Day 14
In the light of morning I had a chance to look around the campground a bit more. This isn't the first sweet looking classic we would see today...
Our last camp
Heading east...
Since we were now back in civilization, we availed ourselves of an American classic in Vernon. There were several bikes out front all ridden by lady riders whose husbands were driving the sag wagon.
Our waitress really had Graeme's number. He made some wise comment and she quickly surmised that he needed "special" treatment - she put a bib on him and brought out his pancakes already cut up in bite-sized pieces!
After breakfast, we headed east on Highway 6 toward Needles and and the ferry crossing of Lower Arrow Lake to Fauquier.
A few years ago Graeme had spent an entire summer riding the roads in western Canada, and he had billed these as some of the best in the country. I have to say he was right. We wound our way through steep mountains and lush green forests. There were stretches where we rode for miles where the longest straight-away was only a few hundred yards - it was marvelous! The roads were so twisty that I didn't take very many photos, I had to keep both hands on the bars and concentrate.
We stopped for a break in the little town of Nakusp. We fueled up and had snacks from the gas station and made a few phone calls.
I really liked this picnic table that was in the grassy area next to the station...
After our break, we continued generally southeast on Highway 6 to New Denver, where we picked up Highway 31 east. This took us up over a mountain pass, where we stopped on the way up to check out a waterfall...
After crossing the pass we descended to Kootenay Lake and rode south along the lake for several miles to Balfour where we boarded the ferry across the lake. This is a long ferry ride of nearly an hour, and the ship has a coffee shop and snack bar. It was nice to get off the bikes and be a passenger for a while and enjoy the incredible beauty of the lake and mountains. I imagine Graeme felt right at home - it felt like scene from a loch in the Scottish highlands.
On deck I spotted this amazing Jaguar XK-E...
Once across the lake we headed south to Creston, then turned back west to the mountain town of Trail. Al's in-laws live here, and his kids were staying with them for the summer, so it was a chance for him to reunite with family, even if only for a night. They had an amazing home-cooked dinner for us, real beds to sleep in, real showers, and covered parking for the bikes. It was postively luxurious.
One of the coolest things about this trip was the different lodging experiences, we were guests in people's homes, we stayed 100-year-old motels, and we camped in the wilderness. It was neat to experience just about all aspects of traveling in one three-week trip.
This was indeed one of the best days of riding, and the twisty mountain roads left us all happy and very tired.
Mileage for day 14: 385
Total bike mileage to date: 5,471