Pic Heavy Ride Report - MS to Bella Coola & Back 11,000 Miles Heat, Hail & Bears

[DK Custom Products]

Best laid plans....It's Saturday, not Thurs or Fri. Hopefully I will be able to do a report each day for at least the next week.

Day 19

Today we left out of Missoula to go see Glacier National Park!

I had shipped a few items to Craig in Missoula...one of them was my leather jacket, which I switched out with my mesh jacket for our time up in Canada.


Filling up the gas can as we head north to the land of few gas stations. lol

Headed up to Glacier National Park.

Flathead Lake is one BIG lake!

We traveled about 270 miles today, I'm guessing that 20-25% of those miles was along side this lake!

It goes on & on....

....and on. It is a very scenic ride.

We got to Kalispell, stopped in at Glacier HD. Talked with some locals about area riding.

On our way up to the park, out of Kalispell. Great day to be riding...a bit warm for the leather, but I know I'll be happy for it in a few days.

All the times we've been up to Montana, we're finally making it to the National Glacier Park, via West Glacier.

We're Here!

Continued in next post.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 19 continued-


As with most National Parks...

...the road is well maintained, fun to ride, and the scenery is amazing!

This is a pic from the road as we passed by one of the many times the rushing water was right next to the road.

Logans Pass was closed, but we got to ride 16 miles in, to Avalanche Creek...

...we parked the TG and looked around a bit. The river is wide here, emerald green. Beautiful country!

We rode back about a mile, where the river narrowed into deep pools, rapids and small falls...

...parked, walked down about 50 yards from the road with our lunch.

The pictures do not do justice to the amazing power of thousands of gallons per second rushing by us.

It was loud too!

Almost back up the hill to the TG.

Day 19 will be continued and concluded tomorrow, as we stop for the night, 5 miles from the Canadian border in Eureka, MT.

Kevin

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 19 Continued.


After lunch we headed back out of the National park-

99.5% of the time we wear helmets...but it is warm, traffic is light, and being in a National Park, what little traffic there is, it is usually sane...yeah, all excuses...lol...it's just nice to ride without a helmet sometimes.

Great scenery heading out...

...water cascading down the side of the mountain from melted snow.

McDonald Creek - Looking upstream....

...McDonald Creek - looking downstream as it flows into McDonald Lake.

We did a bit of exploring on some of the dirt roads in the park...

...looking at the wood bridge we're about to use to cross McDonald Creek...and the spectacular view!

Plan is to stay in Whitefish tonight.

On the way there we see The Whiskey Barn-Glacier Distillery...

...they do A-Z there, and it is open to the public to see...

Day 19 continued in next post.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 19 Continued.


...and sample. (I did not, but Mary did. We did purchase some whiskey made with Glacier water)

As we are getting closer to Canada, we ran into some road construction...riding on the bumpy dirt/gravel road for a few miles brought back memories of MANY miles of bad road in the Yukon on our trip up to the Arctic Circle. Fortunately, this was only for several miles!

Shadow Pic!

We are enjoying the ride so much...

....we decided to go past Whitefish and stay in Eureka, about 5 miles from the Canadian Border. Entering Tobacco Valley.

There is something so alluring about open country roads! As we enter the Kootenai Forest, we are getting excited about getting back up into British Columbia.

Interesting mountaintops in the distance.

Mary likes her home, but I am very fortunate that she is willing to be away from it for a good trip every year. It seems I never get tired of cruising down a traffic free 2 lane road.

The TG is running great, barely working at 70 mph, cruise control on & it only takes a couple of fingers on the right grip keeps it in its' lane. Check out Mary in the mirror taking the pic.

Eureka! We made it to Eureka, MT. Tomorrow morning we'll be in Canada!

Kevin

 

[consitter]

Kevin--

Clear some space in your inbox...I have a question for you. Thanks.

 

[geezerglide11441]

Kevin--

Clear some space in your inbox...I have a question for you. Thanks.

Kevin, how much actual Road Construction did you experience in Glacier National Park. Did you do the "Road to the Sun" road/ride??

Looks like you two are having a great riding experience, wish we were there!!

