yarn store, Yarn Love Studio, and that got me excited. After I had caught up on the blog, I met him in town. He was all regulated, Dory was charging just fine, and it wasn’t raining. All good. I poked around the yarn store and got a really pretty skein of wool yarn with a nice gradient in a color scheme that will remind me of the Canadian Rockies. I’ll make something warm out of it.

I was curious why there were so many homage displays to Rambo in this town, and it turns out Hope is where they filmed “First Blood.” The town is very proud of this and you can see Rambo themed things in stores and on a plaque mounted in the main square.

We grabbed a bite at the Blue Moose Cafe and chose the Canadian panini to celebrate Canada Day. We also got a gelato next door at the Artisan’s Attic and Fudgery next door. They make their own fudge and brittle and offer free samples. The brittle was especially tasty.

We walked a little to see the river and then Richard wanted to go check out Marble Slab Creamery to taste the ice cream. I passed on that one and waited for him at the most Canadian place I could think of: Tim Horton’s. When he had satisfied his curiosity (the ice cream is very good, despite some negative reviews about the service), we split two Timbits (doughnut holes), one chocolate and one lime filled. Quite good, I thought and an appropriate way to celebrate Canada Day.

Before heading out the next morning, Richard got in a hike up Hope Lookout Trail, which was a great way to start the day for him. Any time he can do a climbing trail from the campground, the whole day goes better for him. As our next arrival was a super trafficky, rainy, site won’t work, sewer is backed up, entry into Vancouver, this was critically important and made it so we could both deal with all of that ever so much better.

This RV park doesn’t quite inspire a “resort” impression in my mind, but the people there are super nice, the two sites they have are level, and do have hookups. The 15 amp did work with the adaptor and some fiddling to get our cord to stay in. The sewer pipe was way at the back of the site and high, so it would have been a pain to use it. We didn’t need to, so no harm no foul there, but it’s something to know. There was cell service and workable wifi and Dory was completely safe there. There is a cute looking hotel, some nice outdoor seating areas, and they even have a “Sasquatch Cave” (this is a pile of rocks kids can climb around in and pretend it’s spooky). And there’s a good uphill hike for Richard’s morning regulation. It’s in a good spot to take a breather before heading somewhere else, so it’s a good place to keep in mind for future traveling. I don’t think I’d stay more than a night, but for that purpose, it’s perfectly nice.

Total miles from Lac Le Jeune: 108.3, 17.7 mpg, 2 hours 51 min. Site 2 “full hookups.” Very small RV area with 4 sites, two of them occupied by long term tenants. Electric hookups 15 amps, not 30, with adaptor provided. Sewer way at the back with high raised pipe; did not use. No dump. Pretty good cell. Pretty good wifi.

As we continue to make tracks from the Rockies to Vancouver, we are getting a better sense of the highways through this region. I get the impression that I don’t like traveling on Trans Canada Highway 1. This is based on the fact that this particular travel day involved a perceived shortage of passing lanes or turnouts, high speed limits, trucks, and a whole lot of wind. Now, the highway is not responsible for the wind conditions, but in general, if there is weather that makes me want to go slow, it really helps to have passing lanes or pull outs so people who want to go fast can get by me. We had a confusing time navigating through Revelstoke to get gas, and right away the wind picked up. It made for a stressful departure from the Revelstoke area and though I noticed the objective beauty of the landscape we were passing through, I couldn’t enjoy it at all. When we later got onto Highway 5, there were passing lanes consistently and I was a much happier camper. I’m not sure if that impression holds true in general, or if it was just this stretch of road. I’m noting for future travel, that it might be better to try taking 16 out of Jasper and hooking up with 5 to do most of the southbound traveling. It also makes a difference whether we are traveling vs visiting. I think there are lots of beautiful things to see in the Revelstoke area, but then we would plan for stays of several days and shorter travel times. All of those factors combine into less stressful moves from one place to another.

In any case, we really liked this provincial park. It has nice private sites and I accidentally picked a great one with views of the lake and lots of solar. There is a trail that goes around the lake, and as soon as we got set up, Richard went and did that while I decompressed with crochet projects. I really love my new hobby, but I got spooked by a hand strain after overdoing it with my initial enthusiasm. I will for sure see a physical therapist when I get home, but in the meantime, I’m on my own with the internet and YouTube for advice. I’ve really pulled back and have implemented self imposed time limits and a bunch of stretches. I also picked up a compression glove thing and an ace bandage to try to keep from re-straining the base of my thumb. Camping is a very physical endeavor, with potential for pulling that specific hand area every time I bike, hitch/unhitch, make the bed, use hiking sticks, open wine bottles, all the normal things you do for enjoyment when you travel. So I keep it wrapped out of an abundance of caution. I also ordered a specific CMC thumb joint brace and had it delivered to my friend on Whidbey Island for pickup in a couple of days. Welcome to your 60s. Now you get to be excited over picking up a hand brace. Jeez.

We got to stay put for 2 nights here and that really helps with travel fatigue. We decided to spend the day checking out the relatively large city of Kamloops. We drove about twenty miles back on Lac Le Jeune Road, which is a nice road and a nice quiet way to get to and from the campground from Kamloops. There is a paved bike trail along the river we wanted to check out, so we parked at Riverside Park and got our bikes out. This is one of those trails that hugs the river as much as it can, and then skirts busy roadways when it can’t. It’s simultaneously a nice trail, and not a nice trail, if you know what I mean. We checked it out along the northeastern arm, across the bridge, which was about a ten mile ride. At that point, rain was threatening and we were hungry, so we paused and put the bikes back in the car.

Kamloops is a fun town, with lots of restaurants and a big community park where they were getting ready for big festivities to celebrate Canada Day. We chose Klasske’s Bistro, which serves Donairs. I’d never heard of these, but they are kind of like gyro wraps. Delicious! We got a steak donair with lots of fillings inside and a really delicious tahini and hummus sauce. So good. For our ice cream fix, we went to Scoopz, which is right by the park and has a great variety of flavors.

