Sunday, July 10th and Hoody literally drags Olde Dutch out for a bike ride. 
It will be the only ride for Summer 2011 since Hoody will be way laid by foot surgery on the 15th and out of commission for awhile. We’ve chosen the Glen Valley route which begins in Langley at the Fort Langley National Historic Park. For the record, Olde Dutch wants it known that Koody and Newbie are sorely missed (they both live in Portland now). If they lived in Vancouver, Olde Dutch could duck the ride as he’d rather be at home. He’s strictly here to appease Hoody today.
Now that the back ground details are taken care of, we are on our way. The route starts with a bit of back tracking of our previous Langley ride. We head east along River Road
and then turn onto 240th Street. We immediately remember that this corner is home to Dolly the sheep (she’s nowhere to be seen, probably shorn and invisible to the naked eye) and Koody’s friend, Billy the Goat. Billy’s munching away on the grass so we just give a friendly wave and continue on our way.
A quick left onto 80th Avenue and then a right picking up the historic Telegraph Trail once again. A memory refresher – this was once an overland telegraph route begun in 1865 to link Russia and the USA but was later abandoned . We would be oblivious of the trail except for an historic marker as the area is now quite residential.
From Telegraph Trail we take a left at 72nd Avenue and a right at 256th Street.
The countryside is beautiful and the houses impressive. It is obvious we are in horse country (no doubt as Langley is the horse capital of British Columbia) as there are many horses out to pasture. Oddly enough, many of the them have a cotton wrap over their eyes, as if the horses are blinded. We later learn that this is a mesh fly veil used to protect the horses’ eyes from flies and mosquitoes. The flies will even lay eggs in the eyes which can lead to ill health and disease. However, we were assured that the horses can see quite well from behind their ‘blindfolds’. This was certainly true as a few of them moseyed up to the fence as we went by.
At the corner of 256th Street and 64th Avenue, we chance upon the Thunderbird Equestrian Show Park.
And just our luck – the Western Family Show Jumping Tournament is in progress. This tournament showcases the best future Grand Prix riders in the Pacific North West. We by-pass the entrance and the $10 entry fee and head straight for the stands. 
They can accommodate a whopping 3500 spectators so we feel quite fortunate to get a seat. 
We have an excellent vantage 
point to see horse and rider attempt quite a few of the jumps, 
the majority making it through the course, although we did witness a few horses who stopped last minute, throwing their rider, as they refused to jump.
Hoping our ‘horses’ won’t buck, Hoody and Olde Dutch hit a comfortable stride, along 64th Avenue, turning right on 272nd Street. We cross the railroad tracks, noticing what we think is a lone and abandoned train station. In actual fact, it is part of the BC Electric Railway.
This railway was completed in 1911 and carried passengers, freight, mail and gossip from Chilliwack to Vancouver. Along the rail lines settlements sprung up, developing into town centres, such as Newton, Cloverdale, Langley and Abbotsford, just to name a few. What we thought was a train station is the old Coghlan Substation. It supplied 600 volts of direct current to the trolleys along the line, giving them a boost of energy to make it to the next substation.
Giving ourselves a little ‘boost’, we continue along taking note of a bit of unusual wild life –
a few wooden ducks taken to sun bathing (we’ve yet to see the sun in Vancouver this summer) and a resident ‘albino’ mama and baby bear. 
They held their pose just long enough for me to snap this adorable photo.
At 80th Avenue we turned right and cycled along endless tracts of cranberry bogs and honey bee hives.
We kept our distance, not relishing the thought of a sting. And then it was smooth cycling, 80th Avenue becoming Dyke Road and then back on River Road to Fort Langley. It was a day to savor the scenery along the Fraser River with the Golden Ears Mountains as a back drop. We tuned our ears to the chirping of birds and an occasional horse ‘whiney’. Otherwise, we were lost in our own thoughts – Hoody her upcoming foot operation and Olde Dutch the logistics of his 1st deck building at home.
We were hardly alone on the latter portion of our ride as other cyclists were out in full force this morning. It was explained to us later that the ‘Fort to Fort’ ride (which we happened to be on) is a popular route for many ‘Sunday’ riders. We could certainly understand why – it’s quite flat and scenic. Our 33 km trip complete, we felt refreshed and satisfied
and ended the day with a delicious lunch in Fort Langley. Olde Dutch found the ride particularly enjoyable and has changed his tune. He’s decided he’d like to hit the road again. We’ll be at it in 2012 so see you in the saddle then!
