Day started out with a 7 am wake-up, shower, woke up Jerome and started to pack. Breakfast with Jerome, a couple photos, said goodbyes and exchanged emails, and I hit the road about 9 am.
Headed east on hwy 3 towards Penticton, then north on 97 towards Vernon, still a couple hours away. Pretty good ride, fast 4 lane, some smaller towns, beside Okanagan Lake, and made a couple stops for fruit, a Wal-Mart to buy a protective cover for the IPod and replenish breakfast food, plus snacks and a chunk of cheese and some milk for a drink. Haven’t had much of that lately. Further up in Kelowna I found a Honda dealer, M&M Motorsports. The parts guy Andrew was happy to replace my broken visor ratchet and even installed it and cleaned up the helmet while we chatted about his days living in Hamilton... his birthplace and where I live. He took the parts from a in-stock helmet, and ordered replacements. Ideal... but something no-one else would do. I was 45 minutes in there... but a good feeling when I left.
I made Vernon shortly after, and the magic ride began. Hwy 6 towards the Needles Ferry some 160 kms away. The road is fast and twisty, with some tighter sections. Lots of cars to pass, but fairly easy as they are spaced nicely. The feeling of carving the turns and working the gears is a lots of fun. My bike seems to get good mileage even when not using the overdrive gear, and many of the turns were 3rd and 4th gear turns which also helps slow down for the next turn. It was a great ride. When I got to the ferry, there was a huge line-up, at least 2 ferry loads of cars waiting, but the guy in the van ahead said he would on a bike roll to the front of the line. So I did, and got on at the back end of the ferry that was just loading. Bonus for sure. Saved about 1 hour bcause I was on bike.
After the ferry, I rode on up to Naskup, then turned for New Denver. Had to pass a whole group of about 14 bikes, mostly Goldwings who were cruising together but at a uneven speed and slower than the speed limit.
At New Denver there is road 31A east to Kalso, Norris recommended it. I hung around a while and had a snack and ice cream, then headed east. What a great road!! Fast sweepers, twisty sections, I wish the road was longer. Some deer I saw made me cautious but the fun wasn’t diminished. I need to bring some of this Gentle Dragon back home with me. Lay it out from my front door, so I need to travel it to get to the grocery store. This road would be a blast in any car or bike.
At Kalso, I stopped for gas, asked about the ferry schedule, camping and the hot springs down the road – Ainsworth Hot Springs. I headed for them, seeing many camp grounds along the way. But a lady at the gas stop told me about Toad Rock Campground... wherever that was. I left with the impression it was before the Hot Springs. Not so... I didn’t see it. I found the Hot Spring location, and I could tell it was a big commercial set-up, and cost of admittance was $10. I entered and found a large irregular shaped pool with lots of people, and a smaller pool with 2 caves attached to it that you could wander through. The hot water flowed from them. Interesting set-up, not as casual as the Laird Springs and certainly not as natural looking either, but still interesting. The place was busy with families and seniors enjoying the spring water (103f) and the icy dip pool (52f) for those brave enough for the shock. Not for me. I spent about 1 hour 20 minutes in the pool and then dressed, checked out the restaurant (pricey) and headed down the road looking for food and camping. Found Toad Rock MC Campground first. Met Mary the owner, very casual lady, who showed me where to camp (anywhere over there) and located the showers and got the WiFi password. She suggested 2 places to eat about 8 kms away in Balfour (the next ferry area) and I headed out for food without setting camp. Balfour Inn..... a burger and glass of beer for $5!! I added onion rings and a mug of beer to my humble tab and enjoyed the lakeside balcony while a 2 piece band played (badly) inside. It was now dark, and I hadn’t set up camp yet. I rode back to the campground and found a open area to set up the tent in the dark. With a flashlight I got her done with minimum fuss... and minimal effort and time. Good thing I am now practiced at it.
Found a place - bar- gazebo where the WiFi signal was okay and checked email and updated this journal while I chatted with a guy from Fort Mac who also arrived today but was staying a while. He was wayy ahead of me on beers. He got me thinking about doing more riding here too instead of heading for Creston, Cranbrook and Whitefish Montana – gateway to the Going to the Sun Road.
Almost 15,700 kms on the odometer since I left home.
Hwy 6 from Vernon to Needles
Needles Ferry
Hwy 31A from New Denver to Kalso - the Gentle Dragon
Kootenay Lake
Great Campground
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