Of my entire 10,000 km journey across Canada, I knew that the Coquihalla would be one of the toughest sections. It was about 115 km from Merritt to Hope, and the first 70 km would be uphill. Looking at the forecast, I knew the Weather Gods weren’t going to offer any support either. I got up earlier than normal so I could begin the climb before the winds and rain hit. Well, at least it wasn’t raining yet. But even at 6 am, the winds were already howling.

Before I even reached the highway, donations had begun to pour in. One man had excitedly honked his horn as I rolled past him at a gas station in town. A few minutes later, he came barreling up the road and pulled over in front of me. He was so happy to meet me and donate. I wish everyone could share his early morning enthusiasm.

Let the fight begin. The Coquihalla was physically demanding and exhausting, but I was more mentally prepared today. Even though this climb was tougher than yesterday, I was expecting this. I tried to focus on my music and take one small stride at a time. During my first break, there was a knock at the door. I looked out the back window to see the flashing lights of a Police cruiser. We weren’t sure if I’d actually be allowed on the Coquihalla on rollerblades, but we had been seeing signs that it is a bike route. So we felt confident that it wouldn’t be an issue. It turned out that the officer had received a call saying that our flashing lights were not functioning. But the policeman laughed a little as he came up to our door, because it was obvious that the complainee wasn’t paying attention. Our lights had been on the entire time and the officer had even seen us on his way into work this morning. He wished us well and sent us on our way.

Another expected obstacle in my way was a short construction zone. Traffic was reduced to one lane in either direction while crews were repairing a couple of bridges. Since the oncoming lanes were closed to traffic at this point, I hopped over and enjoyed the freedom of two large lanes to myself. When I reached the first bridge, the construction was apparently finished, but the surface of the bridge was fresh concrete. I analyzed the situation and could only see 2 alternatives. One - go back to the traffic and carefully cross the bridge on a narrow shoulder with cars and trucks speeding past. Two - tip toe across the fresh concrete. Fortunately, the new concrete had been covered with a strange, wet cloth material. I stayed close to the edge and held most of my weight off the surface by pulling myself along the rail with my hands. I wouldn’t be so lucky to have a choice at the next bridge. Construction on this one was in full force. I had to cut back across traffic and sprint across the overpass when I felt it was safe enough. Let me tell you, sprinting on skates in gail-force winds is not an easy task.

It seemed like a good time to stop for another break. As I was gather my gear and getting ready to head back out on the road, I saw a little red car pull over in front of us. It took me only a second to realize it was Shawn and Melissa, the friends who had come out to see me in Calgary! They were on their way back to Vancouver and stopped to see how I was doing. Don’t take this the wrong way, Shawn, but you guys never should have stopped! When they got back in their car to leave, the engine wouldn’t start. We tried everything to get it running again, but it just wouldn’t go. I felt bad having to leave them there, but CAA was on the way. We later found out that it was the starter and Shawn and Melissa were forced to spend a night in Merritt so the car could be repaired. Look on the bright side, guys. You made my journal again!

I kept pushing hard through the swirling wind and up the tormenting hills. The rain had held off until a mere 2 kilometers before reaching the toll booth near the summit. A quick skate change and I was back at it. I can only imagine what the toll booth operator was thinking as I skated up to him in the pouring rain. He didn’t seem to care too much, though. We asked politely if they would donate the $10 pass for the highway. His only response was “Nope. This is B.C……Bring Cash.” I was in no mood to argue, so we paid the money and parted ways.

Just as we pulled away from the booth, my mom told me that we needed to stop to let the dog out for a break. I was just about to get in the RV when I heard a voice behind me. “Hey! Can I make a donation?” a girl’s voice said. I turned with a smile intending to accept the donation happily. But my smile quickly changed to confusion, and then awe. My jaw dropped as Crystal came running towards me and leaped into my arms! Four months. I haven’t seen her in four months and she managed to work with my parents to surprise me here. WEll, it worked. I was clueless. I never expected to see her until I was at least in the Lower Mainland. It was a teary, emotional reunion as we embraced and kissed in the rain.

My plans for the rest of the day took a sudden change. Instead of rolling into Hope today, we were now going to drive down and come back to the booth tomorrow to carry on. Holiday Motel and RV Resort in Hope donated a site and a room to us for the night. I’m not usually an easy person to surprise, but Crystal pulled one over on me good today. It couldn’t have come at a better time, either. I was prepared to skate another 50 km to Hope, but realistically, my body was battered and beat from climbing the Coquihalla Pass.

It’s been a couple years since I was last in Kamloops. If memory serves me correctly, I had a difficult climb away from the city (which I had already completed half yesterday) followed by a bit of a plateau before descending into Merritt. The sun was shining and there was barely a breath of air blowing as I began the trek upward. I had just made the turn onto highway 5 when I finally saw a Vancouver distance sign. It was a great feeling having my first visual taste of the finish line.

