Day 3: Field, BC -> Donald, BC

Stats:‌‌
Start: Field,BC (Monarch Campground)‌‌
End: Donald,BC (Waitabit Creek Campground)‌‌
Distance: ~98km

I'd gone down for bed at 9:30pm listening to classical and so sleep came very gradually as I feel into a meditative like trance. I remember pulling my earphones out around 11pm and switching to earplugs. Why? Because Monarch Campground is flanked by the Trans-Canada Highway and the CPR main line through the mountains! Thankfully, it worked a treat. Living above a rail line in Calgary meant the trains weren't a bother and the earplugs dealt with the cars.

I woke at 7am and was immediately pretty cold. The temperature in the mountains can be like that at night. I bundled up and immediately packed my sleeping gear. I set about breakfast, which turned into an original creation. Having too much peanut butter, a LOT of raisins, one pita, and some oatmeal...I put them all together in a wrap. It was wunderfood. Unfortunately I was too busy eating the hell out of it to photograph it in all it's glory.

And now a moment to learn about Jeremy: Most people who know me well will know that I like oatmeal. Actually I love oatmeal. It's wonder food. Unless I'm eating out for breakfast, each day starts with a bowl full. Cooked, bakes, overnight, bars, cookies...and even dry. I love it.

The water situation at the campground was bad. It either didn't work, or was suspiciously belching air and water out of the pipe all at the same time. I didn't trust it, so used what little I had left for drinking. I eventually asked a park ranger who came through who told me they'd been having trouble with it but if it was running it should be good. Just let it run a few minutes. So I did. And after a few minutes filled a bottle and took two big gulps. It burned all the way down and tasted so heavily of chlorine that I wished I'd drank from a public pool instead. I packed and set off for my first day in BC. The smoke was showing signs of clearing and I could see a bit more of the mountains. I wasn't even out of the parking lot of the campground and immediately had to stop to read a plaque. Always read the plaque:

I quickly made it to Field, B.‌C. just down the road and went into town. One of the people I'd met a few days earlier - Heather - told me that I shouldn't miss out on visiting the Truffle Pig in Field. Unfortunately, I arrived there at 9am and it didn't open till 11am. I couldn't miss out on two hours of cycling, so I unfortunately had to skip. Sorry Heather! I'll make sure to stop the next time I go by! I stopped at the Yoho National Park visitor centre and refilled my water. Time to put some kilometers behind me!‌‌

I biked for a few hours, passing some spectacular sights. The road kept dropping down from Kicking Horse Pass. At some point I hit some serious road construction and the lane narrowed to just enough for cars going each way. I stuck to the right hand side of the road without a shoulder, and the cars started passing at whatever speed they felt safe. It was made worse by the fact that it was seriously up hill and I was going very slow. A couple of semi-trucks and campers came so close I have hit them with my elbows. After about 5 minutes of this a pickup truck pulled up behind me and refused to pass. When I reached a spot with a dirt pulloff for construction vehicles I pulled over for water. The pickup pulled over too and it was a member of the construction crew. She asked if I wanted a ride through the construction. In my modesty, I declined. So she told me she was going to stay behind me and refuse to let cars keep passing me. I won't lie...she was my hero that day. After I'd made it through the construction I waved to her in thanks.

Just outside of Golden the road was freshly paved. But in the 30C sun, this meant the temperatures on the road were even higher. I was baking, and I hadn't put on any sunscreen that morning because of the smoke. I could feel myself burning but I came up to the sign for Golden and decided to wait till town. I'd read a blog post about the best places to eat in town and settled on Jita's Cafe. Indian fare at reasonable prices, I recommend it to anyone who visits Golden! I think I was sun stroked while there, because I felt like I was in a haze and I ate chick pea curry while drinking a mango lassi and as much water as I could stomach. Eventually I managed to cool down, and the lassi gave me some much needed blood sugar. I thanked Jita - whose birthday it was! - and left.

At a public park I finally put on some sunscreen. At this point I was feeling re-energized. It was only ~25km till my destination and I made great time. In just over an hour I reached Waitabit Creek Campground, which is a provincially managed campsite. The creek feeds into the Columbia River almost exactly where I camped, and it was flowing fast with mountain melt from the high temperatures. The only water available was the river, and the only services were the privies that had been dug by BC Parks.

I picked a site right on the river. The sound of the rushing water was a welcome change from the noise of vehicles on the highway. I did my stretches, ate dinner, cleaned by bike chain, and wrote a blog post. I went some time listening to music and had a perfect moment there as I watched the sun set and listened to Dayvan Cowboy by Boards Of Canada. I went to sleep even before it had got dark, around 8:30pm.

I had left the fly off my tent because I couldn't stand the idea of being warm or hot anymore. As the sun set, the rushing mountain waters of the creek cooled everything off dramatically. I slept in my warm cocoon of my sleeping bag with the river lulling me to sleep.

I stirred once during the night, and opened my eyes to see the stars. Having lived in downtown Calgary, it was the first time I'd seen them in longer than I can remember. It was also a sign that the smoke was almost cleared. It was exactly the kind of moment you seek when you get out of comfort zone and into nature. It's not what you might think of when you think of going on an adventure...but for that moment, it was enough.