Banff – rest day.
Boy I feel lazy today. I slept in. I like to sleep in. I might of past my bedtime yesterday. Although I didn't feel like I wanted to hop on the bike to continue the journey as I did in Kamloops. It was a nice town, with nice people, but I feel Banff had more to offer and I wanted to explore a bit.
I headed to town to inquire about bike rentals and trail conditions. Bike availability – didn't seem to be the problem. Trail conditions, well, considering the fact that 50 cm of snow was dumped on Banff 6 days ago, most of the trails are shut down. What was available was the Hoodoos trail near the campsite. So, strike two for mtb. Dang. I did meet a former olympian for cycling (Barcelona, '92). I dont recall her name though.
I spent the first hour contemplating renting a bike and doing the fairly simple Hoodoos trail (mainly singletrack, wide single track, few roots, switchbacks), or head out of town to Canmore and try my luck there. Canmore's trails were also out of commision, so I just decided to relax a bit more downtown (gawk at people while I ate a bit), and then hit 3 areas to hike.
Tunnel mountain – nice climb to the top, nice views as well. Switchback trails. Impossible to bike up (well, with my amateur skills), but would be a blast to come down. The hike up made me work a bit. I think I should stop smoking and start working out.
Bow Falls – more like rapids. But, quite nice. It's also a chance to see some of the turquoise waters nearby. For supper, I returned to that area.
Hoodoos trail – near the campsite, 0.5 km in length. I then ventured to another trail (4 km) which lead me to the falls, where I had supper.
No matter where I went, I kept on staring at this nice rockface. I can see a couple lines to climb it. It would be a blast – standing on top, on the snow. I took a bunch of pictures of it, and I had to delete tons as throughout the day, I seemed to take similar shots of it.
Nothing major to report regarding food for today – I mainly cooked some stuff that I purchased at the supermarket the other day. I did buy a six-pack of Big Rock Grasshopper Ale. A good beer, goes down well.
Tomorrow – off to Canmore for a bit, then head to Crossfield (North of Calgary). I get to spend some time with Roch and his wonderful (and growing) family. He's a buddy that I met in grade 5. Good times, good memories.
Saturday, rest day again (sheesh, lazy bum), where my dad will come down from Edmonton and we get to visit the town. I think a nice Alberta steak is in order.
After Calgary, it's phase 4 of the trip, what I call the “2's” (aka the 200 km/day). I have to not only boot it for a bit to get to Solstice on time, but have to get in shape if I am going to ride a bit there. I would also hate to go riding with the Rick/Ken crew and be out of shape. They have standards.
So, Island done, Vancouver area done, Rockies (uphill) done, off to the prairies.
Ma ei joua ara oodata millal me jalle kohtume.
Ciao,
p2
Introduction
Allo, hello, tere,
Some old lines/puns: Pierre qui roule, rock and roll, the rolling stone (gathers no dust).
Who: Pierre, Ottawa (ON)
What: Cross Canada travel.
When: After a few days rest in Tofino, British Columbia at the beginning of May, 2008, hit the road around the 4th. The 1st time-based goal is to arrive in Ottawa in mid June, race in a 24-hour mountain bike competition, and head back on the road a few days later. Finish the trip in St. John's, Newfoundland, at the end of July, 2008, before returning home to Ottawa to start being an adult again.
Where: Canada, West to East, via Toronto, Ontario. Detours: Val Gagné and Manitoulin Island (ON), Gaspé region (QC), and Cape Breton (NS).
Why: Visit this beautiful (and fairly big) nation of ours. See family and friends. Taste the cuisine of different parts of the country and enjoy the various beers and wine along the way. Experience anything the villages and cities along the way have to showcase. Lose 50 pounds and be buff.
How: By bicycle (her nickname: Dzie, pronounced D-Zie).
Extras: According to mapquest, a drive from tip to tip (via Toronto) would be 7710 km (85 hours of driving, 2 ferries). A flight would only be 5400 km (9 hours flight time, with switching planes 2 times).
* I do occasionally feel I am following the footsteps of a few great ones (whom I've also had the honour of riding with), who have done this trip in the past - Al, and especially Tanya. I do hope that I can bring in some new pics, new stories, and not rehash stuff that those amazing folks have done before me.
** I imagine I'll be a bit lonely at times throughout the trip, where I highly request and encourage comments from you guys. It'll be my way of having some conversations with you. I'll try to update the blog every few days.
Disclaimer: Most of you guys know me. In my posts, there will probably be a mixture of bizarre stories, silly jokes (like the weight-losing bit a few instances before), some references to music lyrics and movie lines. I will do my best to entertain, but sometimes, I might miss the mark on being funny or entertaining (hopefully not though).
Posting messages: Readers with a gmail/blogger account - you know what to do. Readers who do not: post a comment as anonymous (but put your name at the bottom of the comment please). The occasional personal messages can be sent to pierre.l.perron@gmail.com
Ciao,
p2
Some old lines/puns: Pierre qui roule, rock and roll, the rolling stone (gathers no dust).
Who: Pierre, Ottawa (ON)
What: Cross Canada travel.
When: After a few days rest in Tofino, British Columbia at the beginning of May, 2008, hit the road around the 4th. The 1st time-based goal is to arrive in Ottawa in mid June, race in a 24-hour mountain bike competition, and head back on the road a few days later. Finish the trip in St. John's, Newfoundland, at the end of July, 2008, before returning home to Ottawa to start being an adult again.
Where: Canada, West to East, via Toronto, Ontario. Detours: Val Gagné and Manitoulin Island (ON), Gaspé region (QC), and Cape Breton (NS).
Why: Visit this beautiful (and fairly big) nation of ours. See family and friends. Taste the cuisine of different parts of the country and enjoy the various beers and wine along the way. Experience anything the villages and cities along the way have to showcase. Lose 50 pounds and be buff.
How: By bicycle (her nickname: Dzie, pronounced D-Zie).
Extras: According to mapquest, a drive from tip to tip (via Toronto) would be 7710 km (85 hours of driving, 2 ferries). A flight would only be 5400 km (9 hours flight time, with switching planes 2 times).
* I do occasionally feel I am following the footsteps of a few great ones (whom I've also had the honour of riding with), who have done this trip in the past - Al, and especially Tanya. I do hope that I can bring in some new pics, new stories, and not rehash stuff that those amazing folks have done before me.
** I imagine I'll be a bit lonely at times throughout the trip, where I highly request and encourage comments from you guys. It'll be my way of having some conversations with you. I'll try to update the blog every few days.
Disclaimer: Most of you guys know me. In my posts, there will probably be a mixture of bizarre stories, silly jokes (like the weight-losing bit a few instances before), some references to music lyrics and movie lines. I will do my best to entertain, but sometimes, I might miss the mark on being funny or entertaining (hopefully not though).
Posting messages: Readers with a gmail/blogger account - you know what to do. Readers who do not: post a comment as anonymous (but put your name at the bottom of the comment please). The occasional personal messages can be sent to pierre.l.perron@gmail.com
Ciao,
p2
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1 comment:
Tere kallis,
Sellisel juhul on meid kaks. Mina ka ei jõua ära oodata millal me jälle kohtume!
Muide, ma olen tagasi kodus.
Kalli-kalli-musi-musi
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