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Thursday August 8         Cycling Day 30

   Grande Cache (Alb) to Gregg Lake (Alb)

Distance:  (Km). 115

Time:  5:23

Average Speed: (Km/ hr). 21.32

Ascent:  (m). 1078

Heart Rate: (beats / min). 115

Cumulative Distance:   (km). 3325

Cumulative Ascent :  (m). 27,970

Punctures so far : 0

Relatively quiet night on the weather front and a good long unbroken sleep. But the tent flysheet was wet and needed drying this evening in camp.

Overcast as we set out on this 115 km ride. Some mist and fog around on high ground and shrouding the tops of the trees and it didn’t look promising for the rest of the day. I had rain-jacket, leggings and shoe covers on , prepared for the worst. But by 40 km I had the rain jacket off and the rest off at lunch stop. Afternoon was warm and dry.

Didn’t take long to go through Grand Cache. Just a few businesses and motels on either side of Highway 40 (Bighorn Highway) and a shopping mall. I believe it has arison in the locality but no sign of it.

No agricultural land today, it was trees, trees, trees all the way. But there was a share of mountains though not very spectacular. And not a village or shop along that 115 km route and hardly a dwelling except for the small blue one I spotted in a clearing.

The road today was quiet. Till lunch there was a wide shoulder; after lunch no shoulder at all but the road was almost deserted. And again the road was up and down — a good number of short lifts at 7 or 8%. But nothing like that monster at the end of yesterday’s ride into Grand Cache. In the middle section of today we were over 1500 metres ASL - a respectable height.

When I pulled up at 40 km to remove my rain jacket, a motorist coming in the opposite direction pulled in by me and informed me that a grizzly and her cub were on the side of the road on the other side of Bartland River Bridge. That was still a good way off and no sign of them as I passed that section. But good of him to pull in and inform me. The only wildlife today was a large dog standing guard in the middle of the road. He moved slowly towards me but then responded to my couple of barks (as Gaeilge) by backing off and looking for something else to occupy him.

In the middle third of today’s ride I felt a slump in my energy - the first of this trip. Possibly it was all in my head! At times I sensed that the road was flat but I was getting nowhere as I pedaled away. I was relieved that the Garmin showed 2%. My eyes playing tricks on me ? Or possibly it is because of this long 6 day section — almost 500 km so far and nearly 5000 metres climbed. Then for the last third of the day I was in flying form and ended the day on a high.

Our route notes indicated that we’d cross railway tracks at 82 km. When I arrived there, the red lights were flashing and a train approaching. Some train!  Five engines at the front, 111 wagons and two more engines at the back. We were held up for the most of 15 mins.

 Near the end of the day (around noon) dark clouds appeared again out to my left. Would we have lightning, thunder and rain again in camp as we have had on the last three camps?

 All was fine and sunny as I arrived in camp (1:45pm), I collected my daily bag by the truck, selected my spot and erected the main part. I even had the opportunity to dry the flysheet and charge the Garmin with the solar panels. But now (4pm) the rumble of thunder is off in the distance and a few drops of rain have fallen. Fingers crossed that we’ll be able to sit outside the tents and have our dinner in peace.

And tomorrow all ready for the spin into Jasper.

Thank God for the health and thank God for the energy.