August 28, 2007, Tuesday

Bow Valley Parkway

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During the night I woke up and looked out our window to see a magical scene of the village below, amber streetlights glowing and a full moon overhead peeking out between the clouds. There was full cloud cover when we got up and it started to burn off as we left the hotel. Our day started with a four hour shuttle ride to the Bow Valley Parkway and the start of the day's ride.

On the drive out Kerie pointed out a large black bear beside the road. He scurried away as we approached. He would have been very close had we been riding. A short time later we saw two elk in the river just before we headed north on routes 6 & 22. We made the best of our ride, getting to know the guides, Brandon and Doug a little better, and chatting with the rest of the group.

We drove past Banff and the Banff Springs Hotel on our way to the starting point for the ride and the lunch stop. Lunch was pesto tortellini with lots of pine nuts, mozzarella with tomoatos and basil, grapes and probably some cookies or other sweets that I tried to avoid. At this point in the trip the calorie intake has exceeded the calories burned by quite a bit, so it's time to try to taper off.

Gas stop on drive to BanffUnloading bikes at lunchKerie at Castle Mountain overlook

Even though the ride was short, less than 30 miles, it seemed like one of the more difficult days. We had a slight headwind, and there were several short and fairly steep sections along the Bow Valley Parkway. We stopped at most of the information signs along the way to a few pictures. It seems that there was snow last night and the high peaks have a dusting of white.

One of the few attractions along the way, besides the views of the high mountains in the distance, was the waterfall at Johnson Canyon. We were the last to leave the lunch stop and we stopped briefly at the canyon entrance and rode on, thinking that everyone else had stopped to take the short hike to the falls. As it turned out, no one had stopped and we were still the last riders. Kerie kept getting ahead of me and I pedaled fast and still took a long time to catch her. I was tired and there was a slight headwind. The climbing from the rides on the previous days was catching up with me and my legs were tired. I was happy to pedal along at a steady pace as we made our way toward Lake Louise.

The last time we rode here in 2000 we turned south on Highway 93 toward Radium Hot Springs. It was a cold, rainy day and the hot springs never felt so good. Today we continued straight on the Bow Valley Parkway.

Steep climb to lodge, Doug is a small speck belowDoug soon blows past us with the van not far behindDeer Lodge

The cue sheet indicated that the steep climb to the lake from the village of Lake Louise was to be avoided and that the van would shuttle riders the final 2.2 miles. Although we were tired, we were game for riding the last bit so we headed up the climb, the steepest of the entire trip. Doug caught us about 1/2 way up, just as the van passed us. He powered up out of sight in no time as we spun in our low gears. We passed the Great Divide road that we had used the last trip when we rode from Golden, and the Paradise Lodge where we stayed then, in 2000.

The second part of the climb was not as steep nor long as the first. We passed the motel, the Deer Lodge, to check out Lake Louise, a few meters beyond. The shoreline seems to have changed since we were there last but I'm not sure how, it just seemed different. We took a few photos and headed back to a warm bath at the hotel. Dinner at the lodge was long but very good, along with some lively conversation. Tomorrow is the layover day and we will likely ride to Moraine Lake.

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