Road Trip North Part 6 – Back to Denver

We began the long trip home yesterday after sleeping in again in Calgary. Calgary is about 2.5 hours north of the U.S. border so again, it was enough time to get Caki worried about going across, even though we were coming back to the U.S. She was right though; there is always something about going through customs or crossing a border that leaves you a little uneasy. Maybe it is the vast array of questions posed by the border guards, (where have you been, how long were you there, do you have any firearms, did you commit any crimes, etc.) Maybe it is the heightented security after 911. No matter who you, where you have been and even if you have nothing to hide, you are still worried that you do. 

After an uneventful crossing back into the U.S we were back on our way to Bozeman to see Allan and Jen one more time. The highway from Calgary to Great Falls, MT is a lonely stretch of road, although we did see one lifetime road-tripper with a great license plate. I am sure we will see many other small things like this that make us laugh on our way around the world.

After one last night in Montana and after much thought and debate, we decided to pass up on another day of skiing at Moonlight Basin and drive the 10 hours back to Denver. It was time to get back as Steve and I both had work piling up on our respective desks. All in all, it was a great trip. We saw some old friends, met some new ones, skied on some world-class mountains and skied on ones that were even better. More importantly, Steve and I learned that we could tolerate one another in a confined environment. We have lived together as room mates for over 7 years, but I think this was the first time we actually spent every hour of every day together for nearly two weeks in a car. This is an issue that many people have raised, but I have never been worried about it and this trip confirmed it. We will undoubtedly face some hard times together over the course of our journey, but I am confident our friendship will be one of the factors that remains constant throughout our travels and adventures on the World By Road.

Sort of on top of the World

Road Trip North Part 5 – Calgary, AB Canada

We slept in late yesterday in Banff and got into Calgary at about 1 in the afternoon. Calgary reminds me a lot of Denver and the surrounding area. You drive east from Banff and gradually make your way down from the mountains to find Calgary situated right near the base. Calgary is a very metropolitan city and being my first time there, I was surprised at it’s size… approximately 500,000 people call Calgary and the surrounding metro area home.

We checked into a hotel and then set out to check out the sights. Calgary has a very nice downtown area lined with shops, coffee houses and restaurants. We braved the cold temperatures and walked down the pedestrian mall for a while and finally we found a nice little restaurant and bar and decided to seek refuge from the cold and to enjoy happy hour. Good food, good drink and a little time to reflect on the trip to date.

Upon returning to the hotel and taking our respective naps, we cleaned up and jumped in a cap headed down to Chinatown to eat some Japanese sushi. We came upon a place called Sakana Grill that had been recommended at the hotel. We had a great time there. The head chef aka “Tony Montana” prepared a delicious meal right before our eyes and even slammed a few beers with us. We also talked about our trip around the world and our experiences in Canada with a very nice local couple and their son. They later somehow mentioned to the staff that it was my birthday (it was not) and before we knew it, we were dressed in Samurai costumes and drank more Sake. It was a great start to a great night.

Tony and the gang at Sakana Grill

Calgary is cold in the winter and as a result, they have a very clever enclosed walkway system that pretty much takes you anywhere you want to go downtown, although one can very easily become disoriented and get lost. We took the walkway over to a famous bar/club called the Cowboy (we were in Calgary, home of the world famous Calgary Stampede Rodeo, so we had to ride the bull) however, we were quickly informed that because Steve S. looked like a dirtbag (he was not wearing black/brown leather shoes), they were not going to let him in.

We settled on the Irish pub next door for a few drinks and pretty much ended up getting sufficiently hammer-faced. Bar time came and so did the cab to take us back to the hotel. (In the condition we were in, we definitely would have been wandering around the walkway for hours)

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It was our last day in Canada and today we start the long journey back to Colorado. Calgary was definitely a great city and even though we were only there for a day, it served as a great last impression of our trip north across the border. It is on the list of places to make a return visit… maybe in July for the Stampede. Steve B.

