The ride Days 9 & 10

Let me see now. These 2 days see me1305 miles south from Anchorage in a little town called Stewart BC across the canal from Hyder. I look out my window and I can see 2 glaciers and actually drove by one on the way in this evening.
Let's start though with a cold and misty morning as I leave Anchorage and head to Tok and back down the Alcan hwy, a route that is reverse of the one I took just a week ago.
What major changes though, now it is greener and as the day wears on the weather really improves along with my mood. I have Breakfast at Glenn Allen a town that is at a crossroads for the Alaska pipeline. Then on to the Border and back onto YT and follow the mountain ranges all the way down to Haines Junction. A good nights reat and at 6:30 I am off again to Watson Lake YT where I will leave the Alcan to ride the infamous Cassiar Hwy south to Stewart BC. Infamous because this raod used to be a logging road and some of it is still not paved and the frost really does a number on the paved parts. Caution is a good thing and the further south you get the better the road gets as well.
The scenery all along is nothing short of majestic and I have many pictures to prove it. In addition to the beautiful mountains scenes I got to see Elk Moose and about 9 black bears hanging out by the side of the road. I even saw a young Grizzly lumbering across the road as well. That was the icing on the cake and made the long rides and sore behind quite worthwhile!
One more unexpected encounter was a huge brown animal roaming the road, that turned out to be a horse just hanging out by the side of the road. I had seen watch out for horses sign but had not come across one until then.
Now after all is said and done I am at the Prince Edward Hotel finally relaxing and about to go to bed. Tomorrow is a relatively short ride to Prince Rupert where I will catch Ferry to Port hardy on Vancouver Island either June 2 or 4 depending on space available. Tried to book tonight but they were closed already! It only runs every other day!
NOTE: just click on the half hidden pictures and you can see them full screen!

The Ride Days 7 & 8

Well day 7 found me in Fairbanks a town nestled along the Chena river. Like so many towns up here it owes its existence to natural resources starting with gold and gas and oil.
Lately this has also become the first or last day of a cruise and Princess, Holland America buses are everywhere.As to me I had my bike serviced went to the University Mueseum which was outstanding. Both the art as well as the historical exhibits were well woth seeing. After that I went downtown strolled the center which too about 15 minutes and had an Alaskan Salmon dinner in a restaurant frequented by mostly local people. The Salmon was the best I have ever had and I chatted wit a local about the town. Speaking of people I find them very open and fun to talk to. There way of life is so different from ours. They have to concentrate so much more on basic necessities and the luxuries we take for granted are not really on their A-list.
Today I got up real early and headed to Anchorage, by far the largest town I have seen since leaving the lower 48.
Thway down was the one that I hoped would get me a glance at Mt McKinley. Unfortunately the weather did not play along and for about 250 miles I rode in freezing cold rain and drizzle and even some mountains close to the road were barely seen.
I still managed to get some good shots of the Denali range.
Came to Anchorage and it is finally clearing up a bit. I checked into my motel and planned the next few days of riding which should bring me to Prince Rupert by 6-4 by the earliest ad then I will leave the mainland for Vancouver Island.
Actually as far as mile are concerned I am past the half way point but many a new place yet to be seen

The ride, day 7

What a day it was indeed from towering mountains to wide open spaces,lakes and rivers, from great roads to stretches of rock and mud, from freezing temps in White horse to 72F in Tok and back to 48 in Fairbanks. Add to that a morning haze followed by brilliant sunshine, a dust storm and rain and you kind of get the picture of the day.
As always I set an ambitious goal to reach Tok AK but with a new found AK/Fairbanks native Harley rider I ended up in Fairbanks 2 days ahead of schedule.Tomorrow a day of rest and bike maintenance in Fairbanks.
The landscape continues to be breathtaking and the people are truly nice and helpful.
One of the highlights of the day belong to some four legged friends. A local musher was transporting his team and let us pet and photograph those magnificent animals.
Oh I almost forgot I FINISHED THE ALCAN! Now on to bigger and better things. Just kidding of course!

