We arrived at Galle just after 1 after a leisurely 1 hour drive along the coast from Mirissa. The water got dirtier the closer we got to Galle. We drove past the fort and the Galle cricket ground on the way to our hotel Taavitti which got us all excited at the exploring to come. Our hotel was lovely – it had been recommended by a friend of Deryn’s so we were expecting good thing. Once again they put us all on the same floor so Taylor got upgraded to a nice double room.
We decided to get a local bus into town (probably about 2 km) so appease Deryn who had been wanting to get a local bus the entire trip. You basically just flag a coloured one (not red as they are the intercity buses) and pay when you get off. The bus was packed so we had to stand but we all enjoyed the experience. Rp150 (75 cents) for the 5 of us.
We wandered around the outside wall of the fort – every gun rampart on the wall seemed to be occupied by local lovers sheltering under umbrellas. We then wandered the lovely streets that were littered with lots of old colonial building that were now cafes or shops. It had a lovely vibe and reminded Deryn and I of the old part of Macau when we visits there in 1996. It was bloody hot in the sun though so we thought visiting one of the museums would be a good way to get out of the heat. We made our to the Maritime Museum (Rp350 each) and spent 20 minutes or so wandering around a rather dank and hot couple of rooms that were not being kept very cool by the 3 of 4 overworked fans. So much for avoiding the heat – it felt cooler when we got back outside
It was nice seeing the famous Galle Cricket Ground which the legend Shane Warne rated as one of his favourites. So much so, the legend goes, that he contributed a substantial part of the rebuild costs post the 2004 tsunami.
We decided to head back to the beachside of the fort to an upstairs pizza restaurant where we could watch the sun set over the ocean while being cooled by the breeze. We enjoyed a few beers and the usual game of 10&1 before ordering a couple of pizzas to share. It was lovely watching the sun setting and the literally hundreds of school kids – all dressed in pristine white uniforms – wander up and down the wall. We noticed quite a few schools within the sort that appear to have 2 shifts a day. We grabbed a couple of tuk tuks back to our hotel – we were told Rp1000 each which seemed reasonable until a day later we paid Rp300!!
The hotel offered to do us breakfast at Rp3000 a piece; a bit more than we usually spent but given the convenience we thought why not. The breakfast was actually very good – not as bulky as others but certainly very tasty dal and chicken and fish curries. We headed into town around 9 for a couple of hours before retuning to the hotel to chill by the pool and in our rooms to avoid the midday heat. We headed back into town around 5 and found a bar with happy hour (not as cheap as the beach bars at Rp800 for a can of beer) and played cards again.
We decided to splash out a bit for dinner so had a lovely meal at 1710; a lovely courtyard cafe / hotel that had an expensive gem counter on the way to the toilet. The girls spent a fair bit of time exploring the stones without actually buying anything. We grabbed some gelato’s on the way home to cap off an evening of culinary delights.
Our flight out of Colombo was at 20 past midnight so we organised a taxi to pick myself, Dits and Taylor up at 7. Conor and Amanda were staying another night was they were not fly in out until Sunday am. We spent the morning chilling at the hotel before leaving all our bags in C & A’s room and then headed into town to explore the fort once again. We were all struggling with the heat so after a couple of air-conditioned stops – fruit juices and then balms before grabbing a small meal at a wind swept cafe.
We decided to grab an early dinner at the hotel as we couldn’t face the great again so the hotel agreed to provide a seafood meal for Rp6000 each. They sent someone down to the fish market to grab some fish, crab and prawns. We had out last game of 10&1 – a double ton from yours truely and the our seafood dinner at 5. The dinner was lovely but unfortunately it was spoiled by the plague of flies. They were unbelievable.
Our taxi arrived a bit early so it was a quick pack up; the usual challenges of using a credit card to pay the bill before a very sad farewell to Conor and Amanda. Although the farewell to Conor was tempered by the fact he was coming to Aus in 3 weeks for Taylor and my party. It was a 2 hour drive to the airport followed by various queues to get onto the plane. Taylor was thankfully allowed into the lounge with Dits and I which was a bonus. We then popped a Valium acquired earlier in the day from a chemist (Rp250 for 4) which knocked us all out for a good 8 hours.
My key takeaways from the trip were:
– travel with your kids. It makes it so much more fun
– curries for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
– amazingly friendly people.
– preferred the hinterland to the beaches but that’s probably because of the summer heat
– its not a place to go if everything needs to be tidy and organised
– the more you challenge yourself; the more you will get out of it.
It was a 3 hour drive from Ella to Aragum Bay. You could feel the heat intensifying as we left the mountains to by the time we got to AB it was a steamy 33. AB was in the same touristy mould as Ella just with that real beachy vibe – ie no shirts or shoes. AB was nearly wiped out by the 2002 tsunami so it was good to see it fully recovered – although there were still a fee half built hotels around the place – monuments to covid.
As always it took a few wrong turns before we found our hotel, Beach Way. Unfortunately it was not near the water and was pretty drank and dingy in the kids downstairs rooms – Taylor’s room did not have AC so we upgraded to another with AC for $A15 per night. Dits and my room was on top with a bit of a sea view and a decent breeze but with no internet.
We grabbed our beach gear – Conor also sorted a board – and headed to the beach. The set up was like a lot of Asian beaches where hotels/ cafes have recliners in front of their property that pundits can use if they buy food and drink. It seems the ‘German principle’ applied where people would leave a towel draped across a couple of recliners and then wander off for many hours but expected their chairs to remain theirs. I gave it an hour and then removed the towel and made myself comfortable. I pleaded ignorance when a couple turned up later asking for their towel.
It was a bit of a drop off from the cafe’s to the beach proper as a result of the strong waves. You had to be careful heading out for a swim as you could very easily get dumped. We spent a lovely couple of hours chilling before heading down to the far end of the beach to see if we could see Conor. The southern end of the beach was for locals (swimming in jeans!) and surf beginners on foamies. Conor had gone around the corner so we could not watch him.
We basically spent the next 2 days just chilling on the beach; doing a bit of shopping, playing cards and trying different spots for eating. Conor was the exception as he surfed most mornings and afternoons. It was lovely after the very busy time we had had previously and I think everyone enjoyed the relaxation. On the Saturday night we were all kept awake by a nightclub that went to 6am. It was weird hearing the 5am Muslim prayers clashing with techno. On our last night there we went cheap at a local buffet – A$20 for 4 of us as Amanda wasn’t hungry. It was Conor’s pick. The fish in the fish curry was so hard it was like burnt Vogels toast. We all survived though.
We all agreed that 2 days was enough and we’re looking forward to our 3 days in a much more relaxed Mirissa Bay and our ‘fancy’ hotel Ballena Regency.
It was a 5 hour drive to Mirissa so decided to get away at 9. The problem was that first van that arrived to pick us up would not have even managed 5 adults never mind our baggage. So we upped the cost by Rp5k to Rp35K and sent them off to get a bigger van. We chilled in our favourite cafe, Pono across the road, for about half an hour later before the new van arrived.
We stopped for lunch in a little roadside traveller cafe for a round of rotti’s and a curry for Conor. Our hotel was down a tiny little dirt road but any sense of foreboding vanished when we saw the place. It looked amazing with a big 25m pool out front. We were checked into 3 massive rooms on the second floor – Taylor was upgraded to a double to keep the family together. We organised bikes for the following day and headed to the beach.
The beach set up was similar to AB with cafes and recliners all along the waterfront. The sea was rough but very refreshing. We found a cafe with a happy hour and proceed to get stuck into the Rp800 beers ($4) and a game of cards. For dinner we ordered a whole fish off the iced display out front ($60 for 5 of us). It was delicious!!
After a great Sri Lankan breakfast in the hotel we grabbed our scooters (pretty iffy lot); filled up with petrol (well Rp500 each) and then headed to a beach known for having turtles about 20 min away. Decidedly average and not a turtle in sight. There were a few tropical fish but not worth the effort really.
Then it was off to Weligama snake farm – it seemed like we went via Colombo in miles of pokey little roads. When we finally got there, it was closed. Dits rang the owner who turned up 10 minutes later. We had read it was Rp1000 per person so were a bit meeved when the owner said it was Rp2500 – blamed it on covid?? We agreed on Rp2000 each.
The farm was founded by the owners dad to rehabilitate injured snakes and then release them back into the nearby national park. The process for the next 45 mins was he bought out a snake; if it was non poisonous we all got to hold it; if not he played with it in front of us. We got to hold the following non poisonous – green trees name; a young and a 5 year old python and a couple a couple of ‘ can’t remember’. The poisonous snakes were an adder and a cobra. The owner got the cobra to strike at hi numerous time – the trick is to remember the strike range of the cobra is only the distance that they are elevated!
We then intended to head to Secret Beach but a sudden downpour put paid to that. We were all drenched by the time we returned to our oasis. We headed out to find some lunch but didn’t have much luck so headed back to the beach cafe’ and grabbed a feed there. We were all buggered so spent the rest of the afternoon chilling back at the hotel. We had a lovely meal at Mirissa Garlic for dinner watched over by frogs.
The next morning I relaxed at the hotel pool while the rest headed off to Secret Beach, a small little beach that didn’t sound very secret. It was then back to the beach for happy hour, cards and some whole fish. We mistakenly got 2 small fish instead of 1 large and found the meat to bone ratio a bit disappointing. We organised a van for a midday pickup to Galle the next day, wanting to spend as much time as possible at this lovely hotel. I for one, am exited at heading to a place with lots of history and things to see rather than beach life. I guess living in Manly spoils you as far as beaches go.
We had arranged for a local taxi to take us to Ella – agreeing on a minivan. The first car that turned up was a 5 seater with barely enough room for us, never mind the bags. After a phone call, a decent sized van arrived with a very friendly driver. First order of the day was to find breakfast (breakfast in the hotel was terrible). After a couple of false alarms we found an authentic local joint that cost us $A15 for 5 of. It’s amusing how Sri Lankan’s have the same food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Hoppers / rice; daal, coconut mix and a curry. And a dollop of very strong black coffee.
We originally agreed to go via Kandy for a brief stop but after finding out it was going to add 2 hours to our journey we decided not to – thankfully as we heard it took 6 hours to get from Kendy to Ella. Before arriving at Ella, we stopped briefly at a temple, bought some flowers and wished Buddha the best of luck. The drive was spectacular once we hit the hills – made us a bit sad that the Kandy to Ella train was fully booked. Tea plantations as far as the eye could see. Once again finding our hotel – Misty Villas Ella was a bit of a challenge but we eventually got there. First impressions were good although somewhat let down by the second bedroom in fact being a thoroughfare into the main bedroom. So after some negotiations for we found Conor and Amanda a lovely room in a new hotel across the road (at half the normal rate for birthday boy Conor).