Road Trip North Part 4 – Banff AB Canada

We arrived last night into Banff, which the last time any of had been here was a small mountain resort town filled with laid back Canadians enjoying the small-town, mountain lifestyle. Banff had changed a lot. It was a tourist haven and people from all around the globe were represented; Asians, Germans and the British were particularly well represented. (Although we were there during spring holiday for the Europeans) Although the town has experienced significant growth over the last decade and is quickly becoming the Aspen of the Canadian Rockies, it is still quite beautiful and picturesque.

Town of Banff

Today the weather was again not going to cooperate and there appeared to be what we thought was a smog or a haze clouding much of the mountains. (As seen in the photo above) The Trans-Canadian highway runs through Banff and this part of the Rockies and there is quite a bit of truck traffic. Hopefully we just caught it on a bad day, otherwise it would truly be a shame to see such a beautiful part of North America obscured by pollution.

We headed about 45 minutes up the road to Lake Louise and home of Chateau Lake Louise. The Chateau is nestled at the head of Lake Louise in a valley surrounded by high peaks and distant glaciers. While Steve and Caki were doing some filming I ventured out onto the lake to get a better view. There were fresh snow mobile tracks, so it seemed pretty safe. I had ventured out a couple hundred yards from what appeared to be the shore when I noticed my footsteps slowly filling up with water. I guess the sleds had made it through so quickly that it didn’t really disturb the ice. I decided it was a good idea to make it back to shore as quickly as possible. Upon getting back to the shore I noticed a lot of little signs indicating certain death for venturing out on the ice. Maybe I missed them, or maybe it was because they were in Canadian, but I had better start paying attention to things like this or it is going to be a short trip for me around the world.

We spent the rest of the day enjoying the comforts of the lounge at the Chateau and then headed over towards Glacier National Park. We stopped in the small town of Golden, which was back in British Columbia and then drove onwards to Rodger’s Pass. It was a nice drive and the scenery was amazing, but again, the weather just did not want to offer up any opportunities for some decent photography or video.

Canadian Rockies

After a light dinner back in Banff, we went out on the town and pretty much had a thoroughly unenjoyable experience. The drinking age is 19 here in Alberta and first off, I felt like the old guy in the club. I would hedge a bet that nearly 80 percent of the patrons at the bars we went to were under 20, but maybe we just went to the wrong places. Overall, the bar scene was crowded, underage, rude, and generally unpleasant. We even got in an argument with the management at one bar after one of the staff members took our half consumed beverages away because it “looked like we were done.” We had even been tipping the wait staff, which is not generally custom in Canada.

All in all, Banff turned out to be a buzz-kill for me personally. It seems that the days of the friendly, local Canadians who just want to hangout, relax and have a good time are gone in this part of the country. Our next destination in Canada was Calgary and it would be the country’s last chance at redemption after a couple of lackluster days. Steve B.

Road Trip North Part 3 – Fernie, B.C. Canada

We hit the road a little late this morning, but it is only about a 6 hour drive from Bozeman, MT up across the Canadian border into British Columbia and our next stop: Fernie. We enjoyed a beautiful drive up through and around Flathead Lake and even stopped to take some cool pictures of a storm that was quickly moving in. This area of the state is really awesome and I definitely want to make it back over here to Whitefish and Kalispell in the future.

Crossing the Canadian border has been quite an experience for some of us in the past. Maybe this is was due to the fact that during prior border crossings, we were young and looked like we were up to no good, but the border between Montana and British Columbia has been known to be pretty strict. After a long list of questions, they may decide to search your car anyway since there is not a lot of traffic passing through the Roosville Port of Entry to keep them occupied. If they do decide to search your car, they do a very detailed search… not that we had anything to worry about. (Except for the 30 pack of PBR in the cooler and 3- bottles of good Sonoma wine from our last trip, but we were not going to tell them that.)

After getting Caki sufficiently scared about crossing the border, we made it through without any incident. No long list of questions, no search, and this was post 9-11. It was sort of anti-climactic, especially since it was the first official overland border crossing TWBR would make. We almost wanted it to be the ordeal we anticipated, that way we would have more to write about.

