Woke up at 7 and hopped in our bikes to head a few miles to Lake Louise, a picturesque lake in banff national park. Again, no cloud in the sky today. We had some fun taking pictures, then sat down on some rocks by the lake for breakfast.
After eating we hiked a few miles up a steep mountainside to a 100 year old tea house nestled against a small lake.
After hiking back down the mountain we biked back to the campsite (a fun, fast ride where we were outpacing cars) to retrieve our gear and head towards banff. The ride to banff was nice as it was about a 40 mile ride mainly downhill, and about halfway there we stopped at Johnson canyon for some nice views.
We got into banff to find a mile long hill up to our campsite.
After setting up camp we went out for a dinner, $7 fish and chips, some drinks, and for Arne a chocolate stout with a slice of chocolate cake.
-AN and KRG
9/10
Our morning in Banff was a little hectic as we were trying to get our errands done in time to get to Calgary at a decent hour. After an hour of waiting Arne and John finally got their prescriptions filled for their infections and could head out of town. Our stay in Banff was pleasant and the town was quaint, although very touristy. The beginning of the ride was nice but the headwind we had was not ideal. The overall ride much easier than expected because of the flat, prairie-like terrain.
We got into Calgary much earlier than expected and took a nice Biking trail along the river to Paul and Donna's house. Paul and Donna are the couple we met at the hot springs from Calgary and offered for us to stay with them when we get to Calgary. Their house was very nice as it was right on the river and nicely decorated. The evening was full of stories and conversation over beer on their back deck. After we all showered and cleaned up we headed over to a pub for more beers and dinner with them and their friends. After a fun dinner we headed back to their house and slept on their couches and japanese tatamis.
Overall our impression of Calgary is that is a very nice city and well planned. Interestingly enough it is the largest city by area in North America because of it's sprawling nature.
-JS
9/11
A touring cyclists dream...
Woke up around 9 am on the comfortable sleeping mats and couches in Paul, Donna, and Mac's place. Katherine, Mac, and I walked down to the grocery and picked up the necessary ingredients for French toast, including some cinnamon rolls at Mac's urging. Donna made some delicious coffee and we made a couple loaves of bread and 6 cinnamon buns into French toast. The breakfast was awesome, with the fresh from the farm butter and the french toast cinnamon rolls really taking it up a notch.
After breakfast we all (Paul, Donna, and Mac included) biked to a couple different bike shops while Arne fixed a flat tire at one.
The bike shop riding included a nice tour of downtown Calgary including the area where the medals were presented during the olympics. With Paul's suggestion of taking the metro train out of the city to avoid the traffic, we hopped on a train, and with a few detours and train hopping we made our way about 15 miles south of downtown where we hopped off the train.
It wasn't until 3:15 that we started riding, but we had a howling 20-30 mile per hour near direct tailwind. This was awesome as it bumped our pace from probably 12 mph to 20 mph. The road was pretty flat through lots of farmland, a nice change in riding conditions and scenery after a long time in the mountains.
After about 30 miles of riding we stopped for a quick dinner at Tim Hortons, and we all appreciated being in populated areas again where these places exist. With the tailwind howling we took advantage of it and ended up riding 98 miles, not bad for a 3:15 start. We set up camp at old man river campground near Fort Macloud around 9:30 pm. A great day with a good breakfast, good company, good weather, and a huge tailwind.
9/12
Following an 8:15 wake up we had some oatmeal and bagels for breakfast and were on our way to Fort Maccloud. We stopped for a water fill up at the a and w and rode on towards the USA. As with most things, our tailwind from yesterday had turned into a headwind today. The pace was slow at first as we traveled through flat farmlands, but as the wind died down the pace picked up.
After a lunch at extra foods with the sun beating down on us we crossed back into the US around 6.
Nice to be back.
We began getting into the hills and mountains which make up glacier national park, and after a beautiful sunset we set up camp at johnson's campground in st. Mary lake.
A 76 mile day.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Banff NP, Calgary, Montana
Are you heading through Glacier or going to head south? If you go south, check out Sun River Canyon outside Lewis and Clark. Great wilderness and there is a camping/lodge(Sun Canyon Lodge) right in the canyon. Bozeman is a really awesome town. There is a Patagonia outlet in Dillon, MT. Ya'll look like you have having an awesome time.
ReplyDeleteGood to catch up with your travels guys. Glad the rain stopped for you! Love the photos - some great scenery...especially the Rogue Stout! Safe travels.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Joel