The road continued to take me close and closer to the sky. After 20 km of steady climbing, my spirits began to sink. With every tiny stride towards the summit, my expectations of finding level ground drifted further behind. How could I have not known this climb was so long? The hill was unforgiving. My body was exhausting rapidly and I was being mentally drained at the same time. As if I wasn’t being punished enough, the winds began brushing across my face like a stream running the opposite direction.

It was a good 50 kilometers from where I started when I saw it. Surrey Lake Summit - 1444 meters. Finally! It was recommended that I tie a rope around my waist and attach it to the RV to slow myself down for the descent into Merritt. But after the rough morning, I was looking forward to holding a bit of speed. Sure enough, a sign indicated that the next 20 km were down hill with a 6% grade. Yup, this should be fun!

Think again.

The breeze that had made an appearance picked up its intensity as I started downward. It felt like every foot closer to Merritt I got, the wind would blow an extra km/h harder. I wasn’t given an opportunity to enjoy a single minute of coasting. I was working equally hard as I had all morning during my climb. But now I was struggling to push my way through the currents down a steep hill! It just wasn’t fair. The winds were relentless and showed no signs of weakening. At one point, I stopped striding and the wind literally brought me to a stop.

In an evil twist of irony, I received an e-mail today from someone in Newfoundland. The irony was that he had stumbled across my site randomly and is a resident of the Wreckhouse area. If you don’t remember the Wreckhouse from my earlier journals, it is a section of highway which regularly records wind gusts up to 200 km/h. So here I am thinking to myself that the winds I’m facing right now rank among the top 3 or 4 worst that I have seen on my journey when I get reminded about the Wreckhouse. Ironic.

I rolled into Merritt, the Country Music Capital of Canada, and was fortunate to have Claybanks RV Park donate a site for us. Completely exhausted, I had to put on a smile and head over to Boston Pizza where newspaper and television reporters were waiting for an interview. But it wasn’t hard to put a smile on my face when I saw the reception this restaurant had organized. Even on short notice, Leanne had made sure all the staff was aware I would be arriving. She welcomed me in from the parking lot and made an incredible announcement to the patrons inside. To make things even better, Leanne told me that her store would be donating a percentage of the sales from this evening to my cause! It’s been a while since a BP offered this, so I was very impressed. I also had the chance to chat with a family sitting nearby who were from the Victoria area. It was a great conversation and I hope that we meet again when I reach the Island! My night was capped off with a very meaningful gesture from the Kitchen manager, Steve. He took special care in preparing our meals and then presented me with a bracelet to help me with endurance. Thanks, Steve! It may come in handy as I tackle the Coquihalla tomorrow!

It was a tough day with a good finish, but I had one final surprise waiting for me. We received a message from the Chilliwack Boston Pizza indicating they did not wish to accommodate me when I arrived. I was in shock! Boston Pizza has been supportive all across the country. And they continue to be a great help. I couldn’t believe that I was now in my home province and approaching the finale on the Lower Mainland, and this owner showed no sign of wanting to contribute in any way! I’m not terribly concerned because I know there are dozens of other restaurant owners who would be happy to provide a helping hand. For everyone in Chilliwack who wanted to come see me at BP, you can now either see me at Earls on Monday night, or in Abbotsford at Boston Pizza on Sumas on Tuesday. It’s not a far drive to Abbotsford.

Skepticism. It’s a word that’s come up far too often on this trip. Even before I began blading across the country, my campaign was surrounded by skeptics. People thought I was crazy and that I wouldn’t actually go through with it. Well, here I am in Kamloops and now I’m guilty of displaying skepticism.

We left Pritchard with the sun shining and no wind in the air. Although the media seemed to be keen about my story, I felt a cloud looming over my head. The Kamloops Police had told us that we must apply and pay for a permit in order to be escorted through the city. This wasn’t the first time a city has told us that, but it is the first time a city has not been lenient. I was a bit surprised since I’m over 8,500 km into the trip and haven’t been denied assistance from Police yet. I suppose it’s my own fault for assuming an escort would be no problem since they haven’t been an issue across the entire country. So this little scenario put a bad taste in my mouth about Kamloops before I even arrived. Like I said, I am guilty of being skeptical.

On top of various phone interviews for radio and newspapers, Shaw TV sent a crew out which caught up with me right at the ‘Welcome To Kamloops’ sign. So I’m impressed with the media coverage in Kamloops, but I’m still not too happy with the lack of support from the cops. And the citizens of the city seem to be very welcoming, too. As I arrived into the town and headed up the steep incline towards Summit Drive, the honks and waves were coming at me from all around. I even had two vehicles pull over on the highway to donate! I haven’t had that in a while.

I rolled into the Boston Pizza at Columbia Mall to a very warm ambiance. They had already hand drawn a sign letting their customers know about my arrival today. Nicole was very energetic and excited to have me stopping in. She had created a contest for all of the servers to see who could raise the most donations for me! What a neat tactic! Definitely a first.

