Stewart, BC to Mc Bride, BC

If it's Sunday this must be..............
I am safe and sound in McBride, British Columbia. Made 906 kilometers today (that's 563 miles to you 'mericans). It was a beautiful ride. Hwy 37a coming the first 40 Km out of Stewart is just gorgeous. Maybe the best ride I have been on. As I got closer to McBride I started to get into the mountains again. Tomorrow I will be riding the Icefields Highway (if it's open) through Banff National Park ending up in Whitefish, MT. It's a little early in the year. I hope Glacier National Park is open. I will write more this evening. Just wanted everybody to know I am OK.

OK, friends and neighbors, as promised I am writing more this evening. I went to dinner with a BMW club from Edmonton Alberta. Nice guys. I was sitting there and they walked in. I recognized them from the meet in Hyder. Apparently they recognized me too. "Hey Man, come and sit with us! You're the guy from Dallas, right? How was your ride? You just get here?" They really were a hoot.
I have more pics to post from Hyder. To all of you who thought I was going to a big society gala soire' biker meet: feast your eyes on these pics. The first two are of the main street of Stewart, BC. One looking up the street, one looking down. Yes, that is the whole thing. The next pic is of the Sealaska Inn in Hyder. It's a good thing I forgot my tux.
The last pic is of a frozen lake with a glacier running into it that is on the road going into Stewart. Hwy 37a mentioned above. The ice in the glacier is sort of a blue green color. The picture does not do it justice.
I have met a lot of interesting people on this trip. The bikers seem to fall into several categories:
1) The Gold Wing riders. These tend to be older, ummm, larger people. Not really into the hardcore long distance riding. Have a greater chance of coming to the meet 2 up than any other group.
2) The Hard Core long distance riders. These guys (and some gals) have their bikes specially modified to go long distances. I mean they have extra fuel, specially modified seats, several navigation appliances, satellite locators, on and on. These guys are serious.
3) The Hard Core Lite long distance riders ( I include myself in this group). These have a bike suited to LD use but only do it once in a while. Have done a few things to make it more comfortable such as a custom seat or after market windshield but otherwise ride a pretty much stock bike. May take a LD trip or two during the year. Usually have one GPS unit and may or may not have a radar detector (I do).
The meet in Hyder was a lot of fun, I met a lot of nice people, some characters as well. It made me realize that I am not crazy for taking these trips. Well, OK, maybe I am crazy but there are others out there who are crazy too.