As per the new routine, the first thing to organise was the scooters. Managed to get 3 for 2 days for $A12 per day. After a quick swim we headed back into Ella and to Little Adam’s Peak. First thing we needed to do was fill up the bikes with petrol – weird this practice of the bikes being empty. It was a bit of a ride to the station but made pleasurable by a stop at a local cafe where we all had 2 vegetable rotti’s and a drink (for a total of $A7!!)
The first thing that stuck us driving through Ella was the number of tourists – the place was swamped!! Getting to the car park at Little Adam’s Peak was a bit of a mission on very bumpy dirt roads but we all made it successfully. There was a massive club complex there that would not have been out of place at Ibiza – pools, bars and house music. There was also a big swing ($25) and a flying fox ($125). Certainly not the usual Sri Lankan prices. The climb to the peak wasn’t too bad with some pretty amazing views. Ella is built around quite a decent canyon and its elevation keeps it a bit cooler which was lovely. We finished off the day with a game of cards, a few beers and a western meal at The Barn to celebrate Conor’s birthday.
Our plan for the following day was to cover 3 tourist attractions starting with the Nildiya Pokuna caves around 30km from Ella, then pop in to the secret waterfalls just around the corner before we visiting the Ravana Waterfall on the way back to Ella. We drove past the Ravana Falls on the day to the cave and could see already it was a bit of a tourist trap – it was a nightmare by the time we drove past on our return journey so decided to give them a wide berth.
We turned off the main road and followed a very windy track to the start of the caves. It was $15 per person for a guided tour (not possible to do without a guide – we definitely would have got lost). Taylor was a bit ambivalent about entering the cafes when we saw the narrowness of the entrance and requiring to climb down 2 ladders. We talked her into it but she remained very doubtful for the first 5 minutes as we had to clamber though some very narrow passages before the caves finally opened up. The chambers were really dark – only our poor headlights providing light so we did not really appreciate their splendour. The stillness was punctuated by the continual clicking of the bats in flight. The rocks were slippery and in once instance I nearly slid over a steep drop. We walked for about 800m before coming to the bottom of the cave which was filled with water up to a depth of 5 metres. The water was that clear you would not know it was there until you stepped in it. We all had a very refreshing swim in the cool water – definitely the highlight of the experience. We passed 2 other groups coming down as we left which was a benefit of getting out early.
After the caves we headed a couple of kilometres down the road to the Secret Waterfall. They were a couple of fairly short waterfalls with some decent swimming ponds. We all enjoyed the swim although there was something in the water that brushed against our feet and sort of nibbled on us – not in a painful way – that made swimming too long uncomfortable.
It was then back to the pool and some chilling before heading to the station to grab 4 return tickets (Amanda preferred some chill time) to Bandaraweta – about 20 mins away. It’s called the Calypso Special train and it has 2 open roofed carriages so you can enjoy the beautiful surrounds. They even had a couple of local musicians entertaining us tourists with old legends like “Country Road”. It was a lovely trip to Bandaraweta even if it took twice as long to get there – had to wait 20 min for another train to pass.
Bandaraweta was a bustling town – the busiest we had encountered to date. We had an hour to kill so went for a bit of a wonder around the town. It was a hive of activity and we luckily encountered some sort of religious festival with energetic music with a load of woman ‘pulling’ a tractor which in turn was pulling a float. Not sure exactly what we going on. We grabbed a round of egg samosas before heading back to the station. We grabbed some seats on the train but unfortunately we sat in the station for 45 minutes waiting for the non tourist train to depart. Deryn went and got some drinks – tea for Conor and I and beer for her and Taylor. The tea was undrinkable – the milk and honey – while the beer was warm. Anyway it was a fun afternoon. We were all shattered so it was an early night.
We had a chill morning with Conor and I sitting in a cafe in Ella doing some stuff that required wifi (although it was shite) while Taylor and Deryn did some shopping – one small purchase between them. Conor, Deryn and myself went and checked out the fabled 9 arch bridge. A bit ho hum I thought – the drive on the windy roads was more interesting. We had just returned to our scooters (around 200m from the bridge) when we head a train go past. That may have made it more interesting although probably not!!
We gathered around 3 to head out to climb Ella Rock. It was reported to be quite a tough climb so we wanted to do it later in the day. We also thought, given we had scooters, bike to a spot closer to the Ella Rock trailhead to save 45 minutes. We were all flashing low on petrol so there were a few nerves of running out – although as I pointed out it was 8.4km to the petrol station and a mere 8km return to our destination. After a bit of going back and forward we found our destination. It cost Rp100 each to park our bikes and after some initial directions we were off. 10 minutes in a local pointed out that we had ‘missed a turn’ so pointed us in the right direction – seemed he was heading the same way. He effectively led us to the top via a few ‘short cuts’. Looks like we had got ourselves a guide.
The walk was pretty tough but it was beautiful. Again we were amazed at the vast number of Eucalyptus trees. We literally walked through a forest of them. It cost us Rp930 (A$5) to visit the summit and enjoy the spectacular views. We then walked over to the eastern side of Ella Rock for some more spectacular view up the canyon and across the plains. The walk down was a lot easier – and quicker. Deryn and I were remiss on the fact that we had not used our poles which would have made the walk a lot easier – and the reason we bought them!!
We all made it back into Ella without running out of petrol but decided not to risk returning to our villa before heading out for dinner. So it was a bit of a sweaty dinner but we were all so hungry it really didn’t matter. We headed home all pretty satisfied that we had made the most of our time in this beautiful town. Off to Arugam Bay tomorrow to another tourist hotspot.
I wondered down after breakfast to meet with Bob to arrange him to tuk tuk us to Sigiriya – I also took the opportunity to pick up some supplies. Not cheap!! We chilled around the pool until midday after which Bob took us to Sigiriya (about 11km) via an ATM and a local tourist store to buy a pipe – got one that Sherlock would have been proud of.
Took as a while to find our accomodation – Cloudz Sigiriya – as it was out in the middle of nowhere. The place is nice – just needs some more money to bring it up to excellent. Paying was a bit of a problem as they didn’t accept cards and so had to TT the money using a very average internet. We then arranged to hire 3 scooters for the 4 days ($14 per scooter per day) as we needed transport to get in and of Sigiria and to visit the Lion Rock and Pidurangal Rock. Conor and Amanda arrived around 2 so Conor and I grabbed a lift with the ‘resort’s’ owner and went and picked up the scooters. The scooters were empty so before heading home we had to fill them up with petrol – mine ran out just before the station but I managed to bunny hop the last 1km. Filling both scooters cost $18.
We headed home and picked up Amanda and Deryn and headed back onto Sigiriya for lunch / early dinner. The food was quite different to that previously eastern – the noodles had a dollop of tomato sauce on the side? After eating we headed over to Pidurangal Rock for the climb to the summit. A bus arrived as we arrived so we made a quick beeline for the steps to the summit in the hope of avoiding the crowds. The going was challenging but OK until we got about 100m from the summit at which point everyone had stopped. It was a choke point between those wanting to get up and those that wanted to get down – both groups had to funnel through a narrow gap in the rocks. After a few minutes and no movement I got sick of it and basically barged my way through having to do a few rock climbs; whereas after 10 minutes Conor shimmied up a gap between 2 rock and received applause when he made it to the top. The girls arrived 10 minutes later.
It was certainly worth the effort as the summit was huge with magnificent views – including of Lion Rock in the distance. Getting down was challenging again but less so than on the way up. Getting home was also a bit of a challenge as by now it was dark and we ended up driving long a very narrow and bumpy dirt road before finally making it back to our accommodation.
We had a very average breakfast at the hotel – an awful fish curry, mango honey mix and diced onions and tomatoes soaked in lemon juice. All topped off with a fried egg and loads of coffee. We then spent the morning waiting for Taylor to arrive. Poor thing had had a torrid time since arriving in SL. Firstly there was a mix up in taxis to pick her up from the airport and she ended up paying for 2 cars. Then the hotel had no air-conditioning and her driver to Sigiriya got lost and they ended taking an hour longer to get here after travelling a long way on dirt roads. The ultimate insult was having to wait 30 mins for her room to get ready in a hotel that only has 3 rooms in use and about 6 or 7 staff milling around. You think they would have had the room ready knowing that she was expected at 1.
Anyway she dumped her bag, got changed and then we all headed into Sigiriya for lunch – Taylor’s scooter had been dropped off earlier. I paid one of the staff $1 to go fill it up – seems the practice here is to return the scooter on empty. We found a chilled restaurant and spend a lovely couple of hours chilling over some curry and beers. The kids then headed into Dambulla to visit the Cave Temple while Dits and I spent a couple more hours using the restaurant Wifi to do some organising. Dits thought it was going to cost us $400 to get a van to drive to Ella (unfortunately the train is fully booked) but we managed to negotiate with a company we found in town to take us for $150 including a 1 hour stop in Kandy on the way.
We headed home around 6. The kids turned up around 730pm after being forced into a detour because of some wild elephants on the road. The next morning we were up at 630 to head into town early to climb Lion Rock. While dawn is meant to be perfect, the hotel concierge told us it would be very busy because of all the locals attending on a Sunday.
According to the ancient Sri Lankan chronicle, the local area was a large forest, then after storms and landslides it became a hill and was selected by King Kashyapa (AD 477–495) for his new capital. He built his palace on top of this rock and decorated its sides with colourful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side of this rock he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is derived from this structure; Siṃhagiri, the Lion Rock. The capital and the royal palace were abandoned after the king’s death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery until the 14th century. Sigiriya today is a UNESCO listed World Heritage Site. It is one of the best preserved examples of ancient urban planning.
It was pretty busy when we arrived at Lion Rock but after purchasing our tickets (USD35 each!) we joined the troops making the journey to the summit. Thankfully there were quite a few 2-way sections which meant the crowds were not too much of a problem. It took about 30 sweaty minutes (certainly cooled a bit by the occasional wind gusts) to reach the summit. It reminded Dits and me of a slightly less impressive Machu Picchu. We spent about 20 minutes on the summit before Taylor’s stomach insisted that we head into town a find a restaurant for breakfast.
We found a lovely restaurant on the main roads back to Cloudz that served western food and had an espresso machine. 6 omelettes and 8 coffees later we headed back to our hotel for some R&R by the pool.
We were picked up at 610am for our elephant safari in the Minneriya National Park. When we stopped to fill up with petrol, our guide asked if we had the 62k rupees for the park entrance fee. Deryn said it wasn’t necessary as we had paid it as part of our tour ticket. So off we drove. After a bit more investigation we discovered that we in fact had not paid the park entrance fee. Thankfully Amanda had a chunk of change plus the guide chipped in 12k which was enough to get us over the line.
While we only saw elephants over the 2 hours; we got to see a lot and some of them really up close. There was a bit of debate whether the A$100 per head was value for money but Deryn pointed out it was putting valuable money back into the local economy. The rest of the day was spent as per usual – eating in Sigiriya and relaxing around the pool at Cloudz.
