On a Very Long Hiatus

September 5, 2008 by maureen.ulrich.

Yes, yes. I know. Most of you have long since given up on this blog. Have checked and re-checked only to find that last May entry which promised news of a trip to New York . . .

Well, I’ll make a few excuses. It’s been a hectic four months. Juggling a school play and a part-time job and a full-time job and a writing career (Who am I kidding? I’ve hardly written a word since our writers’ retreat on May 10th!!) Then throw in a couple of bike trips to British Columbia and Sturgis and a two-week tour of England and Scotland with Daughter Number One.

Anyway, I’m back, and I’m committed to updating my blog every two weeks.

I’m not at school this fall, so there should be time for it. . .

So . . . where to begin?

How about . . . on the road to Nelson, British Columbia on a 1200 Low (Sportster)?

Randy and I drove from Weyburn to Lethbridge in one day, stopping frequently to rest our achy posteriors. The weather was gorgeous — and the traffic was minimal. We actually saw very few motor homes on the entire trip, which isn’t all that surprising, considering what gas costs now-a-days.

From Lethbridge we headed west through Blairmore and Creston. There’s a great stretch of highway that goes north from Creston to the ferry — very curvy and scenic. Locals told us afterword that it is ranked as one of the best stretches of road on a motorcycle. I believe it!!

Sometimes it’s a good idea not to know what lies ahead. This is especially true for me and my Sportster. At the ferry, we encountered a two hour wait — and a very steep hill. I just shut off the bike, shifted into neutral, and glided down it — with a liberal application of the front brake. No problem. Randy is a great teacher.

The ferry ride is about thirty minutes and — it’s free! I was plenty nervous driving ONTO the ferry — and the staff were nice enough to put us at the very front — so we could be amongst the first wave of vehicles to drive off. Great, I thought. I’ll stall a few times and make a fool of myself. But I didn’t. Not even one restart. From the ferry there’s a good half hour drive along the inlet to Nelson, with a beautiful bridge to cross over.

Nelson’s streets are very steep. Considering the amount of freezing rain it receives, driving in the winter must be VERY interesting. I opted to park my Sportster for the duration of our visit and ride with Randy on the Electra Glide — or with my mom and dad in their rental car. They flew to Castlegar on July 22nd and spent two nights with us, touring the area.

Nelson would be a great retirement community. It has everything we love — golf courses, a ski hill, lakefront, community theatre, a junior hockey team, and of course — great roads for driving a motorcycle.

We spent an evening at one of the local bars, listening to Fred Eaglesmith and his band. They put on a terrific show. Fred is one half musician/songwriter and one half stand-up comedian. He was well worth the price of admission, and I urge you to go to one of his concerts if he’s passing through your community. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. His music is sort of Bruce Springsteen meets Bob Dylan meets John Mellencamp meets Gordon Lightfoot.

Anyway, from Nelson we headed south to Kalispell, Montana and the Going-to-the-Sun Highway in Glacier National Park. I thought I would be a nervous wreck doing this on a motorcycle, but I actually found it far much LESS nerve-wracking than in a vehicle. The view was spectacular and well worth the trip.

We spent one night in Medicine Hat on the way home — and that TransCanada Highway was sure a disappointment after learning to drive the curves in B.C. I’d love to go all the way to Victoria next summer, but that’s a long ways away, and I haven’t told you about Sturgis yet.

And I’ll do just that . . . tomorrow . . .

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