Welcome to british Columbia!

I left home at 7:00 a.m. this morning with cool, overcast weather.  By the time I got to Squamish, the temperature dropped to 9 degrees and a light rain followed me to Whistler.  Stopped at the Visitor Center in Whistler for coffee, a snack and a warmup!  The good new is, the gear I spent a month's wage on works - I was dry!  Rain stopped about 10:30 and I headed for Lillooet.  

The scenery all the way from Vancouver to Whistler was stunning - lush forest, soaring mountains and ocean views.  But I have to say, the road from Whistler to Cache Creek is a piece of heaven.   Being a new road to me, It demanded all of my attention and considerable respect.  Full of all kinds of curves, from sweeping, leisurely ones to switchbacks and steep, curving hills.  What fun!  My "sightline" skills got plenty of practice!  

I am always awed by the change in landscape in only a few hundred kilometers of road.  Lush, verdant forests around Vancouver gave way to the fresh, crisp air of the mountains.  Then on to the arid landscape of the Thompson-Nicola region.  Temperatures fluctuated like a yoyo.  

Stopped in Lillooet for lunch at the Cookhouse Restaurant in the Reynolds Hotel.  Had a great taco salad and the service was great.  A couple had seen me arrive on the bike and were keen to hear my story as he had been an avid rider in his youth.   While eating lunch, I happened to look out the window and register the picture of the deer on the banner of a pole at the road junction.   Have a look - apparently Lillooet is a very productive town.....

On one of my short breaks just outside of Lillooet I met a very nice young man who had got up this morning and, knowing he had a couple of weeks off, decided to go drive-about.  He was hoping to get to Prince Rupert before heading back and with all the planning I have done, I was able to suggest that if he got that far, he might want to go as far as Stewart to see the glaciers and the bears.  He was pretty excited about that.  

Made a brief stop at Cache Creek for an ice cream and found my "flag" picture at Historic Hat Creek.  It's a really well kept campground with a restaurant, historical site and gifts store.  
​
Feeling tired, but pretty good.  Changed my route slightly and am spending the night with my friend, Janice, in Kamloops.  I'm in her son Everett's bad books for not playing baseball in the back yard with him.   I am clearly bad company!  Time to wind down and call it a day!  Don't forget your British Columbia history lesson by going to the fly-out page called Trivia Bits under the British Columbia header above my picture with the flags at Hat Creek.