the second last day and the last post - Aug 12

So here we are in beautiful (not) Sudbury. We have driven pretty hard for the last two days and last night stayed in Schreiber ON (break out a map) and met the local liberal candidate for MP - more on that another time, not that exciting. Today we drove quite hard, but we have to say Lake Superior is beautiful, as was the whole drive through northern ON, a remarkable, and large place. This is us stopped by the lake.

In general we want to thank everyone who has followed the blog. It has been a blast for us, we hope it has for you too. Your comments and emails were all much appreciated. Also, not to jinx our last day, but we are the jet stream! We have had near perfect weather for the whole trip, and are pretty excited to bring it home to all of you.

Day 22 - Aug 10th

You got it, another long riding day. We left Regina early, stopped for breakfast in Grenfell SK, where they will be filming an episode of Little Mosque on the Prarie in two days, made brief stops in Brandon (to call Popeye) and Winnepeg, and made it all the way to Kenora ON. 830km, we are beat and heading out to eat. Pics to follow. This is pretty much what the praries look like, can you see the dog that has been running away for 6 days?
Happy Trails!

Day 21 - Aug 9th

A long ride today for the remaining four. We rode from Calgary to Regina SK, where we were very graciously hosted and accomodated by Terry and Margaret Malloy. Terry took us on a great tour of the city - for those of you who have not been there, it is beautiful. Pics to follow as Steve is now our official photographer and his pics haven't been downloaded to the computer yet.

Day 20 Aug 8th update

Rest day in Calgary at Ding and Dianne's, and some great touring through the city. It was Liam and Lynn's last day with us, as they are flying home tomorrow morning. This is a shot of the gang in our t-shirts that Alice got made for us. On the front they say our code name (you will have to ask one of us to see a shirt) Great North American Tour, and on the back we have written in the whole trip with fabric pens, a great memento! (l to r - David, Liam, Alice, Blake, Lynn and Steve)

Day 19 - Aug 7th update

A short hop today from Banff to Calgary via Canmore. We rode through Three Sisters which was spectacular (see pic). We ended up at Glen (Ding) and Dianne Farquhar's house in Calgary and did some touring of the city and had a great dinner!

Day 18 - Aug 6th - Blake, Liam, Alice and David's adventure

Blake, Liam, Alice and David decided to stay in Banff today and do the tourist thing, while Steve and Lynn went on to Calgary to visit friends. Banff has been outstanding today. We hiked up to the Bow Falls (see pic of Liam at the falls)and all the way up to Sulphur mountain. We took the gondola to the top of the mountain, an elevation of 7846 feet, and a great view of the Rockies. We then went to the hot springs and soaked for a while before beginning the 5km trek back to town. This was the most exercise we have done for some time, but we all feel great. We are going to use the very upscale pool /hot tub /steam room facilities for some relaxation, then out for a yummy dinner at one of the only CAA 5 diamond restaurants in Banff - we deserve it!!

Happy trails.

Day 17, Wed Aug 5th, update

Well today was the day we were all waiting for! We started off early and had a chilly ride from Valemount into Jasper for breakfast. We saw elk (see pic) and then moved on. We had a bit of a rainy and cold ride to the Columbia Icefields, but once there, things improved weather wise, and we were all awestruck. Liam and Steve braved climbing part of the glacier (see pic of Steve). For those of you who have driven it, Hwy 93 from Jasper to Banff is probably one of the most beautiful rides in the world. The mountains are completely awe inspiring, and we all loved the ride. We went to Lake Louise, and then on to Banff where we treated ourselves to a nice hotel and a great meal of local delicacies at a fine restaurant. All in all an amazing day.