June 11 2023 Ride To The Mountain

The forecast called for rain.

Barrman’s boat tour asked to postpone for fear of the oncoming storm. A storm that never arrived. He sat inside and watched the sun peak out from behind the clouds, he looked at Kaydee, “Should we go for a ride to Bg White?” 

“The forecast isn’t the best to ride a motorcycle.” Kaydee stared out the window and shrugged, “It looks like rain.”

Barrman grabbed the phone and called his buddy Mick who lived at Big White, “Hey buddy what’s the weather doing up there?”

“It was raining hard earlier but it looks like the sun may be poking out,” Mick replied.

Barrman glanced at Kaydee and stared into the dark sky in the distance. Toward Big White, the clouds were thinner and the sun was making an appearance in the west. His mind kept bouncing back and forth between escaping the city and heading to the mountain or staying home and sheltering from the storm.

The storm that wasn’t coming. 

He sat back down and continued to work on the final draft of his novel. Kaydee sat next to him and fidgeted with her phone. He knew that a trip to Big White was in order soon. They had to clean the condo from the previous season and get it ready for the renters coming for Canada Day weekend. 

But what about the storm?

Sunshine beamed into the window and a feeling of restlessness throbbed through him.

A motorcycle ride to the mountain would be fun, the rain seemed to be fading away. The experts were wrong again.

Barrman sighed and looked at Kaydee, “Shall we just go?”

“If you want, I’m in. The weather looks better.” 

Their decision made, Barrman got on the phone with Mick, “How’s it going now?”

“Pretty good. It’s not raining at this moment,” Mick laughed, “Are you heading up?”

“Yes, we’re on our way soon.”

It took an hour but they finally mounted their Honda ST1300 and proceeded to the highway. The warm sunshine beamed down on their leather jackets as they rode through the city. They made a final stop at the liquor store for supplies and were ready to leave the traffic behind. 

Barrman rolled on the gas as the last light turned green. He felt the exhilaration of the acceleration but refrained from pulling too hard on the throttle. There was precious cargo on the back seat.

At the top of the mountains, the sky was dark. Hopefully the rain would stay away. The warmth of the sun still filled his shoulders, it filled him with energy and confidence. Nothing mattered but the winding road and the clean fresh air.

The farther they got down the road the fresher everything smelt. They leaned together into the corners and breathed in the mountain air. He felt a part of the world around him. Barrman grinned and stared at the road ahead. There was no traffic, and the road was dry. Every corner felt like a joy ride and a feeling of freedom surged through him.

Barrman raised his visor and glanced back at Kaydee. He saw the smile in her eyes. “Pretty awesome eh sweetie? I love the smell of the fresh air.”

“It’s amazing. That’s what I love about riding the bike.”

Higher they climbed on the winding road. The turn-off for Big White Road was on the left and the road kept twisting up. They connected with the smooth turns and each other as they leisurely cruised the switchbacks to their mountain home. As they cruised past the Westridge lodge light drops of rain drifted down. Barrman raised the windshield on the bike, the drops floated around them and they kept on climbing the switchbacks. 

Soon they pulled into the village at 5700 feet. A feeling of tranquility had taken over his entire being. Calm, peaceful energy filled the air in the village. 

Barrman looked over his shoulder at Kaydee and gave her a great big grin, “It feels amazing to be here. I’m sure glad we came up on the bike. I forget sometimes how therapeutic riding is.”

“Ya, it’s pretty peaceful here. I’m glad we came too. We need to do this more.”

“We do and we will.” Barrman eased the bike down the last couple of corners before the condo. Determined to ride more often. Sometimes it’s most important to simply breathe.

And Big White is one of the best places to do just that.

Breathe.