‘7000 bears on the island’
If you’re flying in, you’ll need an Electronic Travel Authorization, which takes five minutes on your mobile and usually means you can stay up to six months. Visit gov.uk/foreign-traveladvice and click on Canada to find the official links for visa and ETA requirements.
Renting a motorcycle
We’ve used Cycle BC to rent a GS in the past and had a great experience with them. Don’t forget you need a full licence and must take this with you. Check out cyclebc.ca/ vancouver for more info.
Riding
The best time of year to travel to the west of Canada is between June and September, especially if you want to ride the Icefields Parkway. The country is full of incredible gravel tracks and they’re easy to find online. If you don’t fancy riding off-road then you’re still spoilt for choice with stunning asphalt routes.
Routes
Our favourite route takes 10-14 days. Start in Vancouver and head to Whistler, Kamloops then north to Mount Robson. Ride the Icefields from Jasper to Banff. Make your way to Revelstoke, Nelson, Kelowna and back to Vancouver. You’ll find detailed explanations of this Wild West Canada route online. Another option is to head to stunning Vancouver Island.
Accommodation
You’ll find plenty of options for budget motels and hotels. In peak season the prices will be high around the Icefields Parkway and rooms can get filled up fast. If you’re going to camp, be very aware of bears. There are rules and procedures you must follow that explain how to camp in bear country and what to do if confronted. Read up on them first and consider carrying bear spray; there are over 7000 bears on Vancouver Island alone!
Tested by Ben Clarke for three months
The Rev’It Paramount (or onesie as it is affectionately known at MCN Towers) is an all-in-one, laminated textile riding suit. It features a main zip that runs all the way from the neck to the left ankle which makes it easy to step into, and means you can wear office clobber beneath and be ready to face the day in no time.
The overall effect is similar to dry suits used by the RNLI – but with the benefit of CE Level 2 armour at the elbows, shoulders and back and some low-profile level one inserts at the hips. I don’t think a textile garment will ever match the security of leather, but this is the most comfortable I’ve been in Gore-Tex. The laminated fabric is a little stiff when you first pull the Paramount on, but breaks in after a few hundred miles of use and you can almost forget you’re wearing it on the bike.
Off the bike, the experience is a little different. It’s still very comfortable, but the noise it makes as you walk is enough to make an entire office turn around.
The other slight issue is that the zip rucks up around the crotch. Or to put it another way, you look a bit too pleased to see your bike! It’s also a little disappointing that there’s no option for a removable thermal liner. I have ridden through the winter months in it and have added my own mid-layer jacket to stay warm on the top half. If temperatures were closer to zero you’d need to add base layers underneath your clothes and then lose a lot of the ‘ready-for-work’ practicality that attracted me in the first place.
The Paramount’s party piece – allowing you to shed your outer layer in seconds and be ready to crack on with your day – will never cease to impress and I’m willing to put up with a couple of minor shortcomings in exchange.
Yes, it needs more pockets and yes, you get cold if you don’t layer up underneath in winter, but the sheer quality, finish and convenience of the thing is hard to look past. And most of all, I absolutely know that whatever the weather throws at me, I’ll stay completely dry for as long as I need to keep riding, and that’s priceless. Unfortunately, it’s very much not priceless. It’s rather priceful, in fact. But given the cost of top-spec kit these days and the fact that this really does deliver on its promises, I believe it’s worth every penny.
Quality Value www.revitsport.com