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I headed out from the coast, my friend headed out from the Castlegar area and we met in Princeton for lunch. It's almost the same distance for each of us. My ride was dry but very cold, especially over the Alison Pas. After lunch we headed up Highway 5A to Kamloops. This is one of the many scenic, enjoyable rides that can never be done too often. Here's a shot of us at one of the small lakes along the way. We managed to spot a beautiful brown bear at the side of the road but could not pull off for a picture, no shoulder to pull onto.



I had been having a problem with my bike's start lately so once in Kamloops we pulled into the Harley dealer. There are several Harley dealers around the country that have a reputation for excellent customer service and the Kamloops dealer is one of them. Asked them about my starter and they fixed it right then and there. (Can't get the time of day from the dealers out on the coast). We took a motel room and then spent the evening exploring the area. Next morning we headed for the Falkland Valley area. Here's a road-side lake.



The Falkland area includes quiet back roads (paved) that wander through farm land and ranches nestled in the valley bottoms. There are small villages and lots of wild life to watch out for.
Mid morning found us in Salmon Arm and it was time for each of us to head home. My friend turned south, I turned west. Rode along the TC back through Kamloops and then along the Thompson river to Kamloops Lake. The lake is sharp contrast to the dry, broken hills of the area.



This pic is from a lookout high over the lake, looking east. This is along the old section of the TC, most traffic prefers to turn south at Kamloops.



A good photo opp for the bike with the lake way below. The sign in the background talks about the steam boats that plied these waters years ago.



Looking down toward the water. The broken, eroded hills are interesting. The ribbed effect is result of the ancient ice-age lake that had filled the valley and left 'shore lines' as it receded.



This area is a major railway corridor. There are mainline tracks on both sides of the lake.



Just another relaxing view.



The ride from Cache Creek through Marble Canyon out to Lillooet is spectacular but there are almost no pulloffs that are safe for motorcycles. There are uncountable vistas well worth taking pictures of but you simply can not pull onto a loose gravel area that slopes steeply away from the road when on two wheels. So, I didn't get any pictures along there. There is a paved pullout just above Lillooet where I took this pic. Thats the muddy Fraser below and the entrance to the Duffy is through that valley system in mid picture.



Here's a shot of a rail bridge as it crosses, part way down into the canyon. The Fraser Canyon is very deep, very steep and inaccessible.



I got home in time for supper, put 1,233 clicks on Big Blue and had a great ride. End of July and this was my first 'real' ride of the season. It has been so cold and wet in BC that we simply have not been able to do much of go very far. Hopefully, that will change.