Roger

 

[RcSuD]

Northern Washington and southern BC is on fire. Be prepared to ride in a lot of smoke.

 

[consitter]

Northern Washington and southern BC is on fire. Be prepared to ride in a lot of smoke.


View attachment 29712

No worries. They've been home for several weeks.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Kevin--

Clear some space in your inbox...I have a question for you. Thanks.

Done.

Kevin, how much actual Road Construction did you experience in Glacier National Park. Did you do the "Road to the Sun" road/ride??

Looks like you two are having a great riding experience, wish we were there!!

Roger

When we were there, there was no construction. Yes, we were riding on the Going to the Sun Road, but only as far as Avalanche Creek. After that it was closed due to snow.

Northern Washington and southern BC is on fire. Be prepared to ride in a lot of smoke.


View attachment 29712

On this trip, unlike our trip to the Arctic Circle Trip, I kept a written journal each day, downloaded the pictures from the cameras each day, and then have been posting the ride report from my contemporaneous journal. That left much more flexibility each day.

Kevin

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 20

This is a day we have been looking forward to for almost 2 years!

On our Alaska trip (see that report HERE), when we passed thru British Columbia, we were absolutely amazed by the beauty, the great roads, and the people we met along the way.

We knew then, we had to get back to spend more time in BC.


10 minutes after leaving the motel in Eureka we are at the border crossing in Rooseville.

Unlike a couple of years ago, they did NOT do an inspection. They asked a few questions, found out I had an apple, was told I could eat it now, or throw it in their deep freeze...but could not bring it into Canada.

I ate it.

They did not say a word about the 2 gallon gas can bungied to the Tour Pak rack.

On our way!!!

Pretty much top speed is 100 kmh, which is 60 mph, but in most places it is 70 or 80 kmh, which is 42-48 mph. In the towns it is far less.

One of the first sights we see after crossing the border.

This is a nice roadside map. We are going to be staying in east BC most of the day, then crossing into Alberta late in the day.

Our first stop will be in Radium Hot Springs, then up to Golden, then turning east to go to Banff (not on the map) via Lake Louise.

The roads in BC are great! Sometimes long and straight, sometimes curves, always interesting!

I've only had two other bikes that came with lowers...and on both of them I removed them the first day.

On the '14 TG I could not remove them, being that they house the radiators for the cooling system.

I have found a second purpose for them...very comfy to rest my legs on them.

Quite a sight!

We stopped for gas in Radium Hot Springs. We've been in Canada about 150 miles now. Even though we've been riding into a pretty strong headwind, generally climbing in elevation, and it's in the high 80's, we still got a bit better than 37 mpg. Most of those 150 miles were traveled at between 50 & 60 mph.

More in next post.

 

[RcSuD]

Had me fooled.:blush:

Really enjoying this thread, thanks for doing it again. Makes us all want to be tagging along with you.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 20 Continued.


In Radium, we were filling up at a station where some Adventure Riders had just finished filling up. They were on their way to Banff, and were a bit behind schedule for their final destination of Prudhoe Bay...they were taking the short way to Banff.

We opted for the longer, much more scenic route, via Golden.

As were climbing out of Golden, Mary got this pic of the Canadian Rockies.

The 1, out of Golden, is a bit tricky the first few miles, but it is a lot of fun with some really tight curves.

It is also the only road we've been on in Canada where no one seems to mind the speed limit once it turns into sweepers. We traveled at 70-75 MPH (115-120 KMH) along with much of the other traffic.

Can't tell you how much we are enjoying being back in Canada...

...this is a much longer, but very scenic ride to Banff.

Not sure how many feet we climbed, but it is quite a few miles at a nice incline, followed by...

...a nice descent, with some great views of the Canadian Rockies.

Even though we are here earlier in the year than last time, there is a bit less snow on the mountains, but still awesome views, and great riding.

The conclusion of Day 20 will be posted tomorrow.

Kevin

 

[consitter]

Had me fooled.:blush:

Really enjoying this thread, thanks for doing it again. Makes us all want to be tagging along with you.

