Day 8 - Pincher Creek to Waterton National Peace Park (July 7)

A rest day

Today was a good day. The east wind yesterday that had caused me so much grief had brought in clouds. To me it almost looked like fog - the clouds were really low. It was probably 60 - 70 degrees Fahrenheit. The wind was generally at my back. It was overcast and a few rain drops fell (no more than 10 drops). I stopped and chatted with a couple who were on a guided tour. They were from Oakland. They took a photo of my fully loaded bike.

Scenery Along the Way to Waterton

Arriving in Waterton at around 10 a.m., I stayed at the Waterton Township Campsite - near the water and far away from the RVs, but surrounded by prairie dog mounds. Lots of chirping.

When I arrived there were only 2 “walk-in” tent sites. It was a nice site right next to the prairie dogs. It was so cloudy that the top of the peaks were not visible. The clouds were so low that they obscured at least two-thirds of the mountain.

My Prairie Dog Neighbors

I met Jim at my campsite. He too was a minister (Pastor) from the United Church of Canada. He was from Winnipeg, Manitoba. He was doing a small ride around the area while his three girls and his wife were at the Calgary Stampede. He said that he knew of the minister I met in Pincher Creek.

I ate at Subway to get out of the cold and ran into Jim again. I took a nice 2 hour nap while listening to a local station that was playing Jazz. The weather was still cool. Something was also different - there was no wind. The Waterton Lakes lie in the narrow gap between two mountain ranges. Typically, the wind whips through these mountains. This causes the lake to have whitecaps. It is rare that the lake surface is smooth. During my visit, however, the lake was very calm and in the mornings the lake surface was glassy smooth.

Later on I walked over to the beach where I surprised Jim who was sleeping - he thought I was a bear. This is understandable. Early on Jim had decided to climb a mountain called the “Bear Hump.“ It’s supposed to be shaped like the back of a bear. The trail was busy, but not busy or noisy enough to cause bears to stay away. Jim hiked by himself.  At times, he was all by himself. So when finally came across a grizzly bear, he decided that it was best just to back down the trail slowly.

So when I told Jim I was going to hike to Bertha Falls, he was more than willing to join me. It was a nice hike. Stopped at the overlook where I left my jacket. Jim and I walked up to the Falls and down again, but I had to return to overlook by myself . A black bear had been spotted in the area. Previously that morning, I had spoken with an outgoing gentleman from Durango, Colorado who had told me “horror” stories of how this bear had become a menace to the town. So I was somewhat worried as I rushed back to the overlook to get my jacket. I ran into a number of people along the way, but none had seen the jacket. When I arrived, the jacket was still there. I made back to the campsite without encountering any bear whatsoever.

This was not the first time I would leave my jacket somewhere. I also left my jacket in Quang Ngai in Vietnam. It was much harder to get the jacket back in Vietnam, but I didn't have to risk stumbling across a grizzly bear to get it.

I met two recumbent bike tourists from Vermont who made part of their living cycling and writing. They had written about cycling in Canada and in Cuba.

Day 8 - Pincher Creek to Waterton National Peace Park - 37 miles