The Journey Is The Thing

“A good traveler has no fixed plan, and is not intent on arriving”

Lao Tzu, The Way of Life.

Riding a motorbike has taught me how to live. I pray more. I pay more attention to my surroundings. I focus on the road ahead. And I plan trips based on the road and not the destination.

Our latest bike journey took us through Aschroft, Nakusp and Rock Creek. Not exactly top holiday destinations. But the roads in between . . .

I have this book that lists the top 180 motorcycle roads in BC. The roads are ranked according to their twistiness, engineering, pavement quality, remoteness and various other features. Whenever we get the opportunity to take off on the bike, we first consult this book. And then we plan our journey around the roads we want to take. Destinations are simply rest stops on the journey.

This last trip, during breakfast in Aschroft, we discovered an alternate route to Kamloops that would take us off the beaten path of HWY 1. We changed our course entirely and spent several hours on one of BC’s best roads and only saw about three other vehicles!

Detours are part of the journey. And, as someone brilliant once said, “The journey is the thing.”

In a world that sometimes pressures us to have a five year plan for everything, it’s nice to get on a bike and plan for the journey and not the destination.

“Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” Jesus