It was still early and we had some errands to tend to before returning to Boston Pizza for the main event at 6 pm. On the way out to the RV, I had an opportunity to meet a few amazing people. First was a man with a million stories. The most impressive of his tales was that in 1991 he rollerskated, yes I said rollerSKATED, from Winnipeg to Victoria. Can you imagine making that trek on those old school, 4-wheeled rollerskates?! Needless to say, I could have listened to him talk all day about his experience, but it was time to get moving.

Just before we pulled out of the lot, a woman came up with her 2 young girls to make a donation. I don’t know how she knew I was here because the media had been telling the public that I would be here at 6. But she tracked me down. She had specifically come to find me to donate because her brother-in-law is currently battling cancer. It was an emotional experience, but one that will be remembered. It is these types of encounters that help me when I have bad days. Knowing that I am giving people hope is more gratifying than anything else.

After having some extra posters printed at Office Depot, getting my license renewed at ICBC, and giving a couple more newspaper interviews, we headed up to the campground just south of the city. The site they donated to us was beautiful. It was very secluded and quiet. We’ve become accustomed to sleeping beside late night speeding trains, so this will be interesting to see how well we rest tonight. The best part about the campground is definitely the name. I can’t help but laugh every time I say it. Knutsford RV Campground. I love it! Knutsford.

Back at Boston Pizza, the waitresses worked diligently to raise as much money for me as possible. The restaurant was pretty busy, so I was anxious to have our server make an announcement to get everyone’s attention. Some of the servers in the past have been soft-spoken and the entire store hasn’t been able to hear. When I saw Stephanie some to our table, I was a bit concerned the same would happen. This sweet looking, petite girl stood up and bellowed like no one I’ve heard before! Her voice thundered through the store as everyone stopped what they were doing to listen…including all the kitchen staff. With out a doubt, this little blonde fireball helped bring a lot more awareness and donations to my cause. However, Rayel was the server who won the contest. I never found out what the prize was, but as since she personally raised the most money for me, I thanked her with a Skate For Hope t-shirt. If every Boston Pizza were as successful and enthusistic as this one, I probably would have hit my goal 3 weeks ago! Thanks Nicole, Stephanie, Rayel, and all the other hard workers there.

Skepticism. It should be one of the deadly sins. I had low expectations for Kamloops because of the Law Enforcement. But it turned out to be one of the best cities in B.C. so far.

The warnings from locals continue to flood in. Sure, we’ve hit some bad and dangerous roads, but nothing that we haven’t been able to handle. This time the danger zone was the winding section of pavement leading into Chase. The quality of asphalt was hit and miss today. I would come across great areas and terrible parts. For some reason, anytime the road curved to the right, the surface is always extremely rough. I haven’t figured out why this is, but maybe it has something to do with the way the rain water rolls down the road.

The highway did start to weave and bend as it snaked it’s way around the base of the mountains and the shores of the river. But I was lucky enough that I always had a shoulder to roll on this time. Yesterday was far worse and scary.

Just before I made it to Chase, a television crew from Kamloops showed up. They took me through the typical interview and a bit of general skating footage. Then they wanted to get some shots of me skating while they drove in front of me. This is when my day got a bit interesting. As their SUV drove cautiously with the hazard lights flashing and the camera man hanging out of the back of the vehicle, a line of traffic was passing me on the left. No big deal. There was a passing lane at this point, anyway. Then a woman driving on old Ford Tempo decided to pull in front of me but behind the TV crew. At first I thought she just wanted her 15 seconds of fame, but I soon realized that she didn’t want to be there. Now she was stuck in front of me driving 15 km/h and trying to merge into the cars zooming past her at 90 km/h. The situation went from weird to hilarious when I noticed that the sound of her engine suddenly stopped. She stalled! I rolled past her in tears of laughter. I had to keep glancing back to see if my dad could get around her. But after 30 or 40 seconds, the woman managed to restart her car and continue on her way. I’m pretty sure the television crew will edit that entire part out. The crew was almost ready to leave when a car pulled over behind me to donate. The couple in the car had heard me on the radio and wanted to make a substantial donation. Oddly enough, their last name is the same last name of one of my best friend’s from high school. Rozon. But we chatted for a while and determined there was no relation. I hope to see you guys again at the finale!

It was pretty exciting for my parents when we made it to Chase. This little mountain town is the old stomping grounds of our friends, the Darnley’s. Although they only spent a year here, my parents thought it was amazing to be back and snap some photos to send back to Bruce. I don’t know if much has changed since you worked in Chase 27 years ago, Bruce. But I know there’s a new stop sign on the Main street now! There’s also a Subway restaurant in the Chase Plaza which provided us with lunch and also made a donation. The girls even let me come behind the counter for a picture!

The media attention I’m receiving is starting to grow. Today alone I had interviews with Vancouver, Merritt, Kamloops and Abbotsford stations and/or newspapers. The exposure has been great and will only get better as my finale approaches.

I don’t have to be into Kamloops until tomorrow, but I wanted to get a bit closer so that my blade into town would be easy. So I finished my day around Pritchard, BC, at a campground called Ponderosa Pines. Without hesitation, they offered us a site here for the night. Tomorrow I’ll only have about 40 km to Kamloops. Hope to see everyone at Boston Pizza tomorrow night!