There was a bit of drama going on in the background as it was taking a while for the funds I transferred using OzForex to get into the hotel owner’s account. He could not understand that it wasn’t coming from my account directly but via OzForex (when we checked in they could not accept credit cards – cash only – and we did not have enough cash so he suggested TT). He wasn’t going to let us leave until the money cleared until the local hotel manager (Leel) agreed to act as guarantor. What a lovely man.
There was a bit of drama going on in the background as it was taking a while for the funds I transferred using OzForex to get into the hotel owner’s account. He could not understand that it wasn’t coming from my account directly but via OzForex (when we checked in they could not accept credit cards – cash only – and we did not have enough cash so he suggested TT). He wasn’t going to let us leave until the money cleared until the local hotel manager (Leel) agreed to act as guarantor. What a lovely man.
We decided on a Sri Lankan holiday as it was literally half-way between Aus and Sweden (where Conor now lives). Like Conor (and Amanda), Taylor is also joining us for the second and third week of our holiday leaving Dits and I some time to travel alone.
We arrived in Negombo on 24 July midnight (430am NZ time) after a pretty tough 11 & 1/2 hour flight. I’m still getting used to turning right when we get on the plane. Deryn had thankfully organised a car so after grabbing some E-sims (USD10 for 125G) we headed to Mama’s Boutique Beach Hotel, about 20 mins from the airport.
The 4.5 hour time difference meant we were up pretty early. Had a swim and then breakfast in the hotel before walking into town to sort accomodation and our onward travel. We really struggled with the heat (33 degs), probably made worse by the jet lag. A couple of first impressions was that it was relatively quiet (Sunday?); there were a lot of half finished abandoned hotels / houses – a legacy of the Covid crisis and a fair bit of rubbish. And did I mention the heat – makes sense that the peak tourist season is November to April.
We stopped for lunch and had our first authentic Sri-Lankan meal. Similar to Indian but different – hoppers instead of rice, very hard nan bread (more like biscuits) and the curries are less creamy. And probably the spice level is a bit higher and daal comes with everything. We walked home for a swim and an afternoon kip before heading out for an evening walk and a feed. Lovely to be back in the hustle and bustle of an emerging economy.
Our driver picked us up at 10am for our 3 hour drive to Anuradhapura. We were both surprised at how long it took for us to get out into the “country”. Colombo has a population of 650k out of a total country population of 22m – quite amazing how dispersed the population is. We got a bit nervous an hour out when the driver kept changing gears (it was an automatic) and even one stage slammed it into park so the car stopped suddenly in the middle of the road. We made it eventually. It took us a bit of a mission to find the Emerald Homestay – it was on a dirt lane between a truck tire shop and a timber yard. The owners were very welcoming and the room comfortable. They had only opened the homestay earlier in the year, with the husband recently retiring from a successful career in banking. Our room was lovely although we both agreed that a pool was a future requirement of any accommodation.
We optimistically headed out into the heat to explode the area. The main street of the new town was a hive of commerce – a lot of banks, mechanics and Singer stores. We walked around one of the many lakes in the area before trying to find a bike rental shop. Both shops shown on google no longer existed (again a covid casualty?) I was starting to get a bit grumpy so calm Dits took control and found another bike shop and magically a tuk tuk appeared to carry us to our mission. The bike shop (Sun Cycles) was brilliant. In no time we had hired bikes for 24 hours (plus a sarong for me) for USD20. We then rode through the free part of the old town and visited a few of the many stupas in the areas (a sepulchral monument or burial building). Certainly very impressive. You are required to remove your shoes (and you have to leave them outside in a designated area and not allowed to carry in your backpack), caps and have your legs covered (hence the sarong). Some of the religious areas are huge so after 3 weeks here we are going to have toughened soles (and softer souls!)
We spent about 90 minutes cycling around the free area of the old town before deciding to head home and grab some food. We were returning the next morning to explore the ticketed part of the old town. We found an air conditioned restaurant on the way home and grabbed some fish curry. A mistake as the fish tasted way too fishy – a note to ourselves – only eat fish on the coast. Still it was only A$16 for dinner and drinks.
We started the day with a hearty Sri Lankan breakfast. Seriously it could have fed 6 of us. We then cycled back to the old town to explore the ticketed part of the site. Anuradhapura was the capital of Sri Lanka from about 400BC until around 1000AD. Its also a major Buddhist pilgrimage site with many religious sites. We sent the first hour exploring the ruins on foot before getting on our bikes for the remaining couple of hours. It was all very chilled and as we were doing it relatively early in the morning, deserted. We encountered a few tourists – mainly German and Dutch. Locals kept asking if we were German – German Turks perhaps?
We headed back to our room to chill for a few hours at which point decided that there was no point spending another day in Anuradhapura as we had seen all we wanted to see. Lovely. We booked a couple of nights at a ‘luxury’ lodge in Dambulla – USD50 per night but with a POOL! As a treat we walked into town for a pizza from PizzaHut. At 4 we headed back to Sun Cycles to drop off the bikes. We arranged for the hubby to take us to Mihintale – another sacred site on top of a hill with amazing views of the surrounds. On the way we stopped off at an incredible tree covered in vines – over 1000 years old according to our driver.
Mihintale was very cool. I would hate to be there with lots of tourists (a benefit of being here in the hot season) as getting up and down the little peak would be a nightmare. The views were definitely worth the climb. We also had our first up close and personal encounter with the local monkeys (tufted grey langur) when one tried to get into our open bag. Very cute.
We got picked up the next morning at 9am. Deryn found that Booking.com had the ability to book taxis. $40 for a 90 minute ride to Dambulla. Things were progressing smoothly until about 20 minutes out when a motorbike turned unexpectedly into the side of our car. It took about 45 mins of quiet talking and some money changing hands before we were on our way.
The Sunduras Resort and Spa was everything we had hoped for with a lovely big pool and plenty of recliners. It even had a bar with seats in the pool. We relaxed for a couple of hours and then around 4 headed to the nearby Dambulla Royal Cave Temple and Golden Temple. The caves and their drawings are another national treasure and when viewed you can completely understand why. We explored the big golden Buddha at the base of the hill (covered in actual gold) before climbing the hill to reach the Cave Temple at the top. On the way we passed the usual assortment of flower sellers (to leave at alters in the temples); mango and drink stalls. We saw a few more tourists than we had encountered previously.
The caves were impressive – although again we were glad we were not there in peak season as some of the caves would have been very claustrophobic (and sweaty) with a lot of people in them. The views were also lovely – as was the cool breeze although Deryn and I both noted that we were becoming a lot more acclimatised to the heat.
On the way to the summit we passed a local who as per standard asked where we were from. As soon as we said NZ, cricket came up. He then told us that the Sri Lankan women’s team were playing Thailand that night at the intentional Dambulla CG. It was free as well. So after making our way down the hill through throngs of monkeys (they have very large incisors when growling!!!) we jumped into a Tuk Tuk and headed to the cricket. It was lovely and really impressive to see so many young girls in the crowd. Sri Lanka smashed Thailand although we left after 10 overs. It was a fun night.
We spent the next day basically chilling by the pool with a brief sortie back up mounting to enjoy the view before heading to The Uprising for a local meal. It was a Rasta themed outdoor restaurant that looked pretty run down but the food was really good. Given the theme of the restaurant it was hardly surprising the owner was named Bob. His family had lived on the property for over 100 years and just recently had to fight off an attempted acquisition by the local monks. We agreed that he would tuktuk us to Sigiria the next day to meet morning to meet up with Conor and Amanda!!
The drive from Jasper to Grand Prairie was decidedly unspectacular after recent road trips. I was still feeling very dodgy so Deryn did a lot of the driving. Our stay in Grand Prairie was as uneventful as the town itself.
We were away early the next morning for our drive to our cabin at Peace River, half way between Dawson Creek and Taylor. We arrived at 1.30, thinking it was 2.30 – we had crossed back into BC. We were met by the German owner Rudi, who pointed us his wife Barb in front of our cabin. She warned us that the mossies were particularly bad because of the rain – thankfully we did not find them to be much of a problem. There were 3 cabins on the 240 hectare (which is 2 lots – land can only be sold in whole lots). Our cabin was cute with the bed in a loft up a very steep ladder – would hate to try navigate it in the middle of the night after a skinful. The ‘farm’ was lovely but lacked any animals. We went for a bit of a wander around the farm – Deryn even got to see some baby ducklings braving the water for the first time. I was still feeling unwell – my hives had all scabbed and were incredibly itchy. The nerves all around my neck and left ear were really sore and meant I could only sleep on my right side. Very uncomfortable.
I wasn’t interested in doing much the next day except to drive the 40 minutes back into Dawson Creek to get myself some takeaways. Deryn was convinced I was mad. I found a Burger King and a liquor store to get Deryn some wine. I was then heading home, eating chips with one hand when I again got pulled over by a cop. I stopped immediately when I saw the flashing lights!! He reckoned I was swerving all over the road – turns out it was a 2 lane road but with no lines. I did wonder. He then saw Deryn’s bottle of wine on the back seat and said that its a $190 fine for having alcohol in reach. Anyway he left me off with a warning after running my details through his onboard computer. That’s 2 pull overs in a month. I got a bit lost trying to find my way home but was saved by the location source in our photos. We saw a moose walking through the trees but didn’t get close enough for a decent look.
The next day we drove into Taylor to see if we could play 9 holes at the local golf course called the Lone Wolf Golf Club (an international golf course no less). Unfortunately they did not rent clubs so we settled for a cup of coffee in the club house before stopping at the local ice cream parlour for a fix. When asked the girl said the Peace Island Park was the local highlight. Jeez, we didn’t even get out of the car. When we returned we did what we had been doing for the last few days, chilling and reading in the sun. I needed it as I recovered from my chemical frying.
Our plan was to head up to Whitehorse in the Yukon. We had booked into some cabins on Muncho Lake, 90 minutes from the Yukon border but planned a stop-over in Fort Nelson, just over 4 hours away. We had booked ourselves into one of the many hotels that lined these strip mall towns. The Lakeview Inns and Suits, was unremarkable but clean and comfortable. As for the view of the lake? Not a glimpse. We were informed that our restaurant of choice had burnt down a few months earlier (Covid payout?) so we ended up at Boston Pizza – there really wasn’t that many to chose from. Our drive next day to Muncho Lake was only 3 hours so we didn’t rush away in the morning. The cooked breakfast was awful, partially saved by the crunchy hash browns. The drive was lovely, turning spectacular when we arrived at the south end of the beautiful green Muncho Lake (around the 485 mile mark on the Alaskan Highway). An hour before, we had stopped from some well known cinnamon buns at a small campground. The owner said how they usually sell about 400 buns a day in a normal season but only selling a handful at the moment. At $7 a bun, thats a profitable business!!
Our cabin in the Northern Rockies Lodge was cute, but unfortunately it was next door to a new cabin being built. Maybe the reason for 3 nights for the price of 2. The main building of the Lodge was impressive although looking decidedly unused. It seems the Lodge’s current main business currently was selling take-away meals. There were a few families in RVs staying for a few days but mostly the guests were Americans (military and coast guard) heading to Alaska and only staying a night. Interestingly, Americans are allowed 2 days in Alberta, 24 hours in the Yukon and indefinite in BC!! Not sure I am happy about that given what’s happening in the States and now that cases are flaring up in Alaska for the first time. The weather was pretty shitty so we didn’t venture much further than the lodge’s ground.
