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Home , Mistaya River, Sunwapta Pass

Canadian Epic Story and photos by Chuck Haney

It usually begins sitting around the fireplace or wood burning stove, salting away another of Montana’s long, cold winter nights...

My friends and I pull out our collection of into the descent, as if it would somehow storms worst fury. My adrenaline was decided that our day would be too easy and maps and dreams quickly become plans as keep some of the rain off me, and so, blew pumping, and I concentrated solely on the end too quickly if we pedaled straight to we sort the logistics for our next epic trip by the sign announcing I was now in road in front of me, even as the occasional Banff, so we took a detour from our of some kind or another. Our last two British Columbia and Kootenay National lightning bolt forced a primal bellow from planned course and began climbing up to trips together had consisted of mountain Park. my lungs. Finally, we descended to the . biking the badlands in North and South I soon got into the rhythm of the road townsite, where it was calm and dry. A few It soon became apparent that this was Dakota and then canoeing the famous with the constant patter of rain falling high fives and a congratulatory micro- the steepest climb we had encountered on White Cliffs section of the Missouri River against my helmet seemingly synchronized brew celebrated a most momentous begin- the trip so far. As I passed Denise, I men- in Montana. This time, we were looking with my cadence. The Vermilion River ning to our tour. tioned to her my envy of the third chain- for a road-bike trip so we discussed a pre- raged beside the pavement, and I raced Day two of our trip began with anoth- ring on her road bike. As the grade mier ride near our home that none of us alongside the aqua-marine-colored cas- er shuttle ride. This time we took Joe’s increased, spinning was replaced by grind- had done yet. With its nice, wide roads cades with only the occasional thunder of a vehicle to Mosquito Creek Campground, ing and rhythmic breathing became heav- and the current monetary exchange rate, waterfall to interrupt our duel. “This was- which was located just south of Bow Pass. ing panting. Thankfully, it was less than the Canadian Icefields Highway, from n’t so bad after all,” I thought! Cruising at Our ride was to take us back down to the three miles to the breathtaking setting of Banff to Jasper, seemed like a no-brainer. twenty-five miles per hour, my rain jacket Icefields Highway, on to Lake Louise, then Lake Louise and the grand hotel that sits Poring over maps, we plotted our course working to perfection, I was feeling great. It south on Highway 1A and back to my car, along its shore. and had visions of descending smooth was one of those perfect stretches on a bike which was still parked at a hiking trailhead Our descent back to the highway was mountain roads dotted by the 10,000-foot where everything seems easy and good. I near Banff. very fast; in fact, I had to brake several peaks that poured glaciers from gigantic was in the zone, and I felt like a bike rider We began an extremely enjoyable ride times to avoid passing cars on the way icefields. Abundant wildlife, wild rivers , again. on a beautiful partly cloudy day. Our route down. and pristine lakes would make this one of Soon Russell caught me and explained through was mostly As we began pedaling on 1A again, we the most dramatic rides in the Rockies. As that, while riding with Joe and Denise ear- downhill and devoid of much traffic. This saw scores of other cyclists, many of them a passionate road cyclist, a trip through lier, they had reached the consensus that was the perfect alternative to the previous local riders from Banff or Canmore, shar- the had always been we were now on a “survival” ride. In other day’s soggy ride. We clipped along in a ing the road with commercial tour groups. near the top of the wish list for me. words, stopping for long was not an paceline, blasting down to Lake Louise in The enjoyable roller-coaster road gave us It seemed for most of my summer I option. We rode by a small forest fire that less than forty-five minutes, averaging just plenty of evidence as to why this was such had been watching other people ride their Icefields Highway Sunshine and smooth roads beckon riders beneath Hilda Peak. had been burning near the Simpson River, over twenty-three miles per hour. We a popular route. Occasionally, the road bikes. I had been on Adventure Cycling’s where the smoke blended with the fog, giv- summer events photographing riders a local diner. Soon, we departed in my gray. ing the landscape an eerie cast. Russell while spending a lot of time cooped up in Subaru wagon, four bikes perfectly lined We began the gradual climb up commented that the rain would really help a rented automobile. Don’t get me wrong, across the roof rack. Our drive toward Banff , our group now splintered suppress the fires, and we hoped similar I loved what I was doing, but there was through was a pre- by our individual climbing abilities. Stands rain was falling near own homes in definitely some biking envy going on. view, in reverse, of our impending ride. of fireweed along the roadside became Montana, where several big forest fires With Labor Day weekend fast approach- We parked our transport vehicle at a more vibrant and color-saturated as the were also burning. ing, I was getting anxious to spend some trailhead near Banff along Highway 1A and clouds thickened. As we regrouped under Seventy miles into the ride, we began quality time on a bicycle saddle myself. unloaded the bikes. Our frames and drive- a sheltered kiosk at the pass, the rain that our ascent up to , a six-mile Maybe someone would take my picture as trains were immaculate as our bikes gleamed had been threatening began to fall, first as gradual climb that, when clear, provides I barreled down a mountain pass. brilliantly against the morning sun. After a drizzle, and soon as a full-fledged steady outstanding views of the Kootenay River After squeezing in some training topping off the tires, we rolled onto the shower. We were beginning to get cold Valley and the Mitchell and Vermilion rides, I deemed myself ready for the mountain highway. We soon glided up and just standing around, so we decided that it mountain ranges. Near the summit, Joe, Canadian Rockies. Our group of four down among towering forests of lodgepole would do no good to wait the rain out and the group’s strongest climber, passed me. included my winter rendezvous friends pine and Douglas fir, through which an we cinched up our rain shells and Just then thunder began to boom and and riding partners: Russell Mallams, Joe occasional opening would provide a glimpse remounted our bikes. Just twenty miles cracks of lightning reflected off the shiny, Grabowski, and his fiance, Denise Davis. of the scenic . We made our first into our ride, rooster tails of road grime wet road surface. Our epic ride was about We departed Montana’s Flathead Valley stop at a small market near Castle Junction, sprayed forth from our saturated wheels. to vault into legendary ride status. The in two vehicles. Our two-car shuttle sys- where we would split off from Highway 1A So much for the clean bikes. thunderstorm raged full force as we began tem would allow us to enjoy the ride with- and head southwest back to Radium Hot Typically, most mountain showers what should have been a sterling nine-mile out the usual gear of a self-supported trip. Springs. While replenishing our energy are of the cold variety, and this was no descent back into Radium Hot Springs. So off we went to Radium Hot Springs, reserves on some rather tasty homemade exception. My main thought was to pedal Instead we locked onto the handlebars British Columbia, where we spent our baked goods, we overheard tourists mention like hell, trying to generate enough body with a vise-like grip, battling the forty-plus- first evening preparing for the next day’s that it was raining at Lake Louise, just to our heat to stay warm and lose elevation as mile-per-hour winds that gusted sheets of ride. north. A glance up toward Vermilion Pass, quickly as possible, hoping it would be blinding rain into our fogged-up sunglass- We awoke to partly cloudy skies, where we were about to climb, confirmed warmer down below. I broke ahead of our es. I soon passed Joe, who opted for the Scenic Splendor Bearberry bushes beneath the in . and then ate a hearty meal of pancakes at that our day was soon to become dark and group, putting my head down and tucking safety of walking his bike during the

