Rockies IV June 20 South Loop and Glass Bottle house

 

Rockies IV

June 20, 2025

          South Loop and Glass Bottle House

The weather forecast for to day had the rain starting at about 2:00 pm so we thought that we would go ride the South loop which runs from the campground south to the US-Canada border and loops back north to the highway east of town.  When we reached the highway we were then going to turn east to go ride the Arrow Creek loop which winds into the hills north of town. 

As we headed south towards the border we could see the clouds building over the hills to the south and west.  At the border we turned up Port Hill Road.  It is a long grind of about 8 kms with grades hitting 12%.  Maybe we are getting fitter as it didn’t seem as tough as it did a few days ago.  The back roads are so nice to ride as there is almost no traffic and the pavement is in such great shape.   It did not take long to get back to the highway east of town. We were told that the little store at the corner sells the best ice cream in the valley so Ken T.  went in and got some.  His knee was a little sore so he was going to call it a day and head back to camp.   Ken C, Barry and myself headed for the Arrow Creek loop. 

We had only gotten about 5 kms down the road toward the Arrow Creek turn when we were hit with the first drops of rain.  I pulled over to find out what the consensus was on continuing.  There was no discussion lets go back to the campground.  Ken was still enjoying his ice cream when we rolled past. 

Back at camp we decided that we would head back out to the Wynnwood winery by car to pick up a few bottles of wine.   From the winery we would then drive out to the Glass Bottle House which is about 30 Kms north of Creston. 

The Glass Bottle House was constructed in 1952-53, by David Brown who was in the funeral business in Saskatchewan. The house is constructed of 600,000 empty embalming fluid bottles.  Each bottle is approximately 3 inches square and 10 inches tall.  They were laid on their side with the neck facing in and were mortared together.  The house is shaped like a three leafed clover with a living room, bedroom and kitchen. The house has a wonderful location on a high cliff over looking Kootenay Lake.

Today the house and surrounding gardens are a roads side tourist attraction and is the winter home of for the son.  Mr. Brown was also a collector of garden gnomes, so the grounds have a lot of gnomes which are lovingly maintained and receive annual painting to keep them looking fresh and happy.    

The weather forecast is calling for up to 75 mm of rain over the next few days so we are going to call it a wrap and head home tomorrow. 

We have over 650 kms of riding in and everyone is pretty happy with the trip.  Tonight we are off to a wrap up supper and will discuss Rockies V.

Terry

 

Rockies IV June 19 South Creston and West side of Kootenay RIver

Rockies IV

June 19, 202

South Creston and West side of the Kootenay River

As usual our 7:30 am breakfast of cereal and coffee was finished and cleaned up by just after 7:00.  Ken T said his knee was sore which isn’t all that surprising as we have been riding pretty hard and Ken is not on his usual bike.  As a result, he was going to take a day off and go for a walk around town. 

As I set to pump up my tires I broke the little nut off the top of the valve stem.  This mean that I either rode my bike with broken valve stem at what ever pressure the tire was at or change the tube.  I elected to change the tube but Ken C and Barry had to wait for me.  In my haste to get the tube fixed I rode off without my phone.  Ten years ago, not having a phone was normal and you never thought anything of it.  However, not having the phone made me feel like there was something missing or wrong and what if I needed my phone. How things have changed.

The first part of the ride was down to the south of Creston, which is this absolutely stunning rolling farm land.  There are lots of orchards and smaller acreages.  The orchards seem to be predominately cherry orchards and are the trees ever loaded.  It looks the cherries are a couple weeks from being ready.   I absolutely love this part of the Creston area.

The second part of the ride was across the Kootenay river to the west side.  The river basin is a large flat area.  On the east side it is much more rolling where the valley butts up against the mountains.  On the west side it is totally flat.  A large part of it is given over to crops with a smaller corner reserved for the wildlife wetlands preserve.  Riding south from the highway we were into a fairly stiff head wind but as it was pretty flat, we made good time.  Although, it was supposedly a potato growing area, all I saw was corn.  Actually, I did see an elk and a couple of different osprey nests with ospreys. 

On the way back north to the highway we went past the Kootenay Wildlife preserve.  There we got off our bikes and walked the board walk to see the area.  Barry said he saw a snake but I didn’t see any wildlife. It is on a migration route so we were probably at the wrong time of year.  It is kind of sad that more resources are not put into preserving these habitats.

Back on the bikes and it was a 10 kms ride back to camp.   The last 800 meters into camp is easily 15% so a really tough grind right at the end.  We ended the day with 70 kms. 

What a great day to be out ridding. 

Terry  

 

Rockie3s IV June 18 South Loop and Winery Tour

 

South of Rockies IV

June 18, 2025

Creston South loop and Winery Tour

This morning, we set off on what I have called the South Loop.  Basically, it is a loop which runs south to the US-Canada border and then winds through a bunch of the farm lands south of Creston and in the valley.  As the route to the US – Canada border follows the Kootenay River it is primarily down hill.  However, as we were not going to enter the US we had to take the Port Hill RD.  Any road with the word “Hill” in it is going to be a major climb and this was no exception.  After a few miles of steep and not so steep sections we reached the plateau.  With the mountains surrounding the farm lands it was really beautiful.   The course was rolling with some short steep declines and climbs with lots of twists and turns.  With not a car in sight it was a cyclists dream ride.

