Kettle Valley Railway trail, Midway to Penticton
Page 4
| Yesterday on our Midway to Beaverdell ride the scenery changed every ten minutes. Today from Beaverdell to Idabel Lake the scenery is mostly the same: a trail through two walls of trees, with little variation. It also feels more remote, with no farms and a highway that is only occasionally in view or earshot on the right, sometimes hundreds of feet below us |
| The Wilkinson Creek bridge, elevation: 989 m.a.s.l. In our first 13 kilometers of riding today we've already climbed about 200 meters, almost as much as our entire first day of riding. The steady grade is noticeable |
| It's a grey, overcast day, but these clumps of lavender-coloured Penstemon really brighten up the trail |
| The Okanagan highlands show us clumps of pine grass, yellow Arrowleaf Balsamroot and Ponderosa Pine |
| There is an alpine feel to the small, but beautiful plants growing along the trail. I'm amazed to see Desert Paintbrush here on a cool, east-facing slope at a thousand meters above sea level. I've seen it down in Zion National Park in Utah, growing in the hot desert sun |
| Many slides cross the KVR along this stretch, but a passage has been cleared through each of them |
| One break in the unchanging scenery today is the Arlington Lakes chain at kilometer 97.9, elevation: 1051 m.a.s.l. |
| Lakevale campground is our lunch stop today. Yum-yum: trail mix and wine gums |
| The fill that replaces a missing trestle at Cooksen Creek creates an actual hill on the KVR. We are so used to a constant grade that it takes some by surprise who scramble to change gears |
| Some weren't successful in changing gears, and choose to walk the hill |
| Bob does his Superman pose outside Cooksen station at kilometer 112, elevation: 1160 m.a.s.l. |
| To reach Idabel Lake we turn off the KVR onto the Okanagan Falls Forest Service Road, at kilometer 117.4, elevation: 1265 m.a.s.l. |
| There's a steep climb on the Okanagan Falls Forest Service Road, which tops out at 1317 m.a.s.l. (Our highest elevation of the day, and of the whole trip). But at least the relatively smooth surface of the road makes for an easy ride after a bumpy day on the KVR |
| Yay! One kilometer to go, and downhill (but that means, of course, that it will be uphill when we leave tomorrow morning) |
| We reach Idabel Lake and our overnight stop: the Raven's B&B. Elevation: 1225 m.a.s.l. Net elevation gain for today is about 435 meters. Distance cycled today is about 53 kilometers. Elapsed road time is about 6 hours |
| A short walk down the hill brings us to lovely Idabel Lake |