We wanted to get an early start today but we took some time to talk with our motel neighbors instead, but that's OK. We got to talk with Gene and Donna, fellow Goldwing riders from Seattle about a variety of things before we said our goodbyes.

Leaving Creston, Linda commented that riding in BC was like riding through one huge national park. That's because we rode through a million trees. The actual scenery for today became almost "ordinary" after awhile since we had been through some really superb areas the last few days. There were more signs of "clear cutting" than we had seen before. Again, it's a matter of degree. Nevada would think they were in heaven to have one half the number of tree-covered mountains that this part of British Columbia has.

I didn't take any pictures until we were halfway through the day and we started to see the first signs of the Canadian Rockies. You've seen samples of the terrain from yesterday, so I didn't want to duplicate too much of what you've seen. We stopped in Fernie for lunch and as we got a little ways out of town, a large, bold mountaintop hinted of better things to come. Several miles later, you could see the tips of the Rockies peeking over the horizon. Soon, you could see the Rockies waiting for us off to our left, (photo 1) and as we turned west and south, gave hints that hidden in these spectacular mountains were individual peaks that were going to take your breath away.

Canadian Hwy 3 continued through lesser mountains on it's way to the main attraction (photos 2, 3, 4, 5), but even these were worthy of oohs and aahs. We stopped at one last rest stop in British Columbia (photos 6 & 7), before entering Alberta, Canada. Now British Columbia is a beautiful province, by any definition, but Alberta holds the keys to the Rockies. Comparing the two is like comparing two contestants in the Miss America contest. Do you prefer blonds or brunettes? If you're like me you appreciate them both for different reasons. So it was with British Columbia and Alberta. It's funny, but there was an intangible feel that was different when entering Alberta (photo 8). I guess people say the same thing when they go from one of our states to another, for example Arizona to California. Anyway, we were now getting close to today's destination.

As we enjoyed the ride through these magnificent mountains, off to our right, in a deep valley, a train just kept going and going, so I decided to try and get a picture of this train, if possible. No problem, by the time I parked the bike and got out the camera, the train was still making its way through the valley below. Even though I at first wanted to take a picture of the train, I thought the whole valley and the mountains beyond were interesting as well. You be the judge (photos 9 & 10).

As we came down out of the mountains and into the prairie town of Cowley, the road and terrain opened wide in front of us. At about the same time, the wind started to pick up. Then the truest signs that you have entered consistently windy country appeared…. three bladed wind generators, lots of them. Just before we entered Pitcher Creek, there was a line of them all along a ridge top for a mile or more, plus individual ones in the middle of farmer's fields. While I was taking notice of these wind generators, we were being bounced around by strong gusty winds. We later found out that Pitcher Creek has the most days of gale force winds of anyplace in Alberta. Great. Motorcyclists just love riding in the wind…NOT!

Another surprise awaited us. In the little town of Pitcher Creek, there were no motel rooms available. It seems that the local gas and oil company had booked a hundred rooms in the surrounding area for a major meeting they were having. A hundred rooms? You've got to be kidding me. Are there really a hundred motel rooms in the whole of Pitcher Creek? All of a sudden, we're wondering where we're going to stay the night since we are a long way from anywhere.

Linda suggests trying to find a place in Waterton National Park. Mr. Optimistic that I am, I'm thinking, fat chance. We get a local "accommodations" guide and find one place listed in the village. They have one room left and we get it. It's amazing how much better you feel once you know you have a place to stay for the night. Tonight's lodging would be at the Waterton Glacier Suites.

I head south on Hwy 6 to the Waterton National Park turnoff and then eight "clicks" to the village. As we approached the village, we could see this huge hotel up on a hilltop. The road sign informed us it was the Prince of Wales Lodge. Damn, that's one fancy place. Well, tonight we stay somewhere else a little lower on the food chain, but very nice anyway (photo 11).

We did a quick walk around the waterfront to take some pictures of the Prince of Wales up on the hill and to see a little of the "downtown" area. Out on the quay, we met a lady from Vancouver who had this great looking Malamute dog. We talked about the dog and how it was only six months old and what a great dog it was, and so on. Then the conversation turned to the Prince of Wales, since it dominates the surrounding landscape, as far as man made objects are concerned. It doesn't hold a candle to the mountains, of course, but then again, it has great views of those same mountains. When we mentioned we were going to be staying there the next two nights, she asked to be taken along, and her husband volunteered to trade straight across for the dog. Unfortunately, we were on a motorcycle and there was no place for the dog. It turns out that the Prince of Wales Lodge is one of the big draws to this park. Go figure.

We were both a little tired and had already eaten in Pitcher Creek at Luigi's Italian Cuisine, so we settled in with some taffy and peanut brittle we had bought in Oregon, and just enjoyed the porch swing. As the evening sun began to slowly set, it doesn't go down completely until about 10:00 p.m, the deer in the park come out to eat. Actually, they are so tame, that they eat right in the yards all day long like big pets (photo 12).

Anyway, we have a place for tonight and tomorrow we head up to the castle on the hill.

Today's Route: Canadian Hwy 3 east, all the way to Cowley, Alberta then Hwy 6 south to Waterton National Park entrance.