Bob on BAC Canadian Rockies 2007

Although today's ride was going to be very short and the hotel was very inviting to stay in, I couldn't sleep past 6:30. So I got up and wandered around the grounds until breakfast at 7:00. I ate in the main restaurant with Chip and Kathy Sterling and Bill Keckler. I had French toast, orange juice and coffee.

Conservation Area

I delayed leaving as long as I could and finally rolled out at 9:30. It was warm already when I headed back down the steep hill. The route doubled back on yesterday's route for a couple of miles and then toward Invermere. Before the turn, I went over a short bridge that spanned the mighty Columbia River. It was only a creek at this point. The road was over rolling terrain through alpine meadows. It was a little rough, but very passable. I saw only about a dozen cars.

The major stop of the morning was in Invermere at the main bakery. This bakery was loaded with breads and sweets. It attracts a lot of shoppers including everyone on our ride. I had coffee and a tasty cinnamon roll and sat with Denny and Claudia Brua. Before I left, I bought a turkey sandwich to go.

The route continued on through congestion and then a high-speed highway into Radium Hot Springs. We took a right turn at the Banff sign and climbed to the toll gate for Kootenay Park. There was confusion at the gate. The clerks suggested that we wait until we got to the hotel to pay the fee because we could get a group rate when we went to pay as a group. Needless to say, we never had the opportunity to pay and we rode through the rest of the Canadian parks illegally. I don't know what might have happened if we were questioned. I suspect that we would have to pay on the spot.

I climbed another mile or two before I got to the Radium Hot Springs Lodge . Of course the rooms weren't ready so I sat outside and ate my sandwich and a banana until they were ready. There were a couple of problems at the hotel. First, the water was non-potable. We had to use bottled water from dispensers in the hallway. Second, the manager had booked a large tour group for the wrong night so the staff was really hustling to get the rooms and the meals ready. These were blessing in disguise. First, the water was very cold and tasted very good. Second, the tour group was a bus load of older Italians from Edmonton and they were having a great time. The buffet dinner was cooked for them and it had lots of pasta, veal, chicken, salads, etc. It was very filling and the quality was not too bad. Our waitress warned us about how noisy the Italians could get. We were waiting for them to break out in song, but they didn't. They had accordion music and dancing in the recreation room after dinner until 9:30. A delightful experience.

Our room was small but adequate. We were back in the park, so there was no air conditioning.

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