Well my sister and I packed up our camping gear and headed to Nelson, BC for Peddle Around a Glacier Eh! 14. It was the most stunningly beautiful and challenging ride I have ever done. We started in Nelson bright and early Saturday morning. Rode 42 miles along the west shore of Kootenay Lake to the lunch stop in Kaslo. There were lots of ups and downs, many of the ups were registering in the double digits on my Garmin. But the views kept our minds off the climbs.
After lunch, the first left turn took us up this steep, STEEP hill that was thankfully only about three blocks long. We then started on the climb of the day. It was almost 20 miles of 2% to maybe 5% of climbing. But oh my gosh! It was through the most incredible canyon I have seen. Along our left side flowed the glacier fed Kaslo River, and on our right side, dozens of little and not so little creeks and water oozing out of the hillside and dripping down moss covered rocks. We throughly enjoyed the climb. The next rest stop was at the top of the climb which we reached just as a sudden rain shower decended on the mountain top. Our thanks to a couple of beautiful old cedar trees that kept us and our bikes nice and dry.
And what goes up must go down. I have a new high speed record of 40mph! This was truly the sweetest bit of downhill riding I have encountered. Few cars, perfect curves, and just enough slope to really enjoy yourself. And then BAM, right in the middle of our downhill fun came this truly wicked half mile or so of steep, steep uphill. Kind of a reality check. But after that another downhill run into New Denver where our camping gear was waiting at a park along Slocan Lake. Total miles for the day, 73.2.
The next morning fully rested we start out with the toughest climb I have done. Over six miles of 6% to 10% of climbing with most of the climb a steady 7 to 8%. But once again the views of Slocan Lake saved the day. The rest of the morning was spent going up and down and up and down. I also had the very unpleasent experience of two near death collisions. They came as a total surprise, in that I have never thought of this as a threat. The first was a motorcycle coming the other direction passing cars on the uphill. I was enjoy a bit of downhill, riding out in my lane where the pavement was smoother. I was checking my mirror for traffic coming behind me when I look ahead and see a motorcycle headed right at me. Luckly we both saw each other in time and were able to "share" the lane as he roared passed. The second was the same thing, but this time a car. I was again going downhill with a clear lane behind me. I was staying closer to the shoulder after the motorcycle encounter. This car, whipped out of traffic so fast I never saw it coming. He wizzed by so close and so fast the wind moved me over into the shoulder. So the moral of my story is watch for traffic crossing the line to pass. It could be deadly . . .
On a lighter note we had a lovely rest of the day, even with more ups and downs and ups and downs! The ride ended with our arrival back to Nelson. We were by far the last riders, but the sweep rider, a very nice gentleman, crept along with us all afternoon. Total miles for day two 64.7.
All in all, a very nice weekend. A good ride, good food and spectactular scenery. If you like a bit of a challenge and a beautiful location I highly recommend this ride.
Here are a few pictures . . .
Kootenay Lake
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Looked down after I took the picture of Kootenay Lake and saw this little guy.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y26...n/DSCF1190.jpg
Kaslo River
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Lyle Creek, one of many flowing into the Kaslo River.
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Slocan River just after sunrise.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y26...n/DSCF1203.jpg