Next day we hiked the Old Alaskan Highway, a relatively easy hike 5km’s from the Lodge. The start of the trail was not well marked, the first 100m not really looking like a path. After that it was easy to follow. It was a relatively flat walk for the first 2km before a steep climb to the summit. The views were spectacular – the emerald colours of the lake were almost unbelievable. We decided to walk down to the campground across one of the rivers flowing into the lake. We had been advised against it after the recent rain back at the Lodge, but it turns out it was a doddle. We bumped into a family from the Lodge who were heading out from the river side and gave them some encouragement. The walk back along the road to our car was fine given that only 3 trucks and a car passed us.
We played some cards on the deck and cooked our dinner for the first time on our portable stove and it was perfect. That evening we walked a bit around the lake to another campground. It was certainly busy with every site taken by an RV.
Next day we decided to hike the Copper Rock canyon. Before we got there though , Deryn insisted on using the portable stove to make toast inside the cabin. Of course as the owner wonders down to check out the building work next door, the smoke alarm goes off. I dashed off to the toilet and closed the door so Deryn could deal with him. He wasn’t happy and said guests were not to use stoves inside! The hike was a bit further than yesterday’s but not that far. The real challenge was not distance but rather finding the path. You basically hiked up the river sometimes walking/hopping along the bank while other times it required climbing up over headlands. I felt like throwing it in a few times but Deryn wouldn’t have it so on we went. We finally made it to the waterfall and even sat on the bank above it. I was very uncomfortable as the bank looked highly unstable so moved us on pretty quickly. I stopped on the way back to put my head under the water – I lasted a few seconds and interestingly my gums ached for a while afterwards. The weather packed in as we headed home so it was a chilled afternoon in the cabin before heading to the Lodge for our luxury 3 course meal. For $75 each, it had better be. The meal of the night was venison so Deryn and I had the vege option. The mushroom entree was amazing, the main terrible and desert amazing. Not worth $75 mind. The meal felt like someone trying too hard. I reckon the Swiss owner has visions of grandeur. The BLT I had the day before was far better than our main tonight.
We were planning on entering the Yukon on 30 June, but thankfully someone in the office told me that you could only enter Yukon on 1 July if you were from there, NT and BC. We were hopeful that our BC plates and insurance papers showing that we live in BC would allow us in. Otherwise it was back to Whistler. We had booked ourselves into a another lodge that night an hour from the roadblock just south of Lake Watson where you entered Yukon properly. South of that the Alaskan Highway moved in and out of BC.
We decided to check out Bolder Canyon on the way. It was about 5km down the road and basically consisted of a massive stoney, mostly dry riverbed. We walked about 2km before it narrowed to a point we couldn’t be arsed. The walk back was better because you could appreciate the scale of the river and what it must be like when in full flow.
We arrived at the Coal River Lodge at around 2.30. It certainly was basic. The lodge was managed by two elderly women while their husbands managed the grounds and the garage attached to the lodge. We asked about our bikes, one of the elderly men said that he was the local sheriff and so they were safe!! We went for a ride until the mossies won so we retreated to the room and chilled before covering ourselves in spray to venture out to a nearby picnic table for dinner. Again the portable stove was brilliant. We were told that Leroy, a large male Bison, wondered around the lodge early evening. Sure enough, around 8.30 Deryn spotted him 200m or so away. He gradually came closer and closer until we decided it was time to head out for a look. When we got out back he was gone, however as we walked around the house we spotted him 20 metres ahead. He was massive. What an incredible creature. He walked onto the road – causing a rig to slow and drive around him without Leroy really noticing.
The next day we saw tens of bison. The day started with a black bear, then a porcupine followed by bison after bison after bison. They often grazed right on the side of the road so you could get within 5 or so metres of them. We nervously approached the roadblock at Lake Watson but thankfully the elderly guard was very pleasant and our BC base was satisfactory. We drove around Lake Watson (not worth it) and then stopped at a license plate momento. Amazing. It was then a long drive to Whitehorse where we arrived at the aptly named Midnight Sun Lodge. It was a large B&B with Anson, the owner and his mother living there. We were a bit concerned about just having a bedroom but he assured us all the facilities were communal, including the upstairs lounge and kitchen as well as the same on our floor. There were very few guests so we basically had the upstairs to ourselves – again most guests were Americans passing through. We grabbed our bikes and did a bit of a tour of the city/town which is now the capital of Yukon (took over from Dawson in 1953). The place had the feel of a small northern Australian town with a poor indigenous population. However it turns out it was Canada Day so everything was closed. It certainly felt a lot better in the following days.
The next day we decided to head out on our bikes and explore some local lake trails. We stocked up and headed off. It was a lovely day and very enjoyable riding along the banks of the Yukon river. The Whitehorse dam was impressive, as was the wooden fish ladder which is the longest in the world at 366m – mostly used by spawning salmon. We then headed up Heartbreak Hill before hitting the trails. Once again it was beautiful with the trails (being mostly blue) were fine. We basically just followed trails to see where they would take up but after 90 mins we realised that we were getting tired and should head back. A bit of help from some edibles and the journey home was a doddle. 24km in 2.15 hours. A good day! We ate at the kitchen dining table which was nice – curry chicken pie and salad. We also got into the alcohol a bit which made for a bit of a late night. Very weird being somewhere were it doesn’t really get dark. The sun sets at around 1230 and rises again at 2. Between then it was basically twilight.
Next day was a chill day. We also decided to extend our stay in Whitehorse and then head up to Dawson rather than continuing on the Alaska Highway as the Alaskan border was closed. We headed down to the local museum for the morning. As much as I hate stuffed animals, they were impressive. The afternoon was spent washing and writing and reading. I also grabbed some Macca’ while Deryn had leftovers. We climbed the hill out the back of the house which had decent views of the town. Thankfully, again, the mossies were not that bad.
July 4 was spent an hours drive away in the First Nation town of Carcross (was originally names Caribou Crossing until a mistake by the postal service had it chopped to Carcross). We passed the spectacular Emerald Lake on the way – the colours of the lakes in Canada are amazing. The town itself was very indigenous. We originally planned to do the Mountain Hero trail (47km) but after speaking to a couple of cops decided it was probably a bit ambitious – the 15km climb, having to walk through snow and the 19km ride home on the main road all combined to deter. We decided to do the McDonald Creek trail which still required over 800m of vertical climbing. As we started out we bumped into a local who informed us that the tracks were closed because of health concerns – arsenic leaking from an old silver mine. However we continued on and saw no evidence of anything being closed. It took us an hour to climb the first 5km and another 30 minutes before we reached the start of the McDonald Creek trail (an old bullock track). We did a quick birthday video for Bex Sinnott, downed some peanuts and chocolate and then headed off down the trail. It was obvious that the trail hadn’t been ridden for a long time as there were fallen trees and a fair bit for debris on the track. It didn’t detract from the buzz of racing downhill; making plenty of noise to ensure any nearby bears knew we were coming. The views of the surrounding peaks and Bennett Lake were amazing. After 7km the trail merge into Wayne’s World for a undulating ride along the lake shore back to Carcross. 25km and 3.5 hours and we were bushed. We were also covered in little worms that hang from trees by a thin thread to be carried away by passing animals.
We bumped into another grumpy local who told us the trails were closed and it was signposted as such. We assured him there were no signs. Seems like a bit of tension in the town which is a shame as the Carcross bike trails have been lauded as great collaboration with western capital and First Nation labour. We grabbed a coffee and a blueberry muffin and headed back to Whitehorse, stopping briefly at the Carcross desert – a very large sand dune caused by retreating glaciers many moons ago. We were in bed early that night as we were both shattered. I planned on doing nothing the next day where’s Deryn headed out to Miles Canyon. She got caught in the rain but I think our car copped the worse beating. It was covered in mud as the access road was dirt. She said it was lovely and I missed out. We were away early the next day as it was over 530km to Dawson City.
It was a dull drive to Calgary once we left the Rockies. The highlight was passing the ski jump and luge facilities from the 1988 Winter Olympics. Our hotel, Best Western Downtown Calgary, was in the heart of the downtown area. Funny that. Checking in was again interesting with all the Covid restrictions. Only 1 person (or Covid group) in the lift at any one time. We were on floor 14 so plenty of lift action. We got a bit freaked out when we found a bag of flu medicine outside the door of our neighbour – when I asked the front desk they said she only had the flu and did not leave the room. Mmmm.
I headed out for a run, running along the Bow River north bank from 14th street and then crossed over the 4th street bridge to run back along the south bank. I had to take a different route to the one I had originally planned because of the Black Lives Matter protests. Once I got to the river bank it was lovely with quite a few locals out and about. The next morning we grabbed our bikes and once again followed the Bow River westward. We watch a couple of ducks guide their chicks across the river to the Prince’s Island Park – a little island in the middle of the river. The current was so strong it was a real mission for the chicks to make it across, which thankfully they all did – otherwise Deryn was going for a swim. We cycled as far west as Inglewood – the original settlement in Calgary. It was cute but nothing special. We then headed home via the city proper, amazed how quiet the place was.
After a kip we headed out to 17th Avenue, the bar and cafe centre of Calgary. As it turned out it was the first day bars were allowed to open in the city. They closed the curbside lane of the road so the pavements could be used for seating for all the bars. Once again we were impressed with processes and innovation of the bars / restaurants to manage the virus. We stopped for a couple of brilliant cocktails at Lulu Bar called a Lamborghini Mercy (we had just seen 2 parked along the road) – made from sake, mezcal, green apple cordial and Chardonnay. We then headed to Brown’s Social House and a pavement table for dinner. When the sun was out it was lovely but as soon as it disappeared behind a cloud the temperature plummeted. We agreed that we could not live in Calgary because of the weather.
We woke feeling a bit ropey due to our enjoyment the night before. We had breakfast once again at the Kawa Expresso Bar across the street as the Best Western’s prepacked breakfasts (Covid issue) consisted of a juice pack, muffin and health bar. I went for a run trying to run off the hangover but had to walk the last km because of the 5km no stretch hammy ping. I then drove to Macca’s for the proper hangover cure. We headed away the next morning glad to be returning to the Rockies. We had decided to stay at Canmore, 17kms down the road from Banff for a change of scenery. We were so glad we did because the town had a much more chilled vibe than Banff. We had booked 3 nights at the Lamphouse Hotel (ended up staying 5), in the heart of the village.
