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BMF Rider UK says “Canada has it all”

BMF Rider (UK) September 1999. Vol.3, #7 by Baz Barron

If you’re into snow-capped peaks, breathtaking twisty mountain passes, glaciers, waterfalls and a few dangerous bears, then Canada has it all. BMF’s Public Relations and Communications Director, Baz Barron, wanted to experience the biking journey of a lifetime. What’s more, he found a company that provided bikes and carried his luggage too. Here are extracts from his journal.

Deciding that we needed a special trip to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary, we decided on the Canadian Rockies. Our only port of call was the World Wide Web and Rocky Mountain Motorcycle Holidays came out tops, offering a range of trips from four to ten days.

Based north of Vancouver, they take parties of up to 12 from the British Columbian coastal mountains up to the Canadian Rockies. They use the Triumph range almost exclusively (although other models are available upon request) and accompany each trip with a back-up vehicle to carry luggage, weary pillion passengers and a spare bike or two.

Flights were sorted and the itinerary arranged a couple of days in Vancouver and then to Whistler to start the tour. All followed by a few days on bike and ferry to Vancouver Island and Victoria before returning to Vancouver and home (all arranged by Libby of RMMH). We also took out a BMF annual travel policy with Edgar Hamilton, which is good value-for-money and covers motorcycling where many conventional ones don’t.

On the way to Whistler, first sight of the mountains is spectacular and just a taster of what is to come. Whistler is a huge purpose-built resort with skiing, three golf courses, climbing, walking and any other outdoor pursuit you can imagine. The main street and its squares are lined with restaurants, bars, cafes and shops. An evening trip up the 1830m Whistler Mountain by cable car to watch the sun set over the mountains was spectacular enough, but also included close up views of black bears grazing for their supper.

That evening we met our fellow travelers, our new friends for the week and perhaps beyond. There were to be nine of us on seven bikes. The adventure had begun.

Day One: Whistler to Kelowna (408km)

Within the hour, we were riding our first mountain pass. Four hundred kilometers is no great distance on a motorway, but a fair ride across the mountains of the British Columbia interior. The chase vehicle had been with us all day dispensing at every stop and lunch over-looking the Thomson River Gorge. Pleasantly tired we arrived at our plush resort hotel in the beautiful Okanagan Valley.

Day Two: Kelowna to Nelson (370km)

We headed south towards the 49th parallel, traveling through towns and settlements full of western character before climbing into the Kootenay hills. Here were some of the best roads I have ever seen—sweeping through wooded hills and up and down mountainsides only punctuated by the occasional fast moving logging truck or slow RV (easily passed).

When riding, you never know what is around each bend, many of which are around rock faces, so there may be fallen rock or wildlife on the road. On the other hand, one must mix riding with taking in the view. It is easy to tire of counting golden eagles and osprey, but you must keep your eyes peeled for bears.

Day Three: Nelson to Nelson (219km)

We set out along the lakeside to Kaslo, leaving both town and slow moving traffic behind. The road twisted and turned making for a spectacular ride along the cornice with terrific views. In Kaslo, we saw a well used Bonneville and Vincent. Their owners from Saskatchewan were on their way to a Norton rally.

The long route back to Nelson was stunning. The road took us over the mountains through a real wilderness forest and glacier-fed falls, streams and rivers. And finally back along another lakeshore with yet more spectacular views of the mountains shrouded in the mist that resulted in our first rain showers of the trip.

Day Four: Nelson to Fairmont Hotsprings (332km)

We started out on a glorious morning across the bridge over Kootenay Lake and took the meandering lakeside road to the ferry. The free ferry took us across the lake towards the US border. After an easy 70km purring along the winding shore road, we climbed above the valley floor with the views of the cereal and rape fields some two months behind our own.

It was a short trip (100km) trip from here to our overnight stop at Fairmont Hotsprings. The road took us up the Columbia River Valley along a raised and mostly straight causeway above swamps and semi-desert. The view either side was of snow-capped peaks that form the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Shortly before we got to Fairmont (and our relaxing soak in the natural spring fed pools), the valley changed and became a lake surrounded by moraine left by the glacier that had formed it.

Day Five: Fairmont to Jasper (428km)

We entered the Kootenay National Park by way of Sinclair Canyon and the scenery literally took our breath away. The road here is excellent, cleared at either side through the unworked forest so as to reduce the risk to and from wildlife as well as afford spectacular views.

Snow-capped 3000m mountains lined the immense forested valleys we were riding through. The sheer scale of it all was awesome. Not long after we entered the park we were treated to the sight of mountain goat and deer. And then, shortly before lunch passed a brown bear happily grazing at the roadside.

Now we were in Banff National Park and stopped at Lake Louise, a clear turquoise glacial-fed lake overlooked by a huge Chateau Hotel. We headed along the aptly named Icefields parkway towards the Jasper National Park. We were now at the high (vertically and visually) point of our journey. Our first stop was to view the Crowsfoot Glacier, a 50m high wall of blue ice hanging off the side of the mountain. We passed several more before arriving at the Athabaska Glacier, part of the Columbia Icefields that still cover 350 square kilometers and are up to 180m deep. Our last scenic stop of the day was further down the valley where the stream form the glacier had turned into a powerful torrent over the spectacular Athabasca Falls.

Day Six: Jasper to Kamloops (425km)

We rode south from Jasper following the signs for the day’s destination Kamloops. En route we stopped to admire the view of Mount Robson, the second highest peak in North America. From there, we rode along the Thompson River where a bear was about to wrestle a RV until it thought better and ran back to the safety of the trees. Our journey for the day ended at the newly constructed resort village of Sun Peaks.

Day Seven: Kamloops to Whistler (359km)

Leaving Kamloops we rode through the semi-arid landscapes following the Lower Thompson River and stopping at Kamloops lake. Here we soaked in the decidedly wild west vista and watched golden eagles soaring over the ridge. The scenery changed dramatically as we cut into the hills riding through Marble Canyon, so named because of the rock coloration. The road continued into the Fraser canyon with its desert bush landscape.

After lunch we were retracing our steps back to Whistler for 150km. Again the landscape changed along the popular (with bikers) Duffy Lake Road. We stopped at a wooden bridge by a fast moving river to talk to some local characters, one riding a Commando hybrid and the other on a Speed Twin, both of which looked as well-used as the owners.

We arrived back in Whistler and went for a last meal out together before going our separate ways. New friends had been made and who knows when we might meet again.

What we thought:

Sue and I were looking for the holiday of a lifetime to celebrate our Silver Wedding Anniversary and that is exactly what we got from Rocky Mountain Motorcycle Holidays. Every day for a week was spectacle built on spectacle whilst we were looked after with the best hospitality BC has to offer.

We thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity of riding the whole range of Triumph machinery on some of the best biking roads in the world. The company and new friendships of like minded motorcyclists made the experience all the more pleasurable. So much so that you can be sure that we will be back for more!

Alister Barron, BMF Rider Magazine

Note from RMMH: Baz Barron has traveled through most of the UK and Europe with Sue on a variety of motorcycle adventures. He is also a man of his word and has already laid down his credit card to booked another holiday with us in 2001. Baz, we’re looking forward to riding with you and Sue again!

— June 26, 2007

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Just wanted to say"Thank You”!!! It was the most incredible vacation I’ve ever had. It was everything you said it was and more. I’ll try to be back next year, but if not then for sure in 2005.

Thanks again.

Devon Tucker, Dallas, Texas

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