Two Mates, Two Bikes, & 2800 Miles to Mexico : Day 6

Trip Overview

This blog will follow two totally inexperienced bikepackers, Geoff and Cam, and their journey from Banff to Mexico via the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route. The route follows the Continental Divide, exposing riders to high altitude, diverse wildlife, and solitude. To learn more about the route, check this out. Randy will be the official bookie so get in touch with him if you'd like to place a wager on how far we will actually make it.

In the mean time, you can track our progress here thanks to our SPOT device.

This will be a site where we will try our best to post some pictures and stories along the way. Happy reading!

Thursday, 3 July 2014

Day 6 - Eureka to Red Meadow Lake

Today was our first true test after having decided to cover two passes. The ride started out well with great conditions. It was a gradual climb up to Whitefish pass. We were a little bit worried though after having seen pictures of the racers battling through crazy conditions. Closer to the pass, there was plenty of evidence of recent avalanches. In total, there must have been close to 2 miles (we’ve been conditioned to imperial by the ‘muricans) of avalanche debris that forced lengthy hike-a-bike sections.

The worst of it was at the Whitefish Divide (continental divide #2). Oddly enough, somewhere amongst the ruins, we ran into a fellow rider who resembled a fit Kris Kringle. He was riding the Montana portion of the divide by himself. Inspiring.

We enjoyed the downhill that Whitefish pass had to offer. It was a pretty beautiful ride as we caught glimpses of Glacial National Park. We continued to ride aiming for the second peak of the day.

Mistake number 1. We missed the turnoff and ended up in some town off the map. At this point it was 17:00 but we decided to backtrack the miles and head for the peak. The rest of the ride was pretty eventful. We saw 3 bear (scarier than the mountain lion seen days before) and some even scarier looking locals. Geoff was up all night wondering which bear liked the hot porridge, which liked the medium, and which liked the cold.

All in all, we crested the peak. Waiting for us was a lovely lake at 5700ft with mini icebergs, and 2 Miller Lites left to us by some aforementioned locals hunting for snow to cool their beer.

We had a pretty early night after climbing a total of over 10000 meters that day.