The journals ended after the Kootenays because I was on a whirlwind rush home.  There are no pictures either for some reason…either they got lost in a routine file shuffle on my laptop or else I simply didn’t stop to take them.  The latter seems unlikely.

Oh wait, here’s one from the road between Kaslo and New Denver:

Regardless, it was pretty fast.  I left Kaslo and headed north to Revelstoke and then rode the Transcanada Hwy #1 to Canmore where I stayed for the night.  The next day I got up early and raced home.  I think I was able to get back by 4pm, which is pretty good time since it takes about 8 hours.

…….

The tour itself was pretty solid.  It was short at only 12 days, but I packed alot in there…my time with my siblings, my time with my buddy Scott in the Okanagan, and my time alone in the Kootenays.  I managed to hit all of the high notes that a good tour should have.

The feeling that this was the last tour was pretty strong.  I was getting married and so there was a possibility of starting a family.  The idea of running off by myself for a few weeks every summer seemed pretty selfish.  Besides, this was my ninth tour and I have travelled everywhere I could throughout southern BC.  There were no new surprises, and in some cases I was just going through the motions (Kelowna).

Actually, I remember telling myself as I rode from Oliver to New Denver that Kelowna could easily be cut out of future trips.  Being there alone and wine tasting alone just didn’t have the appeal it used to.  I remember saying that all future wine tasting should be done with someone else.

I also remember toying with the notion of riding further into the States like I did on the Lord of the Roads:  The Tall Towers when I was planning the tour.  I considered riding all the way down to California to do some wine tasting in Santa Barbara County- just like in the movie Sideways.  In the end I figured it was just too far, and on that same ride between Oliver and New Denver I remember telling myself that a trip like that would be ridiculous.  “Make the days short and stick to the basics,” I said. “If you ever go again, just pop into the Kootenays and hang out then go home.  A giant marathon ride of riding 10 hours a day is just not sustainable.”

I suppose time will tell if I follow my own advice (or if this was my last tour).

In the end I came home feeling mentally relaxed and satisfied in my journey.  I had a much larger adventure waiting for me around the corner.

Here’s the tour in its entirety: