July 8th: Heading home! (For some of us.)

(I'm trying a new system of including photos. If you want to see larger version as well as easily access all the other photos we don't have room for in the blog, click on the photo and you will be taken to the related Flickr photo page.)

We probably had our fastest departure ever because we didn’t have to take down tents (Thanks to the French Cultural Centre for putting us up) and we didn’t have to setup and take down a camp kitchen. We received an invitation to a free breakfast at Cafe Soleil and they were wonderful hosts pleased to support our message. The owner Dennis Perley said our cause is important and we must "never, never, never give up".

We were joined by a good group of Kelowna cyclists who accompanied us for varying distances before heading back. Our numbers never diminished because more riders came out from Vernon including 10 year old Hannah and 6 year Noah. Most of the day was very pleasant riding with stops for saskatoon berries and swimming and many stunning views of Lake Kalamalka.


After one last ripping downhill into Vernon we met up at Polson Park and then dispersed to homes and homestays. For more than half of our core group it a welcome chance to be in a familiar place and leave behind all the things that turned out to be unnecessary like the portable toilet and skateboards. Those of us homestaying took advantage of free showers, laundry, and real beds.



The bike rally in the park was a huge success with about 50 participants. Look out for those Wheels for Change bike flags around town. A fantastic potluck dinner followed with some speeches and and entertainment as people lounged on the grass or checked out the booths with info on creating a sustainable future.