Touring BC in September

Hi
2xGS touring in BC in September and have put the following itinerary together based on info from various web sites
and would appreciate any input by way of suggestions/knowledge that is available.
The idea is to enjoy riding good roads at a decent pace surrounded by great scenery.
After a couple of days in Vancouver
Day 1 Vancouver to Lillooet
Day 2 Lillooet to Prince George
Day 3 Prince George to Jasper
Day 4 Jasper to Banff
Day 5 Banff via Golden to Revelstoke
Day 6 Revelstoke, Castlegar to Osoyoos
Day7 Osoyoos ,via Hope to Victoria
Day 8 Loop of southern Vancouver Island
Day 9 return bikes to Vancouver.

Any views/help would be appreciated.

Cheers

Michael

Looks good.

We do a bit of that on our trips to Alaska.

Make sure you follow the coast road out of Vancouver it's stunning. The sea to sky highway to Whistler is mostly fast dual carriageway but a nice ride. It become a brilliant road, Hwy 99, just after Pemberton all the way to Lillouet. Make sure you stop at the big lake for piccies. We never stop in Lillouet as there doesn't seem too much there so we get to Clinton just north of Cache Creek and stay at the www.cariboolodgebc.com in Clinton which is clean and has a good bar and restaurant. Nice little town and you will do it easily from Vancouver. If you are brave, I know a short cut through a forest on dirt roads to Clinton

The road to Prince George is fairly straight as it's a main highway. Good little breakfast and milkshake stops on the way and watch out for animals on the road just north of Clinton. That is an easy days ride.

Jasper is very expensive and a bit touristy so we always stay just short of there at a place called Valemount at this great motel http://www.dreamcatcherinn.ca/. Good restaurants and bars in town Get yourself one of their log cabins as they are cracking and a shit load cheaper than jasper.

You will go past the fantastic Mt Robson just out Of Valemount and it's a nice ride in to Jasper. Brekki in Jasper and then down the Icefields Parkway which is stunning. Stop everywhere along the way to take it in. When you get to Lake Louise, take the old highway 1 into Banff which is slow but a nice ride and you may see a bear or two on there. Don't break teh speed limit in the National Park or Hwy 1 as it's an expensive error Banff is very touristy and pricey and we stay at the www.banffvoyagerinn.com.

Let me know if you need any more help.

Hi Michael I'm not envious at all
A few years ago I did some backpacking around Vancouver Island and would love to take the strife for a holiday over there .
After Victoria there's not a great deal to see in the south ,upto port Alberni
The lady rose boat trip is defo worth a look if u have the time .
Highlight for me was the pacific west coast from ucelet to Torino awesome is an understatement ,there's a chippy van in ucelet that does amazing halibut n chips
Lots of places to wild camp on the beach .
Strathcona nat park is a must its like snowdonia on steroids .
the islands out from Campbell river are worth a visit .
I'll try and dig out some pics

Here you go a few pics. Strathcona nat park

This is the type of litter you come across
<a href="http://s1372.photobucket.com/user/Gavjones1974/media/image.jpg1_zpssgjn4fwc.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1372.photobucket.com/albums/ag343/Gavjones1974/image.jpg1_zpssgjn4fwc.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo image.jpg1_zpssgjn4fwc.jpg"/></a>
Big Kahoona trees
<a href="http://s1372.photobucket.com/user/Gavjones1974/media/image.jpg3_zps1ig0axzb.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1372.photobucket.com/albums/ag343/Gavjones1974/image.jpg3_zps1ig0axzb.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo image.jpg3_zps1ig0axzb.jpg"/></a>
Plenty of fire wood for an evening marsh mellow session
<a href="http://s1372.photobucket.com/user/Gavjones1974/media/image.jpg6_zpsv5wom87i.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1372.photobucket.com/albums/ag343/Gavjones1974/image.jpg6_zpsv5wom87i.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo image.jpg6_zpsv5wom87i.jpg"/></a>
Very noisy wild camp spots
<a href="http://s1372.photobucket.com/user/Gavjones1974/media/image.jpg7_zpswwbelj7o.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1372.photobucket.com/albums/ag343/Gavjones1974/image.jpg7_zpswwbelj7o.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo image.jpg7_zpswwbelj7o.jpg"/></a>

Whatever you do have safe and enjoyable trip as they say in Essex ......I'm well jell.

Thanks Guys,
Very helpful and will make a few adjustments to the itinerary.
One more question:
Is the run up to Prince George worth while or is it going to be more
entertaining, riding wise, to head east after Clinton across the mountains to the Jasper area and use the day saved elsewhere?

Thanks again

Michael

To be honest mate, I would head east out of Clinton. The road to Prince George is a main highway and Ok but there is better. There is a really nice and quiet little used road called the R24 Little Fort Hwy which turns east around 50 miles north of Clinton. It makes a lovely days ride across to Valemount.

Thanks for that, very helpful.
Think we will do that and put the day to use in the mountains.

Cheers

Michael

If you are in that area and heading north out of Kamloops up toward Mount Robson national park you absolutely must stop at the Log Inn (Google log inn bc) they do the worlds best burgers and that's official if you believe them.

It's a great route down the ice fields parkway and as bilco says get onto the old road at lake Louise also make sure you take a walk up johnsons canyon, it's just south of lake Louise on the old road. It's a walk along the river and takes about an hour up and back, it is stunning and shouldn't be missed.

We did a similar route from Calgary to Vancouver a couple of years ago and found a route through the mountains from jasper that was recommended to us by a couple of people along the way, it was stunning.

I have a GPX file of the route we took if your interested but you will need USA and Canada maps for your garmin to see it properly (I might be able to help with that as well), pm me with your e-mail address if you want to know more

Older post but I'm replying to add some info for others planning a trip to BC.

The route from Vancouver should definitely include Hwy 99North to Pemberton and then east to Lillooet. From Lillooet there are gravel road alternatives (good gravel, not tracks, suitable for cars as much as trucks) on the West side of the Fraser river that travel North to Quesnel or even Prince George. Much less traffic than the paved highway. The best views are South of Williams Lake and take you back in time to ranch lands and wide open spaces along the Fraser River canyon. There are plenty of more rugged routes in the area as well as day trips or advanced routes but don't be afraid of testing out the gravel roads as they are maintained and relatively smooth. There are a couple cable operated ferries to cross the river, guest ranches and First Nation villages (itch remote access gas stations). Rather than going to Prince George if time is limited I would recommend hanging a left at Williams Lake and going to visit Bella Coola just for the drive. Anyone heading here is more than welcome to reach out to me, I live near Vancouver and ride a 94 R1100GS. If you are here and need a hand with something I have tools and enough knowledge of the 1100/1150's that I may be able to help you.

Cheers.