Tag Archives: Banff

Day 10 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Banff National Park Canada

Posted on August 17, 2013 | 8 comments

Banff National Park, motorcycle, trip, ride, travel, touring, adventure

Banff National Park Ride Map

Today is day 10 of our national park motorcycle ride. Over the course of 16 days we will ride some of the best national parks, historic sites and national monuments in the U.S. and Canada (Pikes Peak National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Little Bighorn National Historic Site, Devils Tower National Monument and Mount Rushmore National Memorial). Come follow along as we ride one of our dream rides on our bucket list. Today I will finally get to see Banff. When I was working, I did a lot of work in Canada. While in Canada, I was told to visit Banff many times. I never seemed to have the opportunity… I was always putting out fires (fixing problems) and never had any time to spare. The best thing about finally seeing it for the first time is I am riding through it. The best way to see Banff is from the seat of a motorcycle!

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Nice cool clear morning heading to Banff National Park in Canada

We took Hwy 1 from Golden, BC to Lake Louise Drive in Banff. Lake Louise was the one place I was told I must see.. We were not disappointed. Lake Louise is an alpine lake, known for its sparkling blue waters. It is situated at the base of impressive glacier-clad peaks that must be seen to be appreciated. It has been said, “A pictures is worth a thousand words” but I say the heck with pictures… You need to experience this to fully appreciate its beauty.

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Early morning Banff National Park Canada

While stopping at the Information Center we were told we needed to visit Lake Moraine too. They said it was even better than Lake Louise. It was a 9 mile/14 km ride from Lake Louise. Lake Moraine is 6181 feet/ 1884 meters above sea level. Lake Moraine is a bit higher in elevation than Louise with many scenic views on the ride up. Parking at the top was a bit of a hassle. We ended up parking in a couple of triangles by a walkway. It was perfect motorcycle parking and we didn’t get in anyone’s way. Once I saw the lake I realized I had seen pictures of it before. The lake seems like something unreal or made up. Both Lake Moraine and Louise are a deep-turquoise color with beautiful glacier covered mountains reflecting from its surface. These lakes must be seen to be fully appreciated.

Lake Louise Banff National Park Canada

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Lake Moraine Banff National Park Canada

Glacier at Lake Moraine Banff National Park Canada

If you are into hiking, there are many trails in Banff and is probably the best way to see Banff up close and personal. The rest of our ride through Banff was filled with beautiful views of the surrounding glacier covered mountains with some of the most pristine sparkling clear streams all along our route. While on our ride we were told about rides we needed do while in the area. Because of time constraints we were not able to do them… but when we make it up this way again I will include them in our plans. Several people told us we must ride up to Jasper. We were told the scenery is outstanding and is a must see. The other place is highway 40 between Highway 1 and Longview, AB. It is an outstanding motorcycle ride. So if you are headed up that way you may want to check these out and include them in your travel plans

Riding down Hwy 1 Banff National Park Canada

As we rode closer to Calgary the landscape started to flatten out… a noticeable contrast to Banff but pretty in its own right.

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Riding through Calgary, AB Canada with rain clouds rolling in.

It’s been a long time (10 years or more) since I’ve been to Calgary. It too has probably changed a lot since then. I would have liked to spend some time in Calgary but we have miles to go before we sleep… so we rode the outskirts of Calgary on our way to Lethbridge, AB, our destination for the day. As we headed south from Calgary the scenery was mostly farm and ranch land… Very nice farm and ranch land… As we left the Calgary area the clouds got darker and we did encounter some misty rain from time to time. We seemed to have ridden between several of the rain showers that were all around us all the way to Lethbridge. The clouds and rain showers did keep the temperature down for some nice riding.

One of the many farms between Calgary, AB and Lethbridge, AB

Riding past one of the many rain showers on our way to Lethbridge, AB

Riding into Lethbridge we rode into a canyon and over the Oldman River. We had a good view of the railroad bridge above the canyon. It was a very impressive sight. The bridge is a bit of good engineering and construction… A good end to a very good day… Today was another good day of riding (296 miles) through one of Canada’s best National Parks. Scenery in and out of the park was outstanding with good weather all the way. I even enjoyed the ride from Calgary to Lethbridge with its scenic farm and ranch land. I enjoyed seeing some nice farm and ranch houses and barns as well as some that have seen better days. I always find myself wondering what life must be like living there. Farming and ranching is a great life that takes a special kind of people to do it… It takes a lot of hard endless work with uncertain weather and economic futures always ahead. A gamble when you do everything right… but very rewarding in the end. Having grown up on a cotton farm in Texas, I admire farmers and ranchers everywhere.

