Day 10 (Banff to Lake Louise)

After a night of light drizzle, we woke to morning of sunshine, packed up the camp, and headed off to Lake Louise.  It's an easy drive from Banff to Lake Louise, but once there...OMG, the traffic, it's packed!  And I mean PACKED with cars, tour buses, motorcycles, and anything else mobile.  However, the scenery is worth it...

Major $$$ to stay here...

We did find some parking...you may have noticed I've picked up a riding mate.  Meet Wally, not really sure how the name came about, just started calling him that.  Anyway, I came across him in Banff, he seemed like a good fit for the back of the bike, and he's been riding with me since (seems folks approve, as he gets a lot of 'thumbs ups' on the road).

Horse stables on the way up to the hotel

A glimpse of the front of the hotel.

Mountains in the backdrop are awesome!

Photo op!

Lake Louise in back of the hotel.

The back of the hotel, facing the lake, talk about 'a room with a view'!  Shops and restaurants are on the bottom.

Another view

After spending a couple hours at Lake Louise it was back to the campsite and BBQing for the evening.

As a footnote, I must add, that I thought Lake Louise was somewhat anticlamatic.  I'd seen the pics before we embarked on this trip and when I was actually standing there, it felt as if I was looking at a pic.  Beautiful, but too commercialized.  

Day 9 (Longview to Banff)

Morning in Longview greeted us with sunshine!  It was to be a fabulous day of riding!

We hit the road early, clouds still hanging low in the valleys.

When we checked into our motel the night before, the owner was telling us of the river floods that had hit them the year before.  Here is evidence, with a bridge that had been washed out.  We detoured around it.

Leaving the valley floor, the climb into the mountains was scenic to the front...

...and scenic to the rear...actually scenic all around!

Scott leading the way into the mountains.

First stop in Banff, was to set up camp.

Our campsite view to a lake.

Walking down the path, here's what awaits!

After checking out our campsite, it was off to the city of Banff.

Touristy place for sure, with all the trappings, from tour buses to carraiges.

Scott being interviewed for what appeared to be a Banff promo flick.  

We decided to take a tour of the town, stopping by what turned out to be the Parks Administration building, at the end of town.

Here's a view of Banff's Main Street from the Park's Administration building.

The rain decided to visit us again, but snagged a nice double rainbow pic, before heading back to our campsite.

Back at camp we thought we'd enjoy a nightcap down by the lake.  Opening my wine bottle, the corkscrew broke...time to 'Improvise, Adapt, & Overcome'.  Scott used the vice grips in his tool kit to save the day...thank you Scott!

Scott with his Stoli Vodka, me with a nice Malbec.

Pretty tough to beat this...

...Life Is Good!

It began to drizzle, so we moved back to camp, for some campfire ambiance.

Day 8 (Glacier Nat'l Park, MT to Longview, Alberta Canada)

We were awaken around midnight by the cracking of thunder and the beginings of a late night thunderstorm.  Bikes were covered and back to bed.  The next morning brought sunshine and a beautiful day to begin our trek up the Going-To-The-Sun Road...famous in Glacier Nat'l Park.  

On the way out of the cammpground I spotted this vehicle, updated replicas of what was used to transport tourists around the park 'back in the day'.  The girl standing by the vehicle is the driver and in talking to her, she said the 'old' vehicles used to be equipped with manual transmissions.  I can't imagine driving one of these, with a manual tranny, on these roads!

If you only have one day in GNP, the historic Going-To-The-Sun Road is a must!  Built in 1932, the road traverses the heart of the park, and delights every sense.  You'll experience flowing creeks/waterfalls, glacier carved canyons, towering peaks, and cliff hugging roads...on the bike, it is awesome!

Here are some pics from the ride:

Obligatory tunnel pic...

Twisty, cliff hugging roads...

Glacier carved canyons...

Towering peaks...

Flowing creeks...

...and waterfalls.

Visitor center at the top of the Going-To-The-Sun Road.

Proof I was there...

Heading down the backside of the Going-To-The-Sun Road was even more incredible.  The photo opportunities are endless, here's a couple more of my favorites.  Waterfalls are found throughout the park.  Hiking would be incredible here!