We had been in contact with a Physio friend of Cal’s called Annie who kindly offered to take us out for a mountain bike ride once we had lunch. We grabbed a bite at Graze and had some fun with Tony the owner. He was a real character. We drove to Annie’s place and headed off with her and her husband Chris on a ride. 15kms and nearly 90 minutes later we were back at their place. We climbed over 300m at the start of the ride which made it a challenge for Deryn to keep her lunch down. Apart from that it was a lovely ride. We stoped at A&C’s place after for a few drinks and met their daughter Meg. We had some of the best cider I have ever tasted – a shame I did not take note of the brand. Dinner was leftovers at the hotel.
I headed down to Graze for breakfast and met Tony’s daughter Natasha. She was as chatty as her dad. Breakfast was brilliant. We had a chilled day exploring Canmore. It really is a stunning place. We went for an evening stroll that ended up being nearly 2 hours and over 10km. Once again the walk was along the Bow River. The setting sun on the surrounding mountains was spectacular. The next day we headed up to Canmore Nordic Centre with Chris to ride the EKG trail. Once again it was stunning, if not a little wet. We headed to Chris’ place afterwards to wash down our bikes. We met another another Physio friend Martha and her 3 girls from Jasper. We left our bikes there and walked back to our hotel so the visitors could use then. We also decided to stay a couple more days so we could have dinner with Annie et al at their place for my birthday dinner!
We had booked in an early afternoon horse ride at the Boundary Ranch in the Kananaskis Valley, about 40 mins on the road back to Calgary. About 30 minutes in we passed a cop going the other way with his lights flashing. I didn’t pay much attention until I noticed he had turned around and was heading in our direction. I slowed down and pulled over as he approached form behind. He pulled alongside us and vigorously pointed that I pull over. I did. He then walked towards the car with his hand on his pistol. All very OTT. He reckoned I was doing 113 in a 90kmh zone when he passed us so flashed his lights to get me to slow down. He said I then sped up and hence he turned round to chase us. He said it was also mandatory to stop when a flashing police car approaches from behind. People that don’t are either Chinese or fugitives. Yea right. After a lot of “yes sirs” and a 10 minute wait we were fined $87 for doing 93 in a 90 zone. Go figure.
The Boundary Ranch was beautiful with a real cowboy feel about it. Hardly surprising. Two of the girls working there were Kiwis. Our host for the ride was Wade, a real cowboy with a twang and few teeth. We were joined on our ride by a Chinese family that said they had ridden before. I doubt the girl had but it didn’t matter really because we never got above a slow walk. We barley covered 6km in 2 hours. It was excruciating, especially when we had to stop every 5 minutes because our guests horses kept on grazing at will. However the scenery was beautiful and we (I) even got to see a grizzly bear – albeit it from a distance – and a few of their scratch trees. The irony of it all is that we were fined for speeding to join a horse crawl. I would not do it again even if I was paid. Thankfully we paid half price (still $70 each!!).
Dinner at Chris and Annie’s was lovely with the kids even baking me a delicious chocolate cake with candles. I, of course, applying Covid protocol, extinguished the candles with rapid hand movements. I got a bit chatty and continued to ignore Deryn’s kicks under the tangle telling me it was time to go! We got up early the next morning for our drive to Junction 1A where we jumped on our bikes to cycle the 7km to the start of the Johnson Canyon hike – the road was closed to cars because it was being resealed. It was the same road that opened when we were there earlier for the leg to Lake Louise. The first part of the trail take you to a couple of waterfalls before a 3.5km hike to the Ink Pots. So called because they are fresh springs in which the water bubbles at out at varying speed. ThIs in tuen means that the density of the chemicals in the water in turn makes the colours vary from green to pink. We had lunch sitting around the pools before hiking back down and then cycling back to our car. We were shattered by the time we got back to The Lamphouse. We had had to move rooms that morning to an upstairs room which was great as It gave us a spectacular view of the sun setting over the mountains.
The move however turned out to be a disaster as when we got up the next morning we found that our bikes had been stolen from the back of our car. The car was parked under our room which meant it could be accessed from the back of the property. It turns out that its not uncommon for thieves to come up from Calgary in vans and do a clean out of Canmore. We immediately tried second hand sales as far away as Calgary and Revelstoke (our next destination) but no avail. Covid has created a bike boom and hence they were very scarce. We tried a couple of bike shops in Canmore and thankfully The Bike Cafe had a couple of reasonably priced Treks. So we ended up with new bikes. We had so enjoyed having bikes on our travels that decided we were not going to let thieves spoil our holiday. It also meant we could put in the past and move on. Chris very kindly drove down when we told him what had happened to offer his condolences.
So our departure to Revelstoke was delayed by a couple of hours but the weather was a bit dodgy once we crossed into BC so we didn’t miss out on any planned hikes. I was feeling pretty average so barely got out of the passengers seat apart from stopping at a lake and lunch in a small diner in Golden. It was nice to be back in Revelstoke after visiting in winter although the weather made us think that summer hadn’t arrived. We stayed at the Revelstoke Lodge (Rob Ffiske had stayed there for his 3 month stint and recommend the place). James our host was really friendly and welcoming. We locked our bikes in a shed even though he assured us that there were very few thefts in Revelstoke.
The next morning we headed into town for breakfast and a bit of shopping. The weather was pretty average with a poor outlook as well. However it was forecast to be better than the other 2 days in Revelstoke so we decided to head out for a ride. We drover to Mt Macpherson’s and do the Flowdown trail. The weather cleared for a 12km ride through the forests. It was magic. It was pretty muddy so we undressed outside of our motel unit. The bikes also got a good wash. We chilled before dinner and decided to ride into town along the Colombia River. We got a bit carried away and ended up cycling for 90 minutes and quite some distance, almost to Revelstoke Mountain. The gummy bears may have helped!!
It was raining cats and dogs the next day so we drove into town for breakfast before spending most of the day reading and doing laundry. I tried to go for a run when the weather broke but at the 5 km mark my hammy pinged again so I had to call Deryn to come pick me up. We started playing cards around 4, then headed into town to see which bars were open; not before finishing up the last of our Whistler supplies. Thankfully the Village Idiot was open – we knew it well as we had spent some time there with Robbie and his mates back in Feb. We plonked ourselves down at the bar and spent the night chatting to Eric the owner. He was friendly; a few of the other locals less so. We got kicked out when they shut the bar. It was a very slow start the next morning.
We drove back to Lake Louise and our expensive accomodation (they all were) at the Mountaineer Lodge. We stopped off at the Giant Ceder Boardwalk to admire the incredible trees (even though it was closed) and then again at the Natural Bridge in the Yoho National Park as I was not feeling well enough to have a gander on the way down to Revelstoke. Seeing so many waterfalls, you risk become blasé of their grandeur. The lodge was lovely. Dits hung around in the room while I walked over the road to have a burger in a diner with amazing views of the mountains. We left our bikes chained to the bike rack overnight which meant Deryn and I were up numerous times during the night whenever we heard a sound. Thankfully they were both still there in the morning.
We got away early as we had a big day driving through the Icefields Parkway to Jasper. The weather was lousy which meant we missed out on much of the splendour for the first 35 or so kms. However the early start combined with the poor weather meant we came across a grizzlies grazing on the side of the road. Amazing creatures. He/she was completely uninterested in us even though we were no more than 10 metres away. We got our of the car for a little walk at Bow Lake. Unfortunately the lousy weather meant the lake was not the bright turquoise it can be. Next stop was Peyto Lake and again a similar experience. That is not to say they wern’t impressive. Just not as grand as they could be. We stopped for an early lunch in front of the Weeping Wall – an impressive cliff face with half a dozen waterfalls covering it. The strong wind blowing made it all the more impressive – although damn cold while huddled in front of the car having lunch. At least the rain was gone and we could enjoy the splendour of the mountains.
We stopped up the top of a steep climb for the quintessential view of the Parkway – called The Big Bend. Absolutely stunning. We agreed that it was up there with Patagonia. Following this we stopped at the base of Parker Ridge, hoping to walk the trail to again one of the best views of the Parkway but had to give up after 5 minutes when we understood we would be hiking the entire way in soft snow. A bit too much of a challenge without the right gear. Next stop was the Columbia Icefields – a once amazing glacier that is now retreating at nearly 5 metres a year. The glacier was huge (went all the way to the Albertan plains) which was evident by the height of the scourings along the sides of the valley. Even as recently as 1908 it was at the doorstep of the famous Glacier View Lodge. We walked as close as we could to the face up a very windy and rugged slope. They had markers for every 20 years to show how much the glacier had retreated. Global warming in action!!!
Next stop was Sunwapta Falls (the Glacier Sky walk was unfortunately closed). We followed the Sunwapta River down over multiple very impressive falls. The lower falls were about 3kms away but well worth the hike. We were starting to feel a bit jaded so gummy bears were once again called into action. The best falls were yet to come with the Athabasca Falls – amazing how much water channels through very small canyons. Reminded us of the Huka Falls in NZ. We arrive at our B&B – Bon Homme View – around 5 very satisfied with an incredible day. We had our own little apartment upstairs which was a nice change, although again the bed was a little small. And crap pillows but thankfully we had our own in tow.
We grabbed our bikes for a quick explore and to grab a salad from the local supermarket. The town had a lovely laid back, family feel to it. I felt a bit slow the next morning so Deryn headed off on her own. Returned 3 hours later (and 28km) gushing about how amazing the local lakes and scenery was. It inspired me to head out for a run – Deryn recommended the old Fort (a hill) or possibly Beauvert Lake. I headed to Old Fort but once again my hammy failed so I decided to climb Old Fort anyway to experience the view. Amazing. By the time I had got to the bottom my hammy felt fine so I ran home via the hill behind our house. I got there just in time to see a black bear and her very small club disappear into the forest. We then drove an hour into Hinton for me to see a dentist. I had been trying for weeks because of a sore tooth and finally found a dentist that could see me – I had made an appointment in Jasper for 2 weeks! After the X-ray I was informed that the tooth needed either a root canal or removal. Neither which they could do!! I got some antibiotics to treat the infection so it wasn’t a total waste of $120.
The next day Deryn and I decided to ride the 5 Lakes trail. A lot of it was single track, some of it very wet which required us to get off and walk. It was certainly worth it because the lakes were incredible. The colours were amazing. To avoid the bog, we headed home along a different trail which Deryn had riden the day before. We were biking for nearly 3 hours by the time we arrived back in Jasper so a stop at a pub was essential for a well earned feed of crispy chicken burgers. The next day it was another ride to the Maligne Canyon and its 5 bridges. Each bridge enabled you to stare down into the gushing water below. Just before the second bridge we were shouted at by a park ranger carrying a gun to head down the hill to avoid a black bear and her cub. A bit of an overreaction we thought given our experience with the bears. Just before the first bridge a couple of lads came squealing towards us saying they had stumbled across another bear. We never saw what one. We did see another 2 as we left the parking area. Must be a bear picnic in the area.
