The Climb Continues

This morning, we continued our ride through the North Cascades. The road took us through a beautiful forested region along the Similkameen River. We rode alongside the river for a while before starting a long ascent toward Sunday Summit. This climb was another grueling effort, similar to the one we faced yesterday when we ascended Allison Pass.

The roads are quite unforgiving, as there are no switchbacks to give your legs a break. It's essentially a constant seven or eight-degree incline at a pace well below four miles per hour. It can feel monotonous and frustrating until you finally reach the top of the climb, where you're rewarded with a long descent.

Descending into the Okanagan Valley

Today, after leaving Manning Park, we witnessed the devastating impact of the wildfires that wreaked havoc a few years ago. We even rode through areas where there were active wildfires. As we traveled, we saw the harsh effects of the fires, deforestation, and copper strip mining. We arrived in Princeton, BC, early, giving us plenty of time to plan for tomorrow's ride.

Tomorrow, we will attempt the KVT (Kettle Valley Trail). It’s an off-road ride along an old railroad track. Although it's only 60 miles, the entire route will be on gravel, so we anticipate spending around nine hours on the bike. It will be tough, as there are no places to stay between here and Summerland, our destination. It’s going to be a long day, so we plan to get a good night's sleep tonight and aim to start our ride by 8:00 AM, hoping to finish before sunset. Fingers crossed!

Until tomorrow!