Great Divide Mountainbike Route (GDMBR)

We rode the Great Divide Mountainbike Route (GDMBR) in 2023.

The GDMBR is a 4339 km/2696 mile long mountainbike route from Banff in Canada to Antelope Wells on the American/Mexican border of New Mexico. Of all these kms, 90% is unpaved. It goes through the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia and the US states Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico. It follows the Continental Divide, a mountain range in all of Americas that separates the watersheds that drain into the Pacific Ocean from those that drain into the Atlantic Ocean. A large part of the route is through the Rocky Mountains.

The route has existed for quite some time and has been on our to-ride-list since about 2012. Because Ronnie could take a sabbatical this year, we were finally able to ride the route.

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GDMBR Calgary

After a pretty sleepless night we put the bikes together and did some shopping. We had to get used to the lovely heat, but we didn’t mind, and Bernice showed us a bit of the city and its surroundings. We were planning on leaving for Banff the next day, but then we found out the famous Calgary Stampede was starting then. It’s a week of carnival, eating, drinking, but mostly of rodeo’s. Of course it would be great to stay and experience this famous event, so we decided to stay another day. Continue reading

GDMBR Banff – Fernie

After a good night sleep we would finally start the GDMBR! The route starts at the famous Banff Springs Hotel, so we had to go there first. The trailhead wasn’t hard to find. We knew it was going to be tough from the beginning because there are some steep climbs from the beginning. And indeed, the climbs were steep so the legs woke up quickly. But it was beautiful and we rode through nice scenery of forest and water. We also saw our first (black) bear and had our first wild camping night. There were many bears in the area, but fortunately we didn’t have any problems. We did see a moose passing by our tent one morning. Continue reading