I had a bit of a dodgy nights sleep and wasn’t feeling too good next morning. Had a few hives popping up on my face. Dits thought it may be a allergic reaction to the antibiotics (amoxicillin). We had decided to spend the weekend in Jasper but unfortunately had to move and could only get a room with a shared bathroom at the Athabaska Hotel in the centre of Jasper. It was a lovely grand old hotel, chock full of character and stuffed animal heads on walls. Our room was tiny and the bathroom had 1 shower and toilet. I went down to the front desk and asked how may were using the bathroom. Jerry, the manager informed me that it was 7 people. I asked how that could be legal with Covid. He said it was. He then asked if we would like to move to a double room with an ensuite. Hell yes. For no extra charge? Hell yes!!! The room wasn’t ready so we grabbed the bikes and headed out to Beauvert Lake. We stopped at the old Fort and climbed to the the top so Deryn could enjoy the view. It was just as amazing the second time. Then it was on to the lake. The lake was beautiful, as was the Jasper golf course and the Emerald Lodge. I was tempted to try see if I could have a drive on one of the holes after encountering a bunch of oldies teeing off, but chicken out. Our journey home was a bit adventurous as we headed off the path and cross country. Getting out required us clambering along the steep slope of the motorway. For dinner we headed out for a feed at the local Earls, enjoying the spectacular views while sitting on the outdoor balcony. Although the people watching was just as entertaining given the hoards that had invaded from Edmonton. Most of them being very large!!
I got a fever that night and the hives got worse. I decided to chill most of the day in the room – which was bearable give the view of the mountains and the Edmonton hoards below. I was no better the next day, actually the hives were worse so I headed down to the pharmacy and they advised to stop the antibiotics ASAP. Deryn headed off to see Pyramid and Patricia Lake. She said they we nice but it was hard going with a the track being very boggy. We headed off around 11 the next morning to further the next phase of our adventure. Grande Prairie and the Alaskan highway. Before leaving I had a chat to Jerry, the manager, who said our $99 room was normally $270 and Jasper has up to 50k people in it in summer. At best there was 10k there last weekend and we thought it was busy!!! Covid certainly has some silver linings.
The speedo at the start of our roadie was 101,235 on Wed 27 May. We have been in Whistler since December 18 of last year. The snow was average initially but then it started snowing early Jan and basically didn’t stop until mid-Feb. It was unfortunately a bit warm – which meant an unstable base and some soggy powdered days – except for one 4 day spell in which it got down to -25 degs. Our skiing was blessed with the company of our family from NZ and Australia as well as a little BC roadie to SunPeaks, Revelstoke (phenomenal), White Water and Red Mountain. We also managed to get a week on Vancouver Island and a few lovely weekends with the Bliss Thomas clan in Vancouver.
The mountain closed on March 11. It was then simply a matter of waiting for travel restrictions to lift so we could get on the road and explore the west coast of Canada. The National Parks open on 1 June so we decided to get on the road a bit early so we could arrive in Banff in time for opening. It was a magical time in Whistler, getting to know the town and surrounds as well as getting to know all the Bliss/Thomas clans and their friends. The highlight was our room pub crawl in Whistler in which we all got to theme a room to host a pub stop. Fun night. The lockdown certainly had a silver lining. However, we were getting itchy feet and it was a relief to be back on the road again.
We spent Wed night at the BT clan in Vancouver before heading away midday the next day. Our destination was Osoyoos, basically 400km from Vancouver and a decent part of the journey to Nelson, our first proper stop. It was an uneventful drive, with a couple of stops on the way – once in EC Manning provincial park (albeit roadside) for lunch and then in the cowboy town of Princeton. We arrived at our motel – The Westridge Motel Inn – around 5. The motel was lovely. We unpacked and grabbed our bikes to explore the town. It was a lovely little lakeside town, eerily empty given the Covid situation. The lake of Osoyoos stretches across both Canada and the US with the main dam in Washington State. I felt that we had driven though the town on our mid-winter roadie, but Deryn was adamant we hadn’t. We stopped at a pub on the way home – first time we had been in a pub since March. It was an expensive stop with a beer and wine costing $23! Still nice though. We ended covering about 10kms and realised the bikes were going to be a real asset when it came to exploring towns.
We had a leisurely start to the next day as it was only 3 hours to Nelson along SH3. The first thing we realised when we got to the top of the mountain leaving Osoyoos was that we had in fact been through the town 3 months earlier. It was the view and the amazing metal statues along the road. It was lovely being back in the Kootenays and even better being back in Nelson. We swore we would come back in summer and so glad we did. It still had the same hippie vibe, just a lot warmer. The check In at the historical Adventure Hotel was very formal although the chap they had behind the counter was incompetent. I went for a decent run along the Kootenay River with Dits joining me on the bike for the first 4.5km half. We then went for a quick wonder around the town before grabbing some takeaways in a local cafe. The guy serving was a local whose parents were holed up in Nelson, NZ due to the C9. From Nelson,BC to Nelson NZ. Go figure.
The next morning, after a marvellous breakfast in the Vienna Cafe, we headed off to Morning Mountain to explore some of the local bike trails. We decided not to risk the bike rack over the bumpy dirt road so had to cycle up the last 1 km which was a bit of a chore. We chose the green trail Bottoms Up which 1/3 of the way turned into Upper Bottoms. It was a another 4km to the peak and after 2 of those we decided that our lack of water (duh!) meant it was too risky going all the way. We turned around and headed back down. For a green trail there was certainly some challenging bits, although nothing compared to the blue trails for the final 1/3. The berms and bumps were amazing. I got airborne over one, feet came off the pedals and I very nearly went over the top. An hour and 10kms later we were back at the car a bit disappointed we were so stupid as to forget water. We made up for it by heading out for a 16km ride later in the day, including visiting a waterfall which we visited in winter. The increase in flow was amazing.
We had a fantastic Mexican meal in the Cantina Del Centro. We started off with a round of mezcal and then moved on to the Majitos. The prawn and fish tacos were amazing. Also so nice to be sitting in a bar eating. We sat in a newly erected outdoor area out on the front pavement – a lot of new outdoor eating facilities had been set up outside bars/restaurants – kudos Nelson council. I bet they stay post C9.
We rented Roxanne (Steve Martin & Daryl Hannah) that night because it had been filmed in Nelson way back in 1987. I really do I think Nelson had aspirations of becoming another Aspen (as the Nelson mayor – played by the recently deceased Fred Willard – said in the movie). I’m glad it never happened, probably because the Red Mt ski field is just a bit too far away. We decided to try another mt bike trail, this time part of the Nelson Salmo Great Northern Trail. We decided to ride up the road to the blue Una Canuma. I bailed out half way deciding there was just too much uphill. Deryn bravely continued on and managed to do a bit of Log Jammer and a black Long Svoboda. I headed down a blue Called Lower Hangrail. We both agreed the rating system in Canada is far more challenging than Aus. Many of the blues here would be categorised black in Aus.
A big storm was due that night which could impact our travel plans down Route 6 to SH3 as its very narrow and flanked by steep mountains and rivers. There was a hell of a lighting display around 10pm but not as much rain as expected. We checked BC roads for closures but there was nothing closed local (a lot up by Kamloops so the storm must have hit hard there). It was pouring down while we packed the car but we coped knowing we had another brekkie at the Vienna Cafe due. There certainly was a lot of debris on the road for the first hour but nothing major. We stopped a couple of times to marvel at the fast flowing river, often with huge logs hurtling down them. It was a 4 hour drive to Fairmont Falls and our lovely little B&B in a golf resort. Our B&B, RiverView Retreat, was part of a family home. We were the first guests since November last year. They owners were very friendly and obviously missing the company of their guests! We drove to the local bar for dinner and were entertained by 3 ladies at another table celebrating a 65th. The real character was a 90 year old. After dinner we walked up a hill to explore the original hot baths in the areas. The old baths were still in use although 2 out of the 3 were in a pretty bad state of disrepair. The views of the Fairmont valley were amazing. It was freezing cold so we didn’t last too long before heading back to the sanctuary of our B&B.
While it was only a 2 hour drive to Banff, we wanted to try go to some hot pools and possibly do a hike in the Johnson Canyon so we were up early. As expected by Dougie Downer (my new name from Dits), the hot springs were closed and disappointedly for both of us, so was Johnson Canyon. We stopped briefly at a mini-canyon in the Kootenay National Park so marvel at a deep but very narrow canyon over a 15 minute walk. The rain forced us back to the car.
Just before Banff we stopped at a little roadside cafe and noticed quite a few people waiting around. We mistakenly thought they were waiting for the road going to Lake Louise to open – which it did while we were sitting there wondering what to do – great, we thought we would be the first up there. Little did we know that the road had been closed for roadworks not Covid and the main road to Lake Louise was still open. Lake Louise was still as busy as we had seen any attraction to date, but given the size of the 3 car parks (and the overflow car park down the access road), numbers were considerably less than usual. We agreed that being there in peak tourist season would be horrific.
The lake and the Chateau were stunning. There was still a lot of snow and ice covering the lake and surrounding mountains. We walked to the far end of the lake continually amazed at the surrounding beauty. Interestingly there were still quite a few Asian tourists – they had to be local given the border closures although in most cases they spoke Cantonese. We had a lovely encounter with some very friendly squirrels – they must be used to being fed by the tourists as they were very friendly. Again the rain chased us back to car and accompanied us for our 30 minute drive to Banff.
We had booked ourselves a room at the Blue Mountain Lodge B&B, in the heart of the town. Finding a park outside the B&B was a doddle, a miracle normally when the town is busy. The place was small and a bit constrained given the Covid. We also were a bit concerned that there was a French person isolating there as the place certainly was cosy. The bed in our room was tiny but the views of the surrounding mountains more than compensated. We grabbed our bikes and spent an hour exploring the village before enjoying a Vietnamese meal – my first tofu dish came with beef which became a takeaway for our B&B host.
We got up early and had breakfast out on the front lawn – the only place possible for social distancing. Breakfast was brilliant – coffee, croissants, yoghurt and eggs. We then headed off firstly to Lake Minnewanka and then Lake Johnson. Unfortunately the heavy rain over the previous week meant the lakes were not their usual brilliant blue. However they were still amazing. We didn’t spend much time at Lake Minnewanka as there was a cold wind blowing. Lake Johnson was more sheltered to we had a lovely 40 minute stroll around the lake. On the journey back to Banff we stopped at the Cascade Waterfall and climbed a 1/3 of the way up to admire the views. Spectacular. Following our now favourite lunch of a supermarket cooked chicken and salad, and a gummy bear for energy, we set off for a ride.
We headed towards the Fairmont Springs Golf Course along the Bow River before following the Spray River Loop trail that followed the Spray river 4 km upstream before crossing a bridge and heading back on the other bank. It was a lovely ride with very few other people on the trail. Quite amazing to be enjoying Banff with so few people around. The day was finished off with a meal on the rooftop bar of the Rose & Crown. I enjoyed my fish and chips given it must have been at least 6 months since I last had some.
