With last weeks sucess in bear hunting it was to be a repeat today in a different part of the Rockies in Canada.

The chosen location was Kananaskis country to the West of Clagary.

It was after all Labor Day long weekend, the Sun was out and this area provides some of the best motorcycle riding in Alberta.

The motorcycles were out in full force mainly metric cruisers in groups of 3-4 with the odd sportsbike interspersed with the adventure bikes.

Regardless of bears and motorcycles any trip into Kananaskis is a sight that never fails to amaze.

The mountains tower above the stoney river beds and display those features characteristic of the glacial forces that moulded them over millions of years.

The rivers this year have not flowed as they would with the dry summer weather. Some of them have never resumed their beds after the massive floods of 2013 that moved millions of tonnes of gravel,boulders and trees.

The landscape despite that destruction looks naturally wild and displays a wilderness that see both tourists and locals coming back year after year to camp,sightsee and picnic.

Some will come to participate in the International Golf Tourament at the Kananaskis Golf Club that has finally reopened thatnks to the millions of dollars of tax payers funds injected by the Alberta Government into this privately run venue.

Other will be enjoying the location and cheap accommodation offered at William Watson Lodge where rooms are priced around $50 including use of the Lodge communial lounge.

The visitors centre copes with large numbers of visitors eager to bring young families into contact with nature where bears have right of way.

The Upper and Lower lakes provide cold water activities such as canoeing and paddle boarding along with fishing. Barrier Lake however is at a record low and intake for hydro electricity generation cannot be undertaken.

The moutain tops have a fresh sprinkling of the coming winter snows.

The forests are full of pinecones and berries providing ideal food gathering for animals before the long cold winter arrives. These trees appear to have escape the ravishes of The Pine Beetle unlike the trees further North in Banff National Park.

The Upper Lake provided an encounter with wildlife as a little furry ball approached us, it was not black like the other Black Bear cubs perhaps it could be a Grizzly cub, ha ha not it was a cheeky Chipmonk seeking human interaction in the hope of human food.

Maybe the reason less bears are seen is the toll taken by interaction with the railways. I have spoken of the large wheat fields of Alberta and this grain is transported mainly by rail to the seaboard. This leads to a certain loss of grain along side the tracks. Bears see this as an easy source of food but as they have limited contact with trains it is not uncommon to lose as many as six bears in a season.

I think I was also neglectful in not thanking mine hosts John & Margaret MacDonald for arranging this trip and accompanying me.

A few Mountain sheep were encounted later along with two does and their fawns who were playing with danger as they had entered the town of Black Diamond and cantered along the road.

Wolves have been reintroduced into some National Parks but are suffering from human interaction of developement, bias towards them and run ins with motor vehicles hence sightings are very rare.

It was a pleasure to talk with some other motorcycle riders and relay details of my current trip and pose for photo's they been amazed with the distances I cover.

22100km this trip whereas a 2000km summer riding program seemd almost impossible to local riders for summer.

Whatever the distance I can't wait for the opportunity to go riding in this great natural landscape where the view is only enhanced from the motorcycle seat with no steel cage around one.