Souvenirs from Tok

So I rolled into the driveway, 1784 miles later from my Klondike Loop motorcycle ride. Exhausted enough that I almost couldn't climb off the bike, let alone unpack it, wash it, and do the maintenance needed for the next trip.  Sigh.  It looked like rain.

When Jaz and I rolled out of Tok last Tuesday, the sky looked angry. Angry enough to take extra precautions. We both suited up with all the warm clothes we brought. Jaz joked about having lots of empty space in the saddlebags for souvenirs from Tok. I looked like a condom meets Michelin Woman! I was wrapped in rain gear over my heavier riding gear. I had my heated jacket and gloves. I was a toasty warm slug.

Images: http://scientopia.org (condom), and http://www.sporkmedia.com

So the trip is over and I have all this maintenance I need to do on the bike. The chip seal on the Canadian roads ate my rear tire tread away. All the shops in Anchorage want way too much to change this tire (~$200) or can't get to it until the summer is over.  I guess I'm going to have to spend a weekend fixing my bike rather than riding it.  But not this weekend, I'm going to Seattle for some R and R from my ride.

Chip seal takes it's toll on factory KLR tires - ~5000 miles

                               Here are the trip details:

Click on map for a larger image

Total mileage was close to 1800 miles, and it is referred to by the locals as the Klondike Loop. 

• We did it in roughly 7 days. 
• The trip was mostly paved road, but there was a section from points H to C (Taylor Highway and the Top of the World)  that contained mostly dirt/challenged road. This portion of the road is weather dependent on how safe/good you can travel. It is roughly 130 miles of dirt/challenged road.
• The worst part of chip seal occurred between points C and D.This part of the road was also very repetitive (granted gorgeous repetition) and it's easy to fall asleep here. Do this section after a good nights rest!
• There are two ferry crossings. One is free and a no brainer. That is the Yukon River near Dawson, at point C. The second ferry crossing requires you to pre-purchase tickets from the Alaska Marine Highway system. This is a one way ticket between Skagway, Alaska and Haines, Alaska. The boat trip is about 45 minutes, but they require you to check in 2 hours prior to departure. We have no idea why, we stood around and waited. You should have your own tie down straps for the boat ride.
• We took one day off in Dawson to drink Black Death at Klondike Kates. WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS.
• There are two liquior stores in Dawson... the best one is on 3rd Street.
• Our schedule allowed a leisure pace to photograph and take our time. Even so, some of the roads are hard... the mileage should not be measured with Freeway/Interstate mileage in mind.  It is tiring because the roads are filled with potholes and heaves, dirt and water trenches. You waste a lot of energy looking for road issues.
• Gas was not a problem.. anywhere along the way.
• There are numerous US Border/Canadian crossings. Make sure your papers are in order.
• It is highly recommended that you carry both US and Canadian Money.
• Don't forget to call your credit card company and tell them you are traveling between two countries... or you might end up like Jaz.... threatening the guy at Wells Fargo that your going to reach down his throat and rip his fucking lungs out if your card doesn't work tomorrow... oh wait. She did call, but they still fucked her. Have a back up plan.
• Cell phone coverage could not be counted on while traveling the roads, but we had internet service at all hotels/B and B's we stayed in.

We stayed at:
Red  Eagle Lodge @ Chistochina (on account of having to work the same day we left)
5th Avenue B and B in Dawson (Highly Recommended - They are cool)
Casey's B and B in Whitehorse ( Okay... but nothing to write home about)
The Historic Halsingland (It is historic.... but I like old buildings) Not right in town, but they have a nice place to eat and a bar right on the premises.
Kluane B and B (very rustic!) but gorgeous. If you want a view this is the place for you - right on the beach of Kluane. It is right next to an old ghost town, so you can take pictures. BE WARNED - it is remote... bring your own dinner/lunch. They serve a nice breakfast. Closest cup of espresso: 30 miles.
The Golden Bear in Tok (as always... they are very biker friendly and highly recommended)

DO NOT EAT or STAY in Glennallen, AK at the Caribou!!!
DO NOT EAT in Beaver Creek, YT. Canada at Buckaroo Betty's. The one thing this place has been over the last 15 years is consistently bad! It looks nice outside... but trust me!