Today I was just heading into Sicamous and then to Salmon Arm. We’d been warned, like so many times before, about dangerous roads ahead. But I figured that there was nothing to worry about since I was only doing about 50 km today.

As luck would have it, the advise we had received was pretty accurate. The pavement quickly morphed from silky smooth to borderline unskateable. The pain from the vibrations created by the terrible surface slowed my pace to almost a stand still. I was hurting and frustrated when I finally made it to Sicamous. It had taken a little over an hour to travel only 10 kilometers. But It seemed like the asphalt was beginning to improve. Maybe the stretch from here to Salmon Arm would be better.

Think again. As we were about to leave, we were given yet another warning from locals about the next few kilometers. This time, the pavement wasn’t as painful as the morning, but the shoulder suddenly vanished! Now I was weaving my way along the water and through the mountains and had to contend with impatient traffic. It was next to impossible for cars to pass me since we couldn’t see what was coming around the next bend. Occasionally I would find a patch of gravel wide enough that we could pull the RV off the road so cars could scoot by. The only condition really going my way was the fact that I was going down hill for the most part.

I don’t know if it was just a coincidence or if the Salmon Arms newspaper photographer is telepathic, but he had explained to us that there had been about 9 accidents on this part of the highway in the last few days. No sooner had my Dad hung up the phone did I come rolling past a collision. There was no room and no time to stop to see what was going on, but it was obvious that it had happened only seconds before I appeared. Hopefully everyone was alright. Fortunately I wasn’t far from Salmon Arm at this point.

When I finally reached the city, I’d completed just under 50 km. But this was my stopping point for today and I was quite content with that. I was in no mood to face any more rough or windy roads today.

Pierre’s Point Campground offered us a site for the night which we gladly accepted. This campground was like no other I’ve ever seen. The facilities and amenities were wonderful, but I’ve never seen a busier campground in my life! I can’t even begin to estimate how many people were there, but I felt a little sardine-like being crammed in with so many other people. I also met a great woman, Anna, working at the concession who told me that her daughter works at the Boston Pizza in Kamloops that I will be going to. I’m looking forward to meeting her.

It’s been a few days since our last Boston Pizza visit, so the withdrawal symptoms were screaming in full force when we walked into the restaurant in Salmon Arm. The store gave me a very simple, but very successful welcoming. With the help of Cheryl, Angie and Katrina, The Salmon Arm Boston Pizza turned out to be one of the best stops! And as if the donations weren’t enough, Cheryl contributed to my license plate collection that I have been accumulating along this trip. I now have a Yukon plate with all my others!

When we got back to the campground, tragedy stuck us. Someone stole our extension cord! We had left the chord at the site so people would know that it was occupied. We never expected someone to walk by and take it. But the chord had an adapter on the end of it which we badly needed. Dad was running around to our neighboring sites to track down any witnesses. He was about to start interrogating another family when a man came over and explained that his wife had picked up the chord and was going to take it to the office. Hmmm. Sounds suspicious to me! Regardless, we were relieved to have the chord back so we could sleep easy.

If I ever find that wise man that I was talking about yesterday, I’ll punch him right in the nose. When I rolled away from Canyon Hot Springs today, the rain was coming down harder than ever. Back to back rain days. Ugh. BC has now produced the most rain days of any other province next to Newfoundland! Hopefully BC will also produce the most donations! hint hint.

It didn’t take long for the water to start squishing between my toes. All my efforts to dry out my clothes and skates last night were obviously in vain. There was no point in fighting it now. I just had to accept the fact that I would be part amphibious today.

Other than a lunch break and grocery shopping in Revelstoke, the day was flowing along as smooth as the water running down the highway beside me. At one point, the rain subsided long enough for the pavement to semi-dry. But that doesn’t say much, because if you live in BC, you know that roads can dry in about 15 seconds. Nevertheless, this was a great opportunity to stop for a break at a Ghost Town called Three Valley. It was quite picturesque with a dark lake being guarded by 3 giant mountains. The woman in the souvenir shop had seen me on TV and had a bit of fun zinging my Dad with a few quirky remarks. I don’t think I’ll forget her, either. Especially since her parting words with us were “Now you’ll always remember Three Valley!”.

The drying asphalt quickly turned wet again as a heavy cloud reared it’s ugly face from behind a hilltop. Then I had to go through the Enchanted Forest, across the Sea of Swirly Twirly gum drops, and under the Lincoln tunnel. Oh wait, that was Will Ferrel from the movie ‘Elf’. But I did go past a place called the Enchanted Forest! I wasn’t much in the mood to stop, though. I just wanted to get to a campground and dry off.

Our emotions were running a bit too high today. Maybe it was the 2 days of rain. Maybe it’s the thin mountain air. Or maybe it’s just the fact that my parents and I have been couped up in an RV the size of a walk-in closet for nearly 3 months straight! We all needed a bit of a timeout to regain our composure and all gave our apologies. I guess that’s another great thing about having my parents as my team… we can argue and make up within minutes.

