The riding day starts out like any other riding day - with a trip to the dentist to fix a cracked filling...
My appointment is at 7AM, which is perfect, because it allows me to get a head start after my little procedure, beating the morning rush hour and getting as much riding done before the afternoon heat arrives. It's supposed to reach 30°C later on in the day. Not too bad.
Sitting in the dentist's chair, shot up full of Novocaine and in full motorcycle gear... I feel very out of place. Can't wait get to get back on the bike.
All goes well, and I leave town with nothing more than a numb mouth and tongue. Dentist says the anesthetic should wear off in a couple of hours, which should be perfect timing for an early lunch.
My route is north-westbound, over the Nicola Valley towards Lillooet. I've been out that way a dozen times over the last few years, but there are many different ways to get there. One route I haven't taken yet is Hwy 8 through Spences Bridge to Lytton, but due to the extreme flooding last summer, that road is now washed away. Instead, I'm staying on 97C through Logan Lake and Ashcroft, I've never done this road before.
The Okanagan Connector to Merritt is a high elevation mountain pass, but it's pretty straight, high-speed and boring. Typically, I'd take 5A to Kamloops, which is a scenic ride down the Nicola Valley, but instead, I turn north-west towards Logan Lake, piloting the bike through the 80 km/h sweepers of Highland Valley Road. I like this one! I'll have to bookmark this road and come back again.
Tailing pond
There's several mining operations in the Highland Valley, just pass Logan Lake. The valley is actually an ancient volcanic crater and the landscape off the highway is cut away in stages, like inverse layers of an upside down wedding cake. The area around here is rich in copper. A tailing pond north of Twenty Four Mile Lake reveals the dregs of the mining operation.
I drop into Ashcroft, which is nestled at the base of the Black Canyon, carved by the Thompson River
The landscape here is arid, very much like the desert scenery down in the South-West United States. It's still early enough that the temperatures are holding around 22°C. Still a very pleasant and comfortable ride. I had planned to stop in Ashcroft for lunch, but the anesthetic hasn't worn off yet. I'd like to actually taste my food, so I forge on, despite my stomach rumbling louder than the flat-twin engine beneath me.
Tiny hamlet of Lillooet
An hour later, and I'm in Lillooet and the last of the Novocaine has made its way out of my system. Thank god, because it's noon and I'm starving, but I've made pretty good time. Usually when I'm here, I head straight for Subway, but I saw a long lineup of people at this bakery that I rode by, so I decide to check it out.
Abundance Artisan Bakery
Really good sandwiches! Glad I stopped here instead of Subway. I just found a new favorite spot to eat in the area!
I'm here much earlier than I expected. My rest stop for the night is in Pemberton, which is just only an hour away and I have hours to kill before sunset. Tomorrow, I was planning on meeting my buddy from Vancouver and we were going to do some trails between Lillooet and Pemberton, but I think I'll just run them in reverse today and do them over again tomorrow!
From Lillooet, I head back north and take the back roads following the Fraser River till a turn-off- follows the tributary, Bridge River.
Bridge River
I've done this route before almost exactly 10 years ago, when we first started out on our big trip around the world: Highline Trail to Lillooet
To my surprise, most of the road between Lillooet and Seton-Portage is paved. I could have sworn this was all gravel the last time I ran through here
High walls all around me as I follow the shores of Bridge River
I'm a little bit disappointed, as I rode all the way out here with my GS to hit some nice off-road trails. There are a few stretches of gravel, but about 70% of the road between Lillooet and Seton-Portage is fresh pavement. Still, the scenery is fantastic and it feels good to get some nice leans in at speed.
There's a short tunnel at Terzaghi Dam, where Bridge River flows into Carpenter Lake. Here's where the fun really starts as the asphalt disappears and I can now let my rear tire break loose a little on the well-graded gravel road.
