SANDY KEITH AND BILL LOWE 2010

 COLDWATER (MERRITT) TO KINGSVALE

Sandy and I had to chance to ride the restricted part of the KVR on the Coldwater Native Reserve below.

My wife Riley Charters is member of the reserve may have help a little bit.

Looking back at the border of the Coldwater Reserve at the blue truck, you can see that the owner has planted his field of grass right the old railroad bed.

Just a few rocks, we are starting to realize that we may the first bikers to ride this part of the KVR in long time.

The Coldwater River

I have done this ride 10 years ago there was big slide very hard to cross, but three of us managed to cross it,  I believed Sandy and I would too but.

It worse now; there was 15 feet or 3 meters cliff of hard pan sand and gravel that was so steep you could not just cross it. We could see were others had crossed with ropes using steel poles about 100 feet above the old rail bed (there were no longer any ropes). There was rock out crop that I step out on to the cliff, there flat sharp rock that was sticking out of the cliff, I pulled out and noticed that there was flat spot were the flat rock had been and I could carve out at pretty good foot step on cliff and I could moved forward. I cut or carved out set of foot steps across the cliff, turn around walk back on my foot steps and made a couple more steps to easily get back to Sandy and the bikes. Sandy and I had a hard time trying to get my heavy bike across the cliff, I ended up just throwing it couple feet at a time, step and throw; but I got it across. Next Sandy's bike Sandy was barely able to stand on the cliff let alone get his bike across, so I told to let go of his bike and I take it across, Sandy bike was so light I could hold it in the air and walk across at get the bike back down to rail bed. Then heard Sandy "get back here quick!" I ran back up the cliff, Sandy had slipped and was hanging on to one of my steps, I reach out "grab my hand now" Sandy replied  "What about you bad arm". I said "to hell with my arm let go". Sandy grab my hand got back on the steps and we walk off the cliff.

Sandy thinking I not going back that way.

Ok we rode back to Coldwater of the road, but it was still was most 6 hours round trip.

The next day we rode the back roads to Merritt on the opposite side the main road

Looking back at Coldwater Reserve

The 2010  International Insulator Show just happen to be in Merritt at my fellow insulator collector Bob Scafe

Bob's website http://teleramics.com/collection/bobscafe.html

My Insulators http://www3.telus.net/public/willlowe/Bill's%20Glass%20Insulators.html

It looks like Sandy may not understand our madness

The next day I show Sandy the Kingsvale Coldwater River Canyon and trestle.

To old to ride in the rain, lets see what happens next year on the KVR

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