It was nearly quitting time for the day, but I wanted to get in a few extra kilometers so that my skate into Salmon Arm tomorrow would be easy. We came across a historical point which I have been waiting to see for months. The Last Spike. It was at this exact spot that the last spike was driven to complete the first trans Canada railway in 1885. The reason I’d been waiting to see this is because it is another place that I remember stopping 3 years ago when Crystal and I moved to Vancouver. It’s been fun seeing all the places we stopped at back then.

I continued on in the torrential downpour for another couple kilometers. All of a sudden, the rain stopped. Not only that, the pavement was instantly dry. It was like I had just skated through a door or under a canopy. It was obvious that this area hadn’t seen rain for hours. When we arrived at Cedar’s Campground not far from Sicamous, the woman working there confirmed our suspicions. They hadn’t had rain since the morning. Maybe it’s a sign of clear skies ahead! I got chatting with a family who had seen me on TV in Edmonton. The woman and her son later came by the RV to make a donation, as well. The boy, going into grade 7, is already so aware at such a young age of cancer and the need for help that he is in the process of growing his hair so he can shave it for cancer patients. It’s people like him who are the real hero’s.

With every stride, I can feel the finish line getting closer and closer. September 8th is quickly approaching. At this point I haven’t hit any large cities in BC, but I need everyone’s help to make the last 1000 kilometers the most successful. Please spread the word. Send out e-mails, tell your friends, and most importantly, mark September 8th on your calendars. I really want as many people as possible to come out and participate in my finale. Dust off the rollerblades or oil up the bicycles. How ever you want to roll through Vancouver with me is fine. Keep an eye on the website for the meeting location.

A wise man once said that a journey will always end similar to how it began. Well, I’m starting to think that is an accurate prediction. The rain was coming down steadily as I laced up my skates today. I was also faced with a 10 km climb leading into Glacier National Park right off the bat. With the hills, the rain and the cold, it was all reminiscent of my early days in Newfoundland.

I was now deep in the heart of the Park and was trying to mentally prepare for my first big challenge from the Rockies… Roger’s Pass. Just before I began my long trek upwards, I met a pair of cyclists who had just come down the Pass. They had marked the distance from the summit to where we now stood at 20 km. The woman told me that her hands were in pain from using the brakes so extensively on their descent. Yup, this was going to be interesting and slippery.

A sign marking the entrance to Roger’s Pass provided a suitable location for me to pause momentarily and take a deep breathe of concentration. But my trance was interrupted by a telephone call. It was the Mayor of Golden! Unfortunately I had gone through yesterday and we were not able to connect. So he wanted to call to wish me luck. A wonderful gesture. I hope the Mayor in every city from this point on will take a minute to meet me or call me.

Here goes nothing…or everything. The rain continued to pound on me as I worked my way up the Pass. If there’s one thing I’ve learned about in-line skating, it’s how to adapt to changing conditions. With the slick pavement and the steep incline, I had to alter my stride in order to maintain my balance. I inched my way up with a slightly duck-footed style. A few jagged peaks from the surrounding mountains were protruding through the billowy clouds which were rolling over the hills like a waterfall. I can only imagine how breath-taking the views here would be on a clear day. Roger’s Pass was offering me no reprieve from the tormenting climb. I figured that if I could get high enough, I’d be in the clouds and the rain may subside. I figured wrong. The only time I had a break from the rain was when I had to roll through the 5 avalanche tunnels along the way up and 3 others on my way down. But the tunnels were no walk in the park. They were unlit, wet, single laned in each direction, and had barely any shoulder to skate on. I would wait at the mouth of the tunnel (in the rain) until there was a break in traffic so I could race through as fast as possible. Try to imagine me skating as hard as I can, uphill, in the dark, on wet pavement. The only thing that kept my mind at ease was that my Dad was behind me with his hazard lights flashing to warn vehicles coming up behind us. There was definitely nothing easy about going up Roger’s Pass, but I reached the summit unscathed.

My plan to catch people’s attention was working wonders today. I suppose when you see a crazy man skating through the Rocky Mountains in the pouring rain, you can’t help but notice. A family from Montreal came up to the RV while we were parked at the summit of Roger’s Pass to meet me. Pascal and his daughters, Camille and Rosalie, seemed to be impressed with my perseverance to have made it this far and plan to donate online as soon as they get home.

Having conquered my second major pass in the mountains, I could now enjoy a leisurely roll down the other side. Unfortunately I had to try to enjoy it in the rain. It had been recommended to me that I should consider fastening an anchor of some sort to my waist while I was descending some of the steep grades. Today may have been a good day to give that idea a try. I was picking up speed quickly and water was spraying in all directions from my wheels. In an attempt to slow myself down, I began to drag my left foot behind while holding my balance entirely on my right. As I was flying down the hill on one foot in the rain at a ridiculous pace, I started to hydro-plane uncontrollably. My left foot came back around to regain my balance but it was too late. It was as though I was on ice skates that had never been sharpened. With traffic plowing past me on the left, my only hope was to run onto the dirt shoulder and dive for the softest patch of pine trees and rocks that I could find. Thankfully this was just a ‘What If..’ scenario that I was going over to myself in my head. I actually came down the Pass in complete control averaging nearly 50 km/hr! I didn’t need an anchor at all. If it weren’t for the persistent rain, that may have been my most enjoyable stretch of road. But the water spraying in my face all the way down made the trek miserable.

