Up Over: 8/7/16 Cariboo

It was a great day for a ride!

When I took my morning tentative peek through the curtains, I saw sun, bold and beautiful. The weather was on our side, so we made an earlier departure. Today we were riding the Cariboo Highway, route 97. The section from Prince George to Cache Creek is the route that pioneers took to settle in Canada and miners in the 1860 gold rush followed.

Evidence of the history of this road can be found in small towns along the way. Quesnel is known as the Gold Pan City and towns named 150 and 100 Mile House indicate where roadhouses were established for miners and settlers traveling north. So we sped back in time as statues, mottos and covered wagons reminded us of the past.

Farmland and lakes were our scenery today and open ranges where cowboys work their cattle flew by. Logging is still a prime industry as the smell of freshly lumbered wood mixed with the ever present perfume of clover. Temperatures rose to the 70's and I rode without my leather for the first time in almost a month.

Lulled into complacency, we lingered over lunch. Then back on the road we looked into a future of angry clouds. Still riding under blue skies, we were optimistic, and forged onward toward the storm past 100 mile House. Then, some miles out of town, lightening began streaking from sky to road and the accompanying thunder was deafening. An about face ran us back to 100 Mile House where we found shelter at the historic Red Coach Inn. Jules also sheltered Rascal from hail and cleaned her up a bit as the rain fell.

Often when we meet other bikers on the road, conversation is initiated with, "It's a great day for a ride, isn't it?". The answer is invariably, "Every day's a great day for a ride." And even though we were brought up short by the severe weather it was truly another great day.