For more pictures of our ride click here and don’t forget to like “The Texas Rambler” Facebook page. Look for the “Subscribe to Texas Rambler via Email” at the bottom right column to receive notifications of new posts by email. Also please take some time to leave us a comment. We always love hearing from y’all…

Tomorrow we will be riding to Billings, Montana. There are no planned stops, just riding more scenic Great Plains .So ride safe and I hope we will see you somewhere on the road…

This has been one amazing ride for Larry and me. Check out the other post from this ride using the links below…

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Posted in Motorcycle Touring Logs

Tagged 1, 2, 40, Alpine, Banff, banff lake louise, Banff National Park, banff park, barn, bridge, Calgary, Canada, Canyon, farm, Glacier, Golden, great motorcycle rides, houses, Hwy, Jasper, lake, lake louise banff, lake louise banff canada, Lethbridge, louise, Moraine, moraine lake banff, moraine lake banff national park, moraine lake banff national park canada, moraine lake in canada, Motorcycle, motorcycle ride, motorcycle riding, motorcycle road trips, Motorcycle Touring, motorcycle travel, motorcycle trip, national park, Oldman, railroad, rain, Ranch, ride, river, scenic motorcycle rides, travel, views

National Park Motorcycle Ride – 5542 Miles in 16 Days 2013

Posted on July 31, 2013 | 18 comments

National Park Motorcycle Ride Route Map

WOW, I can’t believe we did it and it’s in the books. We just rode some of the best national parks, historic sites and national monuments in the U.S. and Canada (Pikes Peak National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Little Bighorn National Historic Site, Devils Tower National Monument and Mount Rushmore National Memorial).

We had a great time and everything went pretty much according to plan. I thought I would be worn out physically and mentally but Larry and I felt really good for the whole ride. I got back July 29^th around 4:00 PM and felt so good I mowed the lawn the next morning!

Me and Larry at Pikes Peak

They say a picture is worth a thousand words but experiencing it is worth millions. There is no way pictures can capture the adventure nor can I describe it all with words. It can only be experienced… Traveling by car gets you there but is only a few notches above watching the scenery go by on TV. Traveling by motorcycle is the ultimate way to experience travel. You are in the environment, feeling the wind, sun, cool, heat and rain. At several points along the ride we could hear the rushing water in the streams and rivers. The smells are incredible. The smell of crisp cool air in the morning, pine forest, flowers, rain in the distance, food cooking, fresh-cut grass, fields of corn, fresh-cut hay and many unidentifiable smells… and yes the occasional not so good smell of dead animals, feed lots etc… Many of the smells took me back to my boyhood when I lived on a cotton farm in Texas. Those were good memories.

Grand Teton National Park

Beside all the great national parks, monuments and historical sites on this ride there were many beautiful farms and ranches in the valleys of the Rocky Mountains and on the Great Plains of the U.S. and Canada. Having grown up on a farm I have a great appreciation for the land and the people who work it. Rural life is a great life but a vulnerable one. There are many perils from Mother Nature and the economy. I also enjoyed seeing the many old farm houses and barns. I can only imagine the many lives and stories of love, laughter and tears could be told about each and every one…

Lower Falls Yellowstone National Park

Another part of the ride I enjoyed was the many small towns and the people who lived there. I enjoyed the local businesses and the architecture of the many old buildings. Some buildings were still in use and some have seen better days. If walls could only talk… what a story they could tell.

Glacier National Park

Larry and I met so many nice people on this ride. Our motorcycles and our tags from Georgia and Texas were always getting comments. Larry’s Victory Vision got most of the comments and questions. My mascot Kow A. Saky started many conversations too. We met people from all over the world. To name a few… a nice couple from England riding a rented Harley, a guy from Belgium riding with a motorcycle tour group, a group from Europe who shipped their antique cars over and were driving the Lincoln Highway, a couple from Ontario riding a Goldwing and many more. There were so many riders we met and riders traveling by car wishing they were on their bikes as well as many “want to be riders” and people just interested in where we were from and where we were headed. To those of you whom we met, who may be reading this, we would like to say thanks for making our ride that much more enjoyable. Please take the time to comment and say hi. We would love to hear from you again…

