Getting close to the Big Smoke again!

Can definitely tell that we are close to a big city - people are talking faster, drivers are more impatient, things are more expensive and the air doesn't seem quite so crisp!  Despite that, we are still enjoying ourselves and managing to get 'off the beaten track', so to speak.  We left Downieville a few days ago - was sad to leave as it was a very mellow, slow paced and idyllic town...and had some fab riding of course.  Met lots of people there, including a couple of kiwi riders from Wellington, and felt like we knew half the town!  We ended up doing the Downieville Downhill track for a 2nd time (3rd time for Brent actually), just before we left.  Couldn't resist the temptation - was just too fun the

1st time :-)   After a fresh swim in the glorious Downieville River (see pic at bottom), we drove westwards towards the Californian coast, in anticipation of sandy beaches and having a dip in the ocean.  But, alas, the fog was in full force, and ensured temperatures were at a minimum (13 degrees - what a shock to the system!) and visibility was a mere few hundred feet.  Whizzed down the coast from Point Arena southwards, passing through some trendy and colourful villages full of hippies and organic shops.  Too cold to get out of Albert though!!  Although we did see a big colony of huge seals on the way down.
After driving around in circles for an hour or two, we finally found somewhere to stay in Marin County (one of the downsides of 'winging it' and never

booking anything!!)
Marin County is just north of San Fran, across the Golden Gate Bridge.  This place claims to be the origin of mountain biking - and has a lot of history here in terms of the first races and legendary names in the sport - the innovative people who really initiated the sport.  Today we rode 'Repack Road' - this was the location of the 1st ever mountain bike race back in the 70s.  1300 ft steep-ish descent over about 2 miles, on a  rough fire trail.  It's full of loose gravel, off camber corners and ruts.  The record is still held by famous Gary Fisher, who did it  in the seventies in 4m22sec, on a fully rigid bike with no front brakes, called a 'Klunker' (the 1st ever 'mountain bikes' - would've been scary riding one of those down the track at lightening fast pace, that's for sure).  Impressive!  Was good fun actually.
Did a bit of an explore on the bikes tonight around the local neighbourhood (San Rafael), and we seem to be one of the only people here whose 1st language is English!  This is hispanic territory and Mexican had to be tonight's dinner as a result.   I may be biased, but tostadas/tamals/burritos/fajitas/enchiladas etc all  seem to be variations on exactly the same meal!  Sloppy food and possibly not my favourite meal of choice.  Sorry to any Mexican food fans out there.  Tomorrow, we are going to check out some more trails and then head across the Golden Gate Bridge in to San Fran.  Staying with a friend in Half Moon Bay for a few days before we leave for Ecuador!  Need to clean up the van before we return it to the rental company - now THAT is going to be an epic job.  You can just imagine what it's like after 3 months of living in it... ewwwww.......

Tahoe and Downieville Mountain Biking Heaven!

Lake Tahoe was an interesting place – seemed like everyone was trying to get a piece of the 72 mile lakefront, and the invaluable views of the sparkly blue water. You could imagine how it might have been 50 years ago, with far fewer people and less mansions or private beaches lining the shores. It would have been a magical place with its cystal clear water and snow capped mountains surrounding it on all sides. However, now, it has a distinct glitzy resort feel about it, and is both appealing and repulsive, in a way! We stayed 3 nights in South Lake Tahoe town,

which straddles the Nevada and California border. We were fully planning on camping but we arrived mid-week when it is far quieter than weekends – and hoteliers are practically begging you to stay. Soooo, we found a 'el cheapo motel' that cost us peanuts, was virtually empty and looked after our needs perfectly. That is, until Friday arrived, and we disappeared when prices shot up 250% !

