There and Back Again - Part 02: My BC Epic1000 Yoyo Experience

June 25, 2021

Recovery, 2%
Heart Rate Variability 26
Resting Heart Rate 66
Respiratory Rate 13.9rpm
Sleep 2:08hr
End of day Strain 17.7

“Sir, can you tell me what you are doing over there!”

“I slept here last night because it felt safe.”

Hearing this, the RCMP officer nodded her head and entered the precinct. A quick police interrogation wasn’t the best way to start the day, but I was happy with the way I answered. I feel as though Canada is a very safe place, but given the proximity of the station to the park where I was going to sleep, and the likelihood of illegal activity happening in said park, I appreciated her understanding.

Having Grey Creek Pass behind me was a relief. Day one was a huge effort with a distance of, 315km and almost 4400m of climbing. Mentally, I was feeling pretty good with what little sleep I was able to get. My body wasn’t feeling too bad either considering. A little stiff perhaps. I cleaned up and packed, then headed to a nearby gas station to get some food and a hot cup of coffee. There’s something about depriving yourself of coffee on trips like these that makes it taste so good when you finally get some. I’ll take two please.

Caffeinated and fed, I started the climb up to the rail grade. I really enjoyed the stretch heading west out of Nelson. This flat, grassy double track was a ripper and I found some good flow. I later met a couple who said that there was a grizzly that had been using this part of the trail as it’s personal drag strip. As they spoke, I couldn’t help but imagine this massive beast tearing up the trail without a care in the world, the pounding of its paws on the earth, tongue hanging out with a big meat eating grin on its face. Can you imagine riding your bike into that situation?! Timing and context are everything.

A lot of nothing happens on these trips and I must admit that I don’t recall much from this section of trail leading down into Salmo. I’m sure I was in the flow state at that point. That is something else I have been working on. Trying to pay attention more. Keeping the head up and looking around. It’s so easy for me to just pop in the buds, drop my head and grind shit out and sometimes that’s the state you need to be in but I miss so much. Riding long days like this can also be boring. Of course there are moments of awe, which is so important for the human experience. Sometimes, just like any road trip, you’re wondering “Are we there yet?” In fact, on some sections of trail you may have heard me curse the organizer, Lennard Pretorius. “WHY LENNARD! WHY, MAN!!!!” Mostly in the middle of the night when I was tired and depleted, grinding away on some 60km rail grade with no end in sight. Climbing over passes is hard but there is something about rail grade climbs that can destroy your soul. Like water torture, every pedal stroke is like a drip on the forehead. You look up to see the grade continue on and on and on. The climb out of Penticton up to Chute lake is similar but I quite enjoyed that climb on the return leg. It’s all in your head.

Reaching Salmo, the route pops on to the the highway and then it’s a mellow spin over to Fruitvale. I don’t much like being on the pavement, especially with all the distracted driving happening these days but It was pretty nice to just get into the aero bars and spin for a bit. By this time, the heat was getting really intense, not only from the sky but also radiating off of the asphalt like a griddle. I took a few shade breaks along the way to get water and wet the sun sleeves down. Having a pair of sleeves was so vital on this trip. I rarely wear sunscreen as I don’t like putting that stuff on my body, but I did apply some zinc oxide to my nose and cheeks and eventually the tops of my hands as they actually blistered. I don’t wear gloves either as I don’t think they’re necessary and keeping your hands exposed to the air helps keep the body cooler in my opinion. Luckily the sleeves are long so I would just pull them down over the tops of my hands to protect them.

At some point I made a navigational error an ended up riding past my turn. There are some curvy overpasses and bridges and before I knew it I was off route. It happens. I poked around and eventually got myself back on route and started to head into Trail and towards the notorious Castlegar connector.

The singletrack leading to Castlegar is a love hate thing for a lot of riders. It is a beautiful stretch of trail that meanders along the Columbia River. In 2018, I recall being able to ride a lot more of this trail but 2021 was a different story. The trail has become so degraded, off camber and very sandy. One can’t complain too much as this is a bikepacking race after all and slogging parts of unrideable terrain is just part of the game. By now it was 30ºC plus with no wind so the trail was stifling.

After slogging it out on the connector, I arrived in Castlegar. Here I made the mistake of skipping a resupply and pushing forward toward the rail grade over to Christina Lake. I decided that it was too far off route to make the trip into town to get some food, plus I had some food so, if things got dire, I could dip into that stash. Basically I had raw, unsalted nuts which were pasty and unpalatable and honey which I did get into a couple of times.