We soon made it to Fernie, which is a small ski town nestled in the Canadian Rockies in the far southeast tip of British Columbia about an hour north of the border. It had a real local, small town feel and after a few drinks at the local pub, we settled down for some good hard skiing the next day.

Staff at the Canadian Rockies Ski Resorts, which represent Fernie, Banff and Lake Louise among others were pretty apprehensive about our request for lift tickets. They wanted confirmation from our sponsors, letters, etc. It was a pretty big hassle for a couple of lift tickets that were only like $45 US retail a peice. (compared to over $70 at most major US resorts) We tried to explain that were were filming and promoting the trip and it was good publicity for them. However, it seemed like they really did not comprehend what we were doing or why, and trying to explain the purpose of the trip was not really going too well. I guess they have had problems in the past with people cooking up elaborate round-the-world travel schemes with detailed web pages and business cards all for the purpose of getting a few comp lift tickets. Anyway, they were kind enough to give us one (yes one as in single) lift ticket, so we were grateful for that gesture. It just goes to show you some of the cultural differences we expereinced not that far from the U.S.

The weather has been plaguing the whole trip thus far. Overcast and cloudy seems to be what we have to look forward to every day. There were some patches of sun throughout the day, but still not ideal for filming. Nevertheless, Fernie has been getting pounded with snow this season and we skied some of the best powder yet, and the tree skiing was amazing.

After a great day of skiing, we piled back into the car for the 3.5 hour drive north to our next destination: Banff. Again, the weather was an issue, which was disappointing because the Canadian Rockies are some of the most spectacular mountains I have ever seen. They seem to just pop right out from the ground and end in magnificent, jagged, snow-capped peaks. For those of you who have not been to the Canadian Rockies, you truly are missing out on a very special place. Check out the photo gallery for more pictures. Steve B

Road Trip North Part 2 – Bozeman, MT

The TWBR crew left Jackson, WY in the early afternoon on February 25th and started the 4.5 hour drive up to Bozeman, MT where we would meet up with some of Steve S’s friends from high school. We were hoping to get some good pictures of the Tetons from the western side of the range, but again the weather just did not seem to want to cooperate. Caki had already done her duty in the back seat and so it was my turn to hit the back, while Caki drove and Steve hit shotgun.

The most direct route to Montana is through Yellowstone National Park, however, in the winter, the roads through the park are closed, so we were forced to first drive west into Idaho before heading north into Montana, adding another 1.5 hours onto the drive. I found northeast Idaho to be actually quite beautiful. As we drove through the rolling hills and farmland things were pretty quiet. We seemed to be the only vehicle on the lonely highway and the scenery was even more calming as the ground had recently been covered with a fresh blanket of new snow.

As we headed farther north towards West Yellowstone, the snow got deeper until finally, it was piled at least 10-15 feet high on the sides of the road in the town of West Yellowstone. The next stretch of highway actually takes you into the top northwest corner of the park and it is actually quite a good spot to see migrating animals. The signs along the highway warn you of the presence of these animals but you are still pretty shocked when you happen upon two giant Bison walking casually down the middle of the highway. We stopped, and the two animals walked right past the car, close enough for one to touch them, although our common sense advised against it. It was the closest I had ever come to one of these magnificent animals, aside from watching Ralphie run around the stadium at CU football games, and it was truly amazing to see how large they were.


We arrived in Bozeman later that night and met up with our friend Allen and his fiance Jen and hit a night on the town. Bozeman was actually quite fun and we talked with a lot of interesting people about our trip and what we were in the process of doing. Bozeman is the home of Montana State University, so there were a lot of young people intrigued by the concept of two guys getting ready to drive around the world.

We slept in Sunday morning with the intent driving down to Big Sky, about an hour south of Bozeman, to go skiing at a relatively new ski area called Moonlight Basin. We stopped at a breakfast shop to order what many were calling some of the best breakfast sandwiches you can buy only to end up sitting a waiting for our order for more than 45 minutes. By that time, some of us had lost our mojo to go skiing, so we thought about alternative ways to spend our day.

