2 long days

Day 4: Prince Rupert - Terrace 147k

The first real day on the bike! Although the 67k with headwind on the island was fairly intense as well. Today was the first full day and it was exactly how I had imagined this tour: sunny and lots of kilometers.
We had breakfast next to the van, which we usually do when we camp, but this time the van was paked just across from the hotel (see pic).

We left at 7:30am with about 8 or 10 degrees, and followed highway 16 out of town. The 700 elevation meters of this day were mainly in the beginning and the end. After some roadworks, we biked right next to the river for quite a while. Beautiful views, but also fully exposed to the strong wind. We arrived at the lunch truck at 75km after 3 hours. We left some clothes in the lunch truck because the temperature had gone up to about 20 degrees. Sun sun sun, it's amazing to bike without rain!!

When we continued our route after lunch, dad got a flat tire 100m after the lunch truck. He changed tubes in a few minutes and off we went again. I found the second 75k a little easier, perhaps because there was a little less wind. The views are still equally beautiful with mountains around us and the river on our right hand side.

I actually wasn't planning on biking the whole day, but since we had been making good time, and especially since my back felt fine, we arrived at the campsite after another 3 hours at 2:30pm. Plenty of time to put up the tents, take a shower, and relax with a book in the grass. This is going to be pretty much the rhythm of the next few days. Breaking up camp, breakfast, biking, lunch, biking, setting up camp, dinner, sleep. There are fifteen riders in our group and we have a good group dynamic. Everyone is friendly and always up for a chat. Tomorrow is going to be a similarly long bike day, with more climbs, and even warmer.

Day 5: Terrace - Ksan 142km
A long day again! We started as usual; packing up the tent, having breakfast and got on our bike at 7:30am. The weather was nice, 12 degrees in the morning, going up till 24 degrees in the afternoon when the sun came out.

The first 70km were fairly easy, with only one mild climb. We arrived at the lunch truck around 10:15am. There is actually not really a point in calling this lunch as we usually arrive before 11am, but after 70km, any meal is very welcome.

We were still biking near the river all day, although it was now often hidden behind trees. Meanwhile, some serious mountains showed up on the horizon, still covered in snow. All in all, the scenery was amazing all day; hard to explain in words, even hard to catch well in a picture. I made only a few pics and will ask the other riders, who took more time to admire the beauty of British Columbia, for some better pics. During the mild climb after lunch, I saw a bear on the side of the road. It was a cub, and it ran away as soon as it noticed me. Finally spotted a bear though! And luckily on the road, and not in my tent.

The 72km after lunch were quite intense, with various short climbs. But perhaps the long ride from yesterday, and the heat made it a bit challenging as well. We arrived at 2:15pm at the campsite in Ksan, an absolutely gorgeous area. We had to cross a small iron bridge to get here, with an amazing view on a canyon/river. I did not have time to take a picture because it was a little challenging to bike on the bridge, but we cross it again tomorrow, and I'll make sure to walk then and share this breathtaking view.

We took it really easy this afternoon, although I washed a few bike clothes. But we are mainly recharging by eating, drinking and resting (reading) a lot to get ready for tomorrow. It is supposed to be a light day, with only 90km, but my dad has assured me that you can never count on a day to be light. More in a few days... Then I'll also upload some pics because internet is super slow here.