We came upon a cairn honoring the first ranchers in the valley.  They arrived in the Kootenay Valley in 1894. I was surprised that it was that late but upon a little research found that Fort Steele was established in 1887.

As we looped back to town we crossed the Lister Canyon. It had a large water fall and with the railroad trestle was very dramatic. 

Back in camp it was only 10:40 so we had lots of time for further cycling adventures.  After a lot of debate (who said the job of TD is easy), a winery tour was decided upon.  The first winery was the Wynnwood winery off hwy 3A.  It was about 17 kms ride from camp in Creston.  It is a small winery making only about 12,000 cases of wine a year.   They have a Pinot Noir and a Merlot.  The fellow running the winery is from Turkey. He had a lot of great stories.  The Pinot Noir was good but the Merlot was really the star in my books.   

The second winery was the Skimmerhorn Winery which was only a couple of Kms from the campground.  It is a much larger operation. They have a beautiful location overlooking the valley and their vineyards.  They also have a very nice patio and serve tapas.  We had a couple of platters of various meats and cheeses before the wine tasting.  To start there was a white, followed with a rose which was actually a very dark red as the white had been blended with a Foch red.   Next was a Pinot mixed with a Foch and finally a Foch.  The Foch is a large red German grape which was the only survivor of the cold winter of 2023-2024.  It was a very strong deep red.  Sitting on the patio tasting wine and eating cheese was just fantastic. 

While everyone has their own taste my choice was the Merlot from Wynnwood. 

The rides today totalled 70 kms so we did pretty good. 

What a great day we had. 

 

Terry  

 

Rockies IV June 17 Arrow Creek Loop

 

Rockies IV

June 17, 2025

Arrow Creek Loop & Kokanee Brewery tour

 

This morning, we decided to ride the Arrow Creek Loop which is a relatively short loop in comparison to what we have been doing. At only 33 kms it is quite short however it does have quite a bit of climbing.  Part of the reason for doing a shorter ride was that it was forecast to get to quite warm by noon. We were off about 8:30 am.

As we rolled out of camp, I couldn’t get my Garmin to register which was really frustrating and it took me more than one try to figure what was wrong.  The route took us down the highway towards Cranbrook.  Then a quick left and onto a beautiful quiet country road. There wasn’t a single vehicle in sight so we were just loving it.  The first 16 kms were all up hill and the last few kms were really steep.  Wild flowers were putting on a colourful show.  At the 16 kms mark we got to the summit of the ride and then there was a wild downhill with a series of switchback. I think I hit 55kms/hr. 

Back at the campground a quick shower before lunch, and I must say that this campground has some of the nicest showers of any campground I have ever been in.  Off to lunch with the two Kens, at a brunch place where I had one of my favourites, waffles.

The highlight of the day however was the afternoon when we went across the street to hit the Kokanee Brewery tour and beer tasting.  The brewery was originally opened in 1950 and has had several additions and expansions since.  That said most of the large vats and vessels are all of the 1950’s vintage.  The tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and very well spoken.  He took us through all of the different rooms explaining how the beer was made.  The brewery makes several different kinds of Kokane beer which is part of the Labatt’s family of beers. The beer canning line was canning Budweiser beer doing this tour.  The line processes 1100 cans of beer per minute. It was just amazing.

After the tour we went back to the beer store where the guide handed out samples of the different beers made here and talked about what the differences are between lagers, ales and IPAs.  The people on the tour were all enjoying the afternoon and exchanging their stories, so we stayed on and had an extra beer.  It was a great time chatting and enjoying the nice warm weather.

This evening Ken C is going to do burgers on the grill.  He has made some truly great meals this tour.  Thanks Ken!

What a great day.

Terry

   

Rockies IV June 15, 2025 Lunch at Marysville Pub

Rockies IV

June 15, 2025

Out to the Airport and Lunch at Marysville

After yesterday’s bigger ride and six days of riding the crew was feeling like a more relaxing day.  This was accomplished by not leaving the campground until almost 9:30 am.  By then it was starting to get quite warm, (Not Phoenix warm but Cranbrook warm 15 C).

We set off up the road towards St Eugene and the residential school which is the backroad to the airport.  After bypassing this opportunity to see the airport the crew was keen to stop into see it.  It is up a rather steep  hill but there was no denying them.  The official name it “Canadian Rockies International Airport”.  We stopped by the first-class lounge and snapped a photo but security was keeping a sharp eye on who got in.  It looked like the vehicle in long term parking had been there for a while. 

We continued up the road until we came to the rail trail to Kimberly and headed north to Kimberly.  After a brief stop there we rolled down to Marysville and headed into the Pub there.  We had spent a rainy afternoon in 2022 so we knew the beer was cold and the food great.  The fish and chips were absolutely excellent. 

Back on the trail we headed back to our campground.  Surprisingly there were a lot of deer out on the trail today.  In past years there have always been a lot of deer along the trail however this year there have been none.  There were also a lot riders out.  Families with really little children to older riders on great big e-bikes.