Did 3 excellent rides in Tahoe, on the south and east sides. First one was 23 miles and climbed about 3000 feet – a great, rocky climb that took in awesome views across the Sierra Nevada ranges and Lake Tahoe. It traversed the Rim Trail and descended down 'Mr Toads Wild Trail' – and it was wild alright. Probably the most technical long descent we've done, with rough rock gardens that were covered in slippery sand. What the heck! I did far more walking than I really wanted to do, and had several angry moments along the way! Brent was in boulder-hopping heaven! A number of fast downhiller boys flew past me on the way down...which made me feel even more like a nana!! So, the 2^nd day we did something a little more gentile, and less 'angry' yet still fun (Armstrong Connector/Sidewinder). A nice satisfying 1.5 hr circuit close to town. Left us time in the day to go for a leisurely walk and swim in Emerald Bay, which was just divine. We also treated ourselves to a night on the town, at one of the Nevada casinos. A delish buffet meal followed by a fantastic & very professional Magic show. One of the magicians was the guy who played 'the Hand' in the Addams Family movies!  Haha. Most entertaining.

The 3^rd day we ventured up the eastern side of the lake, and attempted some of the famed 'Flume Trail' which has quite a reputation in these parts! Heaps of riders on it, especially beginners, but the views were just awesome! The trail weaved its way high above the lake and busy highway, negotiating around big rocks and steep cliffs – and had fantastic vistas the whole way. We made it a bit more interesting by making it a loop along the more technical (and a lot quieter) Rim Trail. All in all, a great 23 mile, 4 hour circuit well worth doing!

We left Lake Tahoe, as the weekend crowd started to arrive, and

ventured further north to Downieville. You probably won't find it on a map, as it's literally a tiny ickle town that has about 300 residents.  It was a huge town in the 1850s, when the gold rush was happening (5th biggest town in California back then), but now it's just a little dot on the map.  It's nestled along the beautiful Yuba River valley in the Sierra Nevada ranges, and happens to have some great riding! We camped out the first 2 nights in a free campground (bonus!), which was next to Snag Lake. First day was a super-technical ride in their Lakes Basin area. Only about a 9 or 10 mile ride, but took us 2.5 hours as was so tricky & rocky! Brent had his first decent 'off' – over the handle bars moment.

Was pretty impressive, and he has a few bruises to show off now. Some stunning clear lakes along the way that were begging for you to jump in....but riding in soggy lycra just ain't cool! (riding in lycra anyways isn't that cool, really haha).

Today we are still in Downieville, and did the most AWESOME trail this morning!!!!  I think it could be our favourite so far.  It is called the Downieville Downhill, and it's 17 miles of pure downhill fun (only 1 little climb to keep you honest) - with an elevation loss of 5000 feet!  We parked at the top and flew down the trail in 1 hr 40 mins.  Kept up pretty well with a group of 4 downhiller boys who were wearing full body armour, full face helmets and riding 6 inch full suspension bikes - so was pretty happy with that.  Some good variety on the trail, with a mixture of shingle, bouders, sharp rocks, smooth dirt and a bit of 4 WD track to rest the arms for a bit.....as it definitely had its fair share of technical stuff!  Brent just loved the trail, and was busting to go on it again - so we both got the 45 mins shuttle bus up to the top, and he rode down again (in a very very fast 1 hr 10 mins...phew!) whilst I drove Albert back in to town.  Have splashed out on a river side motel room tonight, after our past few days of 'roughing it' at the primitive campground.  It's a lovely spot here in Downieville - we have a balcony over the gushing river, and the sun is streaming in to our room!  And it's 34 degrees during the day, and we have a prettiest swimming hole just outside the motel!  Gotta love it!  Aren't we very lucky indeed :-)  Not sure what we're doing tomorrow, but probably another ride, and then head towards the coast, north of San Fran.  Then we have to get to the big smoke by the end of the week, to catch our plane to Ecuador!  Hasta la vista!! xx 

Isolation in Austin and Avoiding the Crowds in Yosemite

 