Tunnel at Terzaghi Dam
I've done this road going north the last time I was out here, but running this route southbound in reverse is a bit different. There are a series of switchbacks between Terzaghi Dam and Seton-Portage which are really fun to blast up-hill, but now that I'm going downhill, every 180° turn at the end of a slippery gravel slope is basically like I'm hurtling towards a brick wall. I need to keep my downhill speeds in check, otherwise I'm sliding nose-first into a cliff wall, or over the edge of a turn without any guardrails!
At Seton-Portage, I stop for a quick drink and a break at the Highline Pub. This area is populated by theTsal'alh First Nations community, and there is artwork decorating some of the BC Hydro underpasses:
These pipes carry water from Carpenter Lake to the BC Hydro's Bridge River Substation power generators.
From Seton, I hop on the Highline Trail, which is the destination road for this trip. The Highline is a service road which runs about 200m above Lake Anderson and is primarily used by BC Hydro trucks to service the transmission towers that run along the lake.
Oh yeah, also, I saw a couple of bears. The first one was a black bear, I came across him just as I was rounding a switchback and he quickly sprinted away, which is normal for black bears. I didn't have my camera running when I saw the second bear... a Grizzly! OMG. Those ones can be vicious, but that grizz also ran away when he hear the rumble of the mighty Beemer! I guess he didn't want to get into a Boxing match...
Bear at the 1:02 mark!
This road is just as good as I remembered it. I don't think they'll ever pave it, which is a good thing. The only tricky part is trying to keep your eyes on the trail and not be distracted by the gorgeous lake just over the cliff's edge. It's a loooong way down!
Riding along the BC Hydro transmission lines
Just off the trail, I saw an abandoned bus, and stopped to check it out
R U home, Chris McCandless?
At the south end of the Highline Trail, lies the tiny town of D'arcy.
A little lawn art welcomes visitors to D'arcy and is a gentle and humourous reminder that this is indeed bear country!
The most prominent feature in town is the boat loading area where you can jump off the docks and go for a swim in the clean, blue waters of Anderson Lake. Temps have risen up to 28°C, so that's exactly what I plan to do!
"You wait here, Ima gonna go for a quick dunk!"
Thankfully nobody around so I stripped down and quickly got my swim trunks on
WAHOOOOO!!!!
My appointment is at 7AM, which is perfect, because it allows me to get a head start after my little procedure, beating the morning rush hour and getting as much riding done before the afternoon heat arrives. It's supposed to reach 30°C later on in the day. Not too bad.
Sitting in the dentist's chair, shot up full of Novocaine and in full motorcycle gear... I feel very out of place. Can't wait get to get back on the bike.
All goes well, and I leave town with nothing more than a numb mouth and tongue. Dentist says the anesthetic should wear off in a couple of hours, which should be perfect timing for an early lunch.
My route is north-westbound, over the Nicola Valley towards Lillooet. I've been out that way a dozen times over the last few years, but there are many different ways to get there. One route I haven't taken yet is Hwy 8 through Spences Bridge to Lytton, but due to the extreme flooding last summer, that road is now washed away. Instead, I'm staying on 97C through Logan Lake and Ashcroft, I've never done this road before.
The Okanagan Connector to Merritt is a high elevation mountain pass, but it's pretty straight, high-speed and boring. Typically, I'd take 5A to Kamloops, which is a scenic ride down the Nicola Valley, but instead, I turn north-west towards Logan Lake, piloting the bike through the 80 km/h sweepers of Highland Valley Road. I like this one! I'll have to bookmark this road and come back again.
Tailing pond
There's several mining operations in the Highland Valley, just pass Logan Lake. The valley is actually an ancient volcanic crater and the landscape off the highway is cut away in stages, like inverse layers of an upside down wedding cake. The area around here is rich in copper. A tailing pond north of Twenty Four Mile Lake reveals the dregs of the mining operation.
I drop into Ashcroft, which is nestled at the base of the Black Canyon, carved by the Thompson River
The landscape here is arid, very much like the desert scenery down in the South-West United States. It's still early enough that the temperatures are holding around 22°C. Still a very pleasant and comfortable ride. I had planned to stop in Ashcroft for lunch, but the anesthetic hasn't worn off yet. I'd like to actually taste my food, so I forge on, despite my stomach rumbling louder than the flat-twin engine beneath me.