Canyon Hot Springs sounded too good not to stop. When I finally arrived there, I had finished 90 km. Canyon Hot Springs RV Park generously provided us with a site and passes to enjoy the hot mineral pools, which we of course accepted willingly. The hot springs felt amazing on my entire body.

I’ve apparently greatly under estimated my skating capabilities through the Rocky Mountains. I could easily be covering 100 km a day, but I’m now trying to pace myself and slow down so I will arrive in Vancouver on September 8th. Even 90 kilometers a day is a bit too much. But I suppose you never know what obstacle you may face tomorrow. I’m sure I’ll lose some time in the Lower Mainland with numerous stops and appearances at various Boston Pizza’s.

On our way out of the campground we bumped into the people from the trailer beside us. We came to find that the Janzen’s were from Kingston and actually live in a neighborhood only seconds from my parents house! Their boys even go to school where my Dad used to teach. What are the odds that 2 groups of Kingstonians would be camping beside each other in Lake Louise? I guess they’re higher odds than I realized.

Being so close to Lake Louise, I couldn’t resist taking another run up to the water for a few morning pictures. The mountains and the lake seem to change in appearance almost by the minute as the sun shifts through the sky. When we pulled into the parking lot, our hearts skipped a beat. There was a National Park Pass check point set up and we didn’t bother to buy a pass! We figured that we’d just be rolling through so there would be no need. The park Rangers thought otherwise. After a bit of sweet talking, we convinced the Ranger to let us go since we’d be out of the park in a few hours.

I was just about ready to get back on the highway when a woman came running across the parking lot to see me. She told us that she had seen me in Calgary, then again in Banff, then again yesterday at Morraine Lake, and now today. She wasn’t going to let me get away this time without making a donation.

We drove back to the BC border where I had stopped last night. There I was standing directly on the Great Divide and looking towards Kicking Horse Pass. I had goosebumps as I took my first stride into British Columbia. It’s been a long time coming, but I was finally in the last province. In a weird twist of irony, my Ipod which was on random, began playing some suitable music. Three of the first five songs included “I’m Coming Home” by City and Colour (who were also at the Edmonton Folk Festival), “I Wanna Go Home” by Michael Buble, and “Sweet Home Alabama”. I must have been running on adrenaline because I had completed 50 km by lunch even though I had a later start than normal. In fact, we had set our clocks back another hour for the time change as we entered BC, but later found out that the time change doesn’t take effect until Rogers Pass. So it was actually later than we thought now.

I wasn’t far from Golden, BC when a construction truck pulled over and told us he had received several complaints about me. But he was a great guy (and even donated) and told us that he didn’t even know who complained. He figured that it was just some cranky truckers. I’d say that’s pretty good to only have a couple complaints out of the 50,000 cars that had passed me. I guess that means I received 49,998 honks of encouragement from the rest of the people. The construction worker also told us that the next 10-15 km was under heavy construction and I would have a tough time getting through. But I was confident and determined, so we pushed forward. I hit some amazingly steep grades with some wildly bending roads. The highway seemed to hug the mountain like a vine growing on and around an old stone building. There were a few areas that I had to be careful with rough, dirty roads. But for the most part, the speed limit was only 40 km/hr due to construction. So I wasn’t holding up any traffic. I was actually doing more like 50km/hr! I was really enjoying the terrain. It was so different from anything else I’d ever skated on. I glanced back at my parents with a wide smile stretching across my face and could see a familiar look on my Mom’s face. Her eyes wide with terror and closely resembled my encounter with the black bear in Ontario. I couldn’t help but chuckle. Mom’s always worry so much.

If you’ve ever driven through the Rockies, you know what I’m talking about when I mention the transport Runaway Lanes. For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, it is a steep gravel uphill lane, typically at the bottom of a long hill, which transports can use in case their brakes were to fail. Today I had a chance to test a Runaway Lane out. As I came down the mountain side, the road bent sharply to the left and crossed a bridge over a river. But before I crossed the bridge, my Dad indicated that we should let some traffic by me. I slowed as much as I could and then headed for the runaway. Mom got a great shot of me doing this. In actual fact, I wasn’t out of control and didn’t really need the runaway lane. it was just a funny coincidence that I happened to stop there. But the photo looks great!

