Joe from Hope After waking up just outside of Vancouver I started my way towards Hope, a little town in the Fraser valley, nestled in the foot hills of my first large "obstacle" between me and Ontario, the mountains. I rode into town and stopped at the grocery, where i found a pretty good selection of Canadian produce along with some nice chicken thighs. After paying for my fuel, I went outside to start packing my things and try and figure out where I was going to sleep. From behind me I hear a voice saying "you better get to where you're going, the rains coming". I turned around to find a middle aged man with a beard and depleting long thin hair, sporting a beer shirt holding a case of beer in his hand. I responded, "if only i knew where I was going!". I ask the gentleman if he knew of anywhere I could pitch a tent for a night. He formulated a few options he could think of, followed by an invitation to use his back yard as my camp site. This invitation quickly developed into an invitation for a steak dinner he had planned for the evening. His name is Joe by the way. I took him up on his offer and followed him back to his place, him in his truck, me on my bike. When I get there, he jumps out with a big smile on his face, "I've got a better idea!" He pointed up at his camper sitting in the lane. "How about a roof over your head and a bed to sleep in." I obviously couldn't resist such an offer. After having a warm shower, a steak dinner with salad and baked potatoes, (oh and he insisted to cook my chicken for the next day) and a couple beers, we chatted for a while, talking about his life, his job (machinist), my bike trip, my life, human nature and why he invited a complete stranger into his home. I headed back to my warm and cozy camper for a great night sleep. Before he headed for work at 5am, he popped his head into the camper and wished me all the best and left me the chicken he had cooked for me the night before and a small ice block he made me for my cooler bag. This man showed ultimate hospitality to a complete stranger, and this is after his house was broken into and truck stolen earlier this year. Joe is the person our world needs more of, and every time i think of him I am reminded of the amazing people that are in our world.
Thanks Joe!
Side of the road Hospitality Today, my ride brought me through the sunshine valley and up some very impressive climbs. I was taking a break just standing at the side of road, taking in how amazing my surroundings were while ignoring the ache in my legs, when a car came screeching to a halt 15m in front of me, I walk up to the car to find that the driver wanted to makes sure that I was alright and that I had enough food and water for the rest of my day, He then proceeded to insist I had some delicious fried fish and an empanada that he had picked up at a market in Vancouver. Truly caring for me, a complete stranger that he saw on the side of the road. Unfortunately I didn't get his name, but his actions put a pretty big grin on my face for the rest of my day. People are amazing! Thank you sir!
Ditched the Prairies for Swift Current The prairies seem to make everything bigger. The fields are bigger, the tractors are bigger, the trucks are bigger, and the storms are bigger. I had a front row seat while a fast, dark, loud and menacing storm rolled in from the west. Luckily, it was about 3km north of the highway and it looked like I was going to miss it all together, or so I thought. About 30 seconds after I took this photo, the wind turned 110 degrees, and not only did I now have a something close to a 50km headwind, but I also had about 2 minutes before those black clouds started dumping their contents on me. As the wall of precipitation was imminent, I decided to find what little shelter I could, and in the middle of the prairies that consisted of a culvert (unfortunately, not big enough for me to get into) in the ditch. Just as I was getting out my tarp to get something over my head it started to hail. Oh yah, hail also seems to be bigger in the prairie; it’s a good thing I was wearing my helmet. I poked my head out from under my tarp to see what I was in for, and discovered that a pickup truck was stopped on the side of the road not 20 feet away. They didn’t see me, because I was in the ditch, and I didn’t hear them for the volume of the storm. I did however hear the shriek of the woman in the truck when she realized there was a human in the ditch. She was quick to role down her window enough to yell an invitation my way to share the shelter of their truck. I hopped into the warm and dry cab with the sound of hail pinging off of the metal roof. They were concerned as to why on earth I was in the ditch and that I was all right. They had stopped to prevent hail damage to their vehicle. We chatted for 10 minutes or so until the hail started to let up. They were headed home to Swift Current, about 35km ahead, which was also my goal for the day. Just as I was getting ready to head back out into the rain and continue on my way, they insisted that they drive me into town; the rain wasn’t going to stop anytime soon and they would feel much better not leaving me in the middle of nowhere. So, I did a little cheating… and I accepted their offer. After I loaded my mobile home into the back of the truck I hopped into the big comfy co-pilots seat as momma insisted on sitting with the gang in the back. The truck was brand new, and was most certainly the gentleman’s pride and joy. There were 2 kids and 2 dogs in the backseat accompanies by all of the shopping treasures they had picked up in Medicine Hat that day. It wasn’t a long drive, but it sure did give me a big break. We arrived into Swift Current as they stopped at the golden arches for dinner. As I was unloading my bike while showing as much appreciation as I could, I asked if they knew of anywhere I could set up my tent for the night. They were quite adamant on helping me find a good spot, they said they would love to let me stay at their place but it’s just to full with kids! I had found a park on the outside of town that would do the trick and just as I was about to head out, the lady pulled her husband to the side for a few second for a conversation and then came back with a big smiling asking if I would be okay sleeping on a couch. Of course! They were a very nice family who showed true kindness to hospitality to a man in the ditch. Thanks Maloy Family!