We were good at that point to call it a day and head back, but also wanted to get gas in town without Dory in tow. It turned out there is a Costco in Kamloops that that made us irrationally excited. We are simple people. Give us the familiarity of a Costco, with somewhat less expensive gas, a $1.50 hot dog, double chocolate chunk cookie, and a caramel brownie sundae, and we’re super happy. For the record, the caramel sundae in Canadian Costco is way better than our version in Concord, with far more sticky caramel sauce and superior amounts of brownie chunks. Just so you know. Also, there is poutine on the Costco food court menu in Canada, so that’s fun. This is the kind of information I know you depend on in reading this blog. When you’re planning your vacations, I know you’re thinking, “But what is the caramel content in the sundaes at the Costco food court in Kamloops??” No worries. I’ve got you covered. You’re welcome.

Then it was back to Dory where I finished horse hair and Richard did another loop around the lake going the other direction. Also for the record, he ate most of that caramel sundae. He needed to work it off and I had a horse to finish. I can’t show you the other project I finished because it is a gift for a friend who actually reads this blog. But suffice to say, it came out cute.

We would stay here again happily. It’s a super nice park and the proximity to a biggish city means lots of things could be restocked, purchased, what have you. Also nice to have cell service. Kamloops is central to a lot of routes to and from the Rockies, so I could see us staying here again. Good stay.

Total miles from Martha Creek PP: 168.0, 15.1 mpg (headwinds), 4 hours 8 min. Site 108 no hookups. Good dump for $5. Good cel for both. Lots of solar in this site. Most sites shady. Trail around lake. View of lake. Lac Le Jeune Road is very nice.

Leaving Monarch, we drove the rest of the highway through Yoho National Park. This whole area is very beautiful. At the end of the park is the town of Golden. Here we stopped at a grocery store and got a few things to keep us going until Vancouver. A nice former Alto owner approached me in the parking lot and started chatting about missing his Alto. He sold his a year ago and bought a van. That seems to be a common practice, especially once the physical demands of trailering become too much.

Once you leave Golden, Highway 1 continues through deep valleys, surrounded always by snowy peaks. It climbs and falls, passing through Glacier National Park along the way. It is a meandering highway that follows the valleys cut by waterways. There are waterfalls and river crossings the whole way. One thing I will say is that passing lanes are sometimes few and far between. This presents a problem for anyone behind me who is in a terrible hurry. I am not willing to tow faster than my comfort zone, and lacking frequent pull outs, there will be times someone is frustrated. Sorry, not sorry. I should get a bumper sticker that says: “I tow slow. Calm down.”

Our next stop was one of three jumps to get us from Yoho to Vancouver. I know nothing about the routes or regions, so I made educated guesses based on location and online reviews. Martha Creek is off Highway 1 by about 10 miles once you get to the city of Revelstoke. I knew nothing about Mt. Revelstoke, but apparently it is a national park and I did not allot much time to it. We noted this area as a potential revisit and this provincial park would be the place I’d stay again.

The road to the park runs alongside Revelstoke River and climbs significantly up when you reach the dam. Then the river becomes a huge lake and the campground is about a third of the way up. It is a very nice park, with sites so level we didn’t even need to unhitch. Some sites have lake views, and all are pretty private and spaced nicely apart. There is a little trail you can take around the park, or you can hang out on a sandy beach. There are day use areas where you can launch a boat or have a picnic. The only downside is the lack of cell service, which can sometimes be an upside when you want to check out. Richard found a trail that goes up to the top of Sale Mountain and he went up that for about an hour the next morning. It’s something like a five thousand foot climb, so doing the whole thing, while I’d never put it past him, would be a large commitment.

We didn’t spend much time in this area, but it seems there would be plenty to do. As a stopping point from here to there, this is a nice park. It’s a little out of the way, but looked nicer than any options along Highway 1.

Total miles from Monarch: 140.3, 17.3 mpg, 3 hours 38 min. Site 15 no hookups. No cell whatsoever. Closest is by the Revelstoke Dam. $5 dump. Nicely paved and nice bathrooms, trash, recycling. Level sites on packed gravel. Well set up and run campground.

It is very satisfying when you find ways to get around obstacles. In this case, we got in a do over for a thwarted attempt to see Emerald Lake and Richard gets credit for finding a way to get up to the Lake Agnes Tea House at Lake Louise without battling all of the parking or shuttle issues. Throw in a “guaranteed” bear, and this was a highly successful stop.

Leaving Jasper, we drove a very long way back down the Icefields Parkway to get to the turn off for Trans Canada Highway 1 to Yoho. For some reason, the drive back felt an awful lot longer than the drive up. We listened to our Guide Along Tour Guide app and much of the GPS activated audio clips were repeats. I don’t know if that’s what made it feel so much longer, but we did stop and take a quick leg stretch break at Buck Lake, which was nice. Buck Lake was formed by a huge piece of glacier ice, which came loose and crashed into the valley, leaving a giant depression. That kettle shaped divot collected the melted ice water and continues to collect rain water and ice melt. There are no rivers feeding or emptying the lake. It’s a very short walk to see it from an unmarked parking area, and it was a pleasant break. We stopped a couple more times for pictures and arrived tired at Monarch around 4.

Last time we visited Yoho National Park, we were staying at the campground in Lake Louise. We were dismayed by the concentration of people, as well as the way the campsites were set up so you felt way too close to your neighbors. Getting to see Lake Louise is tricky because parking up at the lake is extremely limited. Most people park at the Ski area and take the shuttle. Tickets do sell out and none of the transportation options are cheap. We did it last time, but by the time we got to the lake, surrounded by throngs of people, we didn’t have an appetite for doing much, like hiking up to the Lake Agnes Tea House. When we arrived in Banff, I made the comment that we could maybe consider trying again and that activated Richard’s problem solving mode. Once he’s in this mode, you never know what he’s going to discover. He can be relentless at solving problems and in this case, it was a definite win. What he landed on was the idea that Monarch Campground was much closer than Banff, but he was only able to confirm a secret back way after we arrived and he talked to the rangers at the visitor center in Field. It sounded like an adventure and we were both excited to try it for our anniversary the next day.

We had enough daylight after dinner to drive to Emerald Lake. The rangers said that you will have much better luck seeing things if you arrive at parking areas before 10 or after 4. That was definitely true and we got a spot right by the lake. The sun periodically peeked through clouds and I got to see the namesake green hue of the water. We took a three mile loop trail around the lake and enjoyed having the scenery almost all to ourselves. At the top of the lake, we both realized we hadn’t brought anything in the way of rain jackets and we could see that the clouds were looking darker. The back side of the loop goes through trees and gets a lot more rugged, narrow, and muddy, but it did mostly offer cover as it started to gently rain. The temperature was warm and we really didn’t mind. 