It will be the only ride for Summer 2011 since Hoody will be way laid by foot surgery on the 15th and out of commission for awhile. We’ve chosen the Glen Valley route which begins in Langley at the Fort Langley National Historic Park. For the record, Olde Dutch wants it known that Koody and Newbie are sorely missed (they both live in Portland now). If they lived in Vancouver, Olde Dutch could duck the ride as he’d rather be at home. He’s strictly here to appease Hoody today.Now that the back ground details are taken care of, we are on our way. The route starts with a bit of back tracking of our previous Langley ride. We head east along River Road
and then turn onto 240th Street. We immediately remember that this corner is home to Dolly the sheep (she’s nowhere to be seen, probably shorn and invisible to the naked eye) and Koody’s friend, Billy the Goat. Billy’s munching away on the grass so we just give a friendly wave and continue on our way.A quick left onto 80th Avenue and then a right picking up the historic Telegraph Trail once again. A memory refresher – this was once an overland telegraph route begun in 1865 to link Russia and the USA but was later abandoned . We would be oblivious of the trail except for an historic marker as the area is now quite residential.
From Telegraph Trail we take a left at 72nd Avenue and a right at 256th Street.
The countryside is beautiful and the houses impressive. It is obvious we are in horse country (no doubt as Langley is the horse capital of British Columbia) as there are many horses out to pasture. Oddly enough, many of the them have a cotton wrap over their eyes, as if the horses are blinded. We later learn that this is a mesh fly veil used to protect the horses’ eyes from flies and mosquitoes. The flies will even lay eggs in the eyes which can lead to ill health and disease. However, we were assured that the horses can see quite well from behind their ‘blindfolds’. This was certainly true as a few of them moseyed up to the fence as we went by.
At the corner of 256th Street and 64th Avenue, we chance upon the Thunderbird Equestrian Show Park.
And just our luck – the Western Family Show Jumping Tournament is in progress. This tournament showcases the best future Grand Prix riders in the Pacific North West. We by-pass the entrance and the $10 entry fee and head straight for the stands. 
They can accommodate a whopping 3500 spectators so we feel quite fortunate to get a seat. 
We have an excellent vantage 
point to see horse and rider attempt quite a few of the jumps, 
the majority making it through the course, although we did witness a few horses who stopped last minute, throwing their rider, as they refused to jump.Hoping our ‘horses’ won’t buck, Hoody and Olde Dutch hit a comfortable stride, along 64th Avenue, turning right on 272nd Street. We cross the railroad tracks, noticing what we think is a lone and abandoned train station. In actual fact, it is part of the BC Electric Railway.
This railway was completed in 1911 and carried passengers, freight, mail and gossip from Chilliwack to Vancouver. Along the rail lines settlements sprung up, developing into town centres, such as Newton, Cloverdale, Langley and Abbotsford, just to name a few. What we thought was a train station is the old Coghlan Substation. It supplied 600 volts of direct current to the trolleys along the line, giving them a boost of energy to make it to the next substation.Giving ourselves a little ‘boost’, we continue along taking note of a bit of unusual wild life –
a few wooden ducks taken to sun bathing (we’ve yet to see the sun in Vancouver this summer) and a resident ‘albino’ mama and baby bear. 
They held their pose just long enough for me to snap this adorable photo.At 80th Avenue we turned right and cycled along endless tracts of cranberry bogs and honey bee hives.
We kept our distance, not relishing the thought of a sting. And then it was smooth cycling, 80th Avenue becoming Dyke Road and then back on River Road to Fort Langley. It was a day to savor the scenery along the Fraser River with the Golden Ears Mountains as a back drop. We tuned our ears to the chirping of birds and an occasional horse ‘whiney’. Otherwise, we were lost in our own thoughts – Hoody her upcoming foot operation and Olde Dutch the logistics of his 1st deck building at home.
We were hardly alone on the latter portion of our ride as other cyclists were out in full force this morning. It was explained to us later that the ‘Fort to Fort’ ride (which we happened to be on) is a popular route for many ‘Sunday’ riders. We could certainly understand why – it’s quite flat and scenic. Our 33 km trip complete, we felt refreshed and satisfied
and ended the day with a delicious lunch in Fort Langley. Olde Dutch found the ride particularly enjoyable and has changed his tune. He’s decided he’d like to hit the road again. We’ll be at it in 2012 so see you in the saddle then!
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