The Rocky Moun­tains of Cana­da are one of the wildest places on Earth. The thou­sands of square miles of wilder­ness is a major cor­ri­dor for the migra­tion of all kinds of wild ani­mals, from moun­tain goats to griz­zly bears. 

Sam­ple some of the finest rid­ing that Fer­nie, Inver­mere, and Gold­en have to offer in this impec­ca­ble 6‑day pack­age.  We’ll pick you up and drop you off at the Cal­gary air­port, and if required, we’ll have your rental bike wait­ing for you in Fer­nie, with EMTB options avail­able if you feel the need for some extra kick.  This itin­er­ary is designed to chal­lenge the typ­i­cal inter­me­di­ate rid­er, aver­ag­ing over 20kms dis­tance and 400–700 meters of climb­ing per day on most­ly blue trails, with a touch of black options to spice things up.  It’s medi­um tech­ni­cal, medi­um car­dio, and max­i­mum beau­ti­ful — the per­fect blend of effort vs. reward.  There’s a sol­id amount of rid­ing on the sched­ule, with options every day to short­en (or add) to the routes.  All are sure to be blown away with how many incred­i­ble moun­tain views we can cram into this sam­pler tray of East Koote­nay delights.

Is This Ride For You?

You’re a Strong-Inter­me­di­ate lev­el rid­er with sol­id bike han­dling skills, who can han­dle rocky ter­rain and nar­row sin­gle­track. You’re com­fort­able and con­fi­dent rid­ing a blend of cross coun­try and all-moun­tain trails (think long and some­times steep climbs paired with fun and semi-tech­ni­cal descents). Rid­ing mul­ti­ple days in a row, 3–5 hours per day is no big­gie to you. You live for long days on the bike, reward­ed by the com­forts of a post-ride hot tub soak or sauna, a gor­geous lodge and a chilled beer.

Itinerary

Day 1. Wel­come to the Rockies!

Our pri­vate shut­tle will meet you at the Cal­gary Inter­na­tion­al Air­port and dri­ve the group to our lodg­ing in Fernie.

We should arrive into Fer­nie by 8 PM for din­ner, after which we’ll head over and check into our accom­mo­da­tions by the ski hill for the next few nights — this will be our home base for the next few days of Fer­nie trail rid­ing.. Upon arrival, we encour­age you to unpack, set­tle in and rest up for the week of adven­ture ahead. 

Day 2.  Fer­nie Epics

After a good night of rest, you’ll awak­en to the smell of fresh­ly brewed cof­fee, with views of the Rock­ies to accom­pa­ny our hearty group break­fast at the lodge.

This morn­ing, we’ll review the incred­i­ble itin­er­ary and build our bikes. We’ll pro­vide bike stands, tools and help­ing hands for any­one need­ing assistance.

After our morn­ing meet­ing, we’ll ride from the ski hill to town through the mag­i­cal Mt. Fer­nie Provin­cial Park — home to some amaz­ing loam and flowy sin­gle­track trails. 

We’ll stop in town for lunch and a quick rest, then head out for a full after­noon of rid­ing in the direc­tion of Mt Proctor.

Tonight, we’ll grab a group din­ner in town before head­ing back to the lodge for a good night of rest.

Day 3. Mon­tane and Ridgemont

After break­fast at the lodge, we’ll head out for a big day of true moun­tain bike adven­ture, as we aim to con­quer the Mon­tane Fer­nie and Ridge­mont trails.

With a great pletho­ra of trails to choose from, our local expert guides will show you the best way through the maze of wan­der­ing xc trails.  Both morn­ing and after­noon will include some respectable climbs and way fun descents that will show you exact­ly what it is that makes Fer­nie so spe­cial. We guar­an­tee you’ll be sat­is­fied after this day of pedaling!

Tonight we’ll dine in one of Fer­nie’s excel­lent restau­rants — maybe some sushi, maybe a local pub on the main street?

Day 4. Road Trip! 

After an ear­ly break­fast, we’ll pack up the van and head out for a our 2 ½ hour dri­ve to Invermere. 

After lunch at our favorite down­town café, we’ll con­tin­ue our super scenic 2hr ride around the Lake Lil­ian area.  We’ll stock up on sup­plies, then car­ry on to the famous moun­tain town of Golden.

Din­ner will be host­ed at a very spe­cial spot along the way.  Then we’ll check in to the Cedar House Resort, sit­u­at­ed high above the Colum­bia Val­ley, and far below the mas­sive Beaver­head Peak.  Enjoy a hot tub and camp­fire, and kick back in some cool cab­ins with Pur­cell Moun­tain views.

Day 5. Ride Golden

After break­fast at the Cedar House, we’ll shut­tle to the Moon­rak­er trails to enjoy a full day of activ­i­ties in this vast and wild playground.

Embark on a long flow­ing xc ride in the Gold­en dirt that this place is famous for.  These trails sport some of the Koote­nay’s finest flow, peo­ple love this stuff.  We’ll wind our way to the White­tooth brew­ery, then make our way back to the cab­ins for a final night BBQ din­ner pre­pared by the guides.