Tar Pits, Bears, and Broken Down on the Alcan

The day started out pretty slow. We got a late start from the Kluane B and B (rustic) on account that the owner doesn’t serve breakfast until 8am. The weather was marginal this morning so we didn’t do the fly over the Kluane Glacier. The morning was a little nippy, and I had to stop and add an extra layer. The road conditions gradually declined until they became downright dicey, even frightening.

We passed a couple up from Colorado, they were both on BMWs – 1200s, which surprised me…. It’s rare to see a woman on a 1200. She was a little frightened about the road. It was dicey in Canada, but when you crossed the US border it got right into “Oh My God” moments several times.  There were large areas that came up quickly where the asphalt was pulverized… it was like someone had laid down a sandbox of loose gravel asphalt but never rolled or pressed it down. Because it was the same color as the rest of the road, you didn’t see it until you were right on top of it.  The day was tiring because you had to pay extra attention for these tar pits.

We also passed a series of “hover-ers.” Hoverers are outhouse along the road that you have to use… or the mosquitos bite your ass… but they are in such poor condition that you don’t want to actually sit on them.. so you hover.  Wow! Talk about some nasty potties… I opted to actual tangle with the bugs in one case. I gave it the “Nastiest Bathroom on this Trip” award. Just outside of Beaver Creek, Yukon Territory, Canada.

 Nasty bathroom of this trip..

We saw bears today. Although we have seen moose, squirrels, rabbits, marmots, and beavers, we have only seen lots of bear poop (I renamed the Haines Highway the Chillskat Road). I have been riding with my Go Pro (movie camera) on for about 4 hours a day… to play with film when I get back home.  I happened to catch them on the side of the road today. They were black bear, a mom and her cub. I passed by so fast, they will probably be specks.

Barbie is sporting a new “do” she also has been nailed a few times on her breasts and arms with bugs..  she seems to be enjoying the ride.

Barbie, after 1800 miles tied to my motorcycle!

I broke down on the side of the road somewhere in Canada.  We stopped at the Nastiest Bathroom, and we noted that the Canadians have covered many of their road and regulation signs with black garbage signs. We pondered when a sign no longer says anything important. It sort of falls into the same place of how much does the road have to be falling apart before you call it a gravel road versus… a paved road with bad spots? I mean when is bad.. bad enough? When does road sign not have meaning? At any rate, Jaz wanted a picture of the non-signs… so we stopped.  I shut my bike off… it wouldn’t start again. At first I thought I hit the kill switch, but no. Then I thought I blew a fuse, so I checked it, and it was fine, but when I seated the fuse back, I had power... so I thought it must have come loose (The road was bumpy and filled with tar pits remember). Then it wouldn't start again.. no power. So I figured it was the battery. It took me 1 minute to tighten the loose cable, but 29 minutes to unpack the saddle bags, take them off, take off both side guards, and the seat... to get to the cable, (and then put it all back together again... ). I got 3 sets of men stop and ask if I needed help, and most were surprised when I waved them on.  But my favorite was when two fellow dual sport riders with Northwestern Territory license plates stopped to see what the problem was and if they could help me with it. I explained that I figured it out and repaired it and was putting the bike back together again. He smiled and said… “Alaskan women are jewels”… waved off and headed down the road.  Grinning sheepishly… I’m a jewel.

Is that Water Safe to Drink?

So we are drinking tonight. We are watching the floaties in the drinks,… and talking about giardia. The “Rustic” B and B.. woman said we could safely drink the water… but still… will the vodka kill everything in the floaties? Will we be stopping the bikes every mile to hit the lou.. Alaskan style tomorrow? Beaver Fever in Beaver?

 That is a clear glass... can you see the lamp behind it?

We got cool pastries in the Village Bakery in Haines Junction.. must do! Cherry strudel.. giardia or not!