It was another early start the next day to enable us to climb Tunnel Mountain before heading away. We had breakfast on the lawn again and enjoyed a good chat with the locals(?) running the place. A local lad plus German and Aus females. The 350m climb wasn’t too challenging although the views over the town were hindered by the biting cold wind. Again we appreciated our luck in. avoiding the tourist numbers as the trail was very quite. We grabbed our bikes for another quick tour of the town, I grabbed a burger and Dits a fish sandwich before we packed up and headed off to the plains of Alberta and Calgary.
Staypineapple was a really cool little boutique hotel located in the Gaslamp Quarter. It’s facilities and rooms were high quality and yet it had the buzz and energy of a backpackers. We grabbed some free bikes from the hotel and set off to explore San Diego. First stop was the waterfront and the impressive aircraft carrier USS Midway. We then headed inland to Balboa Park and spent an hour riding around the park. There were a lot of beautiful old colonial buildings housing quite a few museums and art houses. We started noticing the large number of homeless people – mostly males – but what was interesting was that they were very polite and quite chatty when engaged.
We decided to ride the 6km to a shopping mall which took us out towards the airport and the port. A few times we had to ride along the edge of the motorway which was a bit disconcerting. The number of homeless people around the naval base was incredible – I guess a lot of them are ex military. In the end we did around 30km so got to see a fair bit of the city. While we felt we did not really get a handle on the place, we both picked up a vibe that was a mixture of affluence and poverty. Quite weird. We grabbed a meal at a Gaslamp fish restaurant which was expensive given what we had been used to paying.
A big storm forecast for the next day so we chilled in the morning before picking up our car for the driver to Coachella. We took the more scenic highway 79 and were amazed at the amount of snow left over from the big storm over Thanksgiving. It got dark by 5 so finding our place turned into a bit of a challenge. Made worse by us trying calling the place for the next night when trying to get access to get access. We finally got in to our room which was basically a converted garage with a toilet attached. It was fine and served its purpose.
The next day was spent driving through the Joshua Tree National Park. We bought a $80 pass which gave us access to most US National Parks over the next 12 months. Joshua Tree was incredible, as was its namesake cactus/tree. We stopped a couple of times for a bit of a trek – once to see the skull rock which we never found; and another to walk up a canyon. It really was beautiful – I can I understand why U2 named my favourite album after it and why a lot of people come here to take mushrooms. The roads were populated by a lot of large RV’s and massive ute’s.
Our room for the night was in Casa Frank – basically a home (the owner Frank slept in a little side room) with 4 bedrooms and a communal lounge and kitchen. 1 bathroom was a bit of a ‘mare. Interestingly our approach of only staying at places rated 8 and above on Booking.com didn’t work in America as there were no places rated above 8 in our budget range. Americans must be tough raters as the 7 rated places were fine. We had heard good things about a diner called Pappy & Harriet which was a bit of an institution that played live music, so decided to drive the 15 minutes to check it out. The bands were OK but probably not worth the drive.
Next day we had a bit of a drive to Death Valley Inn & RV Park in Beatty on the outskirts of the Death Valley National Park. We were in real cowboy zone with the plenty of cowboy hats and massive cars and utes. It was also cold. We walked into town – it had a few dodgy food places and motels. Deryn stayed in the motel while I headed into town for dinner at the local Denny’s which was located inside a casino. Can’t get more American than that. We got away early the next day as Death Valley was huge and we needed as much time as possible to see what we could before it got dark. We were in the park within 20 minutes. It was spectacular – a vast expanse of valleys and mountains in the distance. We took quite a few photo’s but they just did not do it justice.
First stop was Zabriskie’s Point and a walk up the hill to admire the coloured mountains. Next stop was Dante’s View up the top of the Black Mountains. It was a bit of a drive and as we stated to near the top the clouds started to roll in so by the time we reached the top visibility was basically a metre! Great. So back down to the valley floor and a hike in Golden Canyon. We decided to do the 6km walk and when looking for out little backpack we realised that we had left it behind back in Beatty. Damn. It had Deryn’s wallet as well as our water bottle so we had to go retrieve it. Thankfully it had been found in our room and was waiting for us in reception. A 120km round trip – it wasn’t that bad as the views were that impressive it didn’t matter seeing it for a second and then third time. It was nearly 2 hours before we returned to Golden Canyon so only had time for a 30 minute walk. The scenery was unique – you would not want to be in the area when it rained as the there was no top soil to soak up any water and it would funnel into the canyons that we walked into. Not that rain was a real risk as the area only has 2 inches a year (and an average temp of 120F in the summer!).
Next was the Devil’s golf course which was basically a salt plain but a lot different to the last one we saw in Northern Argentina. The surface was very jagged, unlike the smooth surfaces elsewhere. Badwater Basin – the lowest point in North America at 282ft below sea level – was our furthest point before heading out via the Artists Palette and Artists Drive. Again, it was a lot less colourful than Argentina – the perils of a prolonged period of travel; you get spoiled. We spent the night in Panamint Springs Motel & Tents on the edge of the Park. We had to check in at the local petrol station; the room was basic but fine. There was only one restaurant in the area so we had dinner and then the included breakfast – most US places include a breakfast with the room rate. Deryn likes them but I find them a bit basic. But then I do love a full English Breakfast sans meat!!!
It was a 4.5 hour drive around the Sequoia National Park through some stunning farmland and mountains. We stopped a couple of times for a cup of tea (one cafe was packed to the rafters with gunc – no photos allowed – and cats of all ages!) and then lunch (where a naturalised Aussie told us of his plans to ride his horses from Mexico to Canada). Our place in Three Rivers – Lazy J Ranch Motel – was on a family run ranch – been in the family since the 70’s. It was beautiful with a few goats and sheep to make it feel authentic. There were a few lambs which surprised me – they explained that it was done intentionally to coincide with the annual farm show in May where they would compete.
Next morning it was an early start with our first stop in town to buy/rent some snow chains which is are mandatory to carry in the car when heading into the Park. I had no idea how many sizes of the damn things. We ended up buying some cheap ones (US$60) which we could return and get a $30 refund if unused. We knew there was going to be a bit of snow as we could not drive between Sequoia and Kings Canyon as the road through the pass was closed. Within 30 minutes of driving we were climbing through multiple hairpin bends; then we hit the snow. We stopped at the Giant Forest Museum to get a bit of background to the amazing Sequoia trees. They only grow naturally between 2800 and 4000 metres in this small part of California. They are the biggest trees in the world by mass and and some are thought to be well over 3000 years old. The biggest, General Sherman weighs over 1800 tonnes and is thought be to 2700 years old. That makes it only a middle-age giant sequoia, as other trees are believed to be more than 3,220 years old. We tried to go for a hike amongst the magnificent trees but unfortunately the snow was too deep and we had to bail out and walk back on the road. We then drove up to see the General. Quite awe inspiring standing in his shadow. From there we drove to the Lodgepole centre for a cuppa before heading back down to the warmer climes to have a picnic lunch in a park.
Given the amount of snow, visiting Kings Canyon and Yosemite was not an option so decided to head back to LA and do the coastal drive up to San Francisco. We reached out to Jimmy and Zsoka in Santa Monica to make sure there was a bed for the night – there was so we were good. 4 hours later we were in J&Z’s place – the motorway was full of massive cars and trucks top with only 1 driver. Insane. It was lovely to spend some time with James and Zsoka which included a walk around the very habitable suburb of Santa Monica including its beach (much prefer Aus and NZ beaches) We went for dinner at a local pub where we joined by Simon Oz Osborne for a lovely evening. We kept going at James and Zsoka’s – Zsoka and I gave my bottle of Jamison a very good nudge.
We headed up Route 101 after a leisurely breakfast in another lovely local cafe. The food and coffee in Santa Monica was certainly top shelf. First stop was Malibu. Incredible how they have built all the houses basically on the beach. The house owns the beach up to the high tide mark – will be interesting to see how much their insurance premiums are going to increase on the back of global warming. Next stop was Santa Barbara. Another beautiful place with a very liveable vibe. We stopped for a bit of a wonder; I got talked into buying a jacket and jeans after which we grabbed a tea and a fruit juice from the cafe in The Californian – $22!! Not a cheap place to stay me thinks.
The drive to Cambria was OK but route 101 was a bit too much of a motorway; things started to improve once we turned off onto route 1. We had a brief stop at Morro Bay to admire the sun setting over the estuary. Our hotel – Cambria Beach Lodge – was very cute. On checking in the owner asked me twice whether I had any pets – apparently this part of the world is pet city. We checked in and went for a walk along the beach to watch the sun set followed by another overprices meal – if you share the main without an entree they add $8 to your bill.
The drive the next am was beautiful. First stop on the was Hearst Castle, built by William Hearst in the roaring 20’s. Unfortunately you had to join an official tour to see the castle up on top of the hill so Deryn and I declined. Next stop was a nearby beach that was home to a colony of elephant seals. There must have been over 100 of them – the males were huge! For the next hour or so of our journey we were engulfed by fog which hampered the view but also gave the scenery a ghostly vibe. The fog finally lifted and we were treated to incredible views. We must have stopped every 15 minutes or so to admire the views. We did one walk down to a small 2 site camp ground – would be a magic place to camp but not with children given the sheer drops all around. We, of course, had to stop to photo the famous Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge. Standing room only but definitely worth it. We stopped for a hike in the Los Padres National Forest. We climbed through a forest of the world’s tallest trees – the Redwood. Amazing. There was still lots of evidence of the 2016 Soberanes Fire which burnt over 133,000 acres. Dinner was a burger in a mall on the outskirts of Carmel-by-the-sea before checking in to our very pleasant Forest Lodge.
Carmel-by-the-sea is famous for being the location where Big Little Lies was filmed. The place was stunning. A very cute village with an amazing beach – I would hate to think what a beachside pad would cost. We both agreed that we would love to spend a lot more time in the area. Our drive to San Fran was a bit bland – more because of the contrast from the Big Sur. We dropped our bags off at Clayton’s place in Cow Hollow before driving around for a whole trying to find the car rental place. We had travelled 1904 miles on our brief US adventure.
We then had a lovely weekend in San Fran with Clayton. Dinner with Wayne and Cherie Fairbrother on Friday night, a brief lunch with Jennifer and Silvia on Saturday before a night playing pool in a local bar – we liked the Alaskans we met but found the local SF folk that turned up a bit later a pack of knobs. To be frank. I had lunch with Paul (a mate of Clayton’s from London now living in NY) and Clayton on Monday before flying to Vancouver late afternoon. So that’s it from the blog for now. It’s been an incredible adventure.
While the El Chepe train started in Los Mochis (los’ m’ cheese), we read that the next town on the line, El Fuerto was a lot nicer – one of Mexico’s pueblos magico – there are 111 nominated magical towns in Mexico – and also meant you could board the train at a lot more godly hour at 8.20am rather than 6. We had tried to see if we could get the hotel in El Fuerto to arrange a ride but failed. We were told at the local taxi booth that it was 1300p ($100) for the 75min journey – actually 200p cheaper than that the hotel quoted.