The other special part of this ride was stopping to see a couple of friends I had lost contact with over the years. I have just recently reconnected with them…

My old friend Jimmie and his wife Diann with Larry and me in Georgetown, Colorado

We stayed in Georgetown, Colorado on July 16^th. Jimmie drove from Aurora and met us at the Super 8 where we were staying. I first met Jimmie when I went to work for Geophysical Service Inc. in June of 1965. I had just graduated from high school and was attending college part-time. He was about 10 years older but treated me as an equal from the start. We worked in Houston, Texas; Sydney, NSW, Australia; Dallas, Texas and Denver, Colorado. Over the years we worked together at different companies and I owe Jimmie a lot for my success in business. It was great seeing Jimmie and his lovely wife Diann, again, after so many years. We ate dinner at a little restaurant down the road from the motel. It was a great time but much too short. Now that we have reconnected I will have to get back up there to see him… Thanks Jimmie for all the great times and memories and a special thanks for all the support you gave me while working with and for you…

My friends Ed and Avis and me

While I was in the Air Force, Ben, my roommate in tech school was always writing friends back home in Montana. One of those friends was a girl named Avis. I told him to say hi or something to Avis. She wrote back and we became pin-pals for four or five years and became good friends. I went to visit her, a couple of times, over that time. The last time was 41 years ago. Life got in the way and we eventually lost contact with each other. I have wondered many times what had become of Avis. I hoped that life had treated her well… About ten months ago, I tried to find her when I started planning this trip. I did find her and we have reconnected! We stopped by and stayed with Avis and her husband Ed. Life has been good to her… Avis has a great husband and two great kids. Avis and Ed are very proud of their kids, as they should be… They live outside Troy, MT on beautiful acreage. It is so beautiful and peaceful with views of mountains and a lake hidden across the road from them. I’m jealous… While there we caught up on what has been happening with us over the last 41 years. We still have more to catch up on. It was nice to finally meet Ed too. Avis and Ed are great hosts. Someday, I hope Janet and I can return the favor and show them part of our great state of Texas. Our time there was short but good. Thanks again to Ed and Avis for being such great host…

Lake Louise in Banff National Park Canada

While on this ride we visited Pikes Peak, Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Banff (in Canada), Little Bighorn, Devils Tower and Mount Rushmore as well as many other sites along the way. I will be posting about each day of our 16 day ride in the coming days… Please, follow along as we ride some of the most beautiful scenic country in the U.S. and Canada.

Little Bighorn Historical Site

Devil’s Tower National Historic Site

Mt. Rushmore

For more pictures of our ride click here and don’t forget to like “The Texas Rambler” Facebook page. Look for the “Subscribe to Texas Rambler via Email” at the bottom left column to receive notifications of new posts by email. Also please take some time to leave us a comment. We always love hearing from y’all…

This has been one amazing ride for Larry and me. check out the other post from this ride using the links below…

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Posted in Motorcycle Touring Logs

Tagged adventure, architecture, Australia, Avis, Banff, Banff National Park, Banff National Park Canada, barn, Belgium, business, Canada, cold, Colorado, cooking, cool, corn, Dallas, Denver, Devils Tower, Devil’s Tower National Historic Site, economy, Ed, Europe, farm, flowers, food, forest, fresh-cut, Georgia, Glacier, Glacier National Park Montana, Glacier Park, Goldwing, Grand Teton National Park, Grand Tetons, Grand Tetons National Park, grass, Great Plains, hay fields, heat, house, Houston, Lake Louise, laughter, Little Bighorn, Little Bighorn Historical Site, lives, love, Lower Falls Yellowstone National Park, Mother Nature, Motorcycle, Motorcycle rides, Motorcycle Touring, Mount Rushmore, MT, Mt. Rushmore, national, National Park Motorcycle Ride, NSW, Ontario, park, Pikes Peak, Pine, rain, Ranch, ride, Rocky Mountains, scenery, scenic, small town, smell, stories, sun, Sydney, tears, Teton, Teton mountains, Teton National Park, Tetons National Park, Texas, Tour, town, travel, Troy, U.S., valley, Victory, Vision, Yellowstone, Yellowstone Park

Day 1 & 2 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Getting There

Posted on July 15, 2013 | 4 comments

Day 1 loaded up and ready to hit the road

Day 1 & 2 ride map

This is the first day of my two-week (16 days) 5000 miles plus motorcycle ride to several of the best National Parks, National Monuments and National Historical sites in the U.S. and Canada (Pikes Peak National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Little Bighorn National Historic Site, Devils Tower National Monument and Mount Rushmore National Memorial). Come follow along as we visit Pikes Peak, Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Banff, Little Bighorn, Devils Tower, Mount Rushmore and everything in between.