Signs warn visitors about the trail conditions and you can see that they have been actively working on building boardwalks to improve that third of the trail. I’ll bet by next year the whole thing will be a nice long boardwalk all the way to the top. We were just nearing the end, which delivers you to the cluster of cabins and lodge buildings near the parking area, when it started raining for real. We did a couple of dashes from the cover of cabin porches to the parking area and got to the car un-doused, but also un-dry. We were happy to have completed our do over and content to stay in our $16.50 per night campground, as opposed to the $774 per night accommodations at the Emerald Lake Lodge (or the $2,175 per night to stay at Chateau Lake Louise).

We got a nice early start on Anniversary Adventure Friday and drove back up highway 1 to a parking area near the turnoff for Lake O’Hara Road. From this parking area, you can see concrete barriers marking the end of Old Highway 1A. The road is closed to cars, but paved and easily traversable by bikes, and goes all the way, about six miles total, to Lake Louise Road. It’s like the most incredible cheat and I didn’t believe it would actually work until we totally did it and it 100% works. I’m confused about why tons of people don’t use this back road as a way to get to Lake Louise and avoid all of the costly parking or shuttle options. In fact, I was thinking I shouldn’t blog about this, since it seems like such a secret gem, like having a FastPass at Disneyland that no one else knows about. In talking to the rangers later, it is not a secret, and is published on the park maps, but I guess most people are daunted by the bike ride. Don’t be. It was gorgeous and easy and incredibly straightforward.

It is a gentle climb almost all of the way to the lake. There are patches of gravelly bits where the road is wearing away, but for sure rideable, even with thin road tires. After about 1.75 miles, you come to a big sign marking the Continental Divide. On one side, you are in British Columbia and all of the waterways run to the Pacific Ocean. Pass through to the other side and you are in Alberta and all of the water eventually makes its way to the Atlantic Ocean. Pretty cool. There are old picnic tables from when this spot used to be a day use area, and there is a pretty little creek called Divide Creek that passes under the road. The visibility is really good, which I appreciated because the rangers also said we were “almost guaranteed to see a bear” in this section. If I was going to see one, I for sure wanted to see it from way far off. We made it all the way to Lake Louise Road without seeing any, so their guarantee was in jeopardy at that point. 

Once you join the road, you can park your bikes in an empty lot, or head up to the main parking area. I opted for the latter, because I figured I would appreciate sparing myself the short (but uphill) walk along the trail. I knew the trail up to the tea house was going to be tough and I did in fact appreciate getting back on the bike sooner at the end of the day. The busses and shuttles were coming in steadily at that point, but it was not yet what I would call crowded. There is a nice bathroom in the parking area and we hit that before locking our bikes, taking an “I can’t believe how well this worked” selfie, and finding the trail.

If you haven’t done the trek up to Lake Agnes Tea House, just know it’s three miles uphill. It’s well signed and easy to follow. There are not really any lake views on the way up, and not really any views of Lake Louise from above once you get up there, unless you trek further up to Little Beehive or Big Beehive. Lake Agnes is very pretty too, but the main attraction here is the tea house. The impressive thing is that they make all of their bread for sandwiches, cakes, and tea cakes with no electricity or plumbing. They cook everything using big huge propane outdoor ovens and the smell of the fresh bread is intoxicating. There was a line for either sit down or to go orders and I’d say it took about half an hour to get our tea cakes with jam, chocolate cake, hot chocolate and breakfast tea. Everything was delicious and the perfect way to celebrate a long ascent. Richard thought the chocolate cake was good, but a little dry. I say he’s a tough audience.

I gave Richard full permission to go up to the Big Beehive without consequences. I had no more climbing left in my legs and was perfectly content to enjoy the lake while he went speed hiking. He got stopped by a snow bank before getting too far because it was pretty slippery and one false move would land him in the lake. Meanwhile, I walked out toward the top of the lake and spied an adorable Pika hopping around in the rock fall. There I stayed, enjoying the cuteness until Richard made his way back. It was lightly raining at this point but our jackets were holding up nicely following the refreshed waterproofing treatment. Richard was up for trying the Little Beehive and he made it easily to that and back, grabbing a couple of nice photos for me of Lake Louise in all its technicolor blueness. The Tea House was well worth the uphill trek just to experience it. I’m not sure I would commit to doing it again. I loved the tea cakes and the notion of making baked goods with outdoor propane ovens. There are lots of people on the trail at all times, which was expected, but also horses with their accompanying smells, which was not. Speaking of smells, there are two pit toilets at the top, and they were clean, but pungent. And it took a looooong time to hike back down. 

We waited out the rain under the cover of the bathroom building in the parking lot and paper toweled off our bikes as soon as there was a break. The only time I really got wet was rolling through the parking lot to coast down to the start of the closed highway. We made it probably two miles on that road before I spotted a distinctive black dot up ahead. I called out to Richard to stop and we stared for a long time at a mama bear escorting at least two cubs onto the road. We waved and called out “We’re coming through, bear!” as she pondered us. We were perhaps fifty yards away and she seemed nonplussed as she decided what to do. After a couple of minutes, with her babies looking up at her for guidance, she moved back into the bushes. Richard immediately rolled ahead, which I thought was a bold move. I followed him closely, calling out to her the whole time and ringing my silly bike bell. We didn’t stop again until we came to the Continental Divide sign. I did spy for sure another black bear in the woods as we hurried through, but he was going away from the road and probably didn’t even see us. That was super exhilarating and we made a promise to be sure to tell the rangers their guarantee had been fulfilled. What a day!

The next day was icing on the cake, as we had done all of the things we hoped to accomplish for the stay. We pondered riding our bikes up to Takakkaw Falls, but chose to drive instead. The road has signs at the foot of the climb that trailers are NOT allowed, and there is a maximum length for all vehicles. It’s a significant climb and there is one switchback which explains all of the signs. I saw a tour bus at the parking area, and I have no idea how it made it past the switchback. That must have stopped traffic for a very long time in both directions. It’s a pretty drive and would be a pretty ride, but it’s also no kidding steep and you’d be sharing the road with a steady stream of cars. We again followed the “before 10” advice and were able to get a parking spot. Not long after we arrived, there were a whole lot more cars. 

