The following information was submitted by Meridith Harman:
Hi friends and fellow cyclists
Plans are going ahead with the Kootenay Group Ride – August 24th to 26th. Please see hotel information below and book your room; we are not booking as a group as this will enable each person to have the 24 or 48 hour cancellation policy.
There will be 1 support vehicle, and possibly 2 (depending upon how many of you are willing to share the driving). However we ask that you limit your luggage to one soft sided item. The Support vehicle will have bananas, oranges, watermelon, water and powder Gatorade,.. To cover this cost and cost of gas for the support vehicles, we will be asking each rider to contribute $20.
We are expecting to have about 30 riders split into 2 or 3 groups, and also you can ride solo though we ask that you carry water, snacks and your cell phone
Bad weather or forest fires could scuttle plans and a decision will be made one week before the scheduled trip if there will be a cancellation.
We have parking available for the duration of the ride in Castlegar at the adjacent Pass Creek Campground (1090 Parkside Road Castlegar, $10 fee for the campground).
The itinerary below describes the activities and routes, in summary:
Itinerary
Saturday August 23rd Arrive in Castlegar at the Super 8 by Wyndham 651 18th St.
6:00 P.M. – Dinner reservations will be made at Boston Pizza for 6 p.m. (walking distance)
Sunday Aug 24thCastlegar to New Denver via Pass Creek Rd
Free continental breakfast at Castlegar hotel
7:50 A.M. – Meeting in hotel lobby to drive vehicles to Pass Creek campground. (5kms). We will start the ride from the campground.
8:30 A.M. – Begin ride to New Denver via Pass Creek Road then highway 6 through Slocan.
– Pass Creek Campground to Slocan – 70 kms, 438 meters elevation, ride time approx. 4 hours
– Slocan to New Denver – 32 kms, steep climb, 480 meters elevation, approx. 2 hours
Coffee shops are located in Winlaw (Sleep is for Sissies), Slocan, (Bliss cafe), and Silverton (Camp cafe). These locations plus New Denver also have convenience stores in case bathrooms/snacks needed.
Dinner, drinks and overnight at Valhalla Inn, New Denver. dinner plans to be announced. Possible 4:30 pm Happy hour @ Doug Geller’s house…approx 2 blocks from Valhalla Inn and 2 blocks from slocan lake. Pack a
Towel and your swimsuit
Monday New Denver to Balfour Best Western (Kootenay LakeView resort)
Breakfast at the hotel
9:00 A.M. – Depart New Denver for the ride to Balfour.
– New Denver to Kaslo – 46 kms, steeper first 15 kms, elevation 561 meters, ride time approx. 2.5 hours.
– Kaslo to Balfour – 36 kms, 398 meters elevation, ride time approx. 2 3/4 hours
– Dinner @ Kootenay Lakeview resort
Tuesday Balfour Best Western to Castlegar via Nelson, Blewett and Pass Creek Road
– Balfour to Nelson – 33 kms, 131 meters elevation, approx. 1.75 hours
– Nelson to Castlegar via Blewett and Pass Creek Road – 46 kms, 416 meters elevation, ride time 2 ¾ hours.
Arrive back at cars mid afternoon.
HOTEL RESERVATION INFORMATION
Super 8 Hotel Castlegar – 651 18th Street Castlegar
Includes free continental breakfast
Indoor pool
Dinner reservations made at Boston Pizza
Valhalla Inn – 509 Slocan Avenue New Denver
Dinner arrangements to be made
Breakfast at this hotel
Phone to reserve your room 250-358-2228 Press ‘0’
Note: If you are a single please book the single rooms.
Kootenay Lakeview Resort Best Western Balfour – 2385 Queens Bay Road Balfour BC
Dinner at neighboring restaurant Osprey Mountain Grill
Continental breakfast at the hotel
Phone to reserve your room 877-229-4141 or 1-778-205-7566
Please contact Meridith at [email protected] or 604-649-1817 if you have any questions.
Maps/directions to be sent out soon by Doug Geller.