I guess the thing I have forgotten to mention is that all of the wild flowers are out.  The path way and everything else has been covered in pollen.  Not so good if you are allergic but if not their beauty is outstanding.  They have added greatly to the overall beauty of the trail and surroundings of this tour.

Not a great big ride but just a perfect distance and on a really perfect weather day.  Garmin said the ride was 68.7 kms with a climb of 1752 ft and an average speed of 20.5 kms.

Just doesn’t get any better.

Terry

 

 

Rockies IV June 14 Cranbrook Big Loop

 

Rockies IV

June 14, 2025

Cranbrook – Kimberley – Wasa -Fort Steele Loop

I was a like surprised when the crew picked this ride as it was one of the longer rides and one of the more difficult rides.  Ken C and I did this loop the first year we came out to Cranbrook to ride.  It was a tough ride then and that was several years ago.  Maybe it says something on how well we have aged.

We rolled out of camp just after 8:00 am, and headed for the first leg of the 100 km loop. The first leg is from the base camp up the rails to trails route to Kimberly.  This is all up hill and is 31 kms.  It was a beautiful blue sky day with hardly a breath of wind.  We have done this ride several times so we all knew the route. The KMS just flew by even though is was all uphill at 1-4%.  It is really a stunningly beautiful trail with the snow-capped peaks along the horizon.

In Kimberly we had a first break.  Barry ran down to the bakery and got his cinnamon bun while the rest of us opted to go into the market for free senior’s coffee and a roll.  After the quick break we headed out on the second leg of the route which was on to Wasa.  This leg was almost all down hill and while about 34 kms long it just flew by.  I hit a top speed of 51.9 kms.  We passed a car which had hit an elk probably just minutes before as the animal was still in the ditch and the car was still spouting water from the pushed in radiator.  I didn’t stop. 

Wasa was the lunch break and we rolled in to the Wasa Pub.  There was an unending series of “Wasa Up”  jokes.  I had the burger which was absolutely huge, although the fries were soggy. Barry’s club sandwich had to be 6” high.   After we came out from lunch we were horrified to find that the blue skies had been replaced with very menacing clouds and a blustering head wind. 

The third leg of the ride from Wasa down to Fort Steel and back to Cranbrook was about 35 kms.  The 20 kms down to Fort Steele was primarily flat with a few climbs closer to Forst Steele.  However, the real story was the head wind and we had to brief bursts of rain.  Head winds are never great but coupled with a rain burst is really crappy. Once we got to Fort Steele we were past the weather front and the head winds and rain were over.

The ride into Cranbrook is mostly up hill but as it was only about 16 kms it went quick and everyone was feeling spent but happy.

We had a great day.  And certainly a lot better than the poor fellow who hit an elk or the person who dumped their trailer into the river beside the road. 

As we rolled into camp the cycle computers ticked over to 100 kms.  

What a great day.

 

Terry

Rockies IV June 13 St Eugene Wycliffe Loop

Rockies IV

June 13, 2025

St Eugene-Kimberly-Wycliffe Rd Loop

It got down to only 10 C (48F) last night, so it was a little chilly in the tent and getting on the bike required more than just jerseys. Never the less we were of to do a ride this morning at 9:00Am. 

I was keen to get going as the weather forecast had serious wind coming out of the south about 1:00 PM.  The rain we had last night really helped knock the smoke and pollen out of the air. This morning it was crystal clear and the few remaining clouds were quickly burned off. 

The route we had were going to ride was kind of a hybrid from a route we had done lat time we were out in Cranbrook.  The first leg of the route took us up past the Cranbrook airport and past the St Eugene residential school.  I had wanted to go into the airport so I could have my picture taken in the first-class lounge.  The first-class lounge is only a broken-down card table and a couple of folding chairs but It was a 3 kms detour up hill to the airport so I was over ruled.   St Eugene Residential school is the site where there are alleged unmarked graves. I say alleged as there has never been any excavations.  Today there is a gas station hotel and casino.  The second leg of the route was up the bike path to Kimberly and back to where the St Eugene Rd crossed the bike route.   The third leg of the route was from the St Eugene Rd. down the Wycliffe Rd. back to our campsite in Cranbrook.

By the time we got to St Egenes Residential school the clouds had burned off and it was a beautiful sunny day.  The wind was starting to pick up but it wasn’t bad especially as we were heading north.  There were a lot of rolling hill and beautifully smooth pavement with no cars so it was just great.  There were several places where hawks were circling over head on the thermals.  To say it was really beautiful is an understatement. This leg of the trip was about 20 kms.

The second leg of the trip was up the bike path to Kimberly.  We joined the route about 15 kms out and all up hill.  Barry was able to get his cinnamon bun at the bakery as it was open today.   We just flew back down the hill as it was all down hill.

The last leg down the Wycliffe Rd starts with a big climb.  It was into the wind and this made it really tough.  The last 10 kms is a big down hill ride down some very nice pavement.  However it was blowing so hard we had to pedal like heck just keep from being blown over. 

The total ride turned out to be 68 kms.  What a great day it turned out to be. 

Terry