We went out to the falls viewpoint and then took a trail up to Angel’s Staircase Falls and Point Lace Falls. That is a nice trail and both falls were easy to get to. We only went as far as those two falls, but you can go farther. The trail becomes more rugged and you might get stopped by seasonal bridges being out. There is also a nice hike in campground with a view of Takakkaw Falls. There are bathrooms, free firewood, and potable water. That would be a nice experience for tenting people.

We then went back to the small town of Field so we could thank the rangers and Richard could go do another hike up a mountain. I don’t think it is possible to ever tire him out. I got lots of information about the spiral tunnels for the trains. This is a big deal for this part of Canada. During the early settlement days, Canada needed a railway connection to get people over the pass and into the valley of the national parks. The grade going up Kicking Horse Pass was way too steep and many people were killed by runaway trains. The solution to the problem involved lengthening the track and making two loop de loops inside the mountains to increase elevation at a more gradual pace. The engineering that went into that is very impressive. I wasn’t really understanding how it all worked, but happily, there is a model train in the visitor center in Field where you can see exactly how the trains enter into a tunnel going straight into the mountain, and come out through a perpendicular tunnel lower down, or higher up depending on which direction they are traveling. We got to see this in action later from the campground as a passenger train went by slowly. We talked to some people well versed in how it all works and about ten minutes later we saw the train come back the opposite direction, but about fifty feet higher. It then disappeared into a tunnel, and finally came back out heading its original direction, but again, fifty feet higher. From the lowest point to the highest point after doing the double maneuver, trains gain over a hundred feet of elevation, but maintain an average grade of 2.5%. We went and looked at a viewpoint off the highway, but didn’t see any trains at that time. There sure were a lot going through town though and they were impressively long. It would be cool to see one go into the mountain one way and watch the front come out going the opposite direction while the tail continued on into the tunnel.

Back at Monarch, we made dinner and then took a stroll over to see Kicking Horse Campground next door. That is also a nice campground. It’s much bigger and has nicely paved roads. Monarch’s single loop road is dirt and very full of potholes. There are a few sites by the Kicking Horse River which would be very nice. There are lots more people of course, and a playground for kids in the center. There are nice bathrooms with big sinks for washing dishes, but weirdly, the dump station is in Monarch. Of course, you could also stay at Cathedral Mountain Lodge for a mere $629 per night.

To round out our bear experience, we returned to find several rangers gathered, one of them carrying a large gun. There were signs posted everywhere warning of active bear activity and there were tent campers who were being evicted if their sites were on the outside of the loop. The rangers explained that there were two bears in the area and that they were attempting to capture them. We were later told that they did in fact capture and tag one of them, which will be relocated and released, and we are guessing that big gun was a tranquilizer gun. Exciting!

We really loved our stay in Yoho. The cheat entrance into Lake Louise was beautiful and super cool. I would ride that road again, but would for sure keep up the yelling and bell ringing. Emerald Lake was very beautiful, as was the area around Takakkaw Falls. The town of Field boasts a fun little grocery store, Yoho Corner Store, that sells freshly made pizza and a handful of pastries. There is also Truffle Pigs Bistro and Lodge which has a fun menu. I’d be interested in staying at Kicking Horse, but we also liked Monarch a lot. Great stay.

Total miles from Jasper: 154.5, 18.0 mpg, 5 hours 25 min. Site M14 no hookups. Good cell service because Field has a cell tower. Good free dump and potable water. Reviews complain about train and road noise, but we could barely hear it. Very quiet.

This stay was a mix of high intensity emotions, both good and sad. I’ll start by saying I was well aware of the massive fire that tore through Jasper in 2024 and had heard about the damage. I chose to come back partly because I wanted to support the town, and at the end of the day, I have no regrets and would come back again. However, it is one thing to read about devastating fire damage, and quite another to experience places with images fixed clearly in your memory, only to see them completely gone. The emotional impact hit like a gut punch as soon as we turned onto route 93a. That little stretch of alternate highway holds very fond memories and was one of the chief reasons for visiting the Rockies. I can see in my mind’s eye pictures of a lush, wooded wonderland on an untraveled road that makes a bicycling paradise. We caught glimpses of animals through the thick forest and ponds and little lakes on either side of the road all the way from Athabaska Falls to Jasper. That is what we were looking forward to revisiting together on bikes, and we found it to be just totally obliterated, with only charred remains of standing dead trees from start to finish. The visual impact takes your breath away and to be honest, I found myself choking back tears for a good twenty four hours.

And yet. There is still so much beauty, untouched by the ravages of wildfire. I’ll start with the approach to Jasper along the Icefields Parkway. The last time we drove it, Richard biked the whole thing in sections. There was one piece in particular that he wanted to try again and that is the climb up Sunwapta Pass and to the summit. He got spooked last time by some road debris that he panicked into thinking came from Dory, so it was a breathless anxious ride for him to find me sitting happily at the Columbia Icefields campground, no cares in the world, despite what his imagination told him. So this time, I dropped him off at Coleman Creek Day Use and planned to meet him just after the Sunwapta Summit. The plan executed perfectly. The scenery in that area is awe inspiring, with grey blue glacially fed rivers winding through stark rugged valleys, making you think about the early explorers who traversed the land on horseback, or foot. After the switchback climb up to the pass, there is still a ways to go before the actual summit. I took pictures, as did Richard, from the top of the switchback, looking down on the road far below. No summit marker or sign tells you where the top is, but our mapping app, Guru Maps, marks the spot, even without cell service. After that, there is a little parking area next to a big sign saying you are entering Jasper National Park and Richard found me there with no trouble after a successful climb. Great day underway.

After he got to me, we drove together toward Athabaska Falls and had a thought to pick up 93a to get a preview for our planned ride the next day. We were both heartsick at what we saw and eventually arrived at the campground tired, hungry, and to some degree, grieving. We soothed ourselves by eating out at Wafflato. About a third of all of the structures in Jasper burned down, but most of the downtown area was saved and our favorite waffle place is still there. We got a jerk chicken savory waffle for dinner, with a mental health stop at Scoops and Loops for ice cream afterwards.