The ride Days 4.5,6

Hey you know what you get when you cross a BMW bike with a great trip and an old dude riding it:
Answer: A callused butt!
Anyway I am writing this 3045 Miles from home in the Yukon Provincial Territorial " White Horse". As capitals go this is by far the smallest I have ever seen but civilization is encroaching the old way of living here. There is a Walmart Superstore and MacDonalds. The folks up here are friendly and helpful but it is pretty pricey especially when it comes to rooms.
Camped out the last 2 nights and had fun doing it but today I needed a bed and more than that I needed a place to do laundry as I smelled as bad as some of the buffalo I saw on the road today.
It's all done now and after a shower I feel much better and the clean clothes help as well.
As to the ride ist has been nothing short of awe inspiring, towering mountains wide valleys long stretches of road where you are actually looking forward to a road sign as at times you feel like you are the only person out here.
After Leaving my great campsite this morning at 6AM I rode for 168 miles and I saw more Caribou, Buffalo and bears than cars!
As to camping, my gear is great and even though the temperatures at night fall below freezinf I stay toasty warm in my slepping bag. Maybe listening to brother IZ on my Ipod helped too!
Highlight: Liard Hot Springs park where I camped last night is very aptly named.
There are 2 pools there at about 105F that are swimable. I sat in one for 45 minutes and boy did that feel good.
The animals I saw so far 2 adult bears (1 brown 1 black) a mama bear (black) and 2 fur ball cubs!
Buffalo at the side of the road Caribou running with me and Mountain sheep! I hhave many a picture which I know you are all dying to see when I am done with this trip.
Speaking of animals, this morning at 4:15 (it was already daylight) I was awakened by snorting and the shuffling of feet outside my tent. Got my attention but there was no way I was going to check out who this early morning visitor was.
Tomorrow will see me finally cross into Alaska my goal on this trip and I am excited for this new part of the trip.
Hope you recognise the Scruff!

Day 3 of the Ride

What a marvelous day for a ride. A cloudless sky temperatures in the high 60s great roads and very little traffic.
Started out early and crossed into Canada about 6:45 in the morning. In spite of the warnings nobody here follows the speed limits so I rode casually but speedy singing "How Great Thou Art" through areas of glacial beauty to raging rivers past places called Hells Gate ( rapids on the Fraser River) a mountain called Jackass Mountain , Clinton, Lac La Hache and finally Prince George where I ended up this afternoon.
At times it felt like Bavaria, other times like riding along the Mogollon Rim and then it switched to wooded rolling hills with forests' flowers, lakes and rivers everywhere.
Lunch was at Lac la Hache at the Edelweiss Cafe. Owned by an Austrian couple they served me a great Gulash soup and a mini Schnitzel.(Kinderteller) All that was missing was a beer but that does not go with riding a bike.
The only thing that saddened me was to see the millions of trees dying from the Pine bark beetle attack. Whole sections of the forest were dead or dying but there is nothing that can be done short of setting everything on fire to destroy this horrible bug.
As Philip said when we witnessed last weeks earthquake, nature has a way of showing us just how little we can do in so many instances.
Today's ride was the shortest about 395 miles and tomorrow will be the beginning of the Alaska highway at Dawson Creek.
Again wish me luck I love you all very much!

Day 2 the adventure contrinues

Another long day 603 miles when it was all done and now I am at my Motel 6 resting and reflecting on the day.
5:45 it's twilight and cold. 42F. So I leave with just my normal gear! Mistake, I got so cold I stopped at 8 for bf and changed into the full dress gear. Much better and the scenery was much better as well because I did not shiver as much.
So Far the 3 mountains I saw, Shasta, Hood and Mt St Helens were unbelievable standing there all by themselves dominating the landscape for miles and miles.
Another impressive picture of nature were the acres of wild Forsythia blooming along the hwy!
The bike ran great and the only not so good thing was that the heavy week end traffic caused me to lose 2hrs in stop and go in the Seattle area. So instead of arriving at Bellingham at 2:30 as planned it was 4:30 and I am a bit tired.
Tomorrow early morning I will cross over into Canada and start riding about 300 miles a day on roads with very little traffic and great scenery. I'll be able to stop and take pictures as the ones today were all taken at 70+ mph on the freeway!
Now I'll run across the street to buy a bath towel as camp grounds do not provide them and tomorrow a camping I will go unless it rains.
So fa the weather has been outstanding up here! Wish me continued luck on my adventure!