South-central Montana and the surrounding area is a very geologically active one. As a result, there are a lot of hot springs and thermal pools that dot the landscape. We decided that it would be a great idea to go and relax at one of these springs. Norris hot springs was about a 40 minute drive from Bozeman, so we piled in Allen’s car and headed out. (We still have another 2,000 plus miles to drive on this trip and another 70,000 around the world, so when someone else ofers to drive, we will take them up on it!) It was $5 a head to enter the hot springs and we found that we only had $23 in cash among the five of us. The operator of the hot springs quickly informed us that although they do not take credit cards, they would gladly accept a check. Guess they need every penny they can get out in Norris.

After soaking in the mineral pools for a couple of hours everyone was getting hungry. Allen suggested a little bar off the beaten path that had some of the best steaks in Montana. The Bear Claw Bar & Grill in McAllister, MT was certainly off the beaten path, but had some really great food. After getting our fill on some prime USDA meat and some king crab legs, we drove back to Bozeman.

On Monday morning, Steve, Caki and myself got up for a second attempt at Moonlight Basin. This time we avoided the rush at the sandwich shop and did get our hands on some pretty damn good breakfast sandwiches for the drive down to Big Sky. Moonlight Basin has only been in operation for a few years and is located on the opposite side of Lone Peak from the Big Sky ski area. The weather was looking promising, so we took all of our gear with us in hopes of getting some good shots of the valley and surrounding landscape.


For those of you skiers who have not heard of Big Sky or Moonlight Basin, you need to make it a destination. There is some serious terrain here, some of which even makes Jackson Hole seem like a tame mountain. Moonlight Basin recently installed a lift to the base of a ridgeline that serves some pretty intense chutes aka the “Headwaters“, which after a very technical hike are still all in-bounds. Once at the top of the lift, you are perched precariously on the ridgeline with steep drop-offs on both sides.

Caki waited at the bottom of the chutes while Steve and I took the Headwaters lift up to begin our hike of the ridgeline. Almost immediately after we got on the lift, the wind intensified to seemingly gale force strength. We buried our faces in our jackets and braved the slow, steep ride up the lift. At the top of the lift, and the beginning of the hike, it was almost a complete white-out and with every gust of wind, you felt like you were going to be carried over the edge. By this point, I was absolutely frozen. I surrendered to the conditions and told Steve there was no way I could hike the ridge being this cold. We took a few shots at the beginning of the “extremely technical and dangerous” hike and then parted ways. I took the camera gear and backpack and proceeded down the second chute off of the headwaters lift. It was steeper than anything I had ever skied in-bounds in Colorado, steep enough that you could place your uphill arm on the side of the mountain as you initiated your next turn. The snow was great and it made for a really fun run.


Upon meeting up with Caki at the bottom, I was a little concerned about Steve. It was getting pretty windy up there and he was taking longer than I had thought to make it over to the 4th chute where I was going to film his descent. After about 15 minutes, he appeared and made his way down. He described the hike as being very sketchy and there were a few points where he was pretty scared. The hike was on “bootpack” that was about a foot wide in spots and bracketed by steep drop-offs on both sides. Moonlight Basin was indeed a serious mountain.

We decided that the wind was not going to let up, so another attempt at hiking the ridge was suicide, but found some great powder and tree skiing at the resort as well. It was a great day, as there were absolutely no other skiers on the hill. No lines, no waiting, and the only thing that keep us from making more turns was the stamina in our legs, and although the weather was a little dodgy, we still managed to get some moderately decent photos and video.

We stayed with Allen and Jen one more night and were treated to the best home-made tacos I have personally had in a long time. The next morning, we were up, took care of some business at the local coffee shop, and headed out on the road again. This time, the road took us up north through Whitefish, MT and across the Canadian border into British Columbia…

Steve B.

Roadtrip North Part 1 – Jackson, WY

We have decided to take a 10 day road trip up north to Canada via Wyoming and Montana. The purpose of this trip is to film some of the activities we love doing, namely skiing, but more importantly, to film about what life on the road is like and to get in the habit of documenting as much as possible.

