So the day FINALLY arrived. I wake up, call my mum (because she said I couldn’t leave without calling her first) make some poached eggs, pack the bike up and head out of the door.
The first part of my ride is something that’s very familiar to me. A 20km (approx) ride on the legacy trail to Banff. Then I dip past Vermillion Lakes and take the paved trail out to the Bow Valley Parkway. This is where things get interesting. The highway is closed to vehicular traffic so I have the whole road to myself all the way past Johnston Canyon and out to Castle Mountain junction. About 5 minutes before I reach my break stop at the junction I see a juvenile grizzly bear walking up one of the paved roads I pass. He gave a quick glance from over his shoulder and continued to walk away from me. VERY COOL! Once I stop at Castle Mountain Junction a rain storm rolls in and it lashes down. I shelter under a tree by the cabins for about an hour waiting for it to pass.
Once the rain passes I continue on to Morants Curve where I stop for a while and cook myself some much needed food. Chicken Alfredo for lunch today, YUM.
After refuelling I hop back in the saddle for the final climb up to Lake Louise.
Current Feelings
Tired, achy, happy, excited, inspired!
Day Specs
Distance: 82km
Elevation: 1436m
time elapsed: 6hrs