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would split into separate lanes heading in in the far north country as the landscape each direction and around hills. It was resembled Alaska or the Yukon with a almost like pedaling on a bike path. As I mosaic of green and red patterns ablaze in charged down another wonderful stretch the late-afternoon light. of tree-lined road, I wondered why I had We awoke the next morning to more never done this before. overcast and cold conditions. In fact, fresh The day’s ride ended back at my car, snow had been deposited by an early fall where we all finished within minutes of squall just a few hundred feet above our each other. We then headed into Banff for campsite. We were all chomping at the bit dinner and sightseeing. None of us had to get back on our bikes after the day off. been there for quite a while, and we could Our itinerary called for driving both vehi- tell that Banff had certainly changed. cles to Jasper and riding to Maligne Lake Crowds were everywhere, and we were and back, a sixty-two-mile ride (or as they astounded by the number of tour buses. say in , a 100-km excursion). We One benefit of mass transit is that it keeps began the lengthy uphill with each rider a certain number of cars off the highway, tackling the grade at his or her own pace. and so far, considering that it was Labor We met back up at Medicine Lake, which Day weekend, the traffic hadn’t been bad. at this time of year was almost drained dry. Day three of our Canadian excursion We looked for the lake’s outlet but could was supposed to be a ride from the not find one. At a tourism kiosk, we dis- Athabasca Glacier back to our campsite at covered that the lake is drained by one of Mosquito Creek. As we drove north to the the largest underground river systems in Columbia Icefields Campground, the North America and that the early Native Glorious Downtown Jasper is an idyllic spot for a bit of sightseeing. weather moved back in with a vengeance. Americans thought it was big medicine to A chilly wind brought a steady bone-chill- have the lake mysteriously drain each had a great view of the lake and contented- in camp as the sun and blue sky finally ing rain with it. My heart sank as our vehi- autumn. ly watched the moose as Joe and Denise made an appearance again. The massive cle continued to descend to the North While the temperature didn’t rise at pulled up. We then ate a long lunch that Columbia Icefields, which lie in the moun- . Not only would it be all, we doggedly climbed on; in fact, with soon replenished our energy. tains that separate British Columbia and about forty miles of climbing back up Bow the wind chill added in, it seemed to get The thrill of the downhill back to Alberta, spread over 200 square miles and Pass, but it would also be into the teeth of colder as the day progressed. Russell and I Jasper more than made up for the cold and loomed largely just to the west of our vicious headwinds laced with the occasion- were now riding together and trying to climbing we endured on the ascent to campsite. Across the road, the Athabasca al drenching downpour. keep warm by hammering up the hills and Maligne Lake. We slingshotted madly Glacier, one of many tongues of ice hang- After debating our options, we decid- talking about the legendary beauty of the around each other in pacelines that often ing from the main icefield, gleamed like an ed to drive back to the other car and bring turn-around point, Maligne Lake. After found us clocking fifty miles per hour or incandescent candle in the morning sun. it up to the campground. We spent the day two and a half hours, we reached the lake, higher—that’s over eighty kilometers per We set out on a sixty-seven-mile jaunt visiting the natural wonders near the high- where, unfortunately, the grand view we hour. It was good to be a cyclist roaring from the icefields to Jasper, directly into a way by foot. Near Bow Pass is , envisioned was obscured by thick clouds. into Jasper, eh! strong northerly wind that would prove to whose star shape and turquoise-colored be our nemesis throughout the day. It waters are a Canadian icon. Then we put My adrenaline was pumping...even as the seemed like every ride of our trip had been back on the rain gear and hiked to Mistaya met by nasty weather. While we earned Canyon, where the Mistaya River has occasional lightning bolt forced a primal bel- every mile of this trip, we were also reward- formed an amazingly deep gorge filled with low from my lungs. ed by some of the most spectacular scenery fluted rock shapes and has carved out deep in the world. bowls in the rock. We visited several other We spotted a large moose feeding near the We managed to find a laundromat in We cycled past the rocky flood-plain of the numerous waterfalls along the road shore in the light rain—an activity I town that also had showers. We finally put flats of the , where signs as we climbed back up Sunwapta Pass. We thought we should share—so we each our Loonies and Toonies (one- and two- indicated the retreating glaciers had been entered Jasper National Park and found wolfed down a Power Bar under the pro- dollar coins) to good use. Our first shower present at the road just over a hundred our basecamp near the icefields. Our group tective edge of the forest before hopping since Radium Hot Springs felt awfully years ago. We rode tightly together in a was not the sit-around-the-campfire type, back on our bikes to avoid hypothermia. refreshing, and I added another Loonie just paceline ,passing vast fields of wildflowers so we soon hiked up toward Wilcox Pass We felt fortunate to discover an open to make sure I didn’t miss any spots. that were going to seed, their filaments in open tundra country as bands of restaurant on the lake shore, where we The last day of our cycling trip had waving a legion of white patterns dictated bighorn sheep grazed among a tapestry of ordered hot soup and hot coffee, convinced crept up on us as suddenly as the clouds by gusts of wind. As we neared Jasper, the Kinnikinnick bushes. We felt like we were that it had never tasted or felt so good. We disappeared. We rejoiced over hot oatmeal mountains seemed higher, the setting Banff National Park Exploring Mistaya Canyon Gorge.