Our first stop is Jackson, Wyoming and we are going to do some skiing at Jackson Hole. I had been to Jackson about 10 years ago so I was eager to take some turns on a challenging mountain. At Jackson Hole, green runs are practically nonexistent , blues are fast, blacks are hard and you had better know what you are doing if you venture onto a double black run.


We arrived late on Thursday night after a 7 hour drive up from Denver. The staff at Jackson Hole was gracious enough to provide us with lift tickets in order to get up on the mountain to do some filming. The skiing was great, but I was surprised to see as many people in the lift lines as I did.

A decade ago, you could practically ski right up to the chairs or jump on the tram. The wait for the famous Jackson Hole tram (which is in its last year of operation) was over an hour and the other lift that provided access to some good terrain (the gondola), had a wait of approximately 25 minutes. I thought that getting away from the masses in Summit County, CO would thin out the lines a little, especially on a Friday in Wyoming, but no such luck. This must be one of the reasons why the tram is soon to be extinct. Essentially, the tram serves the majority of the difficult terrain at the mountain and is the only access to the summit area, but with a capacity of only 52 people each trip, it simply can’t meet the demand. The gondola gives access to some good terrain, but the area served by the tram is truly where it is at.

Once we did manage to get on the mountain, the snow was great. Jackson has a pretty big base this year, and they had been getting snow all week. We skied a couple of warm-up runs, which in Jackson are still pretty steep, and then decided to get to some better terrain. At the top of the gondola, you can hike the Headwall and from the bottom, it looked like there was a lot of untracked powder up there. I overheard a host saying that the hike to the top was 20 minutes, give or take, for those who are in relatively descent shape. It has been I while since I have done the Ironman, but I have been skiing quite a bit, so 20 minute hike it was.

The hike ended up being closer to a half an hour, but the turns were worth it. There was a ton of untracked powder, and some of the first “face shots” I have had in a while. It was fairly windy at the top and the weather was overcast, so not the best light or conditions to be filming in, so you will have to take my word for it.

The line for the tram was still over an hour when we ventured down there in the late afternoon, so it was back to the gondola. The weather in the Tetons can be a very unpredictable thing. At this point, the weather had warmed things up and the snow was getting a bit slushy. Not less than 45 minutes later, the weather become fairly cold and the slush now became icy and hard. Skiing in these conditions is tough, even for a well conditioned skier. You start to make turns through the heavy chop and after about 6 or 7 of them, your thighs fill with lactic acid and feel like they are about to explode. After a couple more runs and a few stops to film what shots we could, it was time to call it a day.

That evening, Steve, Caki (Steve’s girlfriend and our backseat buddy on this roadtrip) and myself had a great dinner (first time I have had a steak in a while) and sought out what the Jackson nightlife had to offer. For you single ladies out there, this is the place to be. At every venue, there must have been a 15-1 male to female ratio, and this was a Friday night. After having a few drinks, we called it a night, hoping for some better weather to aid us in filming the beautiful Teton Range the next day.

We headed back to Jackson Hole in the morning, but this time without our skis. We wanted to do some filming from the top of the tram. The weather was dodgy, but we felt we could get in some good shots through breaks in the clouds. The line for the tram was over an hour, as expected, but we committed ourselves to the wait. We wound our way through the maze and after about 30 or 40 minutes found ourselves in the next group of people. However, our joy was short-lived as the tram operator soon informed us that the tram was having mechanical problems.

The initial estimate was 15 minutes. We waited. The next update called for an additional 30 minute delay. We waited. Finally, they said it would be at least an hour and a half. Given that it wasn’t looking too clear at the top anyway, it was time for us to throw in the towel. “Bailers!” People shouted as we let ourselves out of the tram line. These guys must be used to standing in line a lot around here, I guess that is all they can do after getting shot down by the one girl in town at the bar the night before.

We packed up our gear and started the drive towards Montana, hoping that along the way the weather would be kind enough to clear for a bit so we could see the Tetons in all their glory. More to come – Steve B.

Breathing Underwater is Fun

We finished our Scuba Closed water training last weekend and it was an awesome time. A1 Scuba really pulled through for us. They made it easy to film and take pictures and definitely did a great job making some classroom time that could have been boring a pretty good time.

