DAY Sixteen - Food, Gas and Bear

Beautiful bright sunny day for riding. Cool and brisk, but don't need the electric gear yet. With thoughts of thick air-light toast on my mind, I set out. Twenty-eight clicks north of Fort St. John's I find it. The Shepherd's Inn. Gas stop, motel and restaurant.

Heavenly food at the Shepherd's Inn.

Last time I was here, the mothers were working, today the daughters.

The waitress (who told me to make her good looking on the blog, which she is anyways, doesn't need any help for me) says they make four types of bread here - white, whole wheat, swedish rye and sourdough rye. So I asked for a slice of each to eat later for lunch on the road. She was nice enough to put a slice of each in ziploc baggies.

BTW - The pancakes here are over an inch thick and light as air. If you are ever up this way, stop in and experience The Shepherd's Inn for your self.

Now let's get back on the road.

On down a piece, saw this van on the side of the road with a flat tire. Is the couple from Chile, Ana and Sebastian(?). He had the tire almost changed by the time I stopped. Told him about a bridge being washed out on Route 37, which they were thinking about taking south from Watson Lake, as am I. We will have to get the latest info at the Rt 37 turn-off before starting that way. On departing, I gave them each a slide of Shepherd's Inn bread to try. They invited me to visit them in Chile when I go back down there.

At a gas stop I met Ted, who just bought a new Harley Davidson in Vancouver and is riding it home to Whitehorse. When I said I was planning to spend the night in Ft Nelson, he asked if I had a room because all rooms there are taken with oil field workers and their companies. He also said by the time I got there, it might be raining. Ted offered to share the reservation he had at the Ramada with me. Offer accepted.

Since Ted's Harley can go much faster than Da'mit, we agreed to meet at the motel. When I neared the city limits, the rain started coming down strong. Ted knows the weather up here.

Made a few discoveries riding today. One, start filling ALL the auxiliary gas cans. Came upon two gas stations about the time I was wanting to stretch and refill the five gallon main tank.

The Shell station on the left, notice the windows are boarded up and the tall grass by the pump islands.

No problem, there is another station just across the road.

Pulled in and their gas nozzles are covered with plastic, the doors locked. Nothing to do but keep riding to the next station, which in this case was another 50 - 60 miles. That's okay as I have two of the three aux cans full. Now will start filling all three, 11.5 gallons total.

Two, ride early, get your miles in for the day and stop before the afternoon rains start.

When I finally stopped to refill the main tank from the auxiliary can, spotted this. A beaver dam. So for my Texas friends who have never seen one before....

Back on the road, a white car decided to pass me when suddenly a black bear scampers across the pavement in front of us. We both slammed on our brakes to avoid hitting it. In a flash it was gone, off into the underbrush. Releasing a sigh of relief, we motor up. Is the first black bear sighting.... and heart attack, almost! Was the only wild game I saw today. Ted says he saw two moose but no bears. Luck determines who sees what up here, and most anywhere.

Tomorrow we ride to Watson Lake. Bought two cans of motor oil as Da'mit will need a change by then.

The daylight hours are longer now. At five AM, it looks bright out, as it does at 10 PM. All in all, a good day riding. We are on schedule.

Nite all

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

DAY Fifteen - Wildlife and Curved Bridge

Arriving in Hinton, AB last night, treated myself to a nice warm meal at a family sit-down restaurant. Was up several times in the middle of the night vomiting....diarrhea. NOTE: Quit being nice to self.

After not getting much sleep, got a late start today. Riding out about 8:30

Rode from Hinton to Grande Prairie, then to Dawson Creek for the start of the ALCAN Highway. Was warned by an oilfield worker that the road construction between Dawson Creek and Taylor was really jamming up things, so I decided to make Taylor for the night.

Riding from Hinton to Grande Prairie, the wildlife count is:

one cow elk

one whitetail deer

six mule deer

five grizzly bears.

First, mama bear came out

Then, her two cubs joined her.

This is the first grizzly bear(s) I have seen in three motorcycle trips to Alaska. A real treat. I had expected to see a lot of black bears coming out of hibernation, but none so far.

An hour later, spotted two young grizzlies on the side of a hill. But for some reason the photos did not come out. These are the only wildlife photos,... Oops, sorry forgot one, Da'mit met her first Big Beaver today.

 

Made the "required "stop at the Mile One marker for the Alaska Highway in Dawson Creek.

While there, met a young couple from Chile who had driven their Toyota mini-van up from Santiago, Chile. Are on their way to Alaska. Had a lot of questions about the Haul Road, the gas situation north of Fairbanks, the tundra, and was it worth the drive up. They have not seen a bear yet. Were disappointed when I told them they would not see a polar bear south of the Brooks Mountains in Alaska. Even then they might not see one if they did go to Prudhoe Bay.

Ever since the Alaska Highway was built in the 1940's, there has been constant improvements, changes and rerouting. Some of the abandoned original sections are still there and can be driven by passenger vehicles. One famous section is.....

The famous CURVED all wood decking and structure bridge. An engineering marvel. Beside being slick in the winter, it cannot withstand the weight of modern big trucks. Have always wanted to take the detour and see this bridge, so this time I did.

 

 

 

If you don't get off the "new" highway, you will never see this marvel.

Coming into Taylor is the longest all steel decked bridge on the Alaska Highway. Whether on two wheels or three, it is a squirrelly feeling as the machines moves sideways underneath you all the way across. Best technique is "Loosey Goosey". and "Keep your eyes on the horizon". Loosen your grip on the handlebars and let the motorcycle find its way across. The last thing you want to do is hang on with a death grip and fight the bike's movements.

Am safely retired in a small mom&pop motel with wifi. Tomorrow am going to try to find that roadside restaurant with the lightest bread I have ever eaten. At least that is the memory I still have of it from three years ago.

Nite all

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

DAY Fourteen - Banff to Jasper

Once we cleared the morning traffic, Da'mit and I visited the Ural dealer just north of Calgary. Destination Cycles in Airdrie.

The owner, Barry, suggested that I try repairing the electric jacket. After fiddling with it for 30 minutes, the problem was gone. Both the jacket and the gloves heat up now.

Rode to Banff and the Icefield Parkway to Jasper before turning north to Hinton.

Photos of the day:

What lies ahead.my friend. Heated gloves working??

Coming thru the aspen

Da'mit would be under dark clouds and the sun would high lite a snow covered ridge

Yes, there is still snow in June. Not that high either, maybe 6000'

Da'mit under Bow Glacier

The clouds hid many of the peaks, but a few peeked out.

Big Horn Sheep. That one on the right is a trophy.

Rocky Mountain elk in velvet.

The open road invites adventure. Traffic was bumper to bumper......in Calgary. Not up here!

Not photoshopped. The real deal here.

Had many, if not MANY UDF's today. Everybody loves the Ural. Men the machine, women Da'mit.

All in all, a great day of riding in spite of going in and out of cold rain. I stayed dry.

Nite all.

 

Posted with Blogsy

DAY Thirteen - Making Miles & Miles

Woke before the alarm this morning, packed and on the road by 4:10 am. Weatherman said the rain would stop by midnight and start clearing off......wrong. Still drizzling and 40 degrees. Didn't think I would need my electric gear either.....wrong. After riding for an hour, pulled into the first open gas stop, grabbed a coffee and put on the electric jacket and electric glove liners. Other than trying them out in the garage in Houston, this is the first time to use them.

Drats, the gloves don't warm up. The jacket gets toasty, with four setting, low, medium, high and HOT. Stopped at a rest area near a ski area and thawed my hands over a hand dryer in the men's restroom. Finally dropped to a lower elevation and the sun was coming out. Things should start warming up. By Great Falls, everybody was going to work, stopped for gas and breakfast with wifi and Mickey D's.

