Friday 6th June
Fernie to Crowsnest
I left the big mountains and cycled across the border into Alberta. The change was immediate. The rolling hills of Alberta lay ahead, the road surface improved and, guess what, a TailWind, yipee!! The sun believe it or not came out for a few minutes. I had come up and over Crows Nest Pass and been told the worst bits were now behind me. If I had managed the mountain passes in BC then I had nothing further to fear. I was still on Route 3 and heading for the CrowsNest settlements. It is like three small separate villages but all called Crows Nest. I had caught up with Helen and we stopped to have a chat. It would be further along the route that I would rendezvos with the next camera person . I had to look out for a red truck with a red kayak on the roof. You'll never guess what the kayak was for!! More later!! Then it appeared in the distance, arms waving from the windows. This was Becky Bristow and her dad ,Stan.and they turned out to be two amazing people. With lots of hand shaking and and cuddles we hit the road again with the usual downpour accompanying me!! We would camp at Lundbreck that night. When we arrived in the outback town I was freezing and desperately longed for a hot bath and a log fire!! I did not want to put the tent up after a hard days cycle. A local came over to tell us about the free spagetti dinner they were serving in the hall so without further ado we were in there. I did a quick change in the loo and joined the gathering. By this time ,word had got around about the Scottish Granny so when I emerged from the loo cameras were at the ready. Help, all I am doing is pedalling a bike!! The supper was great and a Country Western Band played on the platform. This is an annual get-together of oldies and funded by money from raffles etc. over the year. Becky was filming the scene and I think the locals loved it. "We might be on TV " I heard them whispering. We said our goodbyes and off we went to the camp site. Stan made a roaring camp fire , Helen played the mouth organ, Becky filmed away and I sat taking in the scene with a glass of vin rouge!! Bliss!!
Monday, 9 June 2008
Saturday, 7 June 2008
Suicidal Journey
Thursday 5th June
Cranbrook to Fernie
Mountain Time Zone--clocks forward one hour
To-day , if at all comprehendible , was more of a nightmare than the day before. Rain, big logger trucks having fun spraying me and road surface worse than the previous day. I removed my self from the saddle of my bike and wept, A big dark tunnel lay ahead. I was scared to go through it as I have no lights on my bike. If I went through it beside a logger truck then it was curtains for me!! Doesn't this sound fun my dear blogger readers!! Bet you wish you were out here cycling with me!! Well I got through the tunnel risking my life and emerged safely at the other end. Helen had arranged an interview with Pierre, journalist with the local Free Press in Fernie. He arranged to meet at The Stanford Inn, a magnificent hotel overlooking the Rockie Mountains. Pierre is quite a cyclist himself - he and his wife packed their bikes and went off on a 14 month cycling trip taking in Scotland, Ireland, Germany and France! I told him about the horrors of my trip so far and he said "Do you know what", "I would never cycle on that route 3 that you did". During the interview the rain was tumbling down and I aired my thoughts about the putting up of tents in the cold and wet. Pierre had been there before and do you know what - he booked us into the splendid hotel where the interview took place!! Wasn't that fantastic!! Thank you dear Pierre.
PS I haven't been giving you any historical facts about the places I have been through. Apologies for this. There had been a big mining population in most of the towns but that died many years ago and new industries have taken over, mainly tourism. BC has many ski resorts and I am in one at the moment. I will not be blogging for a day or so as to-day I cross the border into Alberta, big prairie country and flat!!! I have been on mountain passes since I started and have one more to go over!!
