Day 135

September 24 - Merritt (136km, 2140m elevation gain)

After saying goodbye, it was time to resume my journey. I think I got a little too comfortable with the flatness of the Okanagan Valley because I was not prepared for today’s elevation gain. As I entered Western Kelowna, I was greeted by a heavy climb which felt like it never ended. I continuously looked upwards to see when I would reach the summit; for the first 50km, I was climbing a full-scale mountain. I was getting a little nervous because I needed to make it to Merritt tonight since the highway was extremely isolated, but the town was 130km away. I needed to be going fast - which I wasn’t doing when climbing.

And I was climbing for over four hours. I eventually reached a maximum elevation of over 1700m and I was proud. It was surreal to look down at the chasm on my side and view my progress. Below, I could see majestic valleys and forests. At the summit, the underbellies of the clouds were noticeably closer and my breath became frosty.

Then came the fun part: zooming down the mountain. I was chilled to the bone as the wind roared in my face, but I couldn’t help but smile. I had conquered an entire mountain, and I was reaping my reward: a free ride down.

I got into Merritt and wolfed down a feast.