Day 4 - Manning Park to Hedley

The bike ride out of Manning Park was pretty smooth - lots of downhill. It is the Sunday of the long weekend, traffic is super light - everyone must be sleeping. The downhill of course does not last - the climb to Sunday Summit begins (elevation 1,282 m).

I’m a slow poke rider, but I can also really grind it out when I need to - slow and steady finishes the ride. It is easy to get all messed up by a hill - they can be really intimidating. Anxiety can creap in - which can be paralyzingly. My trick is to take a break at the bottom of the hill, check it out, watch the traffic and listen to how the vehicles accelerate. Then I look for my guidepost - a sign, a tree, a landmark to aim for. Then I bike till I get beside the guidepost - and I thank it for helping me out. This seems to work for me.

Over the top of Sunday Summit was Princton. There I met with Brian in the A&W parking lot to coordinate our plans to meet at a campsite in Hedley.

It is hard to keep riding after Princton because in my head I’d made it to feel like a “destination”, but Princton is just a brief stopping place. I’ll have to find a way to better manage this thinking.

Luckily the ride from Princeton to Hedley is pretty much all downhill. It is an odd ride because it feels like you get to the river and it keeps going down. I’ll have to check out the geography one day to see what’s up with that.

I get to Hedley and Brian excitedly tells me he’s got a camp spot at a place he’s seen before and has wanted to stay at - Rustic Campground. “Only a few more hills” he says “they aren’t that bad” he says “and then go down a steep driveway to the campground” he says. These are all words I don’t want to hear at the end of the day, but I know there’s food and a bed there.

Upon arrival, Brian has dinner started, and he’s gushing about the campsite. It has a nice lawn and is beside the river. The sun is shining and there were very few bugs. He should feel proud of his find, a perfect spot to rest for the night.

I do a bit of bike maintenance - the chain sounds gritty. Most of the road so far has not been swept - there’ a winter’s worth of dirt & sand in the bike riding lane. This is difficult (if not impossible sometimes) to ride on. It makes it so that I have to ride on the white line (or on the dreaded rumple strip). Somewhere along the way today the riding lane was swept (thank you Highway Maintenance!) this has made a huge improvement in my riding experience and safety!

Tomorrow was supposed to be a rest day, but I’ve decided to move on to Osooyos. Brian leaves back to home tomorrow. I'd like to camp at the Nk’iMip Campground - do my laundry & just lie around. Rest days are important to allow the body to heal and recoup. I am feeling strong and my body feels good so far.

Day 4 - May 17, 2026

Start Time: 7:50am

Stop Time: 3:00 pm

KM Travelled: 104.3 km

Elevation: 1020 m

Special Stuff: Swept bike lane & great campgrounds