Anchorage

We rode into Anchorage in the late afternoon, as the sun was still high in the sky.  Summertime in Alaska is amazing.  On the first freeway in over a month, coming into Anchorage, traffic was at a standstill.  A moose was hanging out in the road.  As we were to find out, this is a normal occurance here.

Harper had a friend of a friend's address, we had shipped some stuff to their address.  First order of business was to swing by, say hi, maybe have a beer or two and go on our way.  We showed up @ Brad and Emily's place, to find them on their way to get take-out pizza and beer from the Moose's Tooth.  They had planned to throw a real nice dinner for us, and get us drunk so we couldn't leave for a week!

Nicest, most awesome, super coolest people ever.

There is something neat about hanging out in the backyard, having beers with good people, at midnight, and it still be sunny out.

Did I mention that Brad and Emily rock?

We enjoyed their company, a Bruce Lee film, the longest tennis match ever, some great food, stories about AK and otherwise over lots of MGD.  They both grew up in Wisconsin, and have a soft spot for Milwaukee beer.  can't say I blame 'em, its good stuff.

We ended up changing out tires in the front yard to get ready for our trip up the Dalton Highway, to the most northern point of the USA accessable by road.

super-knobbies for $8 total

We never did get any pictures with Brad & Emily, I suppose when you are having a chill time with cool people, you don't really think about it at the time.  Looking back, I wish I had taken some.  You'll just have to trust me that they are rad.

You know you’re taking your time when…

After a night of changing tires, and a rainy morning of pushing my flooded bike around without spark-plugs to clear the cylinder out (I need to remember to shut the fuel valve OFF when I stop), we got rolling towards Dawson City.  We need to jettison some excess tire weight.

We don’t see any other vehicles for about 60 miles, this is remote country.  As we ride into Dawson City we pass miles and miles of huge fan like-morraine-looking things along the side of the road, they are the dredgings from the gold mining.  They now build houses on top of them!

At the last fuel stop before we enter Alaska, we see that same hitchhiker and his dog again.  You know you’re taking your time when you get passed by a hitchhiker.  We quickly grab a cup-a-joe and jump on the last ferry across the great Yukon.

 the days route 352 km

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The Alcan

We hobbled through the end of the Cassair Hwy  and entered Yukon Territories from rainy British Columbia, after what seemed like a month in BC.  It was actually seven rainy days now that I look back.  Huh, time flies when you’re having fun… fixing blown out tires, gingerly riding through packs of bears, rain that only lets up for snowstorms, enduring cheap Canadian whiskey and nursing worn out tires the entire way.

It was here that met the famous Alaska Hwy.  Compared to the Cassiar it was a two lane freeway, what with its smooth pavement, wide shoulders, rest stops and traffic.  We talked to a guy on a bicycle who had ridden from Montreal.  He was planning to go to Prudhoe Bay and then south to Tierra Del Fuego on that bicycle.  It made our trip seem like a breeze, even on waning tires that were down to threads with 1,100 km to go to Anchorage.

On the first sunny, hot day we experienced so far on this trip, we hobbled into Whitehorse, YT, only to find no over-priced tires in Harper’s size.  Tires in Canada are ridiculously expensive.  Not even any realistically priced tires.  After speaking with the parts guy, we convinced him to let us see the pile of used tires out back.  We found a used rear tire for Harper, plus two complete sets of perfectly good super-knobbies for the Haul Road!!!!  Threw the parts guy $2 for each tire, YES!!!

We packed up and headed up the Klondike towards Dawson City and it got remote again.  At a fueling station we saw our first hitchhiker, whom had a dog with him and thought the rides must be few and far between on this road.  At camp, Harper started the magical change-out, aided by the ever-handy firewood/bike stand multi-tool.