We spent enough time in the water to turn into bigger prunes than we have ever been before. I honestly think that I have never spent that much time in the water in a 48 hour period ever before in my life. We are hooked though and you should see a lot of scuba in the coming months and during the trip.

Check out some pictures below and go to the photo gallery to see more. You can also check out the video in our video gallery. The video camera was a little broken so the sound is a little messed up, but we have it fixed so there will be more videos on the way.





Scuba Here We Come

Steve and I have signed up for Scuba lessons next weekend. It is going to be a great time. We ended up going to a place called A1 Scuba in Englewood, CO. Everyone there is really great and were quite accomodating to allow us to bring our video cameras into the classes, so get ready to see some video of us getting wet.

Logistics

I knew that the planning for a trip of this nature was going to be a lot of work, but I had no real idea of what we were going to be getting involved in until I really started to get my hands dirty with research. In planning a trip like this, you start with the obvious things first and then hash out the details as you progress forward. 

There is a lot of paperwork and research involved. First, you have to determine which countries require a visa and depending on how long you plan on staying, what the cost will be. Second, you have to see what types of vaccinations are not only required for entry into those countries, but are also very strongly recommended. Third, we will also obviously need health insurance. This all requires a lot of paperwork, and is a huge logistical undertaking due to time frames and validity limitations. As a result, many of the visa applications must be done in person at the embassy of the country we are wishing to enter in a neighboring country. All of this amounts to thousands of dollars, and this does not even include all of the paperwork that the vehicle will require.

As far as our wheels go, we need international driver’s licenses, and also paperwork showing that we do not intend to sell the vehicle while in a particular country. Sort of like a passport for the car. Auto insurance is also necessary and for a trip like this, you can’t really go down to the local Titan office and apply, as the risks and potential liability are a lot different than simply obtaining ordinary insurance coverage.

This is only really the tip of the iceberg. When you investigate one aspect of the planning necessary for the trip, you come away with about 20 others things that also now need consideration and attention. I feel like we are making some real progress, albeit slow progress. We now have a general estimate of some of our major costs and coincidently, how much blood we need to sell in order to have sufficient funds in our bank account.

Steve B

An Escape?

My excitement about how quickly the trip is beginning to develop in both form and purpose has led me to be doing a lot of talking about it. Not just because I am trying to generate contacts, but because I am genuinely excited about it. In my conversations with people, I have heard a lot of interesting comments such as “it is great to see someone following their dream” or ” I wish I could come with you.” 

The later comment always instigates another interesting conversation. It is a conversation where I find myself having to clarify the purpose of the trip a little more. When I ask why they want to come with us, the response is always something like: “I want to escape” or “My job is too stressful and/or I am tired of the rat-race.”

These may be valid reasons for a vacation and I will not go into commenting about the stresses people face in every-day life, but our trip has an entirely different purpose. If we were truly trying to escape the “rat-race” and the realities of modern society, I think we would have designed a trip where we spent most of our time on a white sandy beach somewhere in the South Pacific.

To borrow from a passage in Harold Stephens’ book Who Needs A Road, there are two types of travelers: those running from something and those running towards something. I’d like to think we are the latter of the two. The purpose of our trip is to satisfy our curiosity about other peoples and cultures of the world and to then share what we learned with others. Sure, you can turn on the T.V or go to an IMAX film and find out more about the world we live in, but I think there is obviously a lot more to gain through experiencing the world first-hand on your own.

True, we will being traveling to some amazing places and doing some amazing things along the way, but a trip of this nature also involves a LOT of work. We are in charge of our own logistics and finances, not to mention our own health and well-being. We will undoubtedly face obstacles and potential dangers: there are a significant number of countries and regions on our itinerary that the U.S. State Department warns against traveling to for one reason or another. But these are all risks and work that we are willing to undertake to truly satisfy our thirst for knowledge about the world we live in. This is the core of what our trip is about. If you are looking for an escape, there are plenty of resorts and drinks with tiny umbrellas out there waiting…

Steve B