Leg 3 - Calgary to Mantario, Saskatchewan - June 11 to 13

Leg 3 total - 411.2 km (including Calgary transit)

Grand total - 1517.2 km

Calgary to Saskatchewan border

One quarter of the distance travelled so far!

Wednesday, June 13^th

Distance and Time:  100.9 km at 5:01

Route:  12 km past the turn off for Big Stone on hwy 570 to 25 km into Sask on hwy 44 near Mantario

Well, the past two days were probably as good as it gets on this cycle, especially with those long stretches of empty highway, when we cycled together side by side and chatted about different breeds of cows and cloud formations (exciting conversation, eh). Today the weather and wind and road conditions changed dramatically.  The morning started out OK as I launched from the roadside campsite, but as the day progressed the sky darkened and the wind veered to the northeast. 

Launching in the middle of nowhere

It was slow going after that, and by mid-afternoon the wind was fierce and the dark rain clouds were all about.  I asked Wayne to keep within a couple of km of me the last hour or so so since I was being buffeted about a bit, and managed to get just past the 100 km mark when we called it a day, again, in the middle of nowhere.  By that time we were about 25 km inside Saskatchewan.  As soon as we crossed the border on this quiet secondary road , the pavement became sketchy with long stretches of gravel.  Gone were the wide shoulders and centre-line rumble strips.  This reminds me that I haven’t mentioned rumble strips yet.  I much prefer the centre-line location since the ones on the shoulder (throughout the Rockies) can create havoc on a bike, especially in wet weather when they are full of gravel!

At the end of the day we drove back to Drumheller in a thunderstorm to hunker down for the night at the same park.  Tomorrow we'll explore a little more around here and then head back to Sylvan Lake (near Red Deer).  As mentioned, I'll spend the next week there on hiatus with my sister while Wayne heads back home for some contract work.  I'm looking forward to a week of rest and re-organizing but will likely be chomping at the bit to get going again on the 23rd.  I'll update the blog periodically.

Tuesday, June 12^th

Distance and Time:  133.9 km at 5:24

Route:  Drumheller to 12 km past the turn off for Big Stone on hwy 570

We awoke to the birds chirping at the Rivergrove campsite, located across the river from Drumheller and a stone’s throw from all the town has to offer.  The site was nice and quiet, though, maybe because of the insulation from all the cottonwood trees.
 

The cottonwoods at Rivergrove park

On our way out of town to start at yesterday’s stop point, we got another good glimpse of the giant dinosaur!

Getting out of the dinosaur capital

Cycling southeast of Drumheller through the valley of the Red Deer River we came across the hoodoos.  It isn’t hard to imagine why this area was named the Badlands, with all the nooks and crannies and deceiving optical perspectives in which outlaws could hide.

The hoodoos

Coming into Drumheller yesterday we cycled on an 8% grade downhill into town, a nice coast which would rival Champlain lookout in the Gatineau Hills of home.  On the outbound we figured we would have to cycle uphill at some point, and that point came 20 km into the cycle just after the towns of East Coulee and Dorothy.  That one seemed to rival the hill coming out of Merritt and anything the Rockies had to offer.

Otherwise it was a cyclist’s heaven today, with the state of road, weather and wind.  I can’t quite figure out why this secondary highway with hardly any traffic is in pristine condition, much of it newly paved, but I’m not complaining.  The sun was out for the most part, the temps were in the mid-twenties, and a gentle wind blew behind us.  Although there were few signs of human habitation, other than abandoned homes from decades ago, there was lots of wildlife in the form of prairie gophers all lined up on the shoulder trying to figure out what was coming before scurrying into their burrows one by one; and long-legged deer with huge white butts, bounding over the fences a mile high.  Most of the terrain consisted of ranch land with a few small oil drills here and there. I chatted throughout the day to the cows, and they all looked at me like I was from another planet.

Wayne cycled an hour or so with me past the hoodoos, and then caught up with me for lunch at the 85 km mark.  After an hour long siesta we hit the road again for another 45 km.  We camped out for the night at the side of the road with endless vistas at every angle and a gorgeous sunset.  I LOVE these PRAIRIES!

campsite by the prairie roadside

Sunset in the prairies

Monday, June 11th - Day 14 (on cycle)

Distance and Time:  130.9 km at 5:06

Route: Calgary to Drumheller via Country Hills Rd. and Hwy 9

We decided to head east today since the weather forecast was so good.  Originally we were going to head north to spend some time with Teri and Dan in Sylvan Lake and get up to Edmonton for some more visiting, but with the forecast this good we opted to put some distance behind us before returning back to Sylvan Lake and Calgary on the weekend.  Wayne will be travelling back to Ottawa on Saturday for a week due to a work commitment and I will spend the time visiting with my sister and old friends perhaps getting to see a few sites we missed along the way (i.e. smashed in head buffalo jump and some more time in the mountains).

So, good-bye Calgary, with your extreme hills on the bike paths, numerous pretty magpies and long-legged jack-rabbits.  So long also to four nights in Walmart parking lots with other RV riffraff – they offered great convenience in the city, but not much in the way of ambiance. 

launching from Walmart - new vest and new shorts, ready to go

Once we got away from the city, the roads became quiet and straight and flat.  Though it was my longest day yet in terms of distance, we rolled into town and settled down earlier than most nights, at a pretty RV park just outside Drumheller.  The cycle was awesome in warm temps with a mix of sun and cloud and long stretches of easy up and down grades.  The mountains became a distant speck on the horizon and the prairies opened up on all sides.  I like that you can see a rain shower coming for miles and miles and can even try and outrun it (which I managed to do).  I also like that I can see Wayne cycling back to meet me for miles and miles, as a small distant speck on the horizon.

Important sign along the route

Abandoned dwelling - one of many

Drumheller, the Dinosaur capital of North America, seems like a neat spot. I’m looking forward to seeing the dinosaur museum and travelling down through the dinosaur trail.  We may continue cycling towards Saskatchewan tomorrow, and take in these sights on our way back since the forecast calls for rain later in the week.

That's me way down by his bottom claw