From Rt 87 got on Rt 89 north to Canada. suddenly Rt 89 dumps me on the interstate. Luckily there was construction and the speed was 65 mph. Okay I can ride my normal 55 and not be in danger if I watch what is coming up behind me. Another surprise was how few vehicles were out this morning. So I stayed with it. Many times it was only Da'mit and one other vehicle in sight.

The Canadian crossing at Sweetgrass went smooth., two lines open, half a dozen cars in each line.

Once in Canada, stopped at both a motorcycle dealer and a snowmobile dealer to see if they had electric gloves as I knew I would be needing them further north. None, nada, zilch. Maybe the Ural dealer north of Calgary has them. He is my final dealer top visit until Anchorage.

Miles, a Uralist who lives in Calgary, has graciously offer a spare room for the night and a garage to wrench in, if needed. Am looking forward to meeting Miles as he and his wife Tracey have ridden a Ural down through Central and South America, took a boat to Africa and rode north.

Checked my messages at a gas stop, Miles says the invite is open, so am heading over to their house for the night.

Miles with the Ural they rode to South America.

The book of their adventure with a Ural.

Thank you Tracey and Miles for opening your home to a stranger.

So the lower 48 are behind me, we are in Canada. The long miles we racked up today put us back on schedule after losing a day due to the storms in Montana.

Exhausted, I fall into a soft warm bed and zzzzzzzzzz.......

 

Posted with Blogsy

DAY Twelve - Rain, Rain go way

Didn't get far today. Left the Elk Creek Ranch under grey drizzling clouds. Got progressively worse by Grass Range where I bought gas. At least three of the early morning coffee drinkers said I was crazy to be out riding in this cold wet weather. Well, I responded, when your wife says you are crazy, tell her you met a guy even more crazy. If you can't be a good example, be a good lesson.

Another guy said I was crazy. "Yeah, that's what my wife says" was my response. He retorts "I notice she's not with you!" Ouch.........

Rode on to Lewistown in the rain, arriving with boots full of cold rain water. So much for the waterproofing I did before leaving.

Sloshed into Mickey D's for hot coffee and wifi. Posted the daily report for yesterday, talked with the locals about riding, Alaska, and the weather. No one could find me a good route around the bad weather north and west of Lewiston. On the weather radar it looked worse than what I has just ridden though. Everybody was saying it will be all clear by tomorrow. Finally resigned myself to stay a night in Lewistown, do laundry (which I needed), and look for a solution to the water-filling boots.

Found a Hunting-Fishing sporting goods store, bought a pair of gaiters. Will see if that helps keep my feet dryer.

Da'mit is running great, no problems. Cameras never came out to play today, too wet. Tomorrow things will be better.

Observed an interesting effect with the Ural over the past week. Da''mit produces a sound that animals seem to hear early. I noticed animals, both fur and fowl, were aware of Da'mit's presence much sooner than when I rode a BMW. Harder to sneak up to take photos.

With clearer weather we will look to make some miles over the next several days. Da'mit is ready stretch her legs and so am I.

Nite all.

 

Posted with Blogsy

DAY Eleven - Refuge from the storm

Awoke Sunday morning in Billings, Montana thinking about mounting the tire I got from Reiter's late Saturday. Cannot go any further with the tires I have plus I was due for an oil change.

Kelly doesn't mount tires on Sundays. Sorry, big guy. Don't think they make a Ural in your size.

Redcat to the rescue.

After we removed both tires. Bottom one was the spare, top was pusher for last 1000km.

Jim aka Redcat invited me over to his home in Billings. Said he had a shop where I could do the maintenance on Da'mit. The Ural community of Foilheads is a very supportive group of riders. Willing to share tips, ideas, advice and today, shop space.

Jim and his wife Carrie welcomed me and the wrenching ensued. Changed the engine, transmission and final drive fluids. Then mounted the tire from Reiter's. While there mounted the extra tire I have been carrying under the sidecar. With two fresh treads mounted, am ready to tackle the Alcan Highway. But first I have to get out of Montana and across Alberta.