Tiny hamlet of Lillooet
An hour later, and I'm in Lillooet and the last of the Novocaine has made its way out of my system. Thank god, because it's noon and I'm starving, but I've made pretty good time. Usually when I'm here, I head straight for Subway, but I saw a long lineup of people at this bakery that I rode by, so I decide to check it out.
Abundance Artisan Bakery
Really good sandwiches! Glad I stopped here instead of Subway. I just found a new favorite spot to eat in the area!
I'm here much earlier than I expected. My rest stop for the night is in Pemberton, which is just only an hour away and I have hours to kill before sunset. Tomorrow, I was planning on meeting my buddy from Vancouver and we were going to do some trails between Lillooet and Pemberton, but I think I'll just run them in reverse today and do them over again tomorrow!
From Lillooet, I head back north and take the back roads following the Fraser River till a turn-off- follows the tributary, Bridge River.
Bridge River
I've done this route before almost exactly 10 years ago, when we first started out on our big trip around the world: Highline Trail to Lillooet
To my surprise, most of the road between Lillooet and Seton-Portage is paved. I could have sworn this was all gravel the last time I ran through here
High walls all around me as I follow the shores of Bridge River
I'm a little bit disappointed, as I rode all the way out here with my GS to hit some nice off-road trails. There are a few stretches of gravel, but about 70% of the road between Lillooet and Seton-Portage is fresh pavement. Still, the scenery is fantastic and it feels good to get some nice leans in at speed.
There's a short tunnel at Terzaghi Dam, where Bridge River flows into Carpenter Lake. Here's where the fun really starts as the asphalt disappears and I can now let my rear tire break loose a little on the well-graded gravel road.
Tunnel at Terzaghi Dam
I've done this road going north the last time I was out here, but running this route southbound in reverse is a bit different. There are a series of switchbacks between Terzaghi Dam and Seton-Portage which are really fun to blast up-hill, but now that I'm going downhill, every 180° turn at the end of a slippery gravel slope is basically like I'm hurtling towards a brick wall. I need to keep my downhill speeds in check, otherwise I'm sliding nose-first into a cliff wall, or over the edge of a turn without any guardrails!
At Seton-Portage, I stop for a quick drink and a break at the Highline Pub. This area is populated by theTsal'alh First Nations community, and there is artwork decorating some of the BC Hydro underpasses:
These pipes carry water from Carpenter Lake to the BC Hydro's Bridge River Substation power generators.
From Seton, I hop on the Highline Trail, which is the destination road for this trip. The Highline is a service road which runs about 200m above Lake Anderson and is primarily used by BC Hydro trucks to service the transmission towers that run along the lake.
Oh yeah, also, I saw a couple of bears. The first one was a black bear, I came across him just as I was rounding a switchback and he quickly sprinted away, which is normal for black bears. I didn't have my camera running when I saw the second bear... a Grizzly! OMG. Those ones can be vicious, but that grizz also ran away when he hear the rumble of the mighty Beemer! I guess he didn't want to get into a Boxing match...
This road is just as good as I remembered it. I don't think they'll ever pave it, which is a good thing. The only tricky part is trying to keep your eyes on the trail and not be distracted by the gorgeous lake just over the cliff's edge. It's a loooong way down!
Riding along the BC Hydro transmission lines
Just off the trail, I saw an abandoned bus, and stopped to check it out
R U home, Chris McCandless?
At the south end of the Highline Trail, lies the tiny town of D'arcy.
A little lawn art welcomes visitors to D'arcy and is a gentle and humourous reminder that this is indeed bear country!
The most prominent feature in town is the boat loading area where you can jump off the docks and go for a swim in the clean, blue waters of Anderson Lake. Temps have risen up to 28°C, so that's exactly what I plan to do!
"You wait here, Ima gonna go for a quick dunk!"
Thankfully nobody around so I stripped down and quickly got my swim trunks on
WAHOOOOO!!!!
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