Milestone: cycling 30.000 kilometers across the Americas

Here we are, 20 kilometers away from Whistler in British Colombia, Canada and my odometer jumps from 29.999 to 30.000 kilometers! It took us a while and we (I for that matter) are certainly not the fastest cyclists, but we definitaly enjoyed every meter of it. My heart jumps up too; full of pride and then instantly a more dark feeling emerges; the end of THIS journey is getting closer and closer…

After leaving Quesnel we changed plans again and decided to make another loop. Everything to postpone the inevitable! The Kettle Valley Rail Trail (KVR) actually sounds tempting; not too hard, offroad and no traffic at all! Around us the mountains are resembling colorful red and yellow paintings and with a sunny blue sky and frosty nights it seems like a nice indian summer.

Fall colors are all around us

On the way to Kelowna and the Okanagan Valley

Just can’t get enough of these amazing colors!

To actually reach the KVR we must climb almost 1000 steep meters to reach the Myra Canyon just outside Kelowna. Cars with bicycles keep passing us and the people inside give us the thumbs up. They take the easy way up to reach the Myra Canyon! It takes us about three hours on the unpaved track and then it’s time to relax on the flat trail of the former train tracks. The Myra canyon is quite stunning with no less than 18 trestles to cross!

Elmar crossing one of the trestles

KVR: some trestles are pretty high!

Entering the Okanagan Valley near Penticton

After Princeton we decide to go North again to enter Vancouver through Whistler; another couple of days to extend our travels! We pass logging towns and climb 15% hills outside of Lillooet on narrow highway 99. We camp on deserted recreation sites and make fires to keep us warm. I’m reading Rob Lilwall’s Cycling home from Siberia and new inspirations and ideas are starting to brew in my mind.

Loggin industry

Mixed feelings

Lately I’ve been feeling very restless; I don’t want this amazing adventure to end and then again I would love to see my close friends and family again. But I’m afraid that the euphoria of the latter will not last longer than a couple of days. I need something to look forward to again, I need something to set my sails to, I just need another long distance adventure at the horizon to give the next couple of years working a purpose.

More than 30.000 kilometers and just two more days to reach Vancouver; where we end our bicycle tour across the Americas. What’s next? Does it end here? NO! Bicycle touring is part of our lifes, it’s in our soul. Deeply embedded and the bug is here to stay, I mean we are the Bicycle Junkies! Bikepacking; bicycle touring holidays; bicycle events; micro adventures and if it was for me; for sure another long distance tour across Asia! But, not so fast. We have a couple of weeks to spend in the Vancouver area before we find our way back to Europe and cycle back to the Netherlands. So, stay with us if you love bicycle touring as much as we do!

PS: Sorry for our naked and white asses… it was Elmar’s idea! Really!