The lucky 13th segment marks the finale to this journey. In this installment I get rained on (no surprise), hailed on (surprise) and discover some genuine Curbside Classics in the Crownsest pass.
This day was the least distance but also featured the worst weather for the whole trip between Pincher Creek and Fort MacLeod.
After packing up we rode out of British Columbia and back into Alberta. My riding partner left as we entered the Crowsnest Pass as he has a trailer there where he was staying for the weekend. Now riding solo I took a quick detour off the highway to explore the town of Coleman. This is an older church converted to a cafe.
There are plenty of of older buildings here although some are not in great condition like this retired school building.
Property values were historically quite low until relatively recently.
However a good number are now being restored/taken care of. Our focus is vehicles rather than houses so we also have an Eighties Jeep Wagoneer featuring (fake) wood panels.
An old International bus converted to a RV hangs out nearby.
The Roxy Theatre was built in 1948 but has been closed for many years.
The front section housed the lobby and refreshment stand while the actual seating area was contained in an attached Quonset style building.
The Grand Union Hotel building with a GMC version of the Tracker which was only sold in Canada. It takes a dedicated car anorak to spot these differences (badges only) but I enjoy spying the Canadian variants.
The Coleman Journal was Coleman’s third newspaper operating from 1921 to 1972. For its whole life the paper was hand set and printed on a hand operated press.
This area offers a good selection of older 4×4 trucks and SUVs including this GMC Sierra Grande K15 pickup.
The old Coleman High School is now museum.
I spotted a Ford Model A on my first day and it seemed only fitting to see one on the last as well, this time a pickup version. The Ford Tempo behind is getting rare in places these days and is almost color coordinated with the Model A.
Interiors do not get much more simple than this.
The license plate pegs this one as a 1928 model.
Speaking of pickups how about this Ford Festiva pickup truck conversion? Festero? The 4×4 sticker and smoke stacks are nice touches.
The little truck-let also features a winch.
Moving on we get a view of Frank’s slide and Turtle mountain from Bellevue.
An old service station also in Bellevue.
It is finally time to leave the mountains for good and head into the prairie toward home.
Soon these ominous clouds appeared on the horizon. The rain absolutely bucketed down and with massive gusts of wind. Speeds dropped significantly as the roads were covered in pooling water. After about twenty miserable minutes I got a break from the rain as it briefly changed to hail. Luckily that did not last too long as the rain came back for another twenty minutes or so. I stopped in Fort MacLeod to drain the water out of my gloves before finishing the last leg towards home. The rain had managed to make it through my water proof pouches a little wreaking some paper including my passport.
This very orange second generation Chevrolet Camaro Z28 marks the last curbside spotting for the trip.
Once home the final odometer reading was 7619 kms. Not considering I had bought the bike only two months previous with fifteen hundred and change on it.
A well deserved oil change followed a few days later.
All in all it was a fantastic, once in a lifetime trip. I cannot take any credit for the route as my riding partner put that all together and he did a amazing job of it. Hopefully I will be able to take another trip next year although my moped bags were looking a little sad and developed a hole on one side. I also managed to burn my pants on the exhaust at some point in the trip.
The full trip log:
Road Trip: Part 1 – Preparation and Starting a 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 2 – Best Laid Plans on a 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 3 – Making up Time – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 4 – The Miles Pile On Up North – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 5 – Heading for the Coast – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 6 – A Coastal Ferry Cruise – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 7 – Vancouver Island and Rain – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 8 – Rain, Rain and More Rain – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 10 – Riding Nirvana – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 12 – Beer, Dune Buggy and a Ferry – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
Road Trip: Part 13 – Finale – 4,500km Road Trip on a 250cc Motorbike
David, thanks for this amazing series.
Looks like the bike doesn’t have a tach, but do you know the average engine RPM and speed when you were on the longer stretches? I ask because I used to ride a Kawasaki EX250 and even trips of 150-200 miles could get tiring on US state routes at 55-60 mph and 9000rpm.
At 108km/h or 67mph according to an online calculator the engine is turning 6750 rpms so a little on the busy side. The TU motor is a pretty conversative, low stress build so it likely won’t wear out for that kind of use.
Thanks!
i really don’t have anything to add. i just want to say thank you. i read and enjoyed every installment. i’d love to do something similar someday but i’ll take my van, as i’m terrified of motorcycle travel.
Wow, rain, snow, hail, blistering sun – you got it all. I can only imagine how great your own bed felt on that first night.
Thanks for this epic writeup of an epic trip!
It was a fantastic trip but I was certainly happy to be home.
Thank you very much for this time and energy documenting your trip David. It was very enjoyable to follow, and your great pics were much appreciated.
The camper reminds me very much of the school bus I rode my first few years of elementary school in the 70s. A Loadstar with a Superior body. What I recall most about that bus was the chrome front bumper, and it was an automatic.
Awesome trip and report. Thank you! And some pretty nice CC’s on this leg; the Model A +Tempo, and the Festiva pickup were priceless.
And that Model A wasn’t just a normal pickup but the great “Roadster Pickup”. The sign of a modern stripper pickup is crank windows. In 1928 it was no windows at all.
This has been a wonderful and memorable addition to our content here, never mind for your own memories. It’ll probably fun to go back to this article 20 years from now! 🙂
A heartfelt thanks for this great series. Totally enjoyed the trip and in fact I am hoping to visit Alberta & BC next summer and incorporate some of your route.
Any final thoughts on the wisdom / sanity of long distance 250cc travel?
No problem.
On the suitability of 250cc travel it worked out just fine. There were a few spots were a little more power would be nice but it was fine just a slightly slower pace. I am not a huge guy at something like 6′ and 170lbs so someone larger might have more issue. I also packed very light with a small tent, no real food, etc. Something like a windshield might have been nice but I wanted to do it in an old school manner. Others tolerance for that may vary.
This has been a great series, David. Thanks for bring us along on the ride.
It sounds like all in all, the little bike served you well.
Now I want to go see Western Canada. ;o)
It was fun following along this interesting series, its getting me motivated to get my bike back on the road.
The little 250 proved to be a durable little machine, hooray for the underdog! Did you bother to compute trip fuel consumption?
I did compute it for one sample section then promptly forgot to write it down. As I recall it was in the neighborhood of 70mpg. I got significantly less than that on the very windy section coming into Prince Rupert.
This has been a great read from start to finish, thanks for writing it up. I agree with you that 250cc is adequate for a decent long trip. Anything smaller is an exercise in masochism.
There is a 50cc rally that happened this summer in Alberta. They put up some decent mileage. Maybe next year …
Thank you so much for taking us along on this trip. I’ve done some motorcycle camping myself but it pales in comparison to this. I do hope you will get some better atmospherics on your next adventure!
Wonderful trip and excellent storytelling, it felt like we were there and didn’t miss out. Thanks and I hope you enjoy the little TU for a long time to come. You might enjoy a KLR650 down the road too, A very interesting/enjoyable engine note, massively comfortable and very good on unpaved sections too as well as paved roads. And only one cylinder to deal with. Bring one extra sparkplug and you have the essential spares covered. Nothing like a BMW GS but does all the essential things just as well for very little money.
British Columbia has long been a fabled place for me that I have wanted to see more thoroughly. I will use your epic trip as a guide.
If I can make a suggestion, you might consider a similar trip to Alaska. Long ago, I contemplated such a trip on a small Honda.
This has been a delight, David Saunders, and thankyou for the effort of putting it all together.
I was thinking of riding my Yamaha 250cc through BC’s interior, and stumbled onto your report while googling info.
Great photos and details! Thanks for posting this.