Road to Nepal

Road to Nepal — Fish Creek to Spruce Meadows Green and south

Distance: ~80km · Elevation gain: ~900m · Surface: pavement

I've never been to Nepal. Having now ridden the Road to Nepal, I feel confident saying it's probably quite different. What we have here instead is a very good foothills loop with an aspirational name, and I've made my peace with that.

The route starts, for me, at Shannon Terrace in Fish Creek. Rolling south through the city to Spruce Meadows Green is the sensible-warmup portion of the day — get the legs turning over, remember which gear does what, that sort of thing. Nothing here will trouble you.

96 Street West to 226 Avenue West. This is where the ride actually begins. The city releases its grip fairly abruptly and you're into foothills country: rolling, open, and with the Rockies parked on the western horizon doing their thing. It's the sort of terrain that flatters a cyclist. You feel strong. You're not necessarily strong. But you feel it, and that counts for something.

112 Street West, past Granary Road. More of the same, in the best way. Granary Road Market sits on this stretch if you're the sort of rider who stops for things, and I won't judge you for it — but there's a rhythm to this section that's worth not breaking.

Ironstone Farms and the turn west onto Highway 549. Here is where the ride reveals its true character, and its true character is a bit of a menace. Highway 549 is a two-lane highway. The traffic is doing 100 kilometres an hour. The shoulder is best described as theoretical. For a few kilometres you are a small, brightly-coloured suggestion at the edge of someone else's commute, and the gap between "fine" and "not fine" is measured in centimetres of white paint.

I want to be straight about this rather than play it entirely for laughs: this stretch is the reason this loop isn't for everyone. It's short, it's manageable, and thousands of people ride it every year without incident. But you should know it's coming, ride it with your head up, and think hard about doing it in low light or high wind. If that doesn't appeal, this is a good loop to cut short.

Highway 22, north. And then, mercifully, a shoulder. A real, generous, load-bearing shoulder, wide enough to have opinions. The relief is immediate and slightly disproportionate. Highway 22 north is a long, honest drag with big views, and after 549 it feels like being handed a warm towel.

22X back to Spruce Meadows Green, then home to Fish Creek. Rolling it in. The legs know they're nearly done, the traffic thickens as the city reasserts itself, and you get the specific satisfaction of a loop that closed properly.

Verdict. Not Nepal. Very good anyway. The scenery does more work than the climbing does, the pavement is mostly excellent, and the one genuinely sketchy section is short enough to be survivable and long enough to make Highway 22 feel like a gift. Do it on a clear day, do it with good sightlines, and don't do it if 549 sounds like it'll ruin your afternoon — because it might.

Bring the legs. Bring the mirror. Leave the Sherpas at home.