Biking in Banff

It is just after 7 PM on Sunday, August 15th, as I sit in the large common room of the Banff Y Lodge (my hostel, which is actually a YWCA).  It is quiet.  My legs are sore, my body aches, and I struggle for a relaxed breath.  After hiring a bike from the Australian owned bike shop down on Bear Street, I embarked upon what I believed to be a relaxing day of bike riding.  Over 14 Kilometers, strenuous hikes, steep hills, and getting lost, I finally made my way from downtown Banff up along one side of a mountain and then down along the other side, reaching heights way above the canyon below to gliding down, with the wind providing refreshing coolness from the heat, to the river far below.  Often having to get off the bike to walk it up the steep hills, I realized just how much out of shape I have become.  At the highest point, I stopped to lay down for a bit.  A delightful local couple, also biking the trails, informed me that I had missed the path some many kilometers back and that where I was now heading would only get steeper.  I turned back and found the other path, sometimes getting lost can be fun, as I sure enjoyed the scenery from way above the canyon and river below.

Before long I found myself down by the river's edge, refreshing myself in the cold water, amazed at the turquise blue of the water.  A few more steep hills, overcoming some trail steps, and the next moment I was back in downtown Banff.  Wow, what a day.  I sat beside some rowdy people in a street cafe to have some refreshments, I was glad when they left, even the waiter was curious when I said I wanted to sit outside and that I could just kick some one out of a seat to find a place for me.  The waiter waited as I instructed the rowdy group to move so I could sit at one of the tables, then they all decided I was there to party with them and asked a lot of questions.  I just smiled and pondered why others do not see how they act when they are drunk.

A bit later, with legs rested, I biked around downtown a bit, stopped at the visitor booth for information on the hot springs and returned to the hostel.  Shannon and Dave, the staff behind the front desk, provided some information on things to do tomorrow.  I booked an extra night and cancelled all of my other reservations, except the one in Halifax, so I could enjoy being able to decide from moment to moment how long I wanted to stay in one location.  I will now book the hostel for the next town upon my arrival at the new town, but keeping in mind that I have to determine when the Greyhound buses operate.  I feel a bit more at ease now, with the days activities having put my mind at ease again.

Tomorrow will be another bike ride out to Lake Minnewanka, back to Banff, and hopefully have time to bike out to a canyon area the staff here informed me about.  I'll end the day tomorrow at the Hot Springs.