Sleeping In (Doug)

OK...a slow start this morning as we hotel'd it in Whitehorse since the campground was full. Here's a pic of our side trip to Hyder. Taking an easy day today and just heading to Dawson City. Our thoughts of changing the route gave way to sleeping in. There were quite a few other bikers here last night so it was a lively conversation in the parking lot over some cocktails. Cheers for now!

Crash Bars and wasps {Wesley}

Sorry for our delay in updating this blog but we really are in the middle of nowhere. And there really are few chances to update but now we have a window so here goes. The day before yesterday was less than optimal. Cruising along around 75mph up the Cassiar...really enjoying myself. Out of the corner of my eye I see a small black dot that hits my helmet and conveniently funnels down my jacket. I knew this could be potentially a bad thing so I pulled over in front of a farmer's driveway to investigate. As I pulled in and turned the engine off I felt the first sting of a wasp on my stomach. I rushed to get my gear off and get the kick stand down as a BC farmer looked over at me with surprise. As I got my jacket unzipped I felt another sting in...well...my private area...I jumped off the bike and...The bike fell on its side as I ripped my pants off. Got rid of the wasp but found myself standing in front of a Canadian farmer with my pants down and my bike on its side. He was nice enough to help me lift it up...the bike, that is. Thanks BC farmer...and he didn't make too much fun of me...a little, though.

So we have really been doing the miles. 500 today. Its a lot but feels great to have the time to ride so much. And the more riders we meet we realize that we are light-weights. Some of these guys are really doing it and they have a lot of knowledge to share. This trip is making me want more trips. And its only the first week.

I think I need new gloves

Hyder, the Cassian Hwy, Speed (Doug)

Finally the scenery we've been waiting for. We left Smithers two days ago (thank you, Wesley, for the b-day dinner and drinks) and made our way to the Cassian Hwy (37) north to hook up with the Al-Can Hwy 1. Still hot as hell, but the scenery was worth it...snow-capped mountains in the distance, rolling road, no traffic jams. We did the side-trip to Hyder (37a), a 42-mile jaunt down a beautiful road, glaciers to the side, a baby black bear munching berries by the side of the road, and a rushing river that kept us cool in the spray while we waited at the one construction stop. We had also come here to be "Hyderized"...a shot at the local bar. Hyder is actually back in Alaska, but we couldn't spend our American dollars as everything was closed down due to a power outage. This is also the place where there is a viewing platform/deck to watch bear feast on salmon. The salmon were running, but the bear action is early or later in the day and we were there in the dead of the heat, so no bear pics for us this time. We cruised until Iskut and camped at a lake, took a refreshing dip, and then tried to dodge the swarms of mosquitoes. Today was a long haul from there up to the Al-Can Hwy (1) through Teslin. The Al-Can is a rolling, sometimes scenic road, thankfully devoid of policing so the speed limit seems to be up to your own discretion ;-) Rethinking our route from here. Today was close to 500 miles on the bike so it's crash time. Cheers, all, and thanks for keeping in touch!

Lessons learned...chain Maintenance and lube

Its been a fun few days...depending on your definition of fun. Today I questioned my definition of it. My chain adjustment didn't go as well as planned. Seems to be working fine but I am sure there will be another adjustment soon. And in my packing haste I forgot chain lube so tomorrow I will search for the alternatives before heading into the wilderness on the Cassiar Highway. Met a great guy named Jack last night at a campground on a lake(in the pic). He is 60 years old with 7 adopted kids from New York that decided to learn how to ride a bike and then a couple years later ride it for 3 months from New York to Prudhoe Bay and then down to San Diego and across the South and back to New York. He pretty much humbled us with our tricked out adventure bikes and all our gear. He was wearing hiking boots and riding a Suzuki Vstrom 650. Doing 450 plus a day....alone. The farther we get North the warning signs have gone from "look out for deer, to look out for Caribou, to look out for Moose, and now Bears". A couple more days till Alaska...

A View From the Road (Doug's helmet cam)

Here's a view of the road from a camera on the top of my helmet. There was more impressive scenery than this, but it's hard to work the camera when I'm doing 80mph and fiddling with buttons on the top of my head ;-) Turn the sound down (just wind noise)...sorry...didn't have time to edit.

Fire, Traffic, Happy Me! (Doug)

Finally rolled out of North Vancouver, taking the scenic route through Wistler, Lillooet, and eventually ended up camping at McLeese Lake. A long day. It seems all of BC is under road construction! Hwy 99 to Whistler is being widened, and even Whistler itself is being expanded for the upcoming winter Olympics. Just when we think we're free and clear of construction delays and into the wild, another flagger with a "STOP" jumps out of the woods. The heat continues to be oppressive. So much so that we've ditched the jackets and still swelter in the boots and pants. We can only hope as we head north that it gets a little better. The mountains around Lillooet and Cache Creek were gorgeous except for the fire that covered the range in a smokey haze and had us choking in our helmets from the smoke. Cold beers have never tasted so good. It was nice to camp out. Met another biker who pulled in next to us. Jack started in June from upper New York, crossed all of Canada, went to the top and bottom of Alaska, and is now heading south to San Diego and then across the lower US to Florida and then back home. Wow! He's traveling solo, and at 60 yrs old had quite some stories to tell Jack, if you're reading this...safe travels and we'll catch up again! Time to hit the road again as it heats up. Working our way from Prince George to the Cassier Hwy today. Not a bad way to spend my 45th birthday! Cheers, all!

I got no photo to share (Wesley)

Just slugging it out through the heat and traffic today up 5 to Vancouver from Portland. Lots of road work due to the economic stimulus package. Is the economy really this bad that we have to bring back the CCC from the Great Depression? I guess so. So its finally starting to get pretty but now we really have to put on the miles. Tomorrow begins with a chain adjustment. For all you non rider friends of mine..this trip from here on out is like getting up every morning and riding to LA...on a motorcycle...on Hwy 1...with stretches of gravel thrown in and in 90+ degree weather...for 20 days. Somehow Doug and I think this is what vacation is all about.

Now for the fun stuff (Doug)

We're in North Vancouver tonight, about what we expected after leaving Portland. Al peeled off just a little before Seattle to head back to Idaho, and he's lucky that he missed out on all of the fun traffic on Hwy 5. So...there isn't much to tell. Other than the fact that Hwy 5 is pretty boring, under construction, and with tons of traffic. Oh yea...and the heat. It's all anyone talks about. And we know it. This photo is how the journey looks so far...strapping down the Aerostitch suit so I don't boil myself riding with it on. Pardon the Dr. Livingston safari look with the boots...that got fixed later. I would ride in shorts if the boots were more stylish. We always park in the shade, and if the gas station mini-mart is air-conditioned...well, it's worth hanging out for a minute longer. Things finally got interesting around Bellingham. The mountains and curving, rolling road returned. And now that we're pointed north toward Whistler and beyond we can hope that there is cooler mountain air to go with the upcoming scenery. More pictures to come, for sure. We just didn't want to bore you all with too many rest stop pics. Stay tuned. We're realizing we've only just begun. Fun, scenic, tiring.