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Nuts & Bolts: Banff and Jasper Area

Information: We picked the Labor Day Radium Hot Springs weekend to avoid the large Chamber of Commerce — crowds and found plenty of (800) 347-9704; www.rhs.bc.ca campsites. After Labor Day, Banff/Lake Louise Tourism accommodations are easier to Bureau — (403) 762-8421; find and the number of www.banfflakelouise.com tourists is much lower than during the peak of the sum- Bri ti sh mer season. Col um bi a Precautions: Al b e r ta Mountain weather can be

Jasper ● unpredictable at best. Canadian Thunderstorms can suddenly National pop up and temperatures can Calgary which parallels the busier which travels from Radium Parks ● plummet. Bring along rain gear and dress in layers. While Canada Highway 1. Otherwise, Hot Springs to Lake Louise, ● Vancouver camping, remember that you we rode Highway 93 (a.k.a. then takes Canada Highway 1 are in bear country. Read all Icefields Parkway) all the way west to the town of Golden, Uni te d Sta t es precautionary literature with from Radium Hot Springs to where it then travels south on the utmost detail. Traffic along Jasper. The further north you Highway 95 back to Radium the highways is not too bad. travel from Banff, the fewer Hot Springs. Jasper Tourism and The shoulders are fairly wide services are available, so stock Commerce (780) 852-3858; in most areas, but be careful, up on food and groceries in Riders should definitely take www.jasper canadian as there were a lot of cracks Banff, Radium Hot Springs, or advantage of the area’s natu- rockies.com that would swallow a bicycle Jasper. ral hot springs. For more infor- tire and jolting bumps in some mation, visit www.pc.gc.ca/ Best times: stretches. Traffic picks up near Another popular shorter route regional/sourcesthermales-hot Summers are spectacular but Banff and Lake Louise. We of approximately 165 miles is springs/index_e.asp. busy along this popular route. chose to ride Highway 1A, called the “Golden Triangle,”

more grand. This was the wild country we had come to see. By the time we reached Jasper, we were pretty much whipped from fighting a headwind for seventy miles, but we were all in agreement, the Canadian Rockies are one of the premier cycling destinations on the planet. I can hardly wait for our next wintertime fireside chat, so we can plan for next year’s adventure.

Chuck Haney is a photographer/writer who lives in Whitefish, Montana, and whose work appears regu- larly in the pages of Adventure Cyclist.

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