Yukon Ho!

June 19, 2006

July 11, 2006 on 4:59 pm | In Uncategorized |

Biking time: 10AM to 5:30PM
End: Bell II
Distance: 92km
After we laid down on our mats on the floor of the cabin, we started hearing a LOT of scurrying upstairs, most likely from the little feet of squirrels (in training for a marathon by the sounds of it). To avoid being climbed on all night, we set up the tent inside again, with the bonus of drying the tent out from our rainy evening in Stewart.

In the morning, we decided to hit the cafe one more time (having paid our dues as newbies, we get treated like regulars now so it’s not so bad). By 10AM we were finally back on track toward our goal. About 5 minutes into the ride, we hit some construction and were told by a bearded worker that there was a huge hill to come, but after the peak we’d be sailing downhill the rest of the way. He was right about the hill… and the hill kept going for a lonnng time. And there was a downhill, but it wasn’t very long before we were climbi ng again. 25km later we finally reached a fantatic swooping downhill with an unbelievable view of mountains all around us. At the bottom was the Bell-Irvine river crossing, and a rest area where we stopped just long enough to eat half-cooked falafel burgers and get half eaten by every bug in the forest.

As with every river crossing, we had to climb back up the other side of the valley. Thus began our day of climbing. Beyond every crest and every curve was another uphill. Each grind up resulted in 3 minutes or less of downhill bliss before the net grind started. And most grinds offered a fake peak where the steep part ended, and instead of glorious downhill, we were presented with more climbing. On top of it all, the road turned from pavement to sealcoat, which is an acceptable surface to ride on, but for some reason its lack of lines and old-school appearance make it a bit depressing to be on. Our 88km goal seemed to be gettig further and further away. Finally, cursing every corner and every hill, we reached the Rest Area 2km short of the next “town” (called Bell II because it is at the second crossing of the Bell-Irvine River). It was a nice little spot with a path down to the water, and the warmest lake we’d seen yet (it even had a floating swim platform 30 feet out). Too cold and tired to actually swim, we just washed ourselves and a few clothes while we contemplated staying there or visiting the next town where we might have to pay to sleep. With the promise of a restaurant only 2km away, we decided we might as well keep going. Luckily it was a 2km coast downhill (finally) to Bell II Lodge, which turned out to be the only thing IN Bell II. Well, they got us. We paid $20 to eat, but boy was it worth it. Then we paid $13 to camp, grumbling about it at first but it really turned out to be worth it too. The campsite was nothing fancy, but the perks were. As guests of the resort, we were welcome to use their showers and — even better — their hot tub and sauna. So we did. For a couple of hours. We went back to the tent that night cleaner than we’d been in years. So paying to camp was not so bad after all. At the Provincial Parks, it costs $16 and you are lucky to get  hot water at all. $13 for both of us including hot tub access? Sold!

Click here for today’s pictures