Managed to get through the vast Nevada 'Great Basin' desert without too many dramas. Albert was well behaved (thank goodness- the front tyre treads are looking a bit thin!) and got up to about 12,000kms on the clock. Ended up staying in little isolated Austin for 2 nights as I came down with a rather nasty little tummy bug. Not sure why, but my stomach has been increasingly disgruntled & gurgly with the starchy and glutenous foods that are on offer here. I tell ya – it's hard to find good healthy food sometimes! Restaurant menus are invariably the same in the cheaper places (sandwiches/burgers/fries/pizzas), and bread/meat/cheese/breakfast cereals from the supermarket are fatty and sugary, and just bad quality, on the whole. Fruit and veg not bad though. We are trying to have a pretty balanced diet with what we can find! Anyway...Austin....couldn't leave the motel room for a whole day. The place had a total of 100 residents, and didn't even have a grocery store, let alone a pharmacy – so was pleased the bug passed through quickly!!  Half the buildings were empty and it had a bit of that 'ghost town' feel about it.  Brent explored the 'attractions' of this tiny little town, in the middle of nowhere (didn't take too long). Mountain biking happens to be one of their 'attractions' – and according to Brent's feedback, it was pretty average! Good to see the locals trying new ways to attract different clientele!! Not much else to report on in that town, aside from it's located on the 'Loneliest Highway in America'.....amazing that people are happy to live there in such utter remoteness – we both decided we would go nuts :-)

Drove through to the Sierra Nevada in California, after our prolonged stay in the metropolis of Austin. Checked out the limestone tufa features at Mono Lake, and found a place to stay on the shores of June Lake. Mono Lake was an interesting one – it had a few streams supplying its water, and no water leaving it, apart from evaporation – so it had twice the salinity content of the ocean. Quite a serene lake in the middle of a desert-like area. Stomach still felt decidely average and gurgly so exploration was at a minimum. Made up for it in Yosemite though!

Camped in a primitive campsite halfway through Yosemite park, with a stream for water and a drop toilet for the 1s and 2s. Swam in local lakes for washing, which was both enjoyable and invigorating (and the water was crystal-clear beautiful)! Did a nice 3 hour walk / ride on the 1^st day up to May Lake, where we enjoyed a lovely VERY fresh swim until the mozzies discovered us. Neat views of the spectacular granite domes and rock formations in the valley. Yosemite was truly a rock climbing paradise – stunning rock faces everywhere you look, and plenty of climbers making the most of the good conditions. On Monday, we ventured in to Yosemite Valley. Had heard tales of vast amounts of traffic, and congestion and queues and crammed car parks – but...it wasn't too bad. We got there early in the morning, on a Monday, and therefore avoided some of the traffic. Saw awe-inspiring El Capitan, Half Dome and the impressive Yosemite Falls (highest waterfall in Nth America). Did a 3 hour hike up to Mirror Lake and saw some magic views of the valley, and a reflection of Half Dome in the lake. No bears but did see the hugest fresh bear poop ever! Made us move a bit quicker :-)

Half Dome is very famous in climbers circles, and involves massive multi-pitch routes that take a few days to complete. We didn't do that but we did investigate the option of walking up the back of it, which involves some hiking up steep granite inclines with cables to hold on to for safety. Turns out it involves a complex permit and booking system, in order to do the walk – as it's that popular! Put us off straight away (besides, it was booked until October anyway!!), but maybe it's good that we didn't – as we heard today that someone died on the route this morning. 15th fatality of the year, in Yosemite. Not good news!

Another interesting spot we visited was Tuolemne Sequoia Grove. A small collection of the largest trees (volume-wise) on the planet. We saw Giant Sequoias that were 25 feet wide at the base of the trunk, and 2500 yrs old. They had one which was dead (but still standing), but was carved out as a tunnel in the 1800s as a way to attract tourists.  Amazing trees, and obviously very resilient – we wanted to give them a big tree hug, but weren't allowed past the barriers ...bummer....

We both really enjoyed Yosemite National Park – certainly a magnificent spot, with picture-perfect views, amazing weather, bright blue lakes, and definitely

satisfies its massive reputation. Didn't see too much wildlife though. The black bears in Yosemite were a bit more human-savvy, and know how to break in to cars if there's food inside. So, there's proper secure food storage bins at every trail head, campsite and car park. The bears can smell a packet of chips sitting on the backseat and will make every attempt to get it! $5000 fine in the park for incorrect food storage. The tourists weren't too bad - you just need to get off the beaten track! We left Yosemite today, and we are now at Lake Tahoe, which is further north, on the border of Nevada and California. Possibly comparable to Queenstown, it's the holiday spot for local San Franciscans, but it also has a vast number of mountain bike trails! Checking out one of them tomorrow. Cool.