Then it was back to the campground to regroup. We both knew riding 93a would just be depressing, and I knew that what I most wanted to do was to find the areas that were spared. So we made new plans, acknowledged the disappointment, especially coming off such a superlative stay in Banff, and looked for the positives. The Universe helped us out by showering us with a late afternoon sprinkle, paired with the brightest double rainbow. There it is. Just keep swimming, Jasper.

The next day we rode up to Patricia and Pyramid Lakes, and boy that was a great call. Everything up there is green and untouched by what transpired just below. We caught a trail and walked to the lakes, avoiding paths that were too marshy. There is a nice lodge at Pyramid Lake and I got a small and expensive bottle of bug spray. My bad for not thinking to bring one of the four bottles we had back at the car. We enjoyed looking at the water and the blue skies, and the mountain tops, who have seen way worse natural disasters in their time.

We followed the advice of the visitor center park rangers and made a day of it the following day at Maligne (pronounced mah-LEEN) Lake. This proved to be another highlight of the whole trip. Maligne Canyon at the north end is closed due to fire damage, but just a short distance down the road, everything returns to normal. This valley, with the snow topped peaks adorning the background in all directions, and varied greens from the mixed forest of conifers and aspens, is simply stunning. We made a quick photo stop at Medicine Lake and caught some Hoary Marmots lazing about or hopping along the boulders. I kept my eyes on the road, but also in the gaps of the trees looking for moose, of course. We had gotten an early start and arrived by 10 to beat the crowds and get a parking spot. Then Richard went on an ambitious hike up Opal Hills while I sat in front of the Waffle Hut and blogged about Banff until it was time for my 11:30 Maligne Lake Boat Cruise.

Richard is not a fan of boats, but I made the decree that next time, he has to do this with me. It was well worth the splurge to reserve the tour across Maligne Lake to Spirit Island. It’s a very long lake and takes about a half hour to get from one side to the other. Along the way, the tour guide points out natural phenomena, gives you history and stories of the land, and impresses upon you the intensity of the harshness of the winters there. It was a perfect balance of tour guidey talk and quiet time to appreciate the views. Once you near the southern end, the water has changed color from green tones to glacial “rock flour” blues. The color in all of these rockies lakes is so unique because of the fine silt that comes from millions of years of glacier ice grinding against rock and then carrying that powder down through melted runoff water. The effect is indescribably beautiful and lures photographers from all over the world to try to capture it.

Spirit Island is actually an isthmus, with a thin land bridge connecting the main land to a tiny stand of trees on an area that is only three acres. It holds deep spiritual significance for the indigenous peoples and they still hold sacred ceremonies on the island today. At first, as you come around the bend, it doesn’t look worthy of all the hype. But then the boat comes around and the island is framed by the spectacular range of rocky peaks, reflecting in the unnaturally blue green water. I lucked out on weather and got blue skies and sunlight, which made the colors all the more vibrant. The lack of much wind allowed the clouds above to be reflected in the fairytale water. There is a short trail after you get off the boat and onto a dock, so that everyone can take pictures from every possible angle. It must be one of the most photographed locations on the planet, but we all happily participated in grabbing our own. No one is allowed to set foot on the island, due to its historical and spiritual significance. As subject matters goes, you can’t beat Spirit Island and I’ll admit that I felt a kind of healing happen following this visit.

After fifteen minutes, they blow their horn and everyone gets back on the boat for the long return. Richard meanwhile had gone up and down Opal Hills without getting lost, so we both met up at the dock giddy and ready for a waffle with blueberry compote and sweet ricotta sauce. Damn that was good. We followed with a short loop up to Moose Lake, for obvious reasons. Nope, did not see a moose. But it’s a pretty loop trail anyway.

It was getting to be late in the afternoon, and as if this place hadn’t more than made up for the sadness felt seeing the fire damage, we were gifted the treat of a lifetime in the form of a glorious bull moose with a full set of moosey antlers, close by the side of the road. Oh my goodness he was a beauty. We were second in line in the “moose jam” of cars and were therefore able to get a perfect close up view of him as he munched shrubberies and gave us a full moosey show. I could not have been happier.

We rounded out our stay at Jasper Pizza and enjoyed their rooftop seating. We split an outstanding Canadian 10 inch pizza with thick chewy, yet perfectly crispy crust and perfectly spicy pepperoni. Richard got in one more trip to Scoops and Loops and then we stocked up on groceries at Nester’s Market. We headed back to Dory with full hearts, stomachs, and grocery bags. All we had to do then was sit in our Nemo chairs and enjoy the numerous elk as they grazed and pranced around the campground.

What an incredible stay. What started with our hearts dropping in sadness, ended with some of the best experiences we’ve ever had. There is so much still to love in Jasper. I would absolutely return and would whole heartedly encourage everyone I know to visit. Go with the understanding of what it feels like to witness the aftermath of one of the world’s most intense natural disasters, but also know there are ample wonders of nature to be enjoyed and treasured. The people of the town are clearly a resilient bunch and they very much appreciate the much needed income from tourists. There are portable residences set up all around the outskirts and there is a lot of construction as they rebuild. I said something to one of the visitor center rangers about how I was sorry for their town, and she sort of shrugged and said, “Oh we’re fine, we’re rebuilding.” Just keep swimming. Well done Jasper. Taught me a lesson.

Total miles from Tunnel Mountain: 181.4, 17.6 mpg, 7 hours 49 min with stops. Site 28R no hookups. Good solar (because sad burned trees), good cell for both, good multi-station dump with potable water. Noted that loop 56 has some live trees and hookups. Loop 1 has some live trees. Also, randomly noted sites 21a, 21b, 21c, 19a have some live trees. Richard notes the campground trail that goes to Whislter’s Summit is overgrown and impossible to find. He also notes that Guru Maps has been inaccurate lately.

This was definitely a highlight stay of the trip. For the record, we really loved staying in Tunnel Mountain and far preferred that to being out at Two Jack Lake. Since there are so many city things to do in Banff, it was awesome to be able to easily ride into town. We ended up eating out a lot, which we need to remember is a tendency when we’re doing city camping. No regrets, but we should remember to maybe not shop for Blue Aprons in those situations.

