Touring Here and There: Day 3 - Bow River Parkway (July 2)

July 2 - The day after hangover. Happy birthday Canada!

It was another cold morning with a hotter days to come (Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, and Day 7).

I put on my (construction-site) safety vest and helmet (not hardhat) for my ride from Canmore to Banff. It would be 20 miles on the interstate, the Trans Canada Highway, and I wanted to be visible. I discovered something important on the ride. The ride from Canmore to Banff is mostly downhill. So I could have pushed on from Canmore and rode onto Banff yesterday.

My goal was to ride along the Bow River Parkway until Johnston Campground. Johnston Campground is located across the street from the busiest trail in Banff, the Johnston Canyon Trail. This trail is a scenic walk up a narrow canyon that has been cut by the river that flows through it. There is an easily accessible lower set of water falls and another set of water falls higher up. So this trail is very busy. I thought I read somewhere that 1 million people visit this trail each year. The Day 4 post contains a description of my experiences on this trail.

I spent very little time in Banff. Although it is a charming mountain town, it has a lot of schmaltz and too many shops. So I just bought my parks pass and happily cycled off.

As I got to the start of the Bow River Parkway, I saw my first set of people with a bicycle tour group. This was a group that was supported by a company (I think it is based in Berkeley, California) called Backroads. I paused as I got on the Bow River Parkway to change from my morning clothes to my hot day riding clothes. As I did this I saw the Backroaders and thought I recognized one of the people in the lead as one of my friends from Team in Training. However, I was never able to catch up with this rider to verify that. I was fully loaded and she was not.

As an aside, I saw a lot of tours and riders along the Bow River Parkway and at other places along my trip. I saw professional organized trips by Backroads and Cycling Vermont. There were day trippers and then there are the groups that do all the work themselves. These do-it-yourselfers told me that typically organize and talk via the internet. They then select a riding destination, arrange lodging, gather food, and go riding. Typical age: 70 years.

Back to the ride...The Bow River Parkway is a wonderful way to see Banff for bicyclist, car, SUV, motorcycle, or whatever your form of transportation (I guess you could travel it on a llama). The vehicle speeds were much slower and because there were so many cyclists on the roadway, a wonderful thing happened: most of the vehicles gave me and my fellow cyclists a wide berth. This was a nice bonus and I would recall this carefree and car-worry-free for the next days when I rode on a busy highways with trucks and RVs coming close.

I passed a group of riders who were riding for a fundraiser. I also noticed some of these cyclists coming into Banff from Canmore. They all wore the same outfits. The riders riding along the Trans Canada Highway from Banff to Canmore road with a buddy - I wish I had a cycling buddy. The fundraising riders who were less accomplished rode on the flatter Bow River Parkway. These riders tended to be younger - as young as mid-teens.

Arriving at the Johnston Campground, I chatted politics and discussed how Canada was like the U.S. The ranger with whom I was talking disagreed.

I was in bear country now, so I could only leave my tent and my lawn chair (I wish) out at my campsite, the rest (food, anything that smells, etc). would have to go in a metal cabinet called a "bear box." I unpacked some of my stuff, but kept my laptop and my handlebar bag.

I went to the restaurant at the Johnston Resort (across the road from Johnston Campground and at the entrance to the hike to Johnston Falls). I chatted it up with another cyclist who was riding with two other friends. I told this cyclist that I was going to stay at Johnston and rest up for another day’s ride. I said that I would like to see Lake Louise, but I didn’t think that I had the energy to ride to Lake Louise. That cyclist, said he had just come from Lake Louise.

As I turned out of the driveway of the Resort, I turned right. This was a sudden change of plans - I was listening to my inner voice. The campground was located to the left, but I turned right towards Lake Louise. The road was surrounded on both sides by trees. Some sections went on for miles and miles. At one point, I was rode through a long section of the road that had trees located just next to the road.

Look out for the tree in the middle of the road!

There were a few steep hills along the way, but nothing terrible. Although the ride wasn’t too bad, I was tired and I kept thinking about turning back. Finally, mostly exhausted, I made it to Lake Louise. As I was entering, I noticed a steep road leading straight ahead and a sign that said “Lake Louise.” I hoped that the sign was just pointing to the Village of Lake Louise, up ahead, but at the bottom of the hill. However, I consulted my map, which indicated that Lake Louise was a ways away and it had to be up that hill.

So, I headed towards Lake Louise, hoping that it would just be a small climb. As I began to climb and see the extent of the hill, I was shocked. The hill would last for 2 miles and would have a slope of 8 percent to 10 percent. Not only that, but there was no shoulder and there was a steady stream of passing cars, RVs, and tour busses.

Along the way to Lake Louise, I stopped at an opening in the woods which overlooked the blue cream-colored Bow River.

When I arrived at Lake Louise, it was beautiful, just like in the pictures. But what the pictures don’t tell you is that there is a mass of people swarming around the lakeshore and a hotel sits right on the lake. Most pictures of the Lake just show the lake with a few boaters in the distance. When I saw it, it looked like rush hour on Lake Louise. So many people were there that no parking was available. So much so, that the Mounties were busy giving tickets to people who had parked their personal vehicles in the bus parking area. Nothing sexier than an Mountie writing a parking ticket. Especially when I can park my bike where ever I like.

A classic shot of Lake Louise and the glacier in the background. For an overcast day, there were sure a lot of people in kayaks!

See the people? See the mountains?

After visiting Lake Louise, I headed back to Johnston Campground. Returning, I saw the first climb and I was worried. It was the end of the day. Today was my first big ride. I had steadily increased my mileage by 20 miles each of the last two days, and I was not sure I could handle another increase in mileage. My worries evaporated as I realized that I was now going downhill with the River. So even the bigger hills I had ridden on my way to Lake Louise would be easy. Overall it was an easy cruise back to Johnston Campground.

Along the way, I and the mass of cars traveling along Bow River Parkway pulled over twice. The first time to see a young brown bear and the second time to see an adult brown bear. The young brown bear didn’t pay any attention to us. It just went about it’s business digging for ants or bugs. The older brown bear was not so happy to see us. The tourists surged up the hill and through the trees towards the older bear. The bear seemed very concerned about the humans encroaching on its territory.