Day 2: Abbotsford to Hope (T.D.: 102.3km; S.T. (Saddle Time): 5h47m)

We woke up to an overcast sky and a forecast of rain on what would be our first 100+km day of the trip, not to mention our first day traveling just the two of us. Got on the road and found Harold’s route-planning skills to be impeccable. The back roads through the Fraser Valley made for some very scenic and easy cycling, and with a nice tail wind, it didn’t take us too long to make it to Chilliwack – though not before stopping at a roadside “Mini-Donut” stand where we (or, more accurately, I) purchased and consumed a very large quantity of these delectable morsels. One thing that’s nice about this sort of trip is that not only do you not feel guilty about eating huge amounts of delicious foods, you actually feel a sense of entitlement, and even accomplishment, for doing so. Congratulations, then, to me, for eating 16 mini-donuts during a ten-minute span outside of Chilliwack.

We stopped for lunch somewhere near Rosedale – meaning we sat on the side of the road and ate bagels, chips, and hummus, hoping that it wouldn’t rain. (It did). After crossing the Rosedale-Agassiz Bridge, we got back on Highway 7 and made good time getting into Hope. The ride into Hope, and the town itself, reminded us of Twin Peaks, one of our favorite television shows. The rain actually held off for 90% of our trip, but the mountains surrounding us were capped in a heavy mist that gave the journey an ominous feel. As Hawk would say, “The Spirit is strong in these woods”. But while we didn’t manage to find the White Lodge (Too many Twin Peaks references? Too bad.), we did manage to find our way to Graham Zillwood’s house near the Othello Tunnels.

Graham was a stranger to us before this trip, but proved to be a wonderful host, regaling us with tales of the Bigfoot family that lives in the surrounding hills and showing us some amazing African relics given to him by a missionary when he was 13 years old. We were happy to have a roof over our heads when the rain started to come down in earnest around 9pm that night.



Stats:
Avg. Sp.: 17.6km/h (19.5km/h most of the way, but we were slowed down by taking the Kettle Valley Trail through the Othello Tunnels – a most spectacular detour)
Mx. Sp.: 51.1km/h
Cumulative distance: 187.7km
Most unfortunate roadkill: Two songbirds, soft and sweet.
Bicycle tourers encountered: 2 (an older couple doing a West Coast tour from BC to California)
Most interested onlookers: A couple in the Othello Tunnels, who talked to us for 20 minutes or so.