Bonneville

Ah well, we've been there and done that now! Didn't get the T shirt though. Spent 2 days at Bonneville, in northern Utah – the mecca of land speed records. A very bizarre place – 44,000 acres of salt flats formed from the evaporation of ancient Lake Bonneville. Mirages in every direction and white ground as far as the eye can see. Apparently the salt used to be 3 feet deep, but thanks to the local salt mining company, it is now a mere inch thick in places. It's a bit of a contentious issue with the racers. The place that everyone stays overnight is called

Wendover, just down the road from the salt flats – and it's just over the border in Nevada. We got a super-cheapo motel there (owned by possibly the fattest man I have ever seen). Being in Nevada, and just across the state line, it is FULL of casinos and naughty girly bars. Nevada has very relaxed gambling laws compared to the states around it, so this is the first stop-off point for any deviant Utahns busting for a session on the pokies (or something else, for that matter).

Anyhow, the first people we bumped in to on the Bonneville start line were from NZ – random! They pointed us in the direction of a bunch of other kiwis who were working and racing at the event. So had a good old chinwag with them. One guy was the head car scrutineer (had a car number plate 'B Munro') and he took us on a tour of the pits, and gave us an insiders view on the event. Another dude was in the car, called Mike, who must have been about 80 but he showed us a photo of him with Burt Munro – Mike used to be his little helper in the pits! Cool! All sorts of vehicles, and heaps of different classes – a lot of these machines were made by normal guys who just tinker away in their garage and try new innovative adjustments to get their vehicle to get it to go as fast as possible

 (and also a few millionaires by the looks of things). They have 3 miles to race and get the vehicle up to speed, at which point their speed is measured. One group of chaps we spoke to had set a new record in their class – 325 mph! Holy smokes! Brent was in car/motorbike heaven, and was loving chatting away to like-minded enthusiasts and engine-boffins! Have to say that I did get bored after a little while, but was neat to see the event. Was very low key, not flashy, and definitely not there for entertainment (no cheerleaders!), unlike the Bandimere

Drag Racing we went to back in Colorado. Bonneville Speed Week is purely for car and motorbike enthusiasts who like to go fast – and there is no song & dance act about it. No fuss and no flashy stuff. Brent would probably write a more technical and engineering-focussed blog entry than me, but hopefully you can get the idea of what the event was like! (we were very good and didn't get sunburnt either)

On the way to Bonneville, we stopped at the Kennecott Bingham Copper Mine, near Salt Lake City. A bit of an unusual stop, but we read about it in the Lonely Planet and it sounded cool. 3 miles wide and ¾ mile deep, this was the largest man-made excavation in the world – and is visible from space! It has produced the most amount of copper in the world from a single open pit mine, and has been going since the mid-late 1800s. Obviously the landscape has changed considerably, so was amusing listening to the visitor centre video describing all the generous community projects they've been involved in, plus how much they support the environment and local flora & fauna. Propaganda and excellent PR! Actually, the visitor centre was very interesting, and showed how complex it is to extract copper. The ore only contains 1% copper which is unbelievable, but the metal is so valuable (it is used in everything that has an electrical current) that it is worth having 99% by-products and waste! Was an impressive site, with huge trucks that were the size of houses, and massive shovels that can pick up 98 tons of rock in 1 scoop. The scale of the business was phenomenal. They don't do things by halves here in the States! (as we have also learned by some of the meals we have eaten here too) :-)

So we are now on our way westwards, overnighting in Austin, Nevada - which is literally in the middle of nowhere.  Saw bugger all on the way apart from some amusing signs:

1) Report people shooting from highway

2) Look out for scorpions and snakes

3) Prison Ahead: Hitchhiking Prohibited

Funny!

Parked up in Park City!

Howdy y'all.  Hope our friends and family in NZ are enjoying the snow!!  We hear there's been a good dumping of white powder on Te Mata Peak.  Go make some snowmen!!