Tunnel pic looking back up the hill with majestic views of the 'peaks and valleys'.

Nothing like an outdoor 'shower'!

Before exiting GNP, we took Many Glacier Road back to check out the hotel and views.  It did not disappoint.  

We had lunch in the hotel and enjoyed the views from the rear of the hotel.

There's a story associated with this next pic.  You are probably noticing the cows, but it's the ice/hail on the road that made for an exciting ride!  We were on Hwy 17, 14 miles south of the Canadian border, when the skies turned black ahead of us.  Hey, we've got expensive KLIM gear, so full steam ahead...NOT!  In a matter of minutes we found ourselves not only in a torrential downpour, but being assaulted by inch sized hail.  I had to pull over, as it felt as if the face shield on my helmet would shatter at any moment.  We decided to retreat to a cafe about 10 minutes behind us.  We discussed options, but in the end, after about an hours wait, we decided to try it again.  Upon reaching the spot were we had retreated, in the picture below, we found a downed tree, branches littering the ground, hail ice covering the road, and these cows paying us little attention.  

But through sheer determination, we persevered, and make our border crossing...

We are now in Canada!

Our original destination for the night was a campground in Pincher Creek, BC.  However, we decided to continue on, eventually posting up at a motel in Longview, BC.  It wasn't long after we settled in that the rains began.

Day 7 (Rathdrum, ID to Glacier National Park, Montana)

After a much needed 2 days of R&R, it was an early morning departure from Scott's place in Rathdrum.  Destination...Glacier National Park in Montana.

The cool thing about traveling on motorcycles, is that people are inquisitive about your bike and your travels.  Kids think bikes are just cool, women are reminded of past travels with husbands or boyfriends, and the men are either still riding, wish they could ride, or eager to share memories of rides they've taken, from days gone by.  I mostly enjoy the conversations with the older guys.  You can see it in their eyes, as they reminisce about their travels from another time, and you can sense how special it was to them.  It's these guys that you really connect with.

This is Erik, who we met while fueling up in Troy, MT.  He's a transplanted Californian (maybe you can tell), retired in Troy, and approached us with the standard converation..."Hi, nice bikes, where are you from, where are you headed, I used to ride..."

Driving in northern Idaho and Western Montana, I am somewhat reminded of my roots in Iowa.  You travel through smaller, eclectic towns, that seem to be from a time alien to what I've become accustom to living in Southern California, specifically LA.

Here is Libby, MT or "Eagle City", the moniker they've given to themselves.  I'm assuming there is a reason for the nickname, but the only eagles we saw, were the many large, metal eagle sculptures, scattered about the small town.  

About 5 hours after leaving Scott's place in Idaho, we arrive at our destination for the day, Glacier Nation Park.  

Shortly after our 'photo op', at the entrace to Glacier, a group of girls pulled up asking if we would take their picture.   I asked if they'd like to sit on the bikes for the pic...OMG, you'd have thought they had just been informed they'd won the lottery!  Within seconds, they were all positioned for pics.  Mormon girls sure excite easily...

How could I refuse?  ;-))

We had a couple hours to waste while we waited for our cabin to be ready, so it was off to explore Glacier...waterfalls everywhere!

Pics just don't do the following pics justice, I've some vids, which are pretty cool, but with the limited wifi access, I'll have to post those later.

Another of the endless waterfalls in Glacier National Park.

For me, one of the funnest things about traveling, is the people you get to interact with.  Gene and I hit it off right away.  He's in his 70's, retired in his 60's, lives in Boise, ID, but has been coming to Glacier National Park's KOA Campground, to BBQ for travelers for 10 years!  This guy is a 'character' and we were best friends immediately.  Here's Gene 'at home' in front of his BBQ, truly love's what he does, and does it 3 months every year!

Easily one of the tastiest ribeye steaks I've ever had...thanks Gene!

Scott and I enjoying Gene's delicious fare...with a nice Scottish Stout!

Then a bit of after dinner decadence, pared with an offering of Montana's own Amber Ale!