There are some keepers in Kipling I woke up early after a good nights rest, despite being kept up by my K-9 friends (Impressions – Wildlife). I packed everything up in very good time and decided to head into town to the dinner and treat myself to some breakfast. My camp was just outside of town behind a stand of trees. I would always go in and out of my sites very discretely so only the birds knew where I was for the night. To help with my discrete departure I removed my florescent lime green vest, for its sole purpose was to help me be seen, a piece of clothing I had not ridden a km without. I stuffed it in beside one of my panniers and headed into town. I got into the restaurant ordered a sandwich made to go so I could eat next to the giant red paperclip that apparently puts Kipling on the map. I peddle over to the paperclip and enjoy my sandwich, but when I got up to leave, I reach down to grab my vest, and it was gone. That quick rush of panic filled my body. This vest acted as my protection, when cars are passing you at 120km/h it doesn’t matter if you’re wearing all the armor money can buy, if the driver can’t see you, you’re not safe. I didn’t know what to do. I retraced my footsteps from that morning, which didn’t take me very long, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. When I was in the restaurant, a bunch of teenagers all pulled in to get their breakfast before heading to school. I figured one of them might have taken it; kids can be drawn to colorful things… I asked the lady at the restaurant if kids around here would do stuff like that. She said they cause trouble every once and a while but she didn’t think any of the ones in that morning would have five fingered it. There was a bit of a wind blowing across the prairies that morning, but if it had of blown out I would have found it, you can see it from about 3 miles away after all. I figured one of the kids must have taken it, so I headed over to the school and peaked into the windows of the trucks that were at the dinner that morning. Nothing. My head was hanging pretty low at this point. I headed back to main strip and stopped into the hardware store to see if they had anything for a replacement. I told them what had happened, they empathized with my bad luck and did their best to find me a replacement. I suddenly had this urge that I had to go back out and check the streets one more time. It was false hope, sometimes being an optimist sucks. I went and sat on a bench for a while, I put on my red shirt as a backup safety measure and figured I would grab something bright in the next bigger town. My nice early morning had turned south very quickly; I had now spent probably an hour and a half trying to find this darn vest why did I not just put it on in the first place! I got on my bike to do one more lap of town before I gave up; a pickup truck turned the corner kind of cutting me off, the guy driving the truck reached into his passenger seat and held up something florescent lime green, my vest! This gentleman had been driving along the highway and saw something bright on the side of the road, it must have blown out just as I got to the road from my campsite, so he picked it up. He went into the hardware store to pick something up and heard that there was a cyclist in town looking for a vest. So he went and jumped in his truck and was driving around looking for me. This man made me beyond happy, I couldn’t stop smiling. I left town and felt this rush of energy wash over me. I felt stupid for falling to the conclusion that someone stole it. I called the lady at the restaurant to let her know the kids didn’t take it and she lived in an amazing community. It was probably 9:00am by now; it was a beautiful morning, blue skies as far as the eye could see. I looked up as a transport passed in the opposite direction just in time to catch the driver tipping back a 60 of Alberta Premium; and that’s exactly why I’m thankful to have my vest back. Thank you Kipling!