Coming from Redstreak, we basically just traversed Kootenay National Park. We thought to maybe to some short hikes around Marble Canyon, but the parking areas were really busy, and since we had Dory in tow, we opted out. We’d done Marble Canyon and Paint Pots before, so we didn’t have FOMO about that, but just want to note that from one end to the other is a pretty long drive. We’d have to leave earlier in the morning if we want to get uncrowded parking. This stop in Kootenay was intended to check out the Redstreak area, and we did that quite well. I’ll also note that we didn’t think to look at our gas tank until we were under way and into the park. If I’d been seriously worried about it, I would have turned around to go back and fill up in Radium Hot Springs. We were ok, but cut it kind of close and that is something that hangs over one’s head unnecessarily. We should have thought to fill up before entering the park, but oh well. We stopped to gas up at a tiny place (the only place) in Castle Junction and that was fine.

The first thing we did after getting unhitched at the campground was ride down to town. What an awesome campground though! The views of the surrounding mountain peaks are just stunning, and a delightful way to enjoy morning coffee. To get to town, it’s about a one mile downhill easy coast (coming back uphill is another story if you don’t have an e-bike). We had some shopping to explore, namely, we did end up getting Richard a new camping backpack to match mine. Monod Sports is an excellent store and I had spoken with one of their employees prior to coming, just to make sure they had what we were looking for in stock. You can pack their packs with sand bags to get a feel for the weight and the Talon 22 was a great pick.

The next thing we hit was Beaver Tails. OMG. These are kind of like churro batter, but made into long flat cakes that are fried to order and topped with your choice of all kinds of sweet treats. We chose the classic, which is generously adorned with cinnamon sugar. They are hot and chewy and delicious. We split one of those a day, eschewing all of the ice cream possibilities in town. While downtown, we succumbed to the pungent aromas of delicious foods and grabbed an early dinner in an unassuming food court place. Banff Shawarma was a great choice, seemed to be authentically prepared, and boasted the only long line. We went with a chicken and beef combo rice bowl with vegetables and a perfectly spicy dressing. Yum!

Since it stays light so late at this latitude at this time of year, we had time to check out some viewpoints and get beta on the Tunnel Mountain hike. The latter was for Richard’s morning cardio planning and not something I was interested in. There is a view of the river down below and lots of trails in and around the campground to go see the hoodoos or get to town via the river and Surprise Corner, where you can see Bow Falls.

The next day we got to do another stellar ride and check off another must-do of this summer trip. Weather reports threatened, but when there was any rain, it came in short spurts of like ten drops from the sky before clearing to blue skies. We got out early and hit the Bow River multi-use trail to get through town. Water levels on the river are high, but the bank-side paths were clear and untrafficked in the morning. From there, signs point the way for bikers to follow Vermillion Lakes Road for a couple of miles. This is just gorgeous. You are right next to the lake the whole way. Lots of people come and park along the banks and fish or picnic, and there is a steady stream of bikers making their way to or from the Legacy Trail that picks up at the end of the road. 

On the Legacy Trail, you skirt the highway and have to go through an intimidating looking wildlife gate. It looks like you are either entering or leaving the Velociraptor paddock, but I guess all of this, plus the impressive wildlife over crossings, is really effective at keeping wildlife related accidents down along the highway. Eventually, the Legacy Trail ends and you get to the start of the Bow Valley Parkway. Unbeknownst to me, this stretch of road is closed to car traffic from May 1st to June 25th during the day, which was only three days away from our visit. Like we accidentally nailed this so hard, it was like an unexpected gift. I’ve biked this now three times, Richard four. This was the first time I had gotten to do it on my own e-bike and it was just the best. 

We stopped and parked our bikes at Johnston Canyon, which was open to cars and very, very crowded. We decided to do the trail up to the falls, even though a good portion of the trail goes across suspended metal walkways that make Richard very nervous. We discovered that the best way for him to endure these is to cover his eyes and hold on to me. Once we got to the Lower Falls viewpoint, there was a long line to take pictures at the cave where you can see the falls through an opening in the rock. I passed, having done that before. We continued on to the Upper Falls this time, which we hadn’t done before. There was only one stretch of boardwalk until you get to the end. Again, there was a long line, and it was entirely off solid ground, so Richard kindly waited for me to get through the line to get pictures. I’m not sure how long it took. Twenty to thirty minutes I’m guessing. Yes, I got the picture, but I wouldn’t do that again. Instead, you can keep going up the trail a bit more and come to an equally picture worthy view point from above and avoid the line. On the way back down, Richard took an alternate trail that avoids the Lower Falls boardwalks entirely. This was far preferable to him and something to note for the future. He got ice cream and we got back on the Parkway. It was a fabulous day, with even a bear spotting along the side of the road. Yay!

Our next full day was spent investigating the Cave and Basin area across the river. We rode bikes to a visitor information building where there was also a nice exhibit about the area and its history. There is a paved road that goes for two miles and skirts the river for a while. At the end, there is a trailhead marker and you can catch the Sundance Canyon loop trail from there. The first part of the trail, if you go in clockwise fashion, takes you up a climb right next to a rushing, tumbling, cascading river. There are falls all along the way and sometimes the trail goes up small stone steps and crosses a couple of bridges. Eventually, it veers away from the river and runs under a deeply shaded forest canopy. Before you turn to go downhill on the other side of the loop, you can catch some sweeping views of the Banff valley. They say that this trail gives you all the water beauty of the Johnston Canyon, without all the people. I will say it was one of my all time favorite trails, but I give the waterfall points to Johnston. However, if you deduct points for crowds, this one might come out ahead. We were supremely happy we had ridden the paved path, rather than walk it. That would have dimmed our enthusiasm considerably having to needlessly walk the extra four miles. I think I would recommend doing the trail clockwise like we did. I would not have liked coming down those steep stone stairs and I think it’s nicer to view falls going up, as opposed to coming down.

We rode back into town, split another Beaver Tail, and checked out the IGA market. We would need to restock groceries before moving on. We also needed to refill propane tanks, but couldn’t find any place in Banff to do so. We ended up taking care of that in Jasper. Before heading back to Dory, we got in one last dinner in town at a place right by the downtown park called Hankki. It is a Korean street food place and I guess corn dogs are the thing to get. That seemed surprising to me, but I didn’t argue. Who doesn’t want a corn dog covered in crispy fried potato bits with a choice of dipping sauces? These were really good, though I still question their Korean roots. The beef bulgogi dumplings were also good and felt less bastardized. 

