Although it's definitely starting to cool down here, we've had a glorious run of great weather the past 10 days or so....just can't beat later in October in the sun. Wanting to get at least one more good day run in before November surely brings an end to thoughts of getting out for anything more than a local jaunt now and then, the Mrs and I tried to organize a bit of a meetup Sunday with some of our fellow BC and Northwestern US Valhalla brothers & sisters...but alas, for a myriad of reasons (all legitimate BTW
) all were a no go. Not to be deterred, the Mrs and I planned a nice run up through the Fraser Canyon to one of our Southern Cariboo towns for lunch...about 3 hours North. With early AM temperatures down in the lower single digits(C) and the words "No Way!!" all locked and loaded just waiting to respond to my suggestion for an early (pre-9:00) departure time, the Mrs set our takeoff time for 9:15 AM...never hurts to be precise I guess
Just as we're gearing up, our good friends Steve & Margaret from Kelowna called and they were intersted in meeting up after all, in Cache Creek...approximately the same distance for them...however they would be taking their Corvette, not the Valk...or the Wing.
So, at precisely 9:15 AM we settled in for a bit of a chilly start, but with promise of nothing but blue sky ahead.
I'm usually pretty hardy when it comes to cooler weather riding, with just a heated vest and leathers to keep me warm (enough), but I can always tell when the Mrs is cold...there's very little movement back there in the co-pilot's seat and the conversation is sparse at best...however, she still managed to free her hand from a glove now and then to take a few good photos
There's 7 tunnels on Highway #1 up through the Fraser Canyon
Photo stop, with the sun's warmth now taking some of the bite off... but still not wanting to disconnect the heated jacket ...
Nothing beats Fall riding
Meeting up with Steve & Margaret at the BearClaw Lodge in Cache Creek
There was no problem with unplugging the heat, with hot coffee and soup waiting...
Darn, just missed...again!!
After lunch and with the temperature up to a balmy 12C+, we settled in for a nice easy ride home. Little traffic, picture perfect scenery and roads, and a keen eye out for our friendly RCMP looking to nab a Sunday cruiser. The Fraser Canyon up from Hope just outside of our town of Agassiz through to the Cariboo region of BC can take you from farmland valleys, up into the mountains, and then into the more barren and "rustic" Southern Cariboo region in a matter of 2 hours or so...a great way to get a few different riding experiences in all in a single day. It used to be the main truck and traffic route to the North back in the day (at 62, I guess that phrase now means back in MY day
). With other, quicker options now available, this fantastic road running along the Fraser and Thompson Rivers and through some real quaint old railway towns is now mostly free of commercial truck and heavy RV traffic, and is an absolute must ride for anyone visiting BC
