Into the Deep Freeze
Permanent #165 Report
Permanent #165 "A River Runs Through It", 205 km
Ride date: December 1, 2019
by Bob Goodison

How cold is too cold? The forecast of -9C was optimistic. Susan dropped me off at the Kokanee Way Denny's and I got going as quickly as possible to avoid getting cold. The Garmin had been warm from being in the van, so I watched the temperature readout drop. And drop. And drop. It finally bottomed out at -15.2 at Jamieson Creek. Holy Crap!! I found that putting my water bottle in a pocket under my jacket kept it from freezing. That, and an insulated travel mug full of (alternately) coffee and hot chocolate did the trick. Still, I have been colder on rides when it's been above freezing- for example, descending Rainy Pass in June. A flat tire or other mechanical problem would have been a major issue. As I suspected it might be, the McLure Ferry was closed because of ice (see photo). Returning on Westsyde Rd. and crossing the Halston Bridge only added a couple of kms and made for a nicer ride. I wasn't disappointed, as I was not excited about the prospect of waiting for the ferry, or being exposed to the wind during the crossing. When it's like this, the less time spent faffing about, the better. Surprisingly, the ride did not get miserable until I hit Hwy 1 headed towards Chase. The temperature had warmed up to -6C, but there was a howling headwind, and snow blowing into my face. The closer I got to Chase, the more snow was staying on the road. I controlled at the Chase Grocery, refilled my travel mug with hot coffee and phoned Susan with an ETA for the finish. For the first 10 km of the return, I could not take full advantage of the tailwind because of the snow on the road- I had taken off my studded tires. Finally the road cleared, and I flew the last 30 km in less than an hour. How cold is too cold? I don't know yet.