We had planned to do this ride 2 years ago but life got in the way and we had to cancel. The plans are complete and reservations have been made… all that is left is the execution of our plans.

I’m doing something I have never done before… write post each day or as often as time will allow… So stay tune for post as our ride progresses.

Heading down Hwy 183 on start of or National Park Motorcycle Ride

Day 1

Several days out from my departure it was looking like I could be riding in triple digit heat… In my younger days I probably wouldn’t have given this much thought… but now I’m a bit older and I think wiser. I’m sure I could get someone to disagree with that… 551 miles in triple digit heat is something I don’t want to do. As it turned out today was very cool for this time of the year. I left at 1:30 pm. It was overcast and just 81 degrees and a drop of rain every mile or so. The temperature eventually dropped to 76 degrees.Very pleasant riding. When I got Lampasas it started to rain enough that I lowered my face shield. When I reached the other side of Lampasas the rain stopped and the sun came out and took the temperature up to 90 degrees. About 60 mile from Sweetwater the clouds returned and the wind picked up and temperature drop to 82 degrees. At Sweetwater the wind started to blow much harder causing a lot of dust to be picked up. I was glad to have finally reached my motel in Snyder.

Tomorrow I meet Larry in Amarillo. From there it is a short ride to Dalhart our destination for the day.

Wind turbines in the distance… Near Sweetwater, Texas

Day 2

This trip will be just the two of us. Larry C. my old Air Force buddy wasn’t able to make this trip and our wives decided to sit this one out too. Larry T. rode in from Tunnel Hill, Georgia (1140 miles) on his spaceship… a Victory Vision… I wasn’t crazy about the Visions when they first came out but… since I’ve seen Larry’s they are starting to grow on me… Larry is loving his so far…

Misting rain leaving Snyder, Texas

We had a pretty big rain last night. I was on the road a little after 7:00, temperature 62 degrees, with a slight mist and overcast. Shortly after leaving the mist got heavier… heavy enough for me to lower the face shield. It eventually stopped misting, the roads dried and the sun peeked through the clouds.

I-27 heading to Amarillo, Texas

I am meeting Larry in Amarillo. 205 miles of nice riding (excluding the rain). I was at his motel just before 11:00. I haven’t seen Larry since our last ride in September so we had some catching up to do.

The Cadillac Ranch was just down I-40 about 10 miles so to kill some time we decide to give it a quick look. Neither of us has been there before and wasn’t sure what to expect. The cars have been there longer than they have been on the road. Over the years visitors have covered them in graffiti. It has become a tradition. Everyone that visited, except us, seem to be leaving their mark. You had to be careful when touching because of the wet paint. The paint has become inches thick over the many years… Different but interesting and worth the time visiting this unique art (??) work.

Larry at the Cadillac Ranch

From the Cadillac Ranch it was on to Dumas for gas and a late lunch before heading to Dalhart our destination for the day.

My ridding mascot Kow A. Saky with Larry bring up the rear.

The original destination for today was Amarillo but Larry wanted to ride up Pikes Peak tomorrow. That would add at least 2 hours to the ride so we moved our destination to shave some miles off the next day. This will allow us to take our time and enjoy the ride… and there is a lot to be enjoyed tomorrow.

Stay tuned… We will see you tomorrow.

