One to a planet, once in a lifetime

Terry saved the best for last. We rode from Jasper to Banff along the Icefields parkway, covering 187 miles in two days and including two major mountain passes. To call the scenery spectacular just doesn't do it justice. The roadway runs through both of the national parks (Jasper and Banff), through valleys ringed with glacier capped mountains, and alongside rivers the color of turquoise. We climbed mountain passes that made our lungs ache and quads quiver. We descended mountain passes that made our spirits soar. And we did it for two solid days.

Our luck with the weather continued. Terry has been in this area many times and said he had never seen it this nice. We had tailwinds for most of both days and temperatures in the upper 80's. I suppose it's possible to have a better biking experience, but I'd be hard-pressed to figure out how. Like I said, once in a lifetime.