Just on the edge of Golden, I had my first encounter with real mountain wildlife. As I came around a bend in the road, I was face to face with the dreaded mountain goat. I’ve seen enough movies and cartoons to know that if I got too close, this thing would give me a vicious head butt right off a cliff! No way was I going to confront him. But the only problem was that there were nearly a dozen of them and some were directly on the highway! I stopped about 20 yards away and tried to evaluate the situation and determine the best course of action. The Traffic Gods must have been listening to my thoughts, because I hadn’t been stopped for more than a minute when a huge transport slowly came around the bend from behind us. He, too, saw the goats and slowed to almost a crawling speed. Using the transport as a giant moving barricade, I hopped back on the road and snuck passed the goats while following inches from the bumper of the transport. Mom got another great shot of this, too.

My steepest hill of the day was undoubtedly the decent into Golden. It was a magnificent view looking down into the valley and seeing the city, but the hill really punished my rubber wheels. I’m finding that I’m wearing the wheels out a lot faster now that I’m carrying a higher speed more often. But again, I can’t complain because it was incredibly fun streaking down that monstrous hill.

The mountain skies are unpredictable and ever-changing. They had been threatening to storm since lunch, but I seemed to be one step ahead all day. A few light sprinkles fell on my cheek as I was leaving Golden, but I worked my butt off for an additional 30 kilometers and managed to arrive in Donald before any significant precipitation came down. Donald isn’t really a town, but the Camper’s Haven Campground was happy to provide us with a site there for the night. Lightening suddenly flashed all around us and rain began to come down in buckets. Hopefully our buckets would catch any drips that make it through the roof. But like I said before, mountain weather can change on a dime. And that’s just what it did. Within minutes, the heavy, dark clouds had vanished and we were treated to a gorgeous evening surrounded by spectacular peaks.

I was able to catch up on journals and photos today, so I hope everyone appreciates my dedication to providing you all with some entertainment. I know a lot of you will be happy on Monday when you get to work and find several new entries to read. I’m not too sure why I keep falling behind with this, but it may be because I rollerblade all day everyday and still have to find energy to put my thoughts into words. At any rate, I appreciate everyone being patient and not sending me hate mail when I don’t get a new journal up every day.

Sterling showed up right on time to join me for the morning skate from Canmore to Banff. The weather was great and the road was enjoyable. Not much of a climb so far! Coincidently, I found out that Sterling has a cousin who is married to the son of a friend of my family, Mary Dixon! The world is getting smaller every day! It was great having you roll with me today, Sterling. Keep in touch!

I took full advantage of the idealistic conditions and skated to Castle Mountain where we paused for lunch. I also wanted to take advantage of the rejuvenating powers of nature which were all around me. So I waded into the Bow River almost up to my knees. I figured the icy glacier waters would do wonders for my stiff ankles and toes. Once I lost all feeling in my feet, I hobbled back to shore to dry off. I’m not sure if it really did much, but it sure woke me up!

We were recommended to switch over to Highway 1-A from Castle Mountain until Lake Louise. Apparently there was construction on the Trans Canada and the 1-A would have far less traffic. We haven’t had great success with taking advice from locals to this point, but we thought we’d give it a try. I think we made the right call. The roads weren’t perfect, but nothing ever is. I coasted into Lake Louise far earlier than anticipated. So after checking into the campground, I headed back to the Trans Canada and set my sights on British Columbia!

Although it was only 9 km from Lake Louise, I struggled against the wind, up hill, on rough pavement to finally reach the Border. I can’t believe I did it! Just over 3 months ago, I began a journey of a life time from St. John’s, Newfoundland. And now I was standing at the border into the last province. Not only that, I was also standing directly on the Great Divide. The highest point on the Trans Canada Highway. From this point on, all rivers run towards the Pacific Ocean. It was a remarkable feeling as I stood there beside the Welcome sign to British Columbia. I know I still have a huge hurdle in front of me, but nothing will stop me now. My only hope now is that BC will out-do all the other provinces with respect to donations.

Another early day meant that we could enjoy the early evening and pretend to be tourists again. We drove back to Lake Louise and walked along the beautiful water front which was being engulfed by glacier-covered mountains surrounding it. I again took the opportunity to stroll through the frigid water. I didn’t have the nerve to go in for a full swim, though. I may be crazy enough to skate across Canada, but I’m not stupid enough to dive into a lake this cold!

As I was drying my feet off, a woman tapped me on the shoulder and asked if I would mind taking a picture for her. My parents made a wise crack to the effect “only if you donate to his cause”. Of course they were kidding, but it struck up some interest with the woman and her friends. As soon as they realized who I was, they were ecstatic. They had actually been at Boston Pizza in Canmore last night and heard the announcement about me. The woman who had approached me is in fact winning a battle with cancer right now! It’s incredible how peoples paths cross more than once. It almost makes you wonder if there is meaning behind these sort of encounters.

