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Two weeks on the GDT

8/26/2019

 
The GDT was the first link of my project’s chain, everything else built up around it. It was the only roughly planned section of the trip and, of course, nothing went accordingly. I had to skip a section because my backpack delivery was delayed then I strained my hip during my third day on the trails. Two weeks later and after cycling the two next sections, my hip felt strong enough to give it another try. I had half of the trail left to explore and just over 500km of pure epicness rolled out ahead of me. It has been such an intense and unforgettable two weeks, let’s look at it a little closer. 

What really struck me and hugely impacted the experience was the realization that both the body and the mind needed much more transition time from cycling to hiking than I thought. Different muscles in use with the obvious issue of my hip bodywise but the hardest was the mind. Even if the backpacking and bikepacking routines are very similar, they are also very different. You suddenly lose the little extra comfort conferred by the road, the odd rest area or gas-pump to shelter and get a warm drink every now-and-then. Even if fairly minimalist, you can always have a little extra food in the bike bags that you do not want to carry in your pack. The speed is also very different and it was hard to accept that I could “only” hike 30 to 50km in a day rather than 150 to 200km. It was even harder when the GDT used the same gravel road that the GDMBR (the gravel cycling route that runs from Jasper to Mexico and that I am going to follow across the USA) and that I saw a few bikepackers flying passed me as I was stumbling on my sore hip.
Nonetheless, starting the hike on the super well-maintained and easy going Banff National Park’s trails was the perfect way to gently get into my hiking shape, rhythm and routine. You can go fast, it is hard - not to say impossible - to get lost, there are five stars campgrounds sprinkled along the way, you meet plenty of other overnighters and are rewarded with world-class views behind every corner. Slowly all this started to faint, except for the views. 
The long 200km stretch to Coleman started a little sideways in a heavy downpour, walking on a road plus I  had to live 5 days out of pop-tarts, ramen, mashed potatoes and mac&cheese after a rough resupply at a campground store forced by my non-planification. I have never missed my oatmeal, tortillas, chia pudding and quinoa that much… BUT after sheltering in a public cabin for the night and chatting with a South-African coupe riding GDMBR, I woke up in a fairy scenery. It rained all night and by the first light the clouds were evaporating along the two ridges circling the wide valley, only leaving bright blue sky and snow on the mountains behind them. Leaving the dirt road, I stepped into the wild. It started straight away with bushy faint steep trail and creek crossings, goodbye dry feet. I had to adjust my pace and focus but was rewarded in my effort with bushes filled with wild raspberries. Even if only a simple thing, it felt amazing to gather some of my food and those fruit tasted better than any I had before. For the next following days I was forced to stop several times to crawl in the bush, going after the tasty berries. Yummy !
After a long climb I reached a pass, the doorway to the human-free zone I would wander in the next following days. The trail vanished and with it the last sign of civilization. It was just the bear landscape, the rock, the snow, the wind and me. I was moved by an intense feeling of freedom and aliveness. Behind the pass, the trail reappeared to guide over multiple ridges for the next three days. A blissful successions of endless views towards the Rockies on one side, the plains on the other, and  steep creeks gullies nested in magic silent forests. A wonderful journey filled with beyond the ears smiles, evenings by the campfire and starry nights. I had a blast and remembered why I decided not only to cycle.
I crossed back over the range and slowly made my way back to the human world as the singletrack changed into ATV roads, gravel road and paved road to Coleman. After three days in Nature’s silence it was weird to hear the engines noise again and walking by a busy gun range was not very welcoming but everything was forgiven with a huge stack of pancakes, a shower, a laundry and a bed. I stayed at a Bed&Breakfast experienced with thru-hikers. They fed me properly and even managed to stuff my pack with muffins and cookies as I was making my way back on trails towards Waterton and my bike. 
The previous weeks events ( delay, injury, weather) kept me away from the scenic and even more arduous alternates sprinkled along the GDT. But this time nothing was blocking the way between the gorgeous-strenuous Barnaby ridge connecting onto the famous La Coulotte ridge. It was even more marvelous that everything I dreamt of :following the landscape lines instead of a trail, going from one peak to another with endless panoramic views on untouched mountains, oscillating between hiking and scrambling. It was a gem, the absolute cherry on top of this hike. It made every harder moment worth it, a thousand times, even the depressing last dozens kilometers in burnt forest with torrential rain and snow at higher altitudes. The weather threw at me everything it did not on the previous and offered me the typical GDT-weather before letting me go to the next chapter of the journey.
THANK YOU Great Divide Trail and Canada overall for the past few weeks. Time to rest, scramble a few more peaks and reunite with my beloved bike. Montana, Glacier National Park and Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, here I am !

Soleil

8/20/2019

 
Cette nuit j’ai eu froid
Je me suis languis de toi

Le ciel était déchaîné
Maintenant s’est apaisé

Dans un frisson
Je repousse l'édredon

Contemple le paysage
Non, pas de mirage

Les nuages s'écartent
Pour le bleu ecarlate

Les cimes sous un sortilège
Sont couverte de neige

Que de magie
C’est bon d'être en vie

Routine du matin
J’entrave la faim

L’eau qui chauffe
Le thé qui réchauffe

Je prends mes affaires en vrac
Les fourres dans mon sac

Un coup d’oeil en arrière
J’ai parfois la tête en l’air

En avant, marche !
Mais ou tu te caches ?