Well, we are in a total contrast to the winter of Hawke's Bay...it is about 29 degrees right now, and I am sitting next to a pool!  We are in Park City (a small town really), which is in northern Utah, and about 35 miles from Salt Lake City.  Found ourselves a great camping spot - only $20

a night, and the place is virtually empty - and it has a pool, spa, hot showers, a pool table, a pretty stream with lots of birdlife and shade!  Oh, what luxury we live in!  Been here for 4 days, exploring their mountain bikes trails (what a surprise).  It is a posh ski resort in winter, and a mt bike mecca (yes, another one) in summer.  About 400 miles of trails here, they reckon.  Plenty of chairlifts here too, for those with an aversion to climbing at altitude.  Done some neat rides around their ski resorts, and along their flagship track, the 'Mid Mountain Trail'.  Will head out again soon for another one - maybe to Wasatch Crest, although there's too many damn options, it takes ages for us to make up our mind! Haha.  Also been to the Sunday 'Park Silly' market which must be the only market I've been to where you can get a Bloody Mary at 10am.  Last night we went out for a nice meal with an acquaintance of Brent's sister - a lovely lady called Diane, who was a fountain of knowledge when it came to local insider advice! 
Before we got here to Park City, we stayed 1 night in Idaho.  Bit of a shame to fly through the 'Potato State' (this is their motto apparently, as indicated on their car numberplates).  However we happened to arrive in Idaho Falls when there was heaps of events on in town - including a jet boat / speed boat drag race down their Snake River.  We had to watch that, and hang out with the boguns for awhile - however only for about 10 minutes as drag racing on boats just isn't that exciting as a spectator!  However they had a fast car / antique car show on at the same time, so that was ok.  Lots of red Corvettes.  Think that'll be my next car :-) Yeh right.  We also visited their Museum of Idaho, which had a display of 'Bodies' -  difficult to explain, but full figures of human bodies showing the intracies of it - and how complex we truly are.  Real bodies were used for the exhibition - brought in from Chinese Authorities - does that sound dodgy to you??!!  We thought so, but they assured us it was all legit.

So, next stop is Bonneville, for the Salt Flat Racing.  This is where land speed records are made - remember Burt Munro and his Indian?  That's the one.  Need to put sun lotion on everywhere at this event - under your nose, under your chin, up your skirt (haha), as apparently it's hot, hot, hot and the sun reflects off the salt on to everything.  Plan to stay there for 2 days. 

Then, we'll cruise across Nevada, and make our way towards Yosemite and Lake Tahoe/Reno.  Only a few more weeks of exploring this part of the States, and then we're off to Ecuador!  Adios amigos x

Cruising through Montana

 

Glacier National Park definitely lived up to expectations. I know I talk about mountains a lot – but these ones truly were spectacular! I think the snow capped peaks really make them picturesque, as well as the serene lakes in front of them. Bit of a sad place though. Glacier National Park celebrated its 100 year anniversary a few years ago – however, wasn't much of a party. When the park was officially opened in 1909, it had 150 glaciers. Now it has 25, and they are pretty measly (we just saw 1 from a distance). They are melting away very rapidly, and its anticipated that there will be none left by 2030. What will the park be called then? Made us realise that we are very lucky to have Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers in NZ – although they are receding slowly too.

Glacier National Park has a spectacular drive which runs through it, called 'Road to the Sun' (skectchy and narrow in places) – which had to be done, and was definitely beautiful, but the tourists cluttered our experience, so we kept moving. Went to 'Big Mountain Ski Resort' which is just near Whitefish. Got a couple of chairlifts up the mountain along with our bikes, and whizzed back down. The 2^nd run was fantastic – included a 3 mile single track which took us up to the top of the mountain, followed by a berm/jump/switchback filled descent which fully demanded 100% attention. Lush and fun for both of us!