Day 6. Banff Nation­al Park and Goodbyes!

After break­fast, it’s straight out the door for an ear­ly ride in the Moun­tain Shad­ows trail sys­tem.  Yep, we’re stay­ing right at the trail­head to this fan­tas­tic net­work of tech­ni­cal all moun­tain trails, with some final views of the Dog­tooth Range leav­ing you in awe of the Rocky Moun­tain beauty.

Then we pack up for the 3hr jour­ney through Yoho and Banff Nation­al Park, stop­ping in Can­more for lunch, before get­ting to the air­port for a 4:30pm drop off.

The fol­low­ing data rep­re­sents a typ­i­cal itin­er­ary, but adven­ture trav­el can be unpre­dictable and our Guides may need to make last-minute changes to ensure your enjoy­ment. Inclement weath­er, road clo­sures, changes to the itin­er­ary to accom­mo­date requests, and oth­er issues may affect the itin­er­ary. The ride data rep­re­sents an ‘aver­age’ itin­er­ary, and may dif­fer when you actu­al­ly show up to ride. Our guides make every effort to stick to the itin­er­ary as post­ed, but your safe­ty is our #1 priority. 

Ride Data: Rocky Mountain Rambler

Day Hours of rid­ing Dis­tance rid­den Ele­va­tion gained Ele­va­tion lost High­est ele­va­tion
1 0 0 0 0 0
2 4.5 17 2165 2165 4409
3 4.5 16 2395 2395 5200
4 4.5 18 2952 2952 5249
5 3.5 14 2099 2099 3182
6 3.5 10 1377 1377 3756
Totals 20.5 HRS

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Dates chosen: Sep. 01, 2024—Sep. 06, 2024
Skill Rating: Blue Square
Fitness Rating: Blue Square
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Skill Levels
Black Diamond

The Black Diamond Rides are  suitable for riders looking for that edge. Maybe it’s the edge of a drop, the edge of a cliff, or singletrack requiring focus and fast reactions developed from extensive experience riding “the edge”. You will find yourself on steep trails of varied surfaces. In the Pacific North West that could be slick roots and loam, in Nepal you will find exposed granite in the Mustang Valley and in Guatemala it maybe narrow stairways through cliffside villages. While airtime is rarely required, the ability to find the backside or clean a tabletop should be comfortable or in a state of progress. Obstacles on Black rides are likely to be outside the range of your bikes ability to cover your goofs with its awesome suspension and grip.

Blue Square

In general, Blue trails are narrower than green trails, encounter unavoidable obstacles such as roots, rocks, and drops that are up to 8-inches tall. You will want to have a solid understanding of the fundamentals of mountain biking including body positions, powerful braking, cornering, riding on varied terrain, steep sections and experience riding trails that requires line choice. Airtime is not mandatory, but you will find yourself on trails with alternate lines giving you the option.

Double Black Diamond

A Double Black ride is for those that already know they are looking for a Double Black. It’s going to be very hard and require advanced bike handling skills. You will find yourself on trails with sections most non-riders would look at and say, “that’s totally nuts!”. You will know how to look at a line and contemplate where it will work and where it won’t. Drops of a couple feet should be comfortable and getting your bike off the ground should feel predictable and fun.

Green Circle

Typically, green Rides are safe for beginners. Green Rides may have both avoidable and unavoidable obstacles. Trails are generally low grade, wide, consistent surface texture and have minimal features. You are likely to come across unavoidable obstacles 2-inches or shorter, which is small enough for mountain bike tires to simply roll over. More challenging than tarmac, but in general, a wonderful Ride for those riders new to mountain biking or looking for a casual experience.

Fitness Levels
Black Diamond

A Black Fitness ride will test you. Aside from needing to be able to manage up to 6 hours on the bike, day after day, including distance up to 50km/30miles and elevation gains up to 1750m/5000feet of climbing, you will be adding extra challenges along the route like periods of hike-a-bike and the extra effort required by the whole body to safely dance with your bike over technical terrain. Generally, riders who are up for a Black Fitness ride, likely spend time on the bike a couple times each week.

Blue Square

Blue should be considered a good deal more effort than our Green Rides.  You should be able to handle 3 to 5 hours in the saddle covering up to 45km/30miles and be able to pull off a big day of 1000m/3000feet of elevation gain. Managing fuel is important as well.  You should have a good understanding how your body responds to multiple days on the bike. We will help with positive coaching, a manageable pace and plenty of trailside snacks.

Double Black Diamond

A Double Black will be for those with the strength and endurance to get to the top of anything they want and understand the term “turning the screw”. Distance could be quite high on some routes and elevation gain numbers could hit 2000m/6000 feet+ in a day. You are likely riding multiple days a week during the dry periods and have a trainer or belong to a gym for the rest of the year.

Green Circle

You should be ready to spend 2-4 hours per day on the bike. Mileage may be up to 30km/20 miles and elevation gain will be under 500m/1500feet. On e-MTB tours, numbers will be higher, however the approximate effort would be considered similar to a standard Green Circle ride. If you get on your bike once a week, you will be just fine. However, when preparing for a Ride, you will benefit from more rides and time in the saddle.