Le jour est bien là
Je ne te vois pas

La brise me glace
L’ombre m’enlace

Certains jours je te fuis
Pas aujourd’hui

Par dessus les crêtes
Tu passes soudain la tête

Perces la foret
De mille traits

Répands des flaques de lumière
Petits paradis sur terre

Je les dévore
Comme la petite mort

Merci pour tes merveilles
Ô divin soleil

La tempête

8/18/2019

 
Prends garde à toi
Voyageur insouciant
Bercé par tes pas
N’oublies pas les éléments
Soudain un éclair
Trembles sous le tonnerre

Voilà qu’arrive l’orage
Totalement impromptu
Maintenant fait rage
Tu ne l’avais pas prévu
Une fois piégé
Il n’y a qu'à laisser aller

Tu gardes le sourir
Rien ne sert de paniquer
Tu éclates de rire
Une bonne histoire a raconter
Mais il y a plus insidieux
Que la menace des cieux

Tout va bien
Le soleil brille
Tu suis le chemin
Soudain coup de faucille
Etrange douleur
C’est la tempête intérieure

Tu te demandes pourquoi
Respires un grand coup
Mais elle colle à toi
Tu te trouves au fond du trou
Tout devient noir
Teinté de désespoir

Comme pour l’orage
Tu ne peux rien y changer
Deviens plus sage
Et laisse couler
Garde le sourir
Il n’y a qu'à en rire

Eau

8/12/2019

 
Jaillissant de la terre
Elle trouve sa route
Descend vers la mer
Jamais prise de doute

Quand vient un obstacle
Ne retourne pas sa veste
Avec patience le tacle
Goutte à goutte le traverse

Qu’elle soit lente et tranquille
Ou rapide et féroce
Tout semble facile
Ne sous-estimez pas sa force

Dans le vide se jette
Sans souci d’en bas
Un instant le temps s'arrête
Puis s'écrase avec fracas

Son meilleur associé est le temps
Travaillent avec ferveur
Et partagent avec le vent
Le titre de plus grand sculpteur

Sans elle pas de vie
C’est l’ultime joyau
Mais satanée pluie
J’en ai plein le dos

​

Jasper-Banff

8/7/2019

 
There were two options to cycle south from Jasper. The main one, the scenic and touristy Icefield Parkway or the alternative one, a 200km detour via gravel backroad parallel to the Rockies. My hip injury was holding me from hiking Alberta’s trails so I went to explore its gravel roads. And it was worth it.

Firstly because it was amazingly fun and beautiful. I found everything I came for : steep climbs, big views with no one around, no traffic, fast hard pack and super rough sections. I took my bike into some trails that weren’t suited for a gravel bike but it hold strong. I eventually had my first puncture but I guess that I cannot complain that those tires already last almost 5000km.
Secondly, it was very interesting to leave Parks Canada’s Wonderland and see Alberta’s backside, or darkside. The mountains were blown open with mines and everyone I met in this wilderness was enjoying it via motorsport. I had to share the dirt roads with ATVs, quads and motocross. I also met a totally different type of campers who apparently cannot look after their trash. For the first time on the trip I came across random dumps in the wild. Not cool.
Thirdly because this itinerary made me pass by the Folding Mountain Brewery and its restaurant that serves the best (and biggest?) poutine of the West.
Halfway down to Banff I started missing the epic mountains and the Parkway’s world class views so I headed back west towards Saskatchewan Crossing with a strong headwind for 100km. It felt like I would never reach those peaks in the horizon but lakes and sky were magically blue and the sun was shining.

At the Saskatchewan Crossing Resort I found the first very unfriendly people on my route. Not bad after 8 weeks on the road but it was surprising. After talking to a few other people in a close by campground, we came to the point that the HR made sure people were unhappy and rude before hiring their employees. Despite that and the highway traffic, it was good to contemplate this scenery one more/last time. Kilometer after kilometer the weird feeling of riding home was growing. This was the first known section of the trip as I lived in the area the past year. It was amazingly enjoyable to see it covered with green and flowers rather than with snow and ice. The very last section into Banff, along the Bow Valley Parkway, was even more familiar and exciting as this was the road I used to train on. 
I had a close call escaping a huge thunderstorm by a few seconds and found refuge in campground cooking area. It turned out to be a bloody excellent spot as it poured down all night and I was stoked to be sleeping on the benches under a roof rather than in my tent. The storm brought one of this summer’s nicest bluebirds and I made the best out of it hiking up one of Banff National Park’s emblematic summits : Castle Mountain. I had an early start in the morning fog that added some beauty to the winding trail in the forest. I popped above the clouds when I entered the alpine meadows blooming with flowers. From here the steep ascension passed the tree line into the Land of the Rocks started and the views turned from bucolic to breathtaking. My initial plan was to stop at the higher lake but I could not resist to push to the perched view point. From there, feet hanging above the turquoise lake and the clouds in the valley below, surrounded by a perfectly sculpted rocky cirque, bathing in the sun, listening to the marmots sing, I gazed at the massive ridge in front of me and its appealing towering peak. If I had come all the way here, I might as well make the extra effort there. I picked my own route along the landscaped and fully enjoyed this unique feeling of freedom. I could not believe the epicness of the scenery surrounding me but it even got better when I reached the last summit, at the very end of the range where I was encircled by sheer 800m drops  in every direction except the one I came from. I could gaze in every direction, the Rockies flowering in the horizon. All this majestuousness all for myself as no one else was in sight, except the highway far below at the valley bottom. This was more than I could have dreamt of and it fed me joy for at least a few weeks.

The last dozens of kilometers ride to Banff was an absolute pleasure even if my legs were (un)expectedly tired after this 30km and 1600m of elevation gain morning hike. I think I am ready to try thru-hiking again !

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    Tramping, cycling, running, skiing, travelling, I keep exploring this amazing planet we live on. The following texts give an insight of my various wanderings. From poetry to trip reports or thoughts on particular subjects, this  pages try to reflect how I travel through this modern world.

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