The Ride is on

Well the alarm worked and after a nice breakfast and a loving farewell from my Bea I set out on the big adventure.
Leaving at 5:45 Of course I hit LA traffic but made it fine. Rode all the way hard and fast to Yreka in Northern CA. Arrived at 4:30 and checked into my 4 Seasons i.e. The Motel 6. Cleaned my bike a bit and now am going out to dinner at the Buffalo Diner next doors for a light supper.

The ride was great, especially the last 100 miles past the majestic Mt Shasta, Shasta Lake various canyons without a name. It is quite Alpine here with pines and very peaceful so I should get a good night's rest before heading out around 5:30 tomorrow morning. My Goal tomorrow is Bellingham WA and the on to BC on Saturday.
Total Miles today 691.6 and my "derrier" says Thanks a lot!

Kailua Hawaii a place to enjoy

We just returned from 2 weeks at a place where people stop for pedestrians in the roadway, let tourists in and out of parking lots unscathed and where everything is taken a half step slower.
Even though the Island food is a melange of many cultures you will find many purely ethnic restaurants. I should know we visited many of them! Many a food I cannot pronounce but enjoyed anyway.
You all know my preoccupation with food but this trip was to be with Megan and her parents and enjoy all the surroundings.
We accomplished getting to know our little princess very well and she is a beautiful child in all aspects. She is easy to get along likes to laugh and play with her toys the animals and when available mom dad Oma and Opa. Of course we took full advantage of this and by the pictures we sent you all saw the great times we had with her, Eric and Melissa.
The water-adventures went great with great visibility and no waves and plenty of sea life, shopping was a success as well, as if Oahu's economy needed a boost!
The only draw back was the hot and humid conditions. Our little cabin had neither ceiling fans nor A/C. We perspired a lot and just maybe old Fatso here lost a pound in spite of all the food and drink.
All I can say Aloha is alive and well at 564 Palawiki, Kailua Hawaii and we are looking forward to returning this fall to welcome grand baby number 3.

a reflection on Edward Abbey, poet and naturalist

Recently I have been reading some Edward Abbey publications and while he is controversial to say the least his descriptions and thoughts of our vanishing wilderness areas are outstanding indeed.
In the last few weeks I had the opportunity to witness the might and power of the wilderness and though the venues were total opposites the thoughts that came into my mind where the same.
Number one was a trip to Bear Canyon so aptly described in Philip's blog while number 2 was an experience diving the North Shore of Oahu specifically the Shark's cove area.
Normally a very placid dive spot we had 7 ft surf sets crashing into the shore.
Finding a good entry we dove around coral heads seeing a multitude of sea life in beautiful but clear water. Then came the return swim and a dive being swept through a rough channel by a power not matched by human strength. We were at the mercy of the current and only our preparations kept us safe until we were swept up on a sandy shore emerging from the water exhilarated by the "Ride" but truly humbled and thankful for being safely on the beach.
Now you might ask what that had to do with the dark canyon walls ice cold black water and yes ice covered lagoons.
The canyon displaying the passive power of the wilderness not caring what we had to endure to navigate our way safely out of its confines......and then the Ocean with its active wave sets telling us too
" YOU THE HUMANS ARE INTRUDERS, YOU ARE AT OUR MERCY! YOU CAN COME PREPARED AND ENJOY OR YOU CAN JUST COME AND MAYBE EVEN PERISH.... WE THE OCEAN AND WILDERNESS DON'T CARE, WE WILL BE THERE LONG AFTER YOU HAVE GONE!"