Riding Salmon Arm BC

[Navigator]

I subscribe to Motorcycle Classics magazine so also receive their monthly email edition. One of the links is to riding in Salmon Arm, BC so I thought some of the forum members would like to see it. I'm somewhat doing this for American riders who have not visited Canada. You Canadians already know what a jewel you have in this area.

http://www.motorcycleclassics.com/cl....aspx?PageId=1

I got a chance to see some of this country over the yeas and especially after attending the Salmon Arm roundup sponsored by Canuckrider and Hammer last year. Regretfully my Canadian buddy and I got separated from the group when we turned left out of the motel after everyone else turned right about 15 minutes before us. Stupid.

I followed Gord through some gorgeous country, to include the Enchanted Forrest, en route his place in Castlegar. Gord was in a hurry so we didn't make any stops along the way to savor the beauty of the region. It is for this reason that I'll be start my trans Canada ride in Kamloops this summer and will spend a few day in the Salmon Arm area, and east, before returning to Canada 1 and into Banff.

[Woofie64]

Make sure you stop at D Dutchmen Dairy in Sicamous on your way through, it's right on the highway. Best ice cream and real chocolate milk in BC! A great little spot to stop on a hot day and take a break. Would also recommend taking the 1A highway between Lake Louise and Banff. It will take longer, and you'll probably run into some RV traffic, but it is much more scenic than the 4 lane between LL and Banff.

[duffy]

Here's another American who will agree with you........I've ridden in BC a number of times with the "guides" you mention. Beautiful riding. I've still got to make it to the Kananaskis for a ride. I haven't forgotten Al.

[Navigator]

Originally Posted by Woofie64

Make sure you stop at D Dutchmen Dairy in Sicamous on your way through, it's right on the highway. Best ice cream and real chocolate milk in BC! A great little spot to stop on a hot day and take a break. Would also recommend taking the 1A highway between Lake Louise and Banff. It will take longer, and you'll probably run into some RV traffic, but it is much more scenic than the 4 lane between LL and Banff.

Will definitely stop in at the D Dutchmen. It took me a bit of searching to find Lake Louise and the 1A but with the help of Google maps I now see where it is.

It appears that I'll be up there twice this summer. Our daughter and her husbands are both military officers and will be visiting late June/early July so we'll drive up to show them the area. My wife and I drove to Castlegar last summer to call on our friend there and we drove the Kootenays for a couple of days and took one of the inland ferries. She loved it so now wants to visit BC every year.


And on the RVs, last June three of us rode our Adventure bikes up to the Arctic Circle via Dawson City and saw a steady stream of RVs on the way back. Add in all of the road construction and it was a real mess going north. Fortunately the roads were clear heading south. Gord has always warned me about the RV caravans in the summer when touring BC so I expect I'll encounter a lot of that on the approaches to Banff.

Duffy, I had to look up the Kananaskis because I had not heard of it. It looks like I'll be going right through on the eastern slope.

[justmike911]

Looks interesting. Any Canadian that can offer some advice on Eastern Canada. I am beginning to plan a trip on the NE USA and plan on entering Canada. Any advice or tips appreciated.

[Navigator]

For me it is going to take some real route planning. I've allocated 10 days, which doesn't include Nova Scotia, before arriving in Maryland to drop my bike at my son's and fly home. That might not be enough time though as I start looking over the route. I'll hopefully make about 500 miles a day.

My wife and I drove to Nova Scotia back in late 70s while I was stationed on a ship in Portland Maine. Beautiful country.

A riding friend that I rode to the Arctic Circle with last June told me that Canada's tourism bureau will provide maps and route planning assistance.

Edit: This looks like a good resource.

http://www.comeexplorecanada.com/canada/

[a340driver]

Yikes ... 10 days won't do it on a bike. Most of the Trans Canada Highway is only 2 lane. Depending on the traffic in the summer it could be real slow going. Also, you can get some wicked winds and storms across the prairies in the summer. Because of the frost heaves on the road surface, most of the repairs occur in the summer months (that means delays)
Allow a day or two for unforseen bike repairs. It's along way between towns, and in other than major centers, parts won't be easy to come by. A friend of mine just drove a trans Canada last fall. He did stop for a few tourist days, but took three weeks.
OK you didn't ask ... but just my opinion. Have a great trip! I've have driven it a couple of times by car.