That was it for our three night stay. We really loved staying at Tunnel Mountain to enjoy Banff. It was great having hookups and there was no sacrifice in views or natural beauty. It’s definitely a parking lot type situation, but you are not that close to your neighbors and the sites are pull along with plenty of room down the middle for people to get through without making you worry they’ll run into you. We loved the short rides into town because that meant we never had to find parking for the car. It is centrally located to so many activities and there is every kind of service or store you can imagine. In addition to purchasing a really nice day pack at a good price, Richard got a cute bottle of chain lube from Banff Cycle & Sport. It also had some good trails close by for morning hikes for Richard. He liked the Tunnel Mountain trail a lot and rode his bike to the start. You can also walk the trails along the Bow River all the way to Surprise Corner. We ate out two out of three nights and are now addicted to Beaver Tails. Such a great stay!!

Total miles from Redstreak – 93.0, 16.3 mpg, 3 hours 43 min. Site B60 hookups. Good free dump. Potable spigots near bathrooms. Good cell for both. Riding distance from downtown. Showers, trash & recycling. 

Another excellent stop on our Canada adventures, this time with an unexpected happy surprise! We had perfect travel weather and loved seeing the birthplace of the Columbia River stretch across the long valley of Fairmont and Radium Hot Springs. We always remark on how many bodies of water there are in Canada, even in their drier years. Somewhere along the way, I spied a perfect moose, standing at the riverbank down below the highway. We were going way too fast to get a picture, but we both saw him. I never don’t get excited about seeing moose.

We drove up the rather steep approach to the campground and got set up in the early afternoon. We had lots of time on the day, so we hiked down, down, down lots of stairs into town. The visitor center had a fantastic relief map of the Kootenay ranges and valleys. I love relief maps because they really help me understand trails and roads.

We were hungry, so we got an early dinner at Goat St. Kitchen and Tap. We got the tacos al pastor with a kale, candied walnuts, feta and greens salad, which was all excellent. While we were waiting for dinner, I got a message that two Altoistes were staying at the same campground and identified us by our Dory decal! So fun! We arranged to say hi the next morning, offering me ample time to make it back up the stairs with no time pressure.

To bolster both my strength and courage, we popped in to Screamers for a chocolate brownie ice cream on a cake cone. This is the popular choice for ice cream in town. But we also walked through the local market, the Mountainside Market, to see what treats they had in stock. I was happy with my ice cream life choices, but the market is very well provisioned and we would be able to find just about anything we need there. They have hot food in their deli area too, in case we wanted to grab a dinner to go. I’m happy to report I made it back up the steps.

The next morning we set out to do the Sinclair Canyon trail, but first stopped to get in some hugs with our Altoiste friends. We hadn’t seen Janet since the first Altogather we went to back in 2018. Kimberly is a new friend! We will get to see them both again in September for an Altogather on Vancouver Island. We’re super looking forward to that. They were confused as to why we were up in Canada so much before the gathering, and we explained how we are going to go all the way home, start the school year, and then come all the way back up. Good thing gas prices aren’t totally stupidly screwed up right now. Oh wait….

We had a lovely chat and set out to find the part of the trail that descends from the campground into the canyon. That turned out to be closed due to road construction. Hmm. We figured we could go the other way around the loop, but then we would end up close to town. Richard’s smart brain figured out that would be an ideal situation for getting more ice cream after the hike. My smart brain figured out that I could send Richard back up the stairs to get the car and save my ass. And that is exactly what transpired. I think the only flaw in that perfectly executed plan was that we didn’t think to fill up with gas during that rescue maneuver. We made through Kootenay the next day, but with not much to spare in the tank.

The Sinclair Canyon trail is on the other side of the highway and you first have to take the trail over to the hot springs. We got nice views of the pools, but we are not hot springs people, and so were not motivated to pay the entry fee to sit in piped hot springs water. Still, it is a pretty atmosphere and I can imagine it being nice. Just not gonna put on my swimming suit for it.

Leaving the hot springs building, you cross the highway and start up the trail on the other side. It’s a climb at first, and then you come to some nice views. Eventually, you get to a fenced overlook just above the rock canyon. Even with all the construction going on, it’s an impressive sight.

Descending from that point, you go down, down, down to the river where it cascades dramatically at Sinclair Falls. The trail gets you close enough that you can hear it and mostly see it, but trees block a full view. There would normally be an overlook off the highway where I assume you can look directly down on it, but that is closed. It’s a really nice hike with lots of wildflowers that make up for all the switchbacks.

We walked along the highway about a mile to get back into town. There was a sidewalk most of the way and we never felt nervous about cars. I can’t say that part is pleasant, but it wasn’t scary or grueling, since it’s all downhill. Once back in town, yes we did go back for more ice cream. I happily plopped myself in a red Adirondack chair and waited while Richard speed ascended the steps back up to the site to get the car. Great plan!

We had one more chat with our friends and they gave us a ton of information about places to go and things to see in Canada. I just love Altoistes. What an amazing community this has become. My favorite thing is to run into them on the road and this stop was made far more special because of it. We loved the campground too, and would for sure stay here again.

Total miles from Cranbrook: 94.5, 15.8 mpg, 4 hours 48 min. Site E4 hookups. Really good free dump with potable water. Pretty good cell service, but not awesome. Just walk toward town and it comes in full throttle. Pull along site going the wrong way if you want the door to open to the picnic table. Electric pole on same side. We turned around so we could have the door open away from the campground road, ran the electric cable under Dory and it reached, no problem.

Wow, what a great stop! Last time we came, it was dumping rain and the drive was terrifying. I couldn’t even see all the beauty we were driving through. I was just happy to get to the KOA alive, but was still grateful for full hookups and laundry. This time the skies were blue and we got to enjoy gorgeous views the whole way. It was windy, but it was a tailwind, and with good visibility, I could drive slow and people could pass me. There were no issues whatsoever at the border crossing. Glad they did not ask me how much wine I was carrying. It feels good to be in Canada, particularly after seeing that the Bonners Ferry billboard saying, “Welcome to Tr@mp Country” is still up. Jesus, people. Still?? Definitely not a cult though, right?