Overnighted in a cheap campground on the shores of Flathead Lake, near BigFork. $12 a night. Bargain! Located near an Indian reservation, there were cherry stalls every ½ mile or so. Filled up on yummy cherries – seems to be a big form of income for the local Indians. Next day we travelled even further south to Butte (pronounced Bute!). Stopped on the way at Helena, which is the capital of Montana – and just about the most slow-paced and mellow capital we've come across! Did a 2 hour ride there, called Mt Helena Ridge. Not at all technical, but nice views and cruisy climbing. Brent called it 'ok' (which means it wasn't very exciting haha).

Arrived in Butte and caught up on some chores on the Net, in a motel. Haven't had much online time lately, as have been sleeping in the van a lot. Really needed to do some planning! Due to our initial visa problems (see 1^st entry!) we have to leave the country by 5^th Sept, which is when our 90 day ESTA visa waiver expires. Long story, but our travel agent gave us incorrect advice back when we booked our flights – but they are recitifying the situation by flying us to Quito, Ecuador (where we are staying for 8 days) and then flying us back to San Fran. This is the only way we can explore more of the States!! American customs won't let us go to Mexico or Canada, and come back.....crazy isn't it! But we have to follow the rules. Anyway, lots of planning to do....and even though we aren't doing what we originally planned (a 4.5 month road trip), hopefully it'll all fall in to place and we get to go to Sth America too!! Should be back in NZ by mid-late October.

Butte was a pretty neat town. Was booming in the late 1800s and early 1900s, as the premier mining town in Montana. Was called the 'Richest Hill on Earth'. Now it's a fascinating historical town filled with mining relics and old red-brick style buildings. Its roots and original immigrants were from Ireland and Cornwall – so the Cornish Pasty is a staple food there! I ate it in a old-style cafe we went to. Met a local historian there who wouldn't stop talking and gave us the full background on the city. A tour guide for free! Visited their Mining Museum which was actually quite interesting, and jammed with old machinery (more Brent's scene than mine). The life of a miner was pretty hard! Made us appreciate being above ground :-)

Feel like it was a bit of a flying visit back through Montana, but we enjoyed the stay. Will remember it as the state of pine trees, pine trees and more pine trees! They were everywhere!  After a speedy cruise control trip down the freeway (130 kph, nonstop for 3 hours on a very quiet road) we are now in 'Idaho Falls' - our 1 and only night in Idaho....before we get back in to Utah in time for Bonneville :-) Au revoir family and friends, til next time x

Good times in Canada

Randomly enough, I am writing this from a carpark, outside the Bomber Command Museum of Canada (full of  old fighter planes etc)...I have no idea where we are, but Brent screeched to a stop to go in and have a look.  And oddly enough I found a free WiFi connection in their carpark.  Oh, the things we do!!

Hello Canada, Bye bye Canada...a flying visit, but we enjoyed the stay! We only stayed in the new country for 4 nights, but enjoyed every minute. After we visited Radium Hot Springs, we drove northeast to Canmore, on the edge of Banff National Park. A spectacular area with sheer, rocky mountains that just command your attention! Lots of fast-flowing rivers full of glacial melt that glow a sparkly pale blue that is reminiscent

of Tekapo Lake near Mt Cook in NZ. And oodles of pine trees! Very beautiful in summer and possibly stunning in winter with all the snow, I imagine. Although didn't stay long enough to find out unfortunately:-)

We stayed 3 nights in Canmore. Definitely a very pretty, trendy and popular (read, expensive) little town – although nowhere near as touristy as Banff. We stopped at Banff on the way through to Canmore, and we were scared! The volume of bustling tourists was a bit daunting. However, you can see why they visit there, with the town surrounded by stunning rocky mountains. Sort of reminded us of Queenstown.

