Day 16 - Epic Al-Can Odyssey

Day 16 – Sturgis to Savage

622 miles

Total miles: 5282

And suddenly, our journey was over.

As we rode through South Dakota and Minnesota where everything was flat and familiar,

we knew it would be nice to get home, kick back and recount the trip to friends and family. After a year of planning and waiting, the 16-day adventure was now just an epic odyssey in our review mirror.

...and the planning for next year's adventure begins!

Day 15 - Epic Al-Can Odyssey

Day 15 – Sturgis
11 miles

We had a whole day in Sturgis and we made the rounds (along with 500,000 of our closest friends) of our favorite haunts, t-shirt stores and shopping venues.  

Spending any amount of time in Sturgis during rally week affords you the opportunity to see every flavor of motorcycle known to man – and every flavor of rider too.

After spending the day in town, we came back to the campground and spent the evening with our Sturgis friends, sharing experiences and missing those who couldn’t make the trip this year.

As we headed back to our tent to start packing up for the trip home tomorrow, it finally occurred to us that the sun was truly setting on an incredible vacation.

Day 14 - Epic Al-Can Odyssey

Day 14 –Billings to Sturgis
354 miles

It only took us a few hours to find familiar territory this morning. We rounded a curve in the highway and suddenly THIS appeared.

Whatever you think it is – an alien landing pad, ancient sacrificial plateau, hard stone that stayed when the softer stone washed away, or all of the above – Devil’s Tower never ceases to amaze me. We've taken a picture in front of the, well, whatever it is every year since I started joining Sean for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

Just down the road was the Stone House Saloon, and once again (Sean for the 13^th time, me for the 7^th) we signed the wall.

 Each year we worry that the Stone House will be gone when we return the next year, 

but so far it’s survive Sturgis week and the brutal Wyoming winters.

And they still have the best women's restrooms in the state. The soap in there smells SO GOOD!

Tommy from Pennsylvania joined us just outside of town and made the quick journey to Sturgis, where we checked in at our usual campground (the days of luxury hotels on this trip were over!) Hog Heaven.

We made it downtown just in time to sign in at Big Bertha’s

and get an eyeful of the local entertainment before heading back to camp on Da Bus.

Day 13 - Epic Al-Can Odyssey

Day 13 – Banff to Billings Mt.
642 miles

Our wonderful time in Banff was over and we had to start heading on down the highway. On our way out of town in the early morning we came across a couple young mule deer, grazing on the local vegetation.

We would have loved to stay a little longer, but it was time to head back to the USA.  The sun was just peeking over the mountains as we drove out of town.

Customs was a breeze, and suddenly we were in Montana and back to flat roads,

and incredible sunsets.

We arrived in Billings late that night, but managed to find somewhere to stay and a nearby place to grab dinner and a drink, ready to hit the road first thing in the morning on our way to Sturgis.

Day 12 - Epic Al-Can Odyssey

Day 12 – Banff
 149 miles

We were thrilled to meet up with our best riding buddies from home, Dean and Janelle, in Banff. Dean and Janelle rode up from Hudson, Wisconsin while we were riding south from Alaska and joined us for breakfast at the Fairmont.

After eating we checked out

and moved our gear to a hotel closer to downtown Banff and headed out for the day.

Our first destination was Lake Louise, with its crystalline water and surrounding snow-capped mountains.

Then we were off to her sister lake, Moraine Lake. The water was even more clear and the mountains more spectacular (and less touristy).

We rode through the area most of the day, visited some incredible sites,

then returned to Banff to do laundry and head out to dinner at a local Greek restaurant

complete with a belly dancer, OOPAs, plate throwing, and wonderful food. The dancers were moving so fast and the plates were flying with such velocity, in fact, that we couldn't even get a good picture (that's Sean in the green shirt, by the way).

Day 11 - Epic Al-Can Odyssey

Day 11 - Banff
7 miles

We had talked about, and dreamed about this for years – going to Banff and being able to stay at the Historic Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.

So for one night, we treated ourselves to the incredible luxury the hotel offered.

Our check-in time wasn't until 4 in the afternoon, but we drove up the mountain, hoping we could at least drop off our bag before seeing the sites around Banff.

We actually wondered how they would feel about a couple of grimy riff-raffs pulling up on a Harley.

The Valet couldn’t have been nicer, informing us that not only could we leave whatever we needed to, but we could go ahead and check in at the front desk, with the possibility of our room being ready.

I have to admit, I felt a little out of place in my leathers as I walked into the reception area.

But was greeted by a wonderful staff that assured me that checking in was not a problem and while our room was not quite prepared, they’d put it on the top of the list and call us when it was ready.

We left our bag and went back into town for a late breakfast,

and had barely sat down to eat when the hotel called to tell us we could get into our room anytime we wanted.

We drove back up the mountain and returned to the hotel.

We were escorted to our room. The Valet dropped our bag and gear off and opened the curtains so we could see our view.

I have to admit we were speechless.

After cleaning up, we decided to check out the hotel.

They had lots of historical photos and stories throughout the hotel – many of them reminded us of something straight out of The Shining…

We stopped at the Concierge to see what kind of activities were available that day. From the massive list they presented us, there was one thing that stuck out.

A TRAIL RIDE around the property.

I rode a lot when I was younger,

 and Sean is somewhat familiar with horses,

so it seemed the perfect thing to do.

The ride took us around the grounds of the hotel,

through its creeks and forests and around the golf course.

An hour later we ended up back at the stables and left our mounts for their next ride.

We spent more time exploring the hotel,

and got ready for dinner in one of the hotels many restaurants.

Dinner was excellent, of course. During appetizers, Sean saw someone he thought he recognized from movies or TV, but couldn’t quite place the face. We spent a few minutes trying to unauspicially take a photo so we could research the name later.

It was late but we didn’t want to end our time in such a wonderful place so after dinner, we headed to one of the many lounges for a night cap.

One part of the lounge hosted solo act, another part, a 4-piece ensemble.

Eventually we made our way back to the room, took one more look at the view,

and headed to bed.

Day 10 - Epic Al-Can Odyssey

Day 10 – Hinton to Banff
252 miles

Our trip to our next destination, Banff, Alberta, wasn't very far miles-wise, but took the better part of the morning to get there.

The drive is straight down the Yellowhead Highway, through Jasper, to the IcefieldsParkway, a beautifully scenic ride that sees the mountain grow snow caps and the running water start to turn an incredible glacial blue.

It was a holiday weekend in Canada, so the roads were pretty crowded. We thought of taking the time to visit the glacier skywalk

 – a plexi-glass walk that jutted out over the valley and gave you an incredible view of the mountains and glaciers – but they didn’t allow parking at the site.

When we got to the visitor’s center to buy tickets and ride the bus BACK to the site, there were so many people there that we couldn't even get to the line for tickets. So we continued down the road.

Stopping amid the tourists to get a picture in front of the largest glacier.

The good thing about crowds is that usually you can get someone to take your picture for you!

We found storming waterfalls,

and roaring rivers

that cascaded glacial water down the mountains to the valley, feeding farms and villages along the way.

We were excited to stop and rest for a couple days and Banff could not have been a better place to relax.

I’d never been to Banff, a lovely village near Lake Louise. It is famous for skiing in the winter and just being beautiful in the summer. Sean was there 15 years ago skiing with his family. 

And as we walked around the town center he recognized various places where they had spent time, including the St. James Tavern.

A real English meal and a couple draughts were in order to celebrate the authenticity of the bar, which was shipped from England, piece by piece, years ago.

We knew the next day was full of activities and the pinnacle of our anniversary celebration, so after dinner we made our way back to the hotel and called it a night.