Redcat and Carrie with their 2010 Gear Up in Woodlawn camo. Thank you Jim for the use of your shop and thank you Carrie for the Lasagna lunch. The cats didn't bother me afterall.

We looked at the weather radar, then the road map and plotted a route to miss the storm cells still hanging on in Montana. Headed north on Rt 87. Funny thing about weather, just when you think you can out smart it, it changes directions and finds you.

Resting in the shade in central Montana.

Riding north was fine but then turned west toward Grass Range. Could see the dark clouds ahead getting closer. Okay, a little rain won't be too bad. The horizon kept getting darker and darker. Doesn't look good! Near the Elk Creek, pulled over to decide whether to stop or continue into the face of it. A motorcyclist coming from the other direction pulled over to talk. Said it was pouring down in buckets further ahead. Hmmmm....

What's a "little" water? Won't hurt me. Rode two more ridges and suddenly lighting lite up the sky. I may be crazy and am no fool. Rain is one thing, but lighting...... and I am off the road asap. Remembered seeing a ranch house a few miles back. Turned around and hightailed it.

As I pulled up to the house Lyle came out to see what I wanted. Lyle is about my age, but with a full head of grey hair. After explaining the ride I was on, I asked if I could sleep in his barn or one of thge out buildings tonight as a large storm was headed out our way. Lyle answers with a draw only a rancher can make sound sincere, "Shoot, we got a spare bedroom. Come on in." Inside I meet Edie, his wife, Edie's brother Kurt and his wife Karen, who had just stopped in to visit.

A few minutes later the storm front reaches their ranch. The water poured down, followed by hail.

Storm front arrives.

Pebble sized hail fell in such volume as to start clogging drains and downspouts. They all commented that they normally don't get storms like this. In the first hour, they got two inches of rain. They were worried about culverts washing out.

Edie suddenly disappears, only to reappear outside in the rain and hail with a hard cowboy hat and yellow rain slicker. She was unclogging the drains. Later she said she was worried the water would back up and flood the basement. Hail was building up to over a foot deep on top of the drain.

Edie frantically moving hail...

These Montana ranch women are a hardy bunch. She commented that Saturday she had been setting fence posts and how much easier it was in the rain soaked ground.

We could see hail piling up on the hill sides. Across the road, two waterfalls developed from the run off. Cars were pulling off in front of their home, waiting for the storm to let up.

The rain did finally let up so Kurt and his wife decide they would make a run for it. Their ranch is 35 miles away to the north. They called later to say they only got rain, no hail up there.

Lyle had suffered an accident on the ranch several years ago that affected his balance, walking and speech. Said today was the first time in two years he had been on a horse. Recuperating is slow process as we age.

After a supper of pizza and coffee, we retired for the night. I could not hear anything in the downstairs bedroom. The next morning Edie commented she couldn't sleep as that it had rained off and on all night. The rain gauge was showing just over four inches from this storm cell. Said they will get a storm like this every seven or eight years.

Am so glad I decided to get off the road and seek shelter. Am so blessed that Lyle and Edie extended a warm welcome into their home for a wet adventure rider. Another reason to ride alone. If I was riding in a group, how many people would open their home to them??

Edie and Lyle on their Elk Creek Ranch, Montana

Thank you Jim, Carrie, Lyle and Edie for keeping me safe and making my ride more interesting and adventuous.

If ever you lose faith in your fellowman, just ride out across our great country on a Ural. You will meet the honest, hard-working folks with sun-burnt faces, rough callouses on their hands that say grace before every meal.

Amen

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

DAY Ten - A Gift of a Ride Today

After a day of rest, was up before the alarm, packed and on the road by 5 am. Riding northwest on Rt 287 out of Laramie was a bit nippy. Then we started climbing higher, highest point was 7600' according to my GPS. Da'mit is running strong but of course struggles with the climb at altitude.

Temperature is in the 40's, with wind chill factor, 30's. Yes, nippy it was. Really need to start wearing the cold weather gear.