Cranbrook to Fernie
Mountain Time Zone--clocks forward one hour
To-day , if at all comprehendible , was more of a nightmare than the day before. Rain, big logger trucks having fun spraying me and road surface worse than the previous day. I removed my self from the saddle of my bike and wept, A big dark tunnel lay ahead. I was scared to go through it as I have no lights on my bike. If I went through it beside a logger truck then it was curtains for me!! Doesn't this sound fun my dear blogger readers!! Bet you wish you were out here cycling with me!! Well I got through the tunnel risking my life and emerged safely at the other end. Helen had arranged an interview with Pierre, journalist with the local Free Press in Fernie. He arranged to meet at The Stanford Inn, a magnificent hotel overlooking the Rockie Mountains. Pierre is quite a cyclist himself - he and his wife packed their bikes and went off on a 14 month cycling trip taking in Scotland, Ireland, Germany and France! I told him about the horrors of my trip so far and he said "Do you know what", "I would never cycle on that route 3 that you did". During the interview the rain was tumbling down and I aired my thoughts about the putting up of tents in the cold and wet. Pierre had been there before and do you know what - he booked us into the splendid hotel where the interview took place!! Wasn't that fantastic!! Thank you dear Pierre.
PS I haven't been giving you any historical facts about the places I have been through. Apologies for this. There had been a big mining population in most of the towns but that died many years ago and new industries have taken over, mainly tourism. BC has many ski resorts and I am in one at the moment. I will not be blogging for a day or so as to-day I cross the border into Alberta, big prairie country and flat!!! I have been on mountain passes since I started and have one more to go over!!
Rain and mad dogs
Wednesday 4th June
Creston - Cranbrook
The forecast was rain. I set off early to cycle the 110kms to Cranbrook . 15 mins later it started!! I stopped at a filling station to get the rain gear on ready for the big black clouds ahead. There I met a joyless man. He asked where I was going. He told me I shouldn't be cycling alone. He told me it was big bear country -- "be bear aware" he said. "you've got some big uns " he continued. Now he was now talking about the hills I would be encountering. Then without further ado, he was off and so was I. My spirits were sinking well into the pedals on my bike !! It poured. The area to the side of the road was uncycleable. My specs were dripping with rain water and I couldn't see. The big logger trucks were spraying gallons of water over me. A barking from the woods startled me. The barking got louder but a fence stopped the crazy dogs from molesting me. They went berserk at this point. I felt so alone and very unhappy. The friends I had made earlier had been so kind. To-day I felt Canada was a big, cold country. I was homesick. I wanted to go home--home to Whitefield Loch to be with my grand children, fishing, Penny had flown home to Scotland for treatment and I was missing my cycling buddy. I am not sure when she will be joining me but hopefully, soon. Later the sun came out and I felt better. We camped in a forest where we heard a bear had been prowling the night before!! Sweet dreams !!
Creston - Cranbrook
The forecast was rain. I set off early to cycle the 110kms to Cranbrook . 15 mins later it started!! I stopped at a filling station to get the rain gear on ready for the big black clouds ahead. There I met a joyless man. He asked where I was going. He told me I shouldn't be cycling alone. He told me it was big bear country -- "be bear aware" he said. "you've got some big uns " he continued. Now he was now talking about the hills I would be encountering. Then without further ado, he was off and so was I. My spirits were sinking well into the pedals on my bike !! It poured. The area to the side of the road was uncycleable. My specs were dripping with rain water and I couldn't see. The big logger trucks were spraying gallons of water over me. A barking from the woods startled me. The barking got louder but a fence stopped the crazy dogs from molesting me. They went berserk at this point. I felt so alone and very unhappy. The friends I had made earlier had been so kind. To-day I felt Canada was a big, cold country. I was homesick. I wanted to go home--home to Whitefield Loch to be with my grand children, fishing, Penny had flown home to Scotland for treatment and I was missing my cycling buddy. I am not sure when she will be joining me but hopefully, soon. Later the sun came out and I felt better. We camped in a forest where we heard a bear had been prowling the night before!! Sweet dreams !!