We drove through Los Mochis; it looked very “Americanised” with lots of malls and American brands everywhere. El Fuerte was far more authentic with old colonial buildings and cowboys everywhere. The women wore beautiful brightly coloured cotton skirts. Our hotel – Hotel Posada del Hidaigo – was famous as the birthplace and home of Zorro. I had no idea he was an actual person. While the hotel had done a fabulous job in making the hotel feel authentic however it was a bit of tourist trap with the check in staff trying to sell us various tours before we had even got our key. The hummingbirds feeding at the entrance was special.
The town was lovely and got very basic once you left the main square. Much like Morelia, we noticed that as far as foreign tourists were concerned, we were among the youngest. No backpackers again. We had a bit of a wander before returning to a lounger by the pool and a late lunch. The hotel was empty, certainly a lot more staff than guests and yet it was hard work getting any service. It almost felt like they were staying in the same hotel as us. There were a family making a bit of noise in the room right next to us even though there were 3 empty rooms each side of us. I got up around 10pm and gave the 4 people at the front desk a bit of a spray. They didn’t understand much except that I was pissed off. Made me feel better.
We walked along the river the next morning; it was teeming with bird life. It had a bit of a Pampas (Bolivia) feel to it. We crossed a bridge and followed a path until it basically came to an end – we were meant to find some really old cliff drawings but failed. It was a lovely couple of hours but the rising temp forced us to return to the sanctuary of the pool. It was 28C by 11am. On the way back we did a bit of a detour and stocked up on booze and miscellaneous including my favourite queso (cheese) flavoured crisps. They are up there with salt & vinegar. We met another Canadian couple who had just done the El Chepe trip but going the other way. They made it sound lovely which got us excited. We spent the afternoon drinking and chatting away with them before getting a table for the “Fable of Zorro”event. A charismatic local dressed as Zorro serenaded and danced with all the ladies while the men got to dance with a slightly less charismatic backing lady. Deryn saw Zorro making a bee line so she dashed to the toilet, thereby missing seeing me fling the female assistant around the dance floor. Her head was spinning by the time I was done. Deryn returned only to be pounced on again by Zorro and so had her turn being swirled around the dance floor. It was a fun night.
The hotel was packed as a tour group of elderly Americans arrived late afternoon. We found at 5.30am that they were obviously in El Fuerte to catch El Chepe. The shuttle form the hotel left at 7.30 and these elderly folk needed a couple of hours to have a leisurely breakfast and check out. FFS. The train was very comfortable. We had tried to book a seat on the right hand side – far better views – but could not do so. It wasn’t really a problem as you could move around the train and there were quite a few viewing points – from the dining cart to hanging out the open window between the carriages. The 4 hour trip to Bahuichivo turned into 6 hours – a couple of times we just stopped with no information as to why. In addition, the views were not as spectacular as we were expecting but impressive none the less.
We were met by Manuel from Rancho Cabanas San Isidro at the station. He was the nephew of the owner of the ranch. Two brothers – Mario and Tito – ran the place with the rest of the family living on site. We were joined by a family from Austria who were visiting their son Roberto and his Mexican partner Tanya who now lived in Mexico. It was a 45 min drive to the small town of Cerocahui where the ranch was located. We all had our own very cute little cabin – each had a little pot belly fireplace but given how well the cabin was insulated we did not use ours – even though the temperature got down to single digits overnight. We were given a 3 course lunch in the common room then Manuel took us on a 11km hike back down to Cerocahui. The landscape was beautiful – quite unique – partly due to the area being at the bottom of the sea millions of years ago and also being carved out by the forces of water in creating the canyon. Our late start meant that it was dark by the time we got to the village so it was iPhone torch for the last 20 minutes.
The next day Mario had planned a full day visiting the small town of Urique 2650m down in the bottom of the canyon. The plan was to walk down from the Mirador but when we found out it was walking down the road we decided it would better to drive down and do a walk along the river to a town 7km away. The drive down was an adventure along a narrow winding dirt road with sheer drops cliff side. Urique was a authentic rural town with plenty of cowboys and brightly coloured dressed ladies. Once again there were loads of locals just sitting around as if waiting for something. No idea what and when I asked Mario I could not get a satisfying answer. Its been a common feature of rural Mexico. Urique was also distinct for having its main road double as a runway. It was supposedly for medical purposes but given the number of narcos operating in the area, there was scepticism around its purpose. Either way, the takeoff would be intense.
The walk to the town of Guadalupe was pleasant. Had a lot of fun playing with the kids in the town’s school. They pretended they hated having their photo taken; they would run away squealing when approached by a camera but would soon sneak back to enjoy it. Thankfully we did not have to walk the full 7kms back as Mario met us half way in the van. It was nearly dark by the time we returned to the ranchos. The Austrian family, bar Tanya, all headed off for a temazcal experience (a sauna – rocks in water and no fire in Mexico). We huddled around an outside fire having a few drinks until it got too cold an we moved into the indoor fireplace. It wasn’t long before we (I?) were doing shots of an artisanal local tequila called Sotol. Things were a bit hazy (for me)by the time the rest of the family arrived and we sat down for dinner.
It rained all night- apparently. Our train was due at 12.20 so we left at 9.45 to spend some time in the local village which was a bit of challenge given the rain. We have noticed a lot of dogs in this part of Mexico with most of them looking really skinny and mangy. So we bought some dog food and fed some of the locals (dogs) . Our 12.20 train did not arrive until nearly 2pm, again with no information provided as to it running late. Not a lot to do in a tiny little village station waiting for the train. Once we were on our way there was little to see given the weather plus it was getting dark. The destination was Creel, another Pueblo Magico. Our hotel – Maria del Tio Molca – was a 5 min walk from the station and yet we had someone met us to drive us to the hotel. We understood why when we got there – we would never have found it as there was no signage and it looked like a house. Our room was in a motel like wing; while the room was fine there was absolutely no facilities and the area outside our room smelt of cats pee – we think it was the smell of the plants.
It was a dash outside in the rain for a quick meal before retiring for the night. It rained all night and all the next day so apart from breakfast down at the Best Western in front of the fire and then across the road to La Cabana for dinner, we pretty much stayed in all day. We also did a slightly longer dash to the laundromat which was a bit of an oasis given its roaring fire. A real shame our ‘hotel’ didn’t have a lounge with a fire. The rain stopped overnight, and while the weather still looked a bit dodgy, we decided to hire some bikes from the 3 Amigos and explore a few of the local canyons. The bikes were brilliant and they also provided helmets and gloves (which were a godsend given the cold).
First stop was the Valle de las Ranas (Valley of the Frogs) and the Valle de los Hongos (Valley of the Mushrooms) just 5km outside of Creel. We enjoyed riding along the dirt road surrounded by rural Mexican life as much as the interesting shaped rocks. The amount of rain over the previous 36 hours meant lots of the road was under water which made for interesting riding – we had gained some experience from our Isla Holbox trip. Next stop was meant to be Lake Arareko but somehow, much to our pleasure, we found ourselves 1km from Valle de los Monjes (Valley of the Monks). Initially we had decided not to visit them because we thought it was too far but we were so glad that Deryn’s Map.me decided to divert us there. It was amazing. These towering rocks that looked like monks (funny that!). We had it to ourselves for the first 30 minutes until a tour bus arrived.
While riding back down the road we came across a sign saying Creel to Arareko Tarahumara bike track. Perfect. However it soon became clear that the actual track was under water so we had to sort of follow it on the slightly higher ground amongst the pine forest. It was magic. At one point we had to cross the river which meant carrying our bikes and wading thigh deep into a reasonably fast flowing river. We both made it without any major incident. We arrived at Lake Arareko after a 10 minute wait under a tree for a heavy shower to pass. The lake was a unique u shape, but apart from that, nothing special. Map.me was telling us that we basically had to retrace the way we had come to get back to Creel. Bugger that, so we carried our bikes across the river and followed a hiking trail (again carrying our bikes a fair bit) until we found a rideable track. Funny enough we passed a couple of local kids carrying their bikes but going in the opposite direction. It was then a matter of using Map.me to find our way home. We took a few wrong turns, asked locals for directions and poor Dits even had a slight crash before we eventually found the road back to Creel. It rained for the last 45 minutes or so but that just added to the adventure. We made it back to 3 Amigos 3 minutes after our 4 hour cut off time. 30km with over 400m of climbing. Perfect. We were covered in mud and soaked but felt fantastic. Best day for a while.
We felt a million dollars after a hot shower, a beer and a feed of chicken wings, pizza and salad. I dashed to the laundry to pick up our stuff from the day before and drop off our muddy gear. We were back in our room, tucked up for the night by 6pm. We had to check out by 12 the next day and our train wasn’t due to 15.38 (plus 2 hours!) so we had a chilled morning before checking out. We climbed the local mirador (via the laundry) to admire the statue of Jesus and sweeping views of Creel. After our day yesterday and a bit more sunshine, we could understand why Creel had been designated a Magico Pueblo. Our train was 2 hour late again but at least Creel had a few more sights to entertain us as we waited. We arrived in Chihuahua at 11, got ripped off by a taxi as had to pay 150p for a 5 km journey (the hotel told us the train taxis are a mafia that beats up any outsider taxis trying to get business – it costs 50p going the other way). Our hotel Doroteo Hotel Boutique was another converted homestead. It was beautiful.
We spent 3 lovely days in Chihuahua. Plenty of long walks exploring the old part of town; watching the locals in the main square and even a trip to the movies (Ford v Ferrari – great) in a very American mall. Deryn made a trip to the Mammoth museum which she said was amazing. A full skeletons oF a mammoth plus dinosaurs etc. She got chatting to a local who said if we needed any help to call him. Lovely people. We tried to have some fun one night but it was all a bit too hard. We did however find the most delicious shrimp ya os in Mexico. Surprisingly there were very few dogs in Chihuahua and certainly not of the little type. We saw one. We treasured these last few days as we knew it was the last of our 8 months of speaking Spanish.
Our flight to Tijuana was effortless while the crossing into the US via the Cross Border Xpress was also although we were again disappointed at how miserable the US border security people are. We grabbed an Uber (Mexican driver) to our lovely hotel in the heart it the Gaslamp district of San Diego.
And a note from Deryn….
Getting lost is not a fate to avoid, but a destiny to be embraced.
We arrived late after yet another epic chepe 2 hour train delay, into Chihuahua our final destination in this trip to Latin America. We awoke to a glorious sunny day but somehow I felt sorrowful. We began our usual meandering around the local Plaza del Armas, cathedrals and museums. I started to take in all the small things that I would miss from this adventure. Dogs, dogs, and cats (actually we only saw 1 dog in chihuahua and yes it was a chihuahua), not being able to flush toilet paper down the toilet, the beautiful bright colours of the clothes of the indigenous people, being immersed in Spanish, tacos… Many people have expressed that they couldn’t move around like we have. I am struggling to imagine not doing it. The natural wonders that we have seen, the physical challenges that we have faced, the chance to see a little of the way many other different cultures live. We have been unbelievably fortunate to have had experience.
