After camping in Kitwanga at the southern junction of the Cassier Hwy we decided that we were going to try and make it to Jasper that day.
The weather started off looking pretty good, but it soon turned to rubbish as we pushed the 850kms from Kitwanga at the bottom of the Cassier Hwy, along the Yellowhead Hwy, through Prince George to Jasper in Alberta. Probably one of the hardest days yet with around six hours of the trip in the rain! There wasn’t even much on the road to keep us entertained. The road didn’t really get interesting until McBride, around 160kms west of Jasper. From then on though we entered the Rockies for the first time and despite the rain, their majesty kept our spirits up through the final push to Jasper.
I wouldn’t normally have insisted on pushing so hard in a day, however Jasper was one of the first places I ever visited in Canada and I knew that it would be a great place to spend the night, giving us a leisurely ride down the Icefields Parkway the next day.
The next day we were rewarded for our efforts with pretty good weather in the morning as we passed a herd of elk that were blocking the road from the hostel and headed down the Icefields Parkway.
Running down the spine of the Rockies, from Jasper to Banff, the Icefields Parkway is one of the most scenic roads that I have ever ridden. I’d been along it many years before and knew that we’d need to incorporate it in our ride. Jagged mountain peaks, glaciers and turquoise blue lakes line the route giving ample opportunities to stop and explore. The weather turned on us a little again, but it was never going to dampen our spirits as we road this awesome road.
It was a pretty cruisy day’s ride compared to many of the recent days and we arrived in Banff in the early afternoon with plenty of time to settle in, check out the area and sample the nightlife.
After a bit more sightseeing in the morning we were off again on another short ride, out of the mountains and into Calgary to catch up with some friends from my time at uni in Vancouver. It was the day before Canada Day and it was a great time to be in town to celebrate. Such a shame that we couldn’t back it up with the real celebrations on Canada Day itself, but as usual we had to keep moving – it was time to head into the states.