We did five loads of laundry in all, with one being a waterproofing treatment of all of our rain gear. Weather forecasts are calling for rain in Banff, so we used this stop to refresh and prepare. Richard used the campground wifi to replenish our movie and shows options. While he was doing that, I made a Bertoli pan dinner, threw in some frozen peas, and brought plates over to the laundry room so we could dine in style with the spin cycle.

The backdrop on Cranbrook is really beautiful. I hear that as towns go, it may not be the most hip and happening, but it was plenty for us. In fact, given that there might be a nice bike ride from Cranbook to the local hip happening town of Kimberly, maybe we’ll stay two nights next time.

After laundry, I blogged and Richard walked along the river. There’s some place called “Dirty Darts” that is 1.8 miles from the KOA, so he chose that as an investigatory walking mission. Seems like a darts place. Not sure why it’s dirty. Scared to Google it.

Cranbrook continues to make a perfect post border crossing pit stop. It has all the things and we left feeling recharged and clean smelling. Before leaving town, we drove to Sportcheck and I got myself a new daypack. I’ve been researching options that are bigger than the lightweight Marmot I’ve been cramming with clothes and food. Went with an Osprey Tempest 22 and I love it. It holds my hiking sticks and I can get them and stow them while walking. It’s so awesome in fact that now Richard is jealous. I see an Osprey Talon 22 (men’s version) in his future. All good! So fun!

Total miles from Priest Lake: 181.2, 18.9 mpg, 6 hours 29 min with stop in Sandpoint for groceries and waterproofing stuff. Site 88 close to laundry room. They gave us a 50amp to 30 converter so we could use that site. Very nice staff. Laundry room is awesome with 4 front load washers and dryers (one dryer out of order). Really nice bathroom. Tempted to use shower, but did not. Great fast wifi for downloading movies. Full hookups. Sewer pipe too high so we had to snake, but oh well. Richard got coins at the casino next door.

Our second stay at Priest Lake was not quite as enthusiastic as the first one. We still had a good time mind you, but it could be that part of the initial dazzle from four years ago had a lot to do with getting a break from rain, paired with an electrical system that was working properly. There is also the fact that since I’ve gotten my e-bike, I am less motivated to get my boat out of the roof box and put it together. So lake stays become more about hiking and biking than water sports for us. As such, there seem to be a lot more nice trails around the other side, plus cell service, so that might be where we try to stay next time.

The drive up from CDA was pleasant, with a stop in Coeur d’Alene for groceries at Safeway. Duford Road was just as pretty as we remembered, as it follows the southern bank of the Pend Oreille River until you cross at Priest River. We then took 57 all the way to Dickensheet Road, which turns into Cavanaugh Bay Road, and finally East Shore Road. It’s a long drive, but at the end of it, you are treated to a real lakeside spectacle until the road bends back away into the trees. The state park staff are very friendly and the campground roads look newly paved. In fact, the whole place seems to have gotten a sprucing up. We checked out the cute little campground store and tried to get onto the wifi. No luck there, but that was ok.

The next day we rode to a little known trail and treated it as a treasure hunt. As it was a Sunday, there were not many cars on East Shore Road heading north to the end of the lake, so it was a nice ride. I should mention that it was quite hilly. Not an issue for my battery powered legs, but Richard got a workout. The trail description said to go 8.3 miles from the campground entrance and that is spot on. There is a nice big sign saying “Moose Lake” at that location, so the treasure hunt was easy. We turned down a short dirt road and locked our bikes at the trailhead, which was also nicely signed. Getting to the lake is an easy hike. We had our lunch and tried to circumnavigate the lake. We could have done it, but there was a pondy spot with a dodgy looking log we didn’t feel like risking. Instead, we went back around the other direction and made it all the way to that log. All told, the hike was just over a mile, even with messing around at the lake.

We had some time left on the day and decided to hang out at the beach and get caught up with service things. There were tons of families hanging out, playing in the sand and enjoying various water sports. It’s a crowded campground on the weekends, but there was a noticeable difference on Monday. We weighed a couple of options and chose to explore the west side of the lake and see if we could maybe bike along West Lakeshore Road. The answer to that question is: no. That road is not paved. It’s a dirt road in good condition, but it’s not really suited for bikes. In fact, most of the roads around the lake are not paved. I suppose you could mountain bike some of them, but really the main focus of the area is to get in the water. Makes sense.

We did stop at a museum parking area and walked the Beach Trail from Luby Bay to Kalispell Bay. That was a very nice walk. We sat at what used to be a marina cafe and tried to find more information on other trails. Richard discovered that the Lakeshore Trail he was thinking of was further to the north. That is a seven mile hike that hugs the shoreline all the way up to Beaver Creek Campground. It was getting to be the afternoon, so no one was going to do 14 miles out and back. Richard wanted to check it out and I had some internet research I was interested in, so I dropped him at the trailhead in Reeder Bay and he just went as far as he could get in a half an hour, and came back. He returned with impressive pictures, which makes us both want to try to do more of that trail in the future.

As far as future visits go, there are pros and cons to staying at the state park. On the one hand, it’s pretty far from some of the longer hikes, and it doesn’t have cell service (and wifi may or may not work, even if you go to the office). On the other hand, ice cream at the cute little camp store, and hookups. There are several forest service campgrounds on the other side. I did not go look at the sites to see which ones would be the most trailer friendly. There are no hookups of course, no dump stations, etc. but oddly it might feel less rustic simply because of hitting the 5g cell tower.

So here are the things we want to remember to investigate on any future stays. We could consider staying at the forest service campgrounds on the west side (Outlet, Osprey, Luby Bay, Reeder Bay, Beaver Creek). We could try to figure out how to hike the Lakeshore Trail. We could see if we can maybe ride to Hunt Creek Falls. There’s a very long trail up to North Priest Lake that we could maybe do part of. No matter where we stay, there is always ice cream to be had in Coolin at the Moose Knuckle or scoop ice cream at the Leonard Paul grocery store. Priest Lake a very family friendly place with all manner of lake activities and worth coming back to.

Total miles from CDA: 109.9, 16.9 mpg, 4 hours 28 min. Site A11 hookups. Cell and Wifi were both disappointing. No cell from campground, but could hit it from the beach. Most places along west side of lake could hit cell, but the state park appears to be in a little cell blocking valley. Wifi went down frequently. Electricity shut down on third day for maintenance, but otherwise worked fine before that. Dump would have been good and $10 but it was closed because of the power shut down.