Warm Showers
Bicycle touring is something not for the faint of hearted. I have discovered this first hand over the last 2 weeks. When you put in a long day of exhausting, yet exhilarating biking, all you really want is a warm shower and a cozy bed. The challenge of this is that most times you are in a foreign lands, which are full of strangers. WarmShowers is a network of people who understand this situation (most of the time first hand) and welcome you into their homes to help make your trips that much more enjoyable. Cause really, who doesn't love a warm shower? www.warmshowers.com Throughout my adventure the WarmShowers network got me a warm shower 4 times
Revelstoke I had been in my tent for 3 nights when I pulled into Revelstoke, a beautiful town in the midst of snow capped mountains. I decided that I could really use a warm shower, so I checked WarmShowers and found my first amazing hosts. I tried 4 or 5 numbers, but didn't get an answer. It was my first time I had called a complete stranger to ask to sleep in their house, and the no answers were starting to make me a little discouraged, I decided the vulnerability would definitely be worth the payoff so I tried another, and to my luck, Rory picked up the phone. He was still at work but he said his wife was probably home and the house was open regardless. That fast! He trusted me to go into his home without even seeing what I looked like. I pulled up to their quaint little home in a friendly neighbourhood with mountain peaks forming the horizon, took my bike into the backyard and got a warm welcome from the whole family. The were a great family, busy, loving, caring and there for each other. I saw a sign on the fridge with laying out their rules of life; when we were growing up the biggest message for kids safety was “don’t talk to strangers”, but their rule #1 was “talk to strangers!” Imagine how much friendlier the world would be if we all grew up learning to talk to strangers. I used their kitchen to cook dinner along with a bunch of food for the next day. I had an amazing rest at their home and started out first thing in the morning. Thanks guys!
Golden, BC
Golden I came into Golden, BC on a rainy cool day. I didn't know if I would continue on my journey or stay the night in the little mountain town. I decided to check in on WarmShowers and see if there was anybody in town who would welcome a stinky, cold and tired cyclist into their home. First tap and I found it! The Kicking Horse Hostel welcomes cyclist for a warm shower and a use of their facilities, along with a free place to pitch your tent. I was sold. It wasn't a busy place by any means at this time of the year, but i met some great people, made large quantities of food in the kitchen, and had a very restful sleep in my tent on a nicely mowed lawn. Thank you Kicking Horse Hostel!
The Medicine Man in Medicine Hat Doug was experienced in both hosting and being hosted with the WarmShowers community. I sent him a message the day before asking if i could come for a visit, and he was very quick to respond with a warm welcome. I was fighting a bit of a head wind coming into Medicine Hat which delayed my arrival till 8:20 or so. I was hungry, stinky and tired and very happy to think I could have a warm shower and wouldn't need to go through the effort of building up camp. I walked in the door and food was ready for me on the table! It was amazing. He knew I would be hungry, and ensured there was lots. He was so happy to share stories from the road and make me feel warm and welcome in his home. After my meal, he directed me to the washroom for my warm shower, as promised. During dinner I had asked him about his profession, he was retired now, but was a sports physiotherapist for many years. I decided I would use his expertise and ask him about my knee that had been giving me some trouble. He almost jumped with joy because he was so happy to help. He gave me the diagnosis of Patellar Tendinosis and Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome followed by a long list of things for me to do to help relieve the joint. He gave me some natural supplements and a piece of clothing that he quickly altered to act as knee warmers, along with an invite to check my bikes ergonomic adjustments in the morning. I headed down to my room for the night and found the bed nicely made, I would describe how it felt, but i think i fell asleep before my head hit the pillow. In the morning, once again the food was ready for me when i walked into the kitchen, a big warm bowl of oatmeal fuelled my morning nicely. After a few adjustments in the garage to help my knees as much as possible, I was off. A perfect stop, and exactly what is needed to make you feel a little civilized once again. Thanks Doug!
Keri in Moose Jaw I Left Swift Current and the hospitality of the Maloy family and headed east. My goal for the day was to get to Moose Jaw, and from the title i'm sure you've gathered that I made it. It was about 175 kms and was actually one of my most enjoyable cycling days. I had a tail wind, blue skies and i connected with Lenn; A 60 year old retired Philadelphia firefighter who was headed the same direction as me. He kept telling me to go on ahead, and not to let him slow me down, but was I really in a hurry? He was pretty tired of the prairies, unfortunately he wasn't tapping into the small town character and rural excitement that I was; he did after all call downtown Philadelphia home for many years. Maybe only 25km till Moose Jaw, I decided to try our luck on WarmShowers to see if there was a place that would welcome us with such short notice. I called Keri, who answered the phone with a greeting from her urban farming company. She was out for dinner with some friends but was happy for us to crash at her place for the night, and said the door was unlocked! Another amazing host that demonstrated how welcoming our world really is. She ran a business that was using empty backyard space in the city to create active beautiful vegetable gardens. She ran a business selling these local goods mainly to restaurants, and the host enjoyed a beautiful garden and fresh veggies in their yard. Very cool lady. I cooked up a storm in her kitchen to feed me for the next day. I gave Lenn the bedroom and I slept on the couch. Thanks Keri!