[Navigator]

Originally Posted by a340driver

Yikes ... 10 days won't do it on a bike. Most of the Trans Canada Highway is only 2 lane. Depending on the traffic in the summer it could be real slow going. Also, you can get some wicked winds and storms across the prairies in the summer. Because of the frost heaves on the road surface, most of the repairs occur in the summer months (that means delays)
Allow a day or two for unforseen bike repairs. It's along way between towns, and in other than major centers, parts won't be easy to come by. A friend of mine just drove a trans Canada last fall. He did stop for a few tourist days, but took three weeks.
OK you didn't ask ... but just my opinion. Have a great trip! I've have driven it a couple of times by car.

On the contrary I much appreciate your comments, and warnings.

In 2007 I rode from Navarre Florida to my home east of Seattle, WA in ten days. I did quite a bit of sightseeing along the way and it was an easy trip so I assumed the timeline would be about the same. I'd forgotten about the vastness of Canada and didn't realize that the road conditions would be the same as when I rode to Dawson City last summer because I'd be so much further south.

I really learned about Canadian road repair on that trip. It could get miserable and even hazardous with that river bottom rock that the road crews laid down and were constantly wetting down. I just turned down an invitation from one of the BC doctors I rode with last year to ride to Alaska this summer with them. No thanks.

Well perhaps my trans Canada ride is just one of those pipe dreams and I should stick to BC and Alberta.

Oh and I lost the front wheel bearings on my DL650 on the way back. I knew something was amiss just south of Ft Nelson and by the time I got to Chetwynd my front wheel was wobbling and screaming at me. There isn't much between the two towns so I thought I was screwed about 100 miles north of Chetwynd when I realized it was a wheel bearing.

[schoeney]

Rode and love the Castlegar, Kananaskis, Banff, Canmore areas. The one thing I can say is I have ridden in BC many times during the summer and it rained every time for at least a little while. It can get cold and wet in the mountains even in August so pack appropriately.

[Navigator]

Originally Posted by schoeney

Rode and love the Castlegar, Kananaskis, Banff, Canmore areas. The one thing I can say is I have ridden in BC many times during the summer and it rained every time for at least a little while. It can get cold and wet in the mountains even in August so pack appropriately.

Yep, I too have ridden BC many times and have encountered some rain. Last year we saw none though until we got into the Yukon and then it was warm and dry the entire return trip. I always pack for any contingency. I wear a waterproof 1st Gear jacket, gloves and boots and carry rain pants.

My trip planning just got a little more complicated though. I just received the latest issue of Rider magazine and the featured ride is the Hwy 93, the Icefield Parkway between Radium Junction and Pyramid Lake. It looks stunning. That would put me way north of Calgary though. Hmm.

[Bdog]

Its all good riding but eh...don't tell everyone about it please.

[minst7877]

Originally Posted by justmike911

Looks interesting. Any Canadian that can offer some advice on Eastern Canada. I am beginning to plan a trip on the NE USA and plan on entering Canada. Any advice or tips appreciated.

Where are you starting from? I'm leaving from Michigan on the 14th and crossing into Sarnia. about 700 miles total for my route. The closest crossing to the rally point would be Montreal


DC

[Woofie64]

Originally Posted by Navigator

Yep, I too have ridden BC many times and have encountered some rain. Last year we saw none though until we got into the Yukon and then it was warm and dry the entire return trip. I always pack for any contingency. I wear a waterproof 1st Gear jacket, gloves and boots and carry rain pants.

My trip planning just got a little more complicated though. I just received the latest issue of Rider magazine and the featured ride is the Hwy 93, the Icefield Parkway between Radium Junction and Pyramid Lake. It looks stunning. That would put me way north of Calgary though. Hmm.

you can ride part of that route, and head east on Hwy 11. That will bring you out at Rocky Mountain house, which is only about 2 1/2 hours northwest of Calgary. A great road. You could also take 93 from Radium and get off it very near the 1A between Lake Louise and Banff. Lots of options!

[Navigator]

Originally Posted by Woofie64

you can ride part of that route, and head east on Hwy 11. That will bring you out at Rocky Mountain house, which is only about 2 1/2 hours northwest of Calgary. A great road. You could also take 93 from Radium and get off it very near the 1A between Lake Louise and Banff. Lots of options!

As I am finding out and it makes my proposed 10 day jaunt now seem silly. I can spend 5-6 days in BC. As I ponder my options, I am now considering crossing back into the US on either 93 or 2, either way ending up in our Glacier National Park.

[Vulcan-al]

one area you should check out is nakusp, nelson, Christina lake, oysooos, and manning park. all very beautiful places