Next we headed up further to Morraine Lake. I remember Morraine Lake from my last trip through the Rockies with Crystal. I personally prefer Morraine over Louise. It is not as commercialized and I think the colours are more spectacular. It was a treat for my parents, too, because they had never been up here before. When you’re surrounded by so much natural beauty, it’s not hard for even the most talkative person to be speechless. The pristine blue water, the snow covered peaks, the aged driftwood and the intense serenity all make Morraine one of the most magnificent places in Canada. The only problem is the drive to and from it. Fortunately heights don’t bother me. I wish I could say the same for my Dad. Recall the Confederation Bridge from PEI, and the suspension bridges at Eagle Canyon near Thunder Bay? Needless to say, I was driving the RV back down the narrow road leading from Morraine Lake back to Lake Louise Village.

Being immersed in nature as we are now, one has to take necessary precautions to avoid unwanted encounters with wildlife. I’m an avid outdoors man, so I know all about bear-proofing. But the campground at Lake Louise has taken it to another level. We were specifically warned that there was a fence around the tenting area and not to go near it. At first I thought ‘a silly little fence isn’t going to discourage a hungry grizzly from charging the unsuspecting tourists. Think again. The fence is wired with 7000 volts of electricity. I suppose that might work. Tonight is a very significant event. This is the first night since I left Vancouver in April that we have had to pay for accommodation. I suppose we didn’t really need to pay, but we decided to splurge and check in to the National Park Campground rather than park at the nearest Esso. And we may end up being reimbursed. The ranger who checked us in gave us a form to request a donation from the Park. So I guess we’ll wait to find out.

I stood there talking to Crystal on a pay phone. I looked around at the mountains and glaciers and couldn’t help but think how easily it would be to fill my memory card with photographs. It’s hard not to get carried away in a place like this.

The first 30 km seemed to fly by today. Even though I had a slow gentle incline most of the day, the scenery and company helped occupy my mind. Mark had met up with me near Canada Olympic Park with his bike and we set off towards the base of the Rocky Mountains. I’ve lived in Vancouver for 3 years now, but there’s just something mystifying about the Interior Mountains. They are rightfully referred to as ‘The Spine of North America’. Having Mark along side me and the inspirational hills in the distances, I completed 30 km in the first hour with no trouble. At this point, Mark decided to turn around since he would be battling the wind all the way home. we’d been working uphill all morning, but the slight tail wind had definitely been pushing me helpfully. Shortly after we parted ways, I reached the top of Scott Lake Hill. Although it’s not quite the highest point on the Trans Canada, there was a significant downhill portion from here until I enter the mountains. The hill leading down from Scott Lake Hill quickly accelerated me to 60 km/hr. I casually rolled down the hill for miles and miles before I noticed a blue jeep pulled over near the bottom. I took me about 600 meters to come to a complete stop, but when I did, Barb and Ted Graham hopped out of the jeep to greet me! I had met Barb and Ted in Wawa, Ontario and they have been tracking me ever since. They missed me at Boston Pizza,so they decided to come out on the highway to find me. It was great to see you guys again! Thanks for the support!

I’m looking up at these jagged peaks which are practically hovering over my head now and I can’t help but to succumb to their hypnotic trance. I just can’t get over the fact that I have just crossed the entire country on inline skates and am now about to embark on the last leg of the trip through the infamous Rocky Mountains. I know I will be pushed to the limit in every aspect as I work my way across the Great Divide, but I still look around in amazement at the sheer beauty of this phenomenal range. Even with road conditions deteriorating slightly, the smile never left my face. I was now at the base and felt as though I was entering the Dragon’s lair. I was able to maintain a reasonable speed all the way into Canmore and finished my day at 90 Km. The best part about it was that I was done by 3:30! Time to go sight-seeing!

I stopped by Boston Pizza before we drove over to Banff to become tourists for the day. The Manager, Michel was one of the most enthusiastic guys I’ve ever met! He had changed the sign in front of the store telling the public that I was coming and all the staff were informed and ready to meet me. Even on such short notice, Michel was able to put together one of our most successful Boston Pizza stops. I’m sure the announcements on Mountain FM radio also helped.

After checking in at Rundle Mountain campground, we headed to Banff and fought the unbelievable amount of traffic to find a parking spot. I’ve been to Banff before, but I couldn’t come by this area and not make a stop to see it again. It’s hard not to be trigger-happy with the camera when you’re in a small town surrounded by mountains like this. We grabbed a couple souvenirs and headed back to the Canmore Boston Pizza.

Just as I was getting out of the RV to walk into the restaurant, another familiar face came strolling over towards me. It was Sterling. I had met Sterling in Espanola, Ontario when he was on his way out West. We’d been in touch a few times since then, but I wasn’t sure if he’d be able to meet up with me. He even plans to skate with me tomorrow from Canmore to Banff.

My day was just about over when I got back to the campground, but I needed to make one more quick stop. Liam, the son of the owner of the campground was pretty excited to meet me when he heard I was staying here. So I had a chance to chat with Liam a bit before heading off to bed for a peaceful night’s sleep… or so I thought. Living in Vancouver, I’m used to the sound of traffic at night. But I wasn’t prepared for the trains that came chugging past the campground through the night. Our RV couldn’t have been more than 9 feet away from the tracks. But I managed to get some sleep, anyway. You’d be surprised what you can sleep through when you rollerblade all day!