When a once in a lifetime opportunity presents itself, take it! Can I describe my upcoming detour a deviation from the deviation? Traveling east along the Yellowhead puts us so touchably close to the heart of the Canadian Rockies at Jasper, that to pass on the opportunity to bike the Icefields Parkway would be foolish. Originally, we would be cruising down the Caribou Hwy and most likely would have already branched off towards the Sea to Sky, yet now we are in McBride, BC deciding to forgo the Southern Yellowhead Hwy toward Kamloops and instead continue east to Jasper. After we are content with our experiences in Jasper and Banff, we will venture back west across BC to hopefully resume our planned route up and through Whistler and then down into Vancouver. I have no timeline, or commitments, so this decision is merely a choice about opportunities, seasons, flexibility and a complete love of seeing the world (however wet and cold) on a bike. Including play and rest time, this deviation may add two weeks to the tour de Canada, and our only threat is the oncoming winter weather. However, the trade-off in weather has been met with much calmer roads and quieter places. Now, imagine taking those serenely beautiful Canadian Rockies, taking out the people, adding lots of fall colors, and then slowly pedaling your way from lake to lake and glacier to glacier. See you in Banff!