Our friend Brendan was staying with some mates of his in Canmore, and they very generously offered for us to use one of their car parks in the back of the house, to sleep in Alby and use their house facilities! Thanks heaps Meghan, Alex and Finn!! The 1^st day there, Alex and Brendan took us on a ride that they warned us would be 'possiblty quite tiring & long'. UMMMMM....well, they were accurate in their description, although 'super epic' and 'f-in difficult' might have been more appropriate.  Haha :-) Seriously though, we really enjoyed it, and appreciated having 2 locals show us the most adventurous ride in town! Lusk Pass, JumpingPound Ridge and Cox Hill Ridge, I think the trails were called. 56 kms and 7 hours we were out, which included 1800 metres of climbing. Seriously technical, tricky climbing with big rocks, switchbacks, tree roots and loose gravel (difficult for me anyway!). And a few gnarly descents to keep it even more exciting! I had a nice fall on the 1st bouldery rocky descent, which was totally dumb, but had me a little shaken up. Nice few bruises in random places, and a broken thumbnail which spurted blood, and an attractive lumpy grazed knee....but nothing broken! PHEW. Onwards and downwards. Had some superb (well- deserved) views on the way too, and Brent / Brendan came across a black bear cub on the way down too! An absolutely fantastic ride, full of blood, sweat and (nearly) tears – so a big thanks to the boys for taking us on a memorable adventure!

After the epic ride, we all

went out to a BBQ at another house – the home of Christy and Joel, who also live in Canmore. Nice evening and had a BBQ'd chicken with a can of beer up its bum (a Canadian tradition or something haha). Yum, and thanks to the hosts for feeding our hungry tummies.

Rest day (obviously) on Monday, so visited some of the popular local tourist sites, including beautiful Lake Louise and picturesque

Moraine Lake. Had to get the obligatory photos! Saw an elk on the drive back which had the largest antlers we've ever seen.  Also visited the Banff Hot Springs which was lovely but a tad jammed with tourists. A soak was much needed for the aching body though.

Today is Tuesday. Started off by going for a cheeky little 2 hour spin with Brendan. Up in to the Canmore Nordic Centre, where cross country skiers train year round, and local mountain bikers go riding after work. Nice, fun trails, but I think I rode like a nana, thanks to the bruises and memory of the fall. Brent and Brendan were very difficult to keep up with! Speedy gonzalezes.  Thanks Brendan for showing us around!

So, off down south again now. We have a date in about 4 or 5 days to get to Bonneville (northern Utah) for the Salt Flat racing! So, next stop is Glacier National Park which is just inside Montana. Meant to be stunning. Ta-ra for now! 

In Canada, aye!

After a very short but sweet trip though Montana, we have suddenly ended up in a brand new country.  Canada!  The land of the canucks (and maple syrup- yum).
We spent 3 days and 3 nights in Montana - and did 3 awesome rides whilst we were there.  Montana can pretty much be described as pine trees, mountains, rivers, pine trees, mountains, rivers...etc.  Beautiful state, and very sparsely populated compared to others.  And funnily enough, a lot less fat people too - everyone looked trim, outdoorsy and healthy!
First stop was Bozeman.  Have heard it described

as the yuppie town of Montana (by fellow Montana-ans) - but we thought it was a very appealing & friendly place.  There happened to be an organic Farmers Market on whilst we were there, and also a 'Community Safety Fair' which we visited and scored heaps of free stuff (was really aimed at kids, but we didn't care, we got ourselves loads of stickers & plastic nik-nak things now)!!  The fair included demo's from the cops, ambulance crew, armed forces (heaps of guns for kids to 'try out'! what the heck), etc etc - and one of the stalls was even giving away free Bell helmets to all the kids.  We were impressed with that. 
Did a neat ride the next day up to Emerald Lake (see pics) - absolutely stunning scenery at the top - a lake sitting in a large natural amphitheatre.  However the biting mozzies curtailed our much needed rest at the top.  Damn insects! Met lots of cool people on the ride too.  These Montana folk seem mighty friendly, and very laid back!
Next stop - Missoula.  Another small & quiet little town with the busiest pub ever.  Went there for dinner on a Wed night and it was packed.  Half the town must have been there.  Probably ate the biggest salad I have ever eaten in my life.  Kept trying to remind myself that lettuce is mostly water!!  Haha.  Also did a ride there called Spring Gulch, which was a couple hours long and involved a hefty climb and some pretty sweet single track.  No bears sighted on this ride :-)  Haven't had to use the bear spray yet thank goodness!
Drove further north again up to Whitefish.  Didn't actually see the town at all, as bypassed it to a remote campground next to Tally Lake.  Stunning area, and nice warm-ish water to swim in.  Plus was located near to our next chosen ride...'Reid's Divide' trail.  1000 metres of climbing on dirt track, followed by a massive descent on single track.  Didn't see a single person on this ride!!  Felt very remote.  Would've been perfect apart from the 25 or so trees that were down on the  downhill track, which we had to stop and clamber over.  Ah well....still very enjoyable though.
So, now we are in Canada.  Crossed the border yesterday in pouring rain and loud thunderous conditions...and stayed in Radium Hot Springs last night.  So far Canada seems very beautiful - once again, a lot of pine trees, mountains and rivers!  Brent has gone out on his bike, and I am thinking I will now go and pay the hot pools a visit.  It'd be rude not to, aye!!  (the  NZ 'ayes' fit in perfectly to Canadian speak)  Off to Canmore (Banff area) today, as our friend Brendan lives up there, so going to stay there for a couple of days and check out their famous trails!  Looking forward to staying in 1 town for a few days.  Adios from E & B

