Leaving Kimberley was hard because it was such a wonderful place, but what was even harder is getting to Ainsworth. It was our first Great Divide like day on the Great Trail. It took us over 12 hours to ride across Gray’s Creek Pass – about 60 miles of dirt road and then 10 of paved.
I keep thinking that the most beautiful parts are over, but then we are gladly disappointed. In fact, today’s ride took us past seemingly endless forest filled with cedar and huge pine along with crystal clear creeks and streams.
British Columbia continues to be surprisingly empty. I think there were maybe two other families staying in the Polaris Lodge with us in Kimberley. As we came across Gray’s Creek Pass we ran into maybe six vehicles and one group of ATVs the entire day. I’m certain at least 20 or 30 bear watched us but we only saw one. Lunch was enjoyed by a beautiful Creek under a bridge for shade as the temperatures were in the 80s – amazingly.
Unfortunately, on climbing back up to our bikes we found a flat tire on Gloria’s bike. It took longer than expected to get it fixed. We were in a bit of a panic because we had heard from the one bicyclist going the other direction that the ferry was running every 2 hours. Luckily, the time change kicked in and so we had an extra hour and made the ferry across Kootenay Lake.
The ride was long but well worth it. We finally arrived in Ainsworth 10 miles up the opposite side of Kootenay Lake. Bad planning on my part in terms of housing because 10 miles was way too much at the end of a long day, but an unbelievable place to stay overlooking the Lake.
Grumpy Grandpa's Great Bicycling Adventures 