Day 2: Rampart Creek to Banff

unbelievably beautiful. even when the weather isn't.

Today would be another test.  A hundred miles and Bow Pass.  Not as steep as Sunwapta, but as you'll note from the above elevation map... not exactly Illinois.  Summitting Bow Pass would bring me to the highest point of the Icefields Parkway.  It also meant a fun (and well-earned) descent.

the customary departure photo... and we're off!

The day started off cloudy.  And mostly got cloudier.  (cloudier?)  It sprinkled rain for a while... and then let up... and then it rained like it meant it.  The temperature never really warmed up.  Many of the views were obscured by clouds.  In short, it was a very drab day.  The kind of day you want to have some hot chili by a fireplace and read a book... or you know... bike 100 miles.

This ride has a nicer elevation map.  Just a short warm up and then the climb up Bow Pass in two difficult but manageable stages.  This Pass (especially compared to yesterday) was a breeze.  By the time I had really begun the climb, it was raining.  Not pouring... but more than sprinkling.  I don't know exactly why, but I loved it.  I think it added to the whole "man vs nature" paradigm I was trying to convince myself I wasn't losing.  Anyway, I rolled up that Bow Pass without much trouble.  Didn't stop for any rests, and didn't use my lowest gear(s).  Don't get me wrong, I wasn't FAST... but it was solidly steady all the way up (on a half-way loaded touring bike in the rain).  It felt great.

still breathtaking... the Parkway is in a valley... but you're right up against the mountains

fog, while not ideal, is still pretty cool

up, up, up...

this is near the Pass.  have I mentioned fog is cool?

photos do no justice. I swear the water is much more vibrant than that in person.

great shot of my best friend... errr... I mean... my bike. just a mechanical means of transportation.

Canada, being a different country than America (U! S! A! U! S! A!), has different signage in some scenarios.  I'll try to point out the interesting and/or funny throughout this trip.  I saw this "viewpoint" sign a lot... and every time I thought, "c'mon dad, quit being a jerk, let your kid have a turn looking through the binoculars."

why is the kid pointing if the grown up has the binoculars?

all federal signs in Canada must be english and french. sometimes they forget which side goes on which. oops.

This next one is probably my favorite.  It took us a while to figure out what this meant.  (But seriously, why is the dump truck racing toward that castle turret?)  Apparently, this is the Canadian version of "trucks entering highway".  Clearly the artist was confused about perspective.  It's like a badly disconnected charade clue.

truck...?

 
Finally, having reached the summit (no sign this time, you'll just have to take my word for it) I was ready to fly down the mountain at a solid 35-40 mph.  Great (albeit unnerving) fun.

The top of Bow Pass - mostly downhill from here.  Also... Brooks commercial.

proof that this was the top. no way could I even fake that smile if I was still climbing.

pretty.

The only downside of the descent was having to stop for all the great scenery.  And that's really not much of a downside.  (also... downside... descent... see what I did there?)

Bow Lake - unreal.

Near Bow Lake, I met a couple guys from Australia (although they might have been New Zealand... I'm not great with my regional dialects of Oceania).  Both of them were headed on a long haul from the Vancouver to Calgary -- they were close to the end, it's not far from Banff.  When I rolled up to enjoy the view, one of them said "Loytway Teerin then, eh?" It took me three attempts at this to realize he was saying "lightweight touring".  I then noted the fact that they were each carrying about 40 pounds more gear than me (one of them pulling a trailer), and sheepishly nodded... "uh, yeah... just the essentials."

lunch. (yup... "the pounder")

One more notable event from the descent: I passed a bear.  On my bike.  This was on a flatter stretch, and I noticed something large in the bushes just barely off the road on the right side (the side I bike on).  I didn't know exactly what it was, but it was pretty large and had dark fur.  I thought moose or black bear - either way: dangerous.  I did my best to not freak out (fun fact: did you know bear can run 35mph?).  Trust me, seeing a bear from the comfort of a large metal car is much different than sitting on top of a bicycle that you can't get to go very fast.  Nonetheless, I kept my cool, crossed to the other side of the road and pedaled steadily past.  No, I did not stop to try to take a picture -- that seemed an embarrassing way to die.

these wildlife bridges over the highway are pretty cool - yes I biked for a mile or so on a transcanada highway.
it's highway 1. but one lady kept calling it "the number one highway", not realizing she was ranking it. funny.

These signs were all over. I wish it was 50 times bigger and placed every mile in the Chicago suburbs

On the way into Banff, there is the town of Lake Louise -- named for the nearby lake.  Given my penchant for photography, I've seen a plethora of photos of the lake, and really wanted to see it in person.  Apparently, there is also a rather impressive hotel nearby.  The rain had stopped and it was only about 4 miles away from the (impressive) visitors' centre in which I was currently resting (not looking weird at all in soaking wet spandex).  I figured "hey, what could it hurt to go check it out?"  The answer?  A resounding: "everything".  

The quick unplanned detour up to Lake Louise was absolutely grueling in every possible sense.  The grade was an unannounced and ridiculous 8-14%, there was no shoulder, there was a CRAZY amount of traffic... and it started pouring on my way up.

Not. Fun. Times. 

Once I reached the top (I almost turned back several times, thinking "this is just stupid") the clouds obscured most of the lake, and it was perhaps the busiest single place I've ever been.  It was the alpine equivalent of Times Square.  Even now, looking back, I still can't believe how busy it was. 

The otherwise joyous descent was white-knuckled in pouring rain with cars constantly passing me.  It was *by far* the most dangerous thing I did on this trip (and I rolled my slow bike past a lot of bears and went hiking through a lightening storm).  And it was certainly the toughest thing I did all day (and that includes Bow Pass... the highest point on the Parkway).  Also, now the rain had really begun in earnest, and I had another 20 miles to the hostel... 40 if I wanted to push it to Banff.

 

Lake Louise. The most miserable pretty place in the world.

the hotel. and dad in the passat. he *loved* the traffic.

The below elevation map might help illuminate the profound poverty of this decision making.

intelligence.

I arrived at the hostel soaked to the core, miserable, and just happy to get off the bike after hours of pedaling.  I wanted to stop badly, but I also had been planning on making it to Banff.  So, after some consideration and making fun of myself for a while for being such a wimp, I hopped the bike and finished out the last 20 miles (I still think those last 20 miles were fueled by some sort of mixture of shame and stubbornness).  After changing into "street" clothes in a bathroom of one of the nicest hotels I've ever been in (it's the little things), I met Dad at one of Alberta's only microbreweries (surprise surprise).  I had a BBQ burger.  It was delicious.

a welcome site after hours of cycling in the rain...

When we got back to the hostel (which was actually pretty great - see above)... a pleasant old man convinced me to change my route for tomorrow.  After my months of planning, he had me convinced in about 10 minutes... but that's a story for another time.