Grand Tetons and Jellystone

 

So much has happened the past 4 days, I don't know where to start!

We arrived in to Grand Teton National Park on a beautiful blue-sky morning; welcomed by a spectacular view of the tall granite spires that make up the Grand Tetons mountain range. Snow capped and striking, it was hard to stop gazing at them. Spent 2 nights there, in a quiet campground next to Jackson Lake. The National Parks in the States are really well set up for visitors and fully prepared for educating us clueless tourists. We went along to one of their evening Ranger programmes, about Bears & their interaction with humans, and was really interesting! Have to admit, the National Park Service are doing a damn fine job, and the rangers are so enthusiastic about their jobs, & eager to chat to you. The next day, armed with our new 'pepper spray Bear Repellent' (super strength), we ventured out for a nice 4 hour hike / bike ride up near Emma Matilda Lake. Brent had the Bear Spray attached to his belt, hanging off him like a pistol. We heard some animals rustling in the bush partway through our walk, and Brent instinctively goes straight for the spray (made me jump a mile) – only to realise it was just a group of mule deer. Ah well – at least we know he has quick reactions! We still have plenty of 'grizzly country' coming up in our travels.

Moved northwards to Yellowstone National Park – a mere 20 miles up the road. This is THE place to do wildlife spotting. It's funny, people drive around all day looking for the slightest movement in the bush, from the safety of their huge 4WD vehicles. If 1 car pulls over the side of the road, all other cars slow down, and some stop – and it's like a mass frenzy to spot the animals, with their huge big lens cameras and binoculars. Turns in to a big traffic jam. Highly entertaining. During our travels in Yellowstone we saw 1 moose (apparently very elusive and difficult to spot, so we were lucky with that one), 4 black bears, heaps of big hairy bison, some native Yellowstone cutthroat trout facing upstream in some rapids, lots of elk and mule deer, and pronghorn (aka antelope) as well. Didn't see any grizzlies though! Yellowstone gets a whopping 30,000 visitors a day traipsing through the park. Even though it is a huge park, the only way to get away from the crowds is to go for a walk. Et voila! All the crowds disappear. Surprise, surprise. We did that today, on a 2.5 hour hike to 'Beaver Ponds', which was just bliss! Didn't see any beavers though....

The other side to Yellowstone is all the thermal activity – it sits on a very volatile piece of land which spits, steams and hisses all the time. The park contains half of the world's geysers, including 'Old Faithful', so named because it spouts huge volumes of water on a predictable and regular basis. Cruising along in Albert, we just happened to turn up to the big tourist site of Old Faithful about 1 minute before it set off. Great timing! Also saw lots of beautiful, brightly coloured thermal terraces, mud pools, fumaroles and some very unique geological features. It is definitely a spectacular park; it is getting close to a perfectly balanced & natural ecosystem where wild animals can freely roam, and has lots of unusual attractions, but we found the crowds a bit full-on. So, have moved on to quiet, remote and sparsely populated Montana, In the cruisy, hippy and laid back town of Bozeman at the moment. Off to check out their mountain bike trails tomorrow!