It Feels Like Home To Me

It wasn’t my intention to get an early start to the day but that is inevitably what happened. Perhaps there was a little excitement as to what was waiting for me down the road – in addition to Subway. If all went well, today would be my last day in Alberta. When this adventure began I really didn’t expect to spend 24 days here, and yet that’s exactly what happened. That’s not to say I haven’t enjoyed my time in Alberta. I have. A lot (with Stettler being a slight exception). It’s more a case of wanting to get to B.C., rather than wanting to leave Alberta.

Before the journey to Vancouver could resume though, I first needed to fuel up for the ride. And so, at 7:30 I made my final trip into Jasper for one last stop at Jasper’s Subway. Having pretty much run out of food of substance, I ended up ordering three sandwiches. One for breakfast, two for the road. Apparently I was hungrier than I thought because I made very short work of my breakfast sandwich. The other two got tucked away into my panniers for later.

As per usual, I didn’t really know how far I was going to go today. There’s a campground near Mt. Robson which was an option but it didn’t really seem far enough away. I decided I would hit the road and worry about my destination later. My first goal was the British Columbia border.

Despite having been away from B.C. for five years, it remains unchallenged as my favourite province. It was time to make a run (or a ride) for the border which was only 30 km away. I made my way to Highway 16, turned right, and headed west leaving Jasper National Park behind. As Jasper fell away behind me, Alberta had a couple of small (actually big) going-away presents for me.

As I cycled along, I noticed two cars stopped along the side of the road. This seemed a bit weird until I saw the large elk that was garnering all the attention. As I got closer I noticed that it was in fact TWO large elk that were garnering the attention of the not-so-passing cars. Much like the people in the cars, I too reached for my camera. Although, I kept a much larger distance from the animals. I took one shot from a distance and another as I pedalled past them. Both elk seemed completely uninterested in my passing. Surprisingly, that was the only wildlife I saw in Alberta.

Shortly before 10:00, the big moment finally arrived. It took more than two months and over 4,500 km but I finally crossed into British Columbia. The only provincial border I had yet to cross with my bike. It was a pretty exciting moment that was clearly worth a photo – or two. In addition to the sign which welcomed travellers to B.C., this spot was also the home of the Yellowed Pass and the gate to Mount Robson Park. I deemed both of those photo-worthy as well.

From there the ride to Mount Robson Provincial Park was easy. Beautiful. But easy. The sun was shining, the wind wasn’t blowing, and the roads were adequately hilly to keep things interesting. Pretty much an ideal scenario. Oh, and to add to the photo-worthy moments, shortly after crossing into Mt. Robson Park there was a sign reminding me to turn my clock back an hour as I had officially crossed into Pacific Time. I was home again!

Not surprisingly, Highway 16 is not lacking for scenic vistas. Lots of mountains. Lots of lakes. Rivers. Waterfalls. I was ready to take yet another mountain photo when Taylor Swift got in the way. Okay, I’m sure she wasn’t driving but clearly her tour is in the area as a convoy of concert trucks rolled by. Very subtle trucks, I might add.

I only ended up making two stops after crossing into beautiful B.C. The first was at Mount Robson which, at the risk of repeating myself, was beautiful. I ended up staying there for over an hour. Partially to marvel at the view, partially to use their WiFi, and partially because I ran into a couple of other touring cyclists. One is on his way to Montreal after 16-months travelling the world. The other is working his way south from Alaska. Needless to say, there were a lot of stories to tell … not to mention biscuits with Nutella to eat. In hindsight, I should’ve taken a photo.

The final stop of the day was in Valemount. More specifically, the Information Centre in Valemount. After scouting the area briefly, I decided that this would be a good place to camp tonight. It was generally quiet, there were power outlets, and I THOUGHT there was WiFi. Correction, there was WiFi but it seemed to disappear when the Information Centre closed at 9:00 – just as I was getting ready to post an update. So unfortunate.

There were two other people planning on spending the night at the Information Centre as well. Pict and Serge from Belgium had left their wives at home and, starting in Vancouver, have been travelling the area in a rental RV. And thoroughly enjoying it. They’re currently on the home stretch of their trip before returning to Belgium and their respective wives. We chatted for a bit about each of our trips before eventually returning to our respective “homes” for the night.

I have to say that it feels great to be back in B.C. It also feels great to have crossed every provincial border on my 1977 Nishiki International. We’ve come a long way together and hopefully we’ll go a lot further. I’d say I don’t know what it is that makes B.C. feel like home to me but clearly the mountains are a big part of it. Very big. And, while that means I’ll have be facing more than a few climbs in the coming days and weeks, I’ll also be facing some pretty incredible scenery. And maybe the mountains will block the wind more often than not. They did today.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 129.90 km
Ride time: 5:47:11
Average speed: 22.45 km/h
Maximum speed: 50.62 km/h