This has been one amazing ride for Larry and me. Check out the other post from this ride using the links below…

4 Comments

Posted in Motorcycle Touring Logs

Tagged Banff, Banff National Park, blog, Cadillac Ranch, Devils Tower, devils tower national park, Glacier, glacier national park, Glacier National Park Montana, glacier national park mt, glacier np, Glacier Park, glacier park montana, Grand Teton, Grand Tetons National Park, little big horn national park, Little Bighorn, Motorcycle, motorcycle ride, motorcycle riding, motorcycle road trips, Motorcycle Touring, motorcycle travel, motorcycle trip, Mount Rushmore, mt rushmore national park, national park, Pikes Peak, ride, Teton National Park, touring, travel, trip, yellow stone national park, yellow stone park, Yellowstone, Yellowstone Park

Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Little Bighorn and Mt Rushmore 41 Years Ago

Posted on June 23, 2013 | 3 comments

Route Map 41 Years Ago

Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Little Bighorn and Mt Rushmore 41 Years Ago

I had just finished my 4 year enlistment in the USAF and was to return to my former civilian job with Geophysical Service Incorporate. But before doing so I took a little break before returning to the real world of civilian life. That was 41 years ago, this August. I drove my AMC Gremlin to Montana to visit Avis my pen-pal for the last 4 years. Along the way I visited Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Little Bighorn and Mt. Rushmore.

I have many fond memories of the places I visited and my pen-pal Avis and her family. The scenery and summer climate is beyond description. With low temperatures in the 50’s and highs in the 80’s and smell of pine trees in the forest, you are transported to a heavenly place. I loved Montana. I have always wanted to get back up that way but life has gotten in the way. We had planned to ride there in 2011 but again life got in the way and we cancelled our plans.

Well… the trip is back on for this July and as the time draws near we are getting excited about hitting the road. Plans are finalized, reservations have been made and we are sitting on go.

I know many of you have ridden or driven that part of the country… There is much to see and do… So if you have any suggestions about any part of our trip, please share them here. We would love to hear about your favorite things there.

Below is my route map and itinerary.

Planned Ride Map

From/To	Day	Total Miles For Day	Running Total Mileage
Georgetown – Dalhart	1	561	561
Dalhart — Georgetown via Hwy 67	2	469	1030
Georgetown – Rock Springs, WY — Pinedale	3	429	1459
Pinedale — Gardiner, MT	4	229	1688
Gardiner — Yellowstone — Gardiner	5	174	1862
Gardiner — Kalispell	6	407	2269
Kalispell — Troy	7	306	2575
Troy — Golden	8	260	2835
Golden — Lethbridge	9	296	3131
Lethbridge — Billings	10	404	3535
Billings — Gillette	11	233	3768
Gillette — Rapid City via Hwy 385	12	199	3967
Rapid City — Alliance	13	215	4182
Alliance — Garden City	14	415
Garden City — Abilene	15	420	5017
Abilene — GTN	16	201	5218

Because of the length of this trip I am planning on doing something I have never done before… Post logs of the trip on the road. Space is always an issue when packing for a long trip. To conserve space I have a new Netbook. Wish me luck and stay tuned for on the road post…

One more thing… I lost contact with Avis many… many… years ago. When I see something about Montana I am drawn back to that trip long ago. When planning this trip, memories of that first trip flooded my mind. I again wondered what had become of Avis. I hoped that life has treated her well. This prompted me to see if I could find her using the internet. After searching and hitting many dead ends I did eventually find an address. We have reconnected and we plan on stopping by to see Avis, Ed her husband and her mom. We have a lot to catch up on. We both have good families with lots of history and many stories to share. Seeing this beautiful part of the country again is the cake but seeing Avis and her family after all these years will be the icing.

Ride safe…

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Tagged Banff, Colorado, Dalhart, Gardiner, gardiner mt, Georgetown, Glacier, Grand Teton, Grand Teton National Park, Grand Tetons National Park, Kalispell, Little Bighorn, Montana, Motorcycle, motorcycle ride, motorcycle riding, motorcycle road trips, Motorcycle Touring, motorcycle travel, motorcycle trip, Mount Rushmore, mount rushmore sd, mount rushmore south dakota, mt rushmore sd, mt rushmore south dakota, my travel plan, Nebraska, pin-pal, Pinedale, plan a road trip, planning a motorcycle trip, planning a road trip, ride, road trip ideas, road trip planning, scenic motorcycle rides, South Dakota, south dakota mount rushmore, Teton National Park, Tetons National Park, Texas, touring, travel, travel planning, Troy, where is mount rushmore, Wyoming, yellow stone national park, yellow stone park, Yellowstone, yellowstone and grand teton, yellowstone grand teton, Yellowstone Park

Tag Archives: Banff

Day 10 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Banff National Park Canada

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National Park Motorcycle Ride – 5542 Miles in 16 Days 2013

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Day 1 & 2 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Getting There

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Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Little Bighorn and Mt Rushmore 41 Years Ago

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