Ferry to Creston
Tuesday 3rd June
Nelson/Salmo to Creston. We packed and left our friends. Helen had hired a car as she decided to sell her truck. She has loads to do so I set off for Creston, There was a ferry crossing involved with the road surface to the ferry ok for cycling but the other side had big problems. There were huge pot holes which I had to swerve on to the road to avoid. Also huge cracks which would have caused a somersault over the handle bars if I had hit one - happened in Australia when I ended up with a smashed collar bone !! The scenery around me was spectacular, stunning lakes and mountains. It was a long day 127kms and I was tired. When I eventually arrived in Creston the police were looking for me!! Helen had driven a different route from me arriving at the top of the town, I had arrived at the bottom end. She had my tent and gear in the car. I booked into the first motel I saw as I was too exhausted to think about the tent. Eventually Helen found me!!
Nelson/Salmo to Creston. We packed and left our friends. Helen had hired a car as she decided to sell her truck. She has loads to do so I set off for Creston, There was a ferry crossing involved with the road surface to the ferry ok for cycling but the other side had big problems. There were huge pot holes which I had to swerve on to the road to avoid. Also huge cracks which would have caused a somersault over the handle bars if I had hit one - happened in Australia when I ended up with a smashed collar bone !! The scenery around me was spectacular, stunning lakes and mountains. It was a long day 127kms and I was tired. When I eventually arrived in Creston the police were looking for me!! Helen had driven a different route from me arriving at the top of the town, I had arrived at the bottom end. She had my tent and gear in the car. I booked into the first motel I saw as I was too exhausted to think about the tent. Eventually Helen found me!!
Hot Springs
Monday 2 June
Cycled with Paula, a 29yr old lady racing cyclist, to Nelson for interview with local press, radio and TV. Paula tols me she worked in the local bike shop and I asked her would be ok to take my bike along to have it serviced. She said "sure"and we cycled to the shop. There we met Ian from Scotland and he said "Haven't I seen you somewhere before"? It turned out we had met at The Strathpuffer Mountain Bike Race. I was in a fancy big camper van looking after the BBC team and Ian and his pals were in a tent beside our van. He said he was envious of the comfort of our van as it was a 24hr marathon and they were shivering in their tent. We cycled on to meet the Mayor, Gord McAdam and the fire station crew. After the interviews we were back to the log cabin to enjoy our weekend. Pat, lovely neighbour of Andrea, Helen and Randy headed off to the hot springs at Ainsworth. Randy did some filming when I was in the cave and then filmed me emerging from the cave. I felt like Ursula Andress in the James Bond film - dream on Granny Mave, dream on !! We ended our stay with Tom and Pat and their wonderful hospitality. They were all so kind.
Cycled with Paula, a 29yr old lady racing cyclist, to Nelson for interview with local press, radio and TV. Paula tols me she worked in the local bike shop and I asked her would be ok to take my bike along to have it serviced. She said "sure"and we cycled to the shop. There we met Ian from Scotland and he said "Haven't I seen you somewhere before"? It turned out we had met at The Strathpuffer Mountain Bike Race. I was in a fancy big camper van looking after the BBC team and Ian and his pals were in a tent beside our van. He said he was envious of the comfort of our van as it was a 24hr marathon and they were shivering in their tent. We cycled on to meet the Mayor, Gord McAdam and the fire station crew. After the interviews we were back to the log cabin to enjoy our weekend. Pat, lovely neighbour of Andrea, Helen and Randy headed off to the hot springs at Ainsworth. Randy did some filming when I was in the cave and then filmed me emerging from the cave. I felt like Ursula Andress in the James Bond film - dream on Granny Mave, dream on !! We ended our stay with Tom and Pat and their wonderful hospitality. They were all so kind.
