Canada, Round 2
I wasn’t done with Canada yet. There was so much singletrack yet to tackle. As predicted, I went back as soon as the temperatures allowed.
First stop: a return to Fernie, b.c.
For one glorious week, I was lucky to occupy a first-come-first-served no-frills campsite at Mt. Fernie Provincial Park. No less than a kajillion kilometers of singletrack were accessible right from the campground, and there was a sweet little river running just a few hundred meters from my site.
Kiva contemplating life along the shore of the Elk River.
The girls loved exploring all the trails near the campground every day.
The riding was just as rooty and wet and technical and uphill as I remembered, and this time I got to explore almost all of it. These crazy Canadians love going uphill almost as much as they love slippery wooden bridges and fun trail signs.
Looking down at Fernie from the top of a trail aptly named Hyperventilation.
All the up is worth it for these views.
At the top of "Swine Flu" - note the fun pig art.
Of course, there were the usual post-ride stops at Fernie Brewing Company, a ride on the bike path into town to check out the downtown area, and a few sessions at the skills park. I really liked the vibe of Fernie - sure, there were tourists, but it was a place were locals actually lived. This might be one of those places to which I return again and again.
Stop two: Revelstoke, B.c. (a/k/a Revvie)
Don’t get me wrong, I could have happily stayed in Fernie the rest of the summer. But there was more singletrack to discover, and I had heard epic things about Revvie. It did not disappoint.
Luck was on my side again with the first-come-first-served campsite - this time at Martha Creek Provincial Park, about 20 minutes north of the town of Revvie, and on the shore of Lake Revelstoke. The campground was no-frills, but there were lots of trails through the woods and a huge shoreline that made it easy to launch the paddleboard. And what made it even better was that Jeremy was finally able to retrieve his rig from the epicenter of the Jasper fire and he met us at Martha Creek for the week.
Sunday swimming in Lake Revelstoke from the campground shoreline.
The most amazing ride was a place called Frisbee Ridge, which had come highly recommended by Canadian MTBers I met at the Sedona MTB Festival. The trail wasn’t technical, but it required climbing 2600 feet over 7 miles to get into the alpine zone. The views were incredible, and it was so cool to be riding above treeline.
On the way up to Frisbee Ridge.
In the alpine zone on Frisbee Ridge.
There was a group of riders at the top, so we took turns celebrating our victory.
A year ago, I would have been way too intimidated to go to a lift-served bike park the size of Mt. Revelstoke. Honestly, it was still a little nervewracking, but I felt good about the skills and confidence I gained riding so many days at Grand Targhee and Whitefish Mountain. It was epic.
Stoked to have a ride up most of the mountain!
Note I said “most” of the mountain. The lift didn’t go all the way to the top. If I weren’t such a goddamned overachiever, I would have been happy to do laps on the bottom part of the mountain. But no, I had to pedal up to the top, even on a day that I paid for a lift ticket. I am who I am.
Check out the video from the tippity top of Mt. Revelstoke:
The rest of the time in Revvie was spent paddleboarding, exploring the impossibly adorable downtown, licking my wounds, and enjoying campfires. Revvie is another one of those places that is populated mostly by locals and has a great variety of restaurants, bars, and shops. It joins Fernie on the list of places I’d like to make a regular rotation out of.
She is such a freeloader.