The Squamidian Report – June 28 / 08
Issue #318
Including:
The Ontarion
Hi All,
Depending on when you check your Email, you may or may not have noticed that this issue has come out a day early. Like I’ve been saying, we are headed out on our cross-country bike trip. We have two weeks at our disposal but that of course means we can only ride in the ‘away’ direction for one week. At that point we must turn around and ride in the ‘back’ direction. Wouldn’t be the end of the world for me if we got back late but Sue’s schedule is carved in stone and could not be adjusted without about 3-months notice.
We got the bike all packed up last evening. Deciding on what to bring and where to store it is a lot more work than it was years ago when a bunch of us guys would head out on a road trip with almost no planning at all. We would just tie a tent and sleeping bag onto the back of a bike, check to see if we had enough money for gas, and then hit the road. You may have noticed that I didn’t mention enough money for minor things like food or other necessities. We just didn’t think that far ahead. Came home awful hungry from some of those rides. Now-a-days we not only bring along some money for purchases along the way, but we bring along those handy little things called ‘credit cards’.
Sue took today (Friday) off and I bugged out early from work. So we are ready to hit the open road. All I need to do is send this issue off and we can get geared up and go. Up until a few days ago the long-range weather forecasts had us leaving in cool wet conditions but as forecasts so often do, it did a flip-flop and now we are heading out under hot sunny skies. Hopefully that air mass will follow us right across the prairies. In fact, the current forecasts show us riding through mid to high 30s for the next week. That could be a bit of a shocker to us as we are still used to very cool temperatures. It was still January here a few days ago.
Our travel planning starts off fairly firm but becomes hazy as we travel. We will head north from here, up through Whistler and Pemberton. From there it is over the Duffy Pass and on to Lillooet. Then it’s on to Cache Creek and into Kamloops. This route is shorter than going out through the Fraser Valley and will save us having to deal with a lot of GVA weekend traffic, but it is a slower route. The highway is not in great shape and is a winding high mountain trail at the best of times. But we are not in a hurry and the scenery is great. As I’ve said before, first night on the road will be in Kamloops, then after the bike is finished being serviced on Saturday morning we head east on the Trans Canada. Because of where Kamloops is, it is logical for us to stay on the TC for now. We will probably come back via #3 or through the States. Won’t know till then.
Second night will see us either in Golden, BC or in the Calgary, Alberta area depending on weather and traffic conditions. And on how quickly our butts adjust to the hours in the saddle. From there on its anyone’s guess. We’ll just make it up as we go along. We don’t have any real destinations at all. I do want to stop in Rouleau, Saskatchewan and see if I can get a picture of the Harley sitting at the movie set gas pumps if they are still there and accessible. Whether the Corner Gas sets are still there or not, it will be fun to ride through ‘Dog River’.
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Here’s one of those funny little pieces of information that won’t mean much to most people but some will find interesting. Last Monday morning, Vancouver International Airport recorded its coldest temperature ever for that date, June 23. The funny part was, almost no one even noticed. Because the west coast had such a cold spring and first few days of summer as well so far, temperatures that would normally be found in January only caught the attention of the weather people who collect those statistics.
doug
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The
Gregger is on vacation!
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Have a good one..
the doug
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