Hope

Heading East

I spent a great deal of time thinking about hope today since Hope, BC, was our destination, and it’s a pretty cool name for a town. I suppose it served as a theme for the day. It began with the hope that we would finally escape the heavy traffic extending far beyond downtown Vancouver. We rode through both Abbotsford and Chilliwack before crossing the Fraser River, finally reaching a point where the river meets the mountains. We entered a beautiful gorge that reminded us of the spectacular Columbia Gorge near our hometown of Portland, Oregon. The ride took us along the river to the town of Hope, where we arrived safe, sound, and hot—the temperature reached over 90 degrees today.

The Fraser River

I’ve also spent some time reflecting on my country and hoping that the current vitriolic conditions will soon subside. Our country is beautiful, and our bike ride across it last year showed us that Americans have much more in common than they do in differences. Although what we see in the media today may suggest otherwise, I believe that unity, kindness, and compassion are at the core of our nation and still exist. Hopefully, we can find a way to rally as a nation to circumvent the political anger and hostility that is prevalent at the moment. I am hopeful that we can learn something from our awesome northern neighbor, Canada, where, despite differences, there seems to be a culture of dignity, respect, and pride surrounding the things that make Canada unique and special.

Finally, as I stare at the mountains ahead of us, I am hoping that tomorrow’s climb of over 5,000 feet in less than 35 miles won’t be too painful. It’s early in our ride, and I don’t recall ever tackling such a climb in such a short distance—maybe Trail Ridge Road in Colorado? We feel pretty conditioned, but we know this will be a tough one.

So, here’s to Hope!

Until tomorrow.

Working our way towards the mountains.