Cycling the Great Parks North & Great Divide Loop

Sandwiched between staffing two Montana-based Adventure Cycling trips, I spent ten days cycling a loop through British Columbia and Alberta. I departed from Eureka, MT (just south of the Canadian border) and travelled north to Banff, AB along the paved Great Parks North route. I then looped back to Eureka via the unpaved Great Divide route. All in all, the trip was just over 500 miles in length.

My loop.
(Red = the Great Parks North route and
Blue = the Great Divide route)

I really enjoyed the route. It provided a great mix of pavement and off-road riding as well as a great mix of nature and rural and urban settings. I had plenty of opportunities to bathe in the forest and to relish in the beauty of snow-capped peaks, pristine lakes, and colorful wildflowers. Below is a photo journal of my trip. For those interested in the details on my ride, my trip takeaways, route beta, and itinerary are provided at the bottom of this post.

Route Beta: Biking Over Stevens Pass

This post provides route beta* for bicyclists who are interested in cycling over Stevens Pass, along Highway 2, in Washington state.

* "Beta" is a term utilized among rock climbers to indicate specific information on how to accomplish a climb or task.

• The highest point of Stevens Pass is 4,061 ft in elevation.
• Ascending the pass from the west is steeper, and thus more difficult, than ascending the pass from the east.



The elevation profile for the 37 miles from Skykomish, WA
to the intersection of Highway 2 and WA Route 207.