Monday, 2 June 2008
More Solo Through the Mountains
Castlegar 1st June
Now I am still solo cyclist as Penny is still unwell at the moment and unable to cycle with me. Helen arranged to get in touch with the local cycling club for a bit of support and in the morning(31stMay) we met the local press for an update on the Bike Ride and the usual photos taken. At this point a Tour-de-France style cyclist arrived on the scene. This was Anton who would be accompanying me for a leg of the journey. Anton is 40yrs and leader of the pack. I wonder if he knew the cyclist he was meeting was a 70yr old granny! I approached him with some trepidation and introduced myself informing him that I was a fun cyclist. He didn't seem to mind and it did turn out to be fun with my eyes on the lithe, lean body riding ahead of me. At times we cycled side by side and I did some filming as the camera was on my bike. Randy has come back to do some more filming for Triple Echo and Helen and Randy drove behind us for a while. I had been cycling uphill for a long time although it wasn't as hard as The Anarchist - named for obvious reasons!! The Pass to-day is called Blueberry Poulson. At night we stopped at Jonathan's, son of Helen, and visited Andrea - friend - in her amazing log cabin in the middle of the Bonnington Mountains. We all sat down to an amazing supper joined by Pat and Tom, neighbours from the forrest.
To-day we are relaxing here and just chilling out. Pat invited us over for breakfast.The mist which hung around all day is clearing and we are off to the pub for supper. What a struggle it all is. Tomorrow it's through the mountains on the Crowsnest Highway to Salma and beyond. More later.....
(To see a close up don't forget to double click on the Google map on the Route page of the website and click on the Castlegar place-marker on the list at the LHS. Zoom in and click on Terrain at the top of the map to see the route in detail. Ed)
Now I am still solo cyclist as Penny is still unwell at the moment and unable to cycle with me. Helen arranged to get in touch with the local cycling club for a bit of support and in the morning(31stMay) we met the local press for an update on the Bike Ride and the usual photos taken. At this point a Tour-de-France style cyclist arrived on the scene. This was Anton who would be accompanying me for a leg of the journey. Anton is 40yrs and leader of the pack. I wonder if he knew the cyclist he was meeting was a 70yr old granny! I approached him with some trepidation and introduced myself informing him that I was a fun cyclist. He didn't seem to mind and it did turn out to be fun with my eyes on the lithe, lean body riding ahead of me. At times we cycled side by side and I did some filming as the camera was on my bike. Randy has come back to do some more filming for Triple Echo and Helen and Randy drove behind us for a while. I had been cycling uphill for a long time although it wasn't as hard as The Anarchist - named for obvious reasons!! The Pass to-day is called Blueberry Poulson. At night we stopped at Jonathan's, son of Helen, and visited Andrea - friend - in her amazing log cabin in the middle of the Bonnington Mountains. We all sat down to an amazing supper joined by Pat and Tom, neighbours from the forrest.
To-day we are relaxing here and just chilling out. Pat invited us over for breakfast.The mist which hung around all day is clearing and we are off to the pub for supper. What a struggle it all is. Tomorrow it's through the mountains on the Crowsnest Highway to Salma and beyond. More later.....
(To see a close up don't forget to double click on the Google map on the Route page of the website and click on the Castlegar place-marker on the list at the LHS. Zoom in and click on Terrain at the top of the map to see the route in detail. Ed)
Solo Rider
Grand Forks 3oth May
Penny has been unwell and having a rest with our friends Mike and Susy. She hopes to join me later but meantime I am cycling alone. There has been a lot of publicity about the Two Grannies but now that I am alone I feel slightly threatened. Some youngsters might read the papers or listen to the news and think" Hey, there's an old lady out there lets go mug her!! Yesterday was a day of uphill, continuous ascent for almost 4 hours. To-morrow is the same. Once out of BC the roads are flatter and I am looking forward to that. Very tired to-night,more when I am feeling bright and breezy......
Penny has been unwell and having a rest with our friends Mike and Susy. She hopes to join me later but meantime I am cycling alone. There has been a lot of publicity about the Two Grannies but now that I am alone I feel slightly threatened. Some youngsters might read the papers or listen to the news and think" Hey, there's an old lady out there lets go mug her!! Yesterday was a day of uphill, continuous ascent for almost 4 hours. To-morrow is the same. Once out of BC the roads are flatter and I am looking forward to that. Very tired to-night,more when I am feeling bright and breezy......
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