Ride Day #8 - From Golden into Grim....

From Golden into Grim....This turned out to be an extreme days in more ways than one. We had an ambitious aim at the outset: get over the highest point of the trip - Kicking Horse Pass at the border of BC and Alberta - and then descend but for a long distance, attempting not only the highest climb but also 160km distance as we sought Canmore. The morning was hard, with a big climb out of Golden, but then it got harder still with cold rain and snow. We met Debbie and Glen in Field, warmed our toes and, after changing socks, I put my feet in thin bags to try and keep them dry. It snowed hard through the ascent to Kicking Horse Pass but then, we reasoned, the weather would chill out a bit on the descent, enabling us to make it to Canmore in increasing sunshine. Not so! The snow and freezing rain intensified as we descended, so we called it about 20K earlier than Canmore, stopping our first full week of riding in Banff. We couldn't have made it this far this fast without Debbie and Glen's support along the way. And we are so grateful to all those who have encouraged. Thank you!Read more