By the time we arrived in Medicine Bow, it was breakfast at the famous Virginian Hotel. Based on the western novel, The Virginian, the mayor of Medicine Bow built a three story hotel with INDOOR plumbing and steam heat back in the 1800's. Today all of the rooms are maintained in their original style, but updated for safety. The doors to rooms not rented are left open so one can self-tour the hotel and see the how it was back then. Many famous and infamous gunslingers, murderers and lawmen stayed at The Virginian.

It was a grey early morning, the cook still sleepy-eyed when I walked in. Not that I was cold, but I would not release my coffee cup for her to refill it. I just wanted to suck every bit of warmth I could from that white porcelain mug. She expressed concern that she might spill hot coffee on my hands if I didn't set it down for a refill. That's okay, that's okay. Refill it

Leaving Medicine Bow it was north to Casper then west to Shoshoni, WY.

Afte several hours of not seeing any other vehicles, were beginning to wonder if we were on the right road.

Da'mit asks "Are we lost and why is there no water?"

No, don't think we want to go that way. That's Hell's Half Acre.

Okay, that's better. Just follow the yellow line all the way to Alaska. That's all you need for an adventure, a yellow line.

Okay, now to shut up and just show a few shots I got today. Rode from Laramie to Medicine Bow, to Shoshoni to Thermopolis to Billings, Montana.

Three tunnels coming up to enjoy...

Number #1

Number #2

And number #3. How cool was that?

Now for a taste of THE highlight of the day..... Wind River Canyon.

This was not on my bucket list, but had I known about Wind River Canyon, it would have been on there. Everybody should ride a motorcycle or drive a convertible through Wind River Canyon. In a sedan you will miss the total experience and beauty. Words fail me to do justice to and yet, still describe the incredible beauty, raw harshness and wonder of God's creation. Even non-believers would be in awe of this creation. Awe inspiring....... you MUST experience it for yourself. Put this one on your bucket list for sure!

Spotted numerous pronghorn antelope in Wyoming, but they are shy. Don't like having their photo taken.

Then there were three mule deer in Montana

And one Big Horn sheep.

Okay, I cheated on that one.

Coming down off the high plains you get this view.

Into Montana we see....

Da'mit, we definitely are not in Florida any more.

 

Now a few good words for the great people at Reiter's Kawasaki/Ural in Billings. I needed a new rear tire for Da'mit. Though I started with three good tires for the rear, sidecar and spare, the extra weight and many miles are wearing them down faster than I expected. I had just enough tread left to get to Billings, Montana, but no further. I shipped three new tires to Fairbanks, but I can't get there with the rubber that is left from here. You might remember that Jim in Mountain Home gave me a fresh front tire as the one I had was cupping badly. By the way, Jim, that tire looks still new after crossing three states.

For the non-Ural people, sidecar motorcycles require a different tire construction than two wheel motorcycles. They need a stiffer sidewall and flatter tread to withstand the unique physics that a sidecar rig creates.

I called Reiter's Friday. Yes, they had a tire for the Ural. The problem was I was in Laramie.Too far away riding a Ural to be there before they close at 5 pm on Saturday. Then Dave Ruff of Reiter's stepped up and made what I call the uniqueness of the Ural community. He offered to reopen the store Saturday night so I could get the tire I desperately needed. Otherwise I would have had to wait until after their weekend (like most motorcycle dealers across the country, they are closed on Sunday's and Mondays) to reopen on Tuesday. I would have lost two days while the Iron Butt clock is ticking....... Not that the pressure is on, but.....tick-tock, tick-tock......

Thank you Dave and thank you Reiter's.

So this day started and ended on a high note. If Da'mit and I never rode together again after today, this would have been the highlight of our wonderful partnership. When I am riding, I am glad to be alive. When I dismount at the end of the day, I am glad to be alive.

Today was a blessing.

Thanks....and nite ya'll.

CCjon

 

The motorcyclist

Seeks not rainbow's golden pot

But to ride the bow

 

Posted with Blogsy