I passed the Interfor Mill and began to look for a place to filter some water. I could see the perfect spot, but some folks were camping there for the night. They were sitting by the fire chatting. I called out.

“Excuse me, could I please come down there and filter some water?”

“Sure! No problem. Come on down.”

I rolled to where the family was camping and met, Andrew, a Castlegar local who was out camping on the river with his family. He graciously offered me some of their water supply, saving me from filtering. He offered me a beer, which I politely declined. Eventually I found myself sipping, no chugging, an ice cold, fizzy grapefruit drink. There’s something about a bubbly drink that can pick the spirits up.

The sun was slowly setting as he told me about a male grizzly that was using the Bulldog tunnel as a play pen. This is about 25km or about 2/3 the way up the climb before it tips over, leading you down to Christina lake. Andrew generously offered me a place to camp on my return trip, if he happens to still be there. With that, I expressed my gratitude and began the slow and steady climb toward the tunnel. I generally don’t think very much about bears on my trips. I know full well they’re out there but it’s my opinion that they want just as much to do with us as we do with them. I pushed the thoughts to the back of my mind and trudged on.

The climbing was pretty steady and easy going. I found riding into and through the night with my K-Lite to be a wonderful experience as generating your own light while moving is a feeling of freedom. I did still carry a good headlamp. I chose my Princeton Tec Apex headlamp which has served me well on many a trip. It’s a little bulkier than others but the fact that it uses AA batteries is a plus and with lithium batteries, I can get multiple nights of use before having to change them. Since my Etrex also uses AA’s it means I don’t have to pack a variety of batteries either.

In the distance I can just make out the silhouette of the tunnel opening. A cold, dark passage into middle earth where the potential monster could be lurking. I had been talking to myself and calling out for a while now so whatever was out there could hear me coming. I turned on all my lights as I entered the tunnel and began to sing my bear song to the tune of Hey Jude.

Hey Bear,
Please don’t be there.
I’m just passing through,
Then I’ll be out of your hair.
Remember,
We prob-ly don’t taste too good,
You would prefer
Some berries, better.

The Bulldog tunnel is over 900m long and is slightly curved so, even in the daytime, you will be in total darkness at some point. Not that it mattered at whatever time of the night it was, as I was running full lights in there. I saw no movement while I progressed and continued to speak sweetly to the potential cave dweller. Riding through the belly of the mountain was eerie. The cold, damp air pleasantly permeated my core, a welcome relief from the stifling heat during of the day. I popped out the other side having thankfully met no animals. I started to relax as I pedaled away. I took a deep breath and settled in to put this climb behind me.

Hello, Sleep Monster, my old friend.

He’s back, but stronger this time. Our bodies are pretty amazing and so capable of pushing limits. Sleep, on the other hand, is something that has limits. At some point, without proper sleep maintenance, the brain will start to do its own thing and kick in the sleep cycle. I had just pitched over the other side and was beginning my descent when this happened. I needed to lay down. Fortunately, there were a couple of shelters with concrete topped picnic tables that looked very inviting. I staggered of the bike, leaned her up on the shelter, climbed up on the cool, flat tabletop and fell asleep. But not before shooing a mouse away. I estimate that I may have slept for 30 minutes, but when you’re this tired, even a 5 minute rest can do wonders. I awoke to the sound of rustling, which made my spidey-senses trigger. I stretched a little and got back on the bike.

The moon was so bright on that night and just as the moon rolled over the horizon, the eastern sky began to glow beautifully, signaling the end of darkness and the beginning of a new day. You’ve heard me say this before, but I’ll say it again. The experience of riding into and though the night is wonderful. Most of the critters have settled in for the night, so things become very quiet and the cool still air makes riding feel effortless. I rode through many a night on this trip to avoid the mid 40 temps during the day. Regardless of how tired you are, the rising sun will pick you up.

I rolled on to the bridge near Christina Lake and drunkenly got off my bike. I was so tired and relived to be prone on the flat wooden surface. I was also very hungry as I really hadn’t eaten much of anything all night. I could feel the calorie deficit as I lay there to rest. Grand Forks isn’t too far away, so I’ll make my way to Jitters to get some coffee and pastries when I get there.