It was grey and wet when we opened the door this morning. Overnight there were showers and the bikes were wet. By the time we were ready to roll the showers had stopped, but the road was still wet. Highway 3 from Greenwood to Grand Forks is a decent enough road on a motorcycle and riding at the speed limit is quite relaxing. At that speed it feels like a 'flow' is happening and it takes very little effort to ride. It is a great feeling and this trip has seen a lot of that. From a section of the highway it is possible to see the old roadbed of the Columbia and Western Railway. I rode the section between Midway and Grand Forks on my mountain bike about 15 years ago.
The run from Eholt Summit to Grand Forks is a series of long curves and downhill riding. As we approached Grand Forks we could see the old Great Northern roadbed cut into the side of the hills to the north of the highway. The rail line ran to Phoenix where it and the CPR serviced the copper mines at Phoenix. When World War I finished, the demand for copper plummeted and the mines closed. The city was abandoned, and the Great Northern pulled up its tracks close to one hundred years ago. ]The CPR line was in service until the late 1980s until it was abandoned as well. It is now part of the Trans-Canada Trail.The last trains ran on that line close to one hundred years ago and the roadbeds are all that is left and they are slowly being reclaimed by nature.
From Grand Forks we crossed Paulson Summit after traversing the Paulson Bridge. I love riding this part of BC. The terrain is so wild and the highways has to follow its rules. Makes for great riding though.
After a brief stop in Castlegar, we rolled onward to the Salmo-Creston highway. The road climbs quickly out of Castlegar past a place that is one of Ed Knowler's favourites - Ootischenia - named by the Doukhobors who live in the area. When we approached Salmo, I took a wrong turn and it took me six kilometres to figure it out but we got it sorted and were back on our way. Past Salmo we approached a speed zone. Tenst were set up on the highway and traffic control was set up to allow people to enter the Shambhala Music Festival. That quite possibly is one of the reasons for the scarcity of hotel rooms in this part of the province. That along with all the people who are travelling.
The Selkirk Range, although not really high, are rugged and the highway conforms to the geography. Some sections hang on the sides of mountains and seem to have been blasted out of the rock. Most impressive and an absolute pleasure to ride, because the road snakes through the mountains and traffic was minimal so we could ride comfortably on it. Closer to Creston we ran into a few small showers, but we seemed to have missed the serious rain because the highway was wet for quite a long distance.
View to the west on the Salmo-Creston Highway
Rain clouds in our future
Views to the east on the Salmo-Creston Highway
View to the south with storm clouds
We had already reserved a room in Creston but after we checked in, Jim opened the door and realized that there was only one bed. Seems like a person named 'Kerr' had reserved a room and to top it off we had made the reservation by phone so for a while it looked like we didn't have a room. The desk lady finally found it so we were alright. However, all the time we were in the office trying to check in we could hear a low base drone. I asked the woman at the desk and she said that it was for an 'Om' chant. Not something I think would be too relevant to most people checking in to the Sunset Motel.
The evening was very relaxed and it was a good rest after 295 kilometres. Tomorrow on to Cranbrook and Invermere, a short day of riding before the long haul to Rocky Mountain House, AB.
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