Took El Mariachi for a two day mountain dance on the weekend. Left our house in Canmore at 6:15am on Friday, rode to Banff and that is where I picked up the Great Divide route. From Banff, the plan was to follow the Divide route to Elkford, BC - 176 km south. It was raining as I left Canmore and pretty much rained all day - even though the optimistic me kept thinking it would clear up. It was about 8 hours from Banff to the top of Elk pass and that was a bit of a sufferfest with the rain and cold temps. With all of the rain, trails get softer and it just sucks the energy out of each pedal stroke.
Here is a picture of the bike with all the gear loaded up on top of Elk pass (in the rain).
From Elk Pass it's about 76km to Elkford. With a few stops to warm up and eat, I made it into Elkford around 8:30pm in heavy rain and cold temps - a total of 14 hours on the bike. Instead of a potentially deadly cold bivy, I pulled out "Mr. Credit Card" and checked into the only real hotel in Elkford.
I was greeted by the nicest man who happened to playing saxophone when I arrived. His name is Jay and he looks and acts like Mr. Miyagi from the Karate Kid movies. After a comical hose down in the parking lot - courtesy of Jay, I washed off my bike and gear before storing it in the hotel office overnight.
Saturday morning was better for weather and after a "Hungry Man" breakfast at the Race Trac Cafe, I retraced my route to Canmore. On the way back into town, I was thinking - "Been there, get to do it again". Pretty stoked about that!
If you are interested in what's on the bike for gear, here is my Gear List.
Cockpit bag - food, sun glasses, reading glasses, camera
Handlebars - bike computer, GPS, Light
Aero Bars - I have the route descriptions in a water proof E-Case - flips out of the way
Under Handlebars - Waterproof bed roll holding ThermoRest, Bivy Sac and Sleeping bag
Frame Bag - 3 L bladder with water, repair kit, 2 tubes, lube, bug repellant, passport, wallet and some food
Gas Tank (under the seat) - extra set of cycling clothes, first aid kit, personal kit, and a windbreaker.
Deuter Race Exp Air backpack (not in the picture) - 3 L water bladder, down vest in waterproof stuff sack, food, sunscreen, chamois cream, bear spray, empty water bottle and spare batteries.
I was wearing rain coat, rain pants, kneekers, merino wool hat, helmet and gore tex socks. If it warms up, this gear goes into the Gas Tank. That's it for gear.
I had the opportunity to visit the Grade 3 classroom of a good friend of ours today at Elizabeth Rummel School in Canmore. What a hoot and great grounding before embarking on this adventure. Lesley Reid's class is fantastic - asking about the distances, where I will sleep, and just being interested in the bike. Why is it called the Great Divide? Answers Greg - if a rain drop falls on the western side of the Divide it flows to the Pacific Ocean. If it falls on the Eastern side, it ends up in the Atlantic... so went the questions and fun. I completely unpacked my bike and showed them everything. 
