Barbie Dodges Dragonflys on the Way to Whitehorse...

What a long day! What a long SUNNY day. I got a bit of sun today. We got up early and snuck out of town. We weren't the only ones.  There were several motorcycle riders that felt the town was too crowded and need to hit the road. We had a long day of about 350 miles to do. The road is not like a freeway... to drive in the car takes about 6.5-7 hours. The road is chip-seal with constant construction. The scenery is gorgeous but stays constant. It is easy to start day dreaming or even get sleepy when the scenery is constant. Add to that the fact that I didn't get to bed until midnight last night on account that I had conversations with fellow motorcyclists that were too interesting to cut short. Finally, the B and B (5th Avenue) sent us out the door with full tummies... I was a food coma waiting to happen.  (I highly recommend the good folks at 5th Avenue B and B - the best place to stay in Dawson). We were originally going to take a crack at Keno, but being tired and the long day worked against us. I packed all my stuff into my saddle bags... I slimmed down on the underwear so I could pack more beer.

All my supplies for the week..

I secured mini-barbie to my handlebars today.... Jaz had a couple of ties and I could get her out front so she could experience the wind blowing through her hair (and bugs sticking to her cheeks). She was riding on the side of my rear pannier earlier. She is happy up front where she can take the dragon flys head on.

Barbie in her new station in life..

Out on the road for long stretches like today allow me to think. I spent a lot of time thinking about the men I met this weekend. Eric road his dual sport up from Anchorage via Fairbanks with his daughter... his eyes twinkled when he talked about going to South America in 5 years. His wife doesn't share his passion for riding, so he is hoping his daughter will... she was about 13.

Then I talked with Gary. He and his wife road up from Eagle River. They have been coming to do D2D for many years. He talked about a time when the ride was small and the banquet was held on the patio. He thought this might be his last year.  He shared my passion of photography, and we spent some time chatting about good photos.

On the road I as sitting off waiting for Jaz..she was in the weeds shooting photos of industrial things and rusty stuff... when Dave pulled up.  Dave was another Brit on the road solo. He planned to ride from Houston, TX to Seattle, but at the last minute flew into Seattle and bought a brand new bike. From there he headed north to Anchorage via the Cassier, then on to Fairbanks, Prudhoe Bay, Inuvik, and then to Dawson. He was on his way to Calgary when he pulled up. Dave was cool! He didn't know what day it was... he thought it was Tuesday..,.. when it was really Friday, and he had no idea what the date was (June 22), nor did he have any idea on when he would get where he was going. He to wanted to head down to South America. He made an attempt last year starting at the southern tip and headed North, but disaster struck in Bolivia and he broke his leg.  He said his wife is Colombian and he has family in Argentina that could be contacts. My wheels were turning while talking to Dave. Dave news bike in 9 days had 8500 km on the speedometer!

 

Dave from the UK

Michael and I need two more riders to come with us when we go... any takers?

So today I drove some of the most remote roads in Canada and Alaska with my friend Jaz... we passed maybe 20 cars in 350 miles... and I was thinking about South America.... nuts.  I did have a rude awakening when my autopilot US-to-metric-conversion-on-the-fly tool failed me ... the sign said turn at a speed of 40 (that was 40 km) which converts to 25 mph.... it was a tight corner!

Beautiful country today... and the sky... was gorgeous

I needed coffee to wake me up out of the stupor so we stopped at Moose Creek... some person went crazy with the antlers here.. the building, doghouse, and truck were all sporting racks... but the baked goods were just what I needed.

Moose truck?

By the time we stopped for gas, the credit card people had locked down Jaz's account.  She pre-called to let them know she would be out of the country, but yet again (this happened last year), they locked her card down. She was spitting fire at the petro station...  we relaxed and reflected on how everyone we knew was working... and we were out in the sunshine being pelted by bugs.. what lucky gals we are!

I dozed once on the bike... I snapped to attention when I realized I was doing that... which created enough adrenaline to get me all the way to Whitehorse. No more late nights! The road from Dawson was long, tiring and a little boring to Whitehorse... pay attention!

We rolled into Whitehorse and checked in at Casey's B and B. Jaz had a very heated conversation with the credit card company... at some point I heard her tell the guy on the line she was going to reach through the phone, down his throat and rip out his F*cking lungs... if her credit card didn't work tomorrow.

Just two gals having fun....  let me get her a beer and Mexican food... my credit card still works in a foreign country.

Note* I kept checking my bike for leaking beer all day... none was present.
Note** My shampoo bottle exploded from the vibration..  : (

No leaking bottles! Yay