I got to thinking...(always a dangerous thing with me)...

I hope that in my last post to you, that I didn't come across as making you feel silly or anything, by informing you that this wasn't a 'live' posting. :cxtv:

And as always, thanks Kevin for some more beautiful pictures and good story telling. That last pic was especially nice.

 

[Gorilla]

Kevin great pictures as always. We love Canada also well at least in the summer time. Winters are a brut. I bet you miss the USA gas prices though.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Kevin great pictures as always. We love Canada also well at least in the summer time. Winters are a brut. I bet you miss the USA gas prices though.

Thanks. Yeah, we really enjoy Canada, IN THE SUMMER, don't think we'd do to well in the winter.

Gas prices, food prices, everything seems to be way high in Canada.

Just checked, ( http://www.mississippigasprices.com/Olive Branch/index.aspx ) and gas near us today is $1.98 a gallon.

Kevin

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 20 Continued.


Getting close to the Icefield Parkway....

...can see the west side of the mountains. We're going to be turning south soon, but tomorrow we'll be riding on the other side of them, heading north.

Can't say how much we are enjoying being back in BC. Stunning!

Coming up on a bit of road re-surfacing. In our experience, BC keeps their roads in nice condition, and without a lot of traffic, it has never been long waits. Even if it was, take a look at the sights!

Huge water channel for melting snow.

Guess I was going a bit too fast, but she still got most of it...melting snow above us.

Emerald Green Glacier water in Lake O'Hara

Closest we've been to a Glacier so far.

More in next post.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 20 Continued.


Crossing into Alberta, we'll be passing Lake Louise soon. Fantastic place. We stopped there a couple of years ago, definitely worth it. Unfortunately we're running out of sunlight, so it's not in the plans for today.

We've turned south, toward Banff. This mountain glacier is one right above Lake Louise.

Absolutely stunning. The pictures don't do justice to how BIG the country is up here.

Last time we rode between Lake Louise and Banff we saw a bear along the side. Did not get any good pics or video. We have had our eyes peeled the entire time. Did not see one this time.

Getting close to Banff. It is a pretty large tourist town that sits in the shadow of this mountain.

As we pull of the highway we see this little guy. He has no fear as we slowly ride by...

Another look at him....

...when we had dinner in a restaurant this evening, the waitress showed us pics of 3 different bears she had seen earlier today. 2 black bears and a grizzly.

Not such a great picture that I took, but definitely relevant to the pictures of bears we had seen just 30 minutes earlier. lol

Kevin

 

[FuzzyWuzHe]

As always ... great to enjoy your trip with you and Mary ... she certainly has a gift for capturing the moment. (especially if there are clouds )

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 21


Today is one of the highlights that we have been looking forward to...Traveling the Icefields Parkway.

It is going to take more than a couple of posts, and even then, it is just an overview of the amazing ride along the Canadian Rockies.


Leaving out of the Motel in Banff...

...stopping for gas before leaving town. That is PER Litre!

Yesterday we came down the 4 lane you see in this pic....

...today we are going back up toward Lake Louise via the Bow Valley Parkway....

...which is a two lane road that is much more scenic than the 4 lane...

...AND, it's the road where our waitress from last night saw 2 bears yesterday morning.

The beauty....

...and the vastness of this land is difficult to convey with pictures and words. (Plus, the road is a lot of fun also!)

We did not see any bears...

...but we did see this Elk.

As we crossed this river to get back on the 4 lane, Mary got a nice pic of this bird in flight.

More in next post.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Day 21 continued.


We are back on the 4 lane for a few Km's before....

...getting on the Icefields Parkway, toward Jasper.

Last time we rode the Parkway it was in the high 30's - low 40's. Today is in the mid 70's.

Perfect riding, amazing views...

...Bow Lake is emerald green from being fed...

...from the glaciers above.

There are miles and miles - every time we think it's the end, around the corner there are miles more...

...of mountains, glaciers, rivers and lakes!

This is about halfway between Banff and Jasper. Fixing to stop to eat and enjoy the 360 degree view of the surrounding mountains!

Day 21 to be continued.

Kevin