Category: travel

Hiking / Skiing Banff March 2024

On By Rick McIn food, friends, hiking, travelLeave a comment

For the 4th year in a row, I stayed at the Samesun Hostel in Banff.

Alternated days of winter hiking and downhill skiing.

I skied one day with Kelly from Canmore. Two days with Rocco.

Click PLAY or watch Rocco on YouTube. Footage from my new Insta360 Ace Pro action camera.

April 1, 2024 conditions were PERFECT for me.

I opined that this was the best ski day at Sunshine for 10,000 years. 😀

Me and Assiniboine

Kelly introduced me to happy hour at Hello Sunshine Banff Sushi. Fantastic.

I’ll be posting 2024 hiking videos on BestHike.com.

Here’s a hike from the past that gives a good idea what it’s like to get on the trails in the Spring.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

MORE videos from Banff.

related – Spring Hiking/Skiing Banff 2023

I’m already looking forward to 2025 in Banff.

Hello Sunshine Banff Sushi

On By Rick McIn food, friends, travel1 Comment

Kelly — a BIG Sushi fan — lives in Canmore.

His favourite restaurant in Banff is Hello Sunshine Sushi during Happy Hour.

50% off many Sushi platters.

As well as beer and other menu item specials.

I’m hoping to go 3 times this week. 😀

Kelly introduced me to Hello Sunshine after a GREAT day skiing powder at … Sunshine.

HIGHLIGHTS ➙ Parksville / Qualicum Beach

On By Rick McIn travelLeave a comment

Every tourist enjoys Vancouver Island. Much to do. Much to see.

Here’s a good starting point for someone planning to visit our area, north of Nanaimo.

17 Best Things to do in Parksville Qualicum Beach

Inspired by Bikepackers

On By Rick McIn cycling, travelLeave a comment

One thing I like about bike touring is that almost ANYBODY could do it.

Almost ANYBODY can ride a bike.

For example, Giant Cheerio decided to take off on a bike for a month. …

After over 2 years, she’s still on the road.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Visiting Port Townsend 2024

On By Rick McIn food, friends, travelLeave a comment

Due to the pandemic, I hadn’t made it back to Port Townsend, Washington since 2019.

Since then, Doug and Diana had built a new house on one of their properties.

I was both 3rd and 4th in the guestbook, visiting both going to and coming from Coeur d’Alene.

Carrie came up from Vancouver WA to videotape a chat with myself and Doug about the start of the Tumbl Trak Ambassador Program. Actually, she drove MANY hours in the dark and rain to pick me up in Port Angeles.

I was the first Ambassador, we think, when Doug gave me an inflatable tumbling mat to take to my Gymnastics tour of Australia in 2007. I did clinics in 5 different States.

The other BIG news of my visit was that Diana was getting packed for a trip to Europe with a friend.

Also — Doug bought a new car. A Nissan Leaf.

It was my fault. I took the ferry from Seattle to Bremerton WA by mistake — and there happened to be a Nissan dealership there. 😀

As always in Port Townsend, we enjoyed some terrific meals.

My favourite was Finistère.

Carrie’s oysters with horse radish

As always, I got out running and hiking.

This is dawn down close to Fort Worden.

If you’ve never been, Port Townsend is a tourist gem hidden away off the main highway in northern Washington State.

Still using the Komoot app for Cycling

On By Rick McIn cycling, hiking, travelLeave a comment

For 2024 I’m still using a paid version of Komoot for Bike Touring / Bikepacking.

Other sports included are Running, Hiking, Mountain Biking and Road Cycling.

Currently I’m still using a paid version of AllTrails for Hiking.

Komoot uses OpenStreetMap.

It has an Apple Watch app assistant.

Click PLAY or see how it works on YouTube.

A Tourist in Seattle

On By Rick McIn food, travelLeave a comment

I do like being a tourist close to Pike Place Market in Seattle.

The original Starbucks opened here in 1971.

Downtown Seattle is a little grungy. That makes it more interesting.

I normally stay at a Green Tortoise Hostel right by the Market.

One night they offered all you can eat Mexican.

Next night, Green Tortoise offered all you can drink local wine.

Ivar’s is a Washington State institution.

I had several meals there looking over the port.

Clam Chowder in a sour dough bread bowl

AND here’s where you drop off your gum when finished chewing. 😀

Visiting Dave & Lisa in Idaho

On By Rick McIn cycling, friends, gymnastics, travelLeave a comment

Once again I had a terrific time in Coeur d’Alene.

Our first day, we joined in the FUN at Dave’s gourmet restaurant, Candle in the Woods.

Chef David

An amazing, unforgettable meal.

baked onion

Timing of this visit was to volunteer at my favourite Gymnastics competition in the world — the Great West Gym Fest.

It’s so well organized I didn’t really have much to do.

I DID help with the set-up and take-down of the Gym. And made a few VIDEOS of the competition, including this one.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

A few photos from the competition.

staring down the judges
Jeremy Mosier and Jim McLuskey

VIPs get to check out the resort penthouse. And balcony hot tub.

We did get out for one hike in Farragut State Park.

Delaney took me climbing. AND I was not bad … aside from then time I fell from the top risking concussion. 😀

Late February the weather was … mixed. We had some wind, some snow. Some sun.

I did get to try Dave’s Fat Bike out on their property.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Cycling the Isar river, Munich

On By Rick McIn cycling, travelLeave a comment

The Isar, 295 km long, flows through Munich.

I spent a lot of time last summer cycling this river.

One highlight is surfing a standing wave (a stationary hydraulic jump).

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

That’s in the English Garden (Englischer Garten), one of the world’s largest urban public parks. 

On sunny days, it’s packed with tens of thousands.

photo Ludmiła Pilecka

1000 km East to West Across Iceland

On By Rick McIn cycling, health & fitness, travelLeave a comment

I’m planning on cycling Iceland late summer 2024.

This would be the ultimate … — … AND I won’t be doing anything this challenging. 😀

Riders Chris Burkard, Eric Batty, Emily Batty, and Adam Morka.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.