We pulled out of Haines this morning after having breakfast at the Bamboo Room.. a local heart attack on a plate kinda joint (they even had an AED – Automatic External Defibrillator on the wall). We wandered around subdivision streets for a bit before we recognized we were lost… yes I know.. in Haines… but nonetheless… it took us a bit to get righted. Once on the road the scenery changed to the Chilkat River. Thousands of eagles congregate on this river every fall/winter to feed of the dead fish (from spawning). Of course, this time of year is not the time to see that, but we happened on a couple of local Alaskan fisherman that were going for sockeye… they spent some time explaining to me that there was a Canadian bar code stamped on the Canadian fish swimming upstream… as opposed to the amerikan fish that were more natural. Listen in.. covert filming.

(By the way, in the time that it took me to type this much of my blog, the floaties have become sediment in my drink… much easier to handle).

B and B woman warned us of a bear in the area last night.  All day I thought about my motorcycle being trashed by a bear on the account that it could smell the protein bars buried deep in my panniers.  Should I take the protein bars into the “rustic” cabin made of flimsy screens and plywood? I think not! I will call a tow truck to recover the bite/slash job to my tires and cables… should that occur.  We are staying right on the beach of Kluane Lake in the middle of a ghost town… Silver City. Although the place is rustic (this meant we slept in the equivalent of Jaz’s plywood shed last night), and the water is questionable, the view was absolutely amazing! I would stay here again.

 Does this not look like a shed?

In the evening we wandered on the beach which is covered with an impressive field of dwarf fireweed before the sand, and then of course there is the teal colored water. I got stuck in the silty clay mud on the beach and nearly had to dig for my shoe (no laughing family members). We walked the entire beach and ghost town area and only came across one pile of bear scat.. as opposed to what Jaz was calling the “Shit Highway” on account of all the bear poop we saw from Haines to the summit. We explored the ruins of Silver City, many of which are on their final leg before they collapse. We didn’t dare go any of the structures but one.

 Me shooting the dwarf fireweed just outside my door on the banks of Kluane Lake.

The ride over the top on the Haines Highway was impressive, although not as impressive as the Klondike… if you can only do one.. do the Klondike. I tried filming the ride, but I forgot to turn the camera on. Keeping up with the Go Pro is more complicated than one would think.

 At the top of Haines Summit - Haines Highway

Here are the things that passed through my crooked mind as I enjoyed this spectacular scenery:

• My Ipod blew out on the trip. Equipment failure! Unrecoverable.
• I think it is a good thing to keep the little plastic deodorant protector in place for motor cycle trips… the vibration destroys deodorants.
• The last hotel (Hisingsomething or rather)had plenty of outlets in it’s rooms.. a first! I could charge everything and not feel guilty for steeling the plugs.
• It doesn’t take much to make us happy: sunny days, lots of outlets, good coffee, and safe water.
• I smashed my hand on the ferry… I hope I can drive.. it was my throttle hand. Worse case scenario – I will cut off two fingers on my gloves to accommodate a make shift splint. (Note* My two fingers are stiff and painful, but I can drive – no splint needed).
• While near Dawson, we stopped for gas. I opened my tank lid and had just finished filling the gas. The level was very high. I was putting the nozzle back and had not closed the tank lid yet, when a big fat fly flew into the open lid. It fell in a stunned stupor.. into the tank. I’m watching it struggle in the deadly fuel,. It dies. My Buddhist mind takes a back seat as I worried what impacts this will have on my motor. I decided that the impact would be great on my motor if I don’t get that fly out soon. I search for a stick (always a first option for women).. I find no suitable stick.. I decide to reach in with my fingers and grab the sucker… this is a big step for me… I grab the fly.. and then throw it out on  the sidewalk,, and don’t look back. My Buddhist tendencies to try to save the fly do not kick in.. my logical self tells me it is too late for the fly…  I move on.

I am sipping my drink down to the sediment line…

This morning we are contemplating a small flight over Kluane Glacier. Kluaine and Wrangell St. Ellias together make the largest park/natural area in the world.  If the weather holds we are going to do it.