POST RIDE 9, Kenai Fjords Cruise

Another day lazing out on the water; this time our boat was out of Seward.  It was a  much smaller and faster boat.  So, it was a little more prone to causing motion sickness.  But, we were mostly fine with some uneasy moments, especially Ellen.  It was to forget about that with all the spectacular scenery and wonderful sea life.  The boat followed a humpback whale or two for a little while.  We caught some glimpses of its back and tail, and of course the occasional plume.  The sea lions were all barking as we passed an island rookery.  I think I spied 3 pups.  We also passed a few steep rocky islands swarming with nesting birds, cormorans, common murres, tufted puffins, horned puffins, and others. 

Next we got up close and personal with the Aialik Glacier.  It is HUGE!  We watched some small calving and sat there for a good while.  A bunch of harbor seals were using the sea ice floating around the glacier to stay out of reach of orca.  It was quite a sight. 

The cruise made one last stop beforeter returning to port.  We stopped at Fox Island.  It received its name because fur traders had set up an arctic fox farm on the island after otter populations had been hunted to low numbers.  Anyway, we stopped there for a great buffet of all you can eat salmon and prime rib.  The prime rib was prepared quite well, but I concentrated on the salmon.  After all, we are in Alaska.

POST RIDE 8, Ferry to Whittier

Wow, wow, WOW!  This was the most amazing boat ride I have ever taken.  The sound is so incredibly gorgeous from the water.  Lush green mountains interspersed with some snow capped peaks peeking out from further back, a sadly quickly receding but still thrilling tidal glacier, dozens of cute sea otters, jelly fish, orca . . . Just AMAZING!!

Next came a drive through two miles of tunnel over train tracks under a mountain.  Then a beautiful drive to Seward.

POST RIDE 7, The Ride Into Valdez

The sun came out and dried up all the rain, and the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again.  Well, the clouds were gone and we got treated to fantastic views of the mostly extinct (one is still active), snow covered, volcanic peaks of Wrangle St Elias National Park.  These beauties dominated the skyline for most of our day.  We stopped in the National Park to amble along the only groomed trail in this park and preserve.  The most interesting fact I learned in the well done exhibit center is that during some winter storms, many birds get stranded and die on the rocky peaks in Alaska and the otherwise herbivore pikas will scavenge their brains for much needed nutrients.

Our next stop was Worthington Glacier State Park.  We got to walk up right near and alongside this giant flowing ice formation.  The amount of water flowing off this thing was incredibly impressive as well as the shear size of the ice.

After the glacier we entered the Thompson Valley and were privy to some more spectacular vistas and at one stop, I enjoyed a nice sprint down to a lower vantage point into a canyon.  We continued into the Keystone Canyon in the car.  We made stops at the majestic Bridal Veil and Horsetail Falls and spotted a black bear strolling along the forest edge enjoying a feast of soap berries.

Finally, we rolled into Valdez.  It a spectacularly beautiful city or at least it is nestled within some amazing scenery.  The mountains go right up to the sea at the Prince William Sound.  We took a walk along the harbor and witnessed some fish sorting and cleaning.  The seagulls were having a ball waiting for the discards.  Then, we sampled the local salmon and halibut at Mike's Palace on the recommendation of our B&B host.  Twas quite delectable.

After gorging ourselves on fish, we headed to the salmon hatchery and were floored by the shear numbers.  I've always heard how phenomenal a salmon run is, but I never imagined this.  The river mouth was literally filled with salmon leaping over each other to try and fight their way upstream.  It was just one mass of wriggling, flopping, shimmery fish.  The two sea lions we saw were having quite some fun with this smorgasbord and the awaiting sea gulls were more than happy to pick up their scraps.

POST RIDE 5 + 6, Denali 3 & Denali Highway

Well, our luck couldn't last with the weather.  It was cloudy with a little bit of rain for most of the day.  So, we saw no more than a corner of Denali Mountain peaking out behind the clouds all day.  Also, we got a surprise when we showed up for our camper bus.  Igloo Campground was closed; a grizzly bear and her cubs had torn apart an empty tent the day before.  So, there went our planned hike up Cathedral Mountain.  We got switched to Sanctuary Campground.  After setting our tent up, we took the bus further in to Eielson Visitor Center.  On the way in we spotted tons of caribou,  a blonde grizzly bear with a dark cub, and a lady moose. The Eielson Alpine Trail was good, but much of the mountains were veiled in clouds.  The clouds just got thicker as the day progressed.  We caught the first bus back, spotting more caribou and other wildlife. 

The next day, we took a leisurely morning before catching the first camper bus out of the park, 10:30am.  We took the Denali Highway towards Valdez.  The clouds had not left us behind.  So, while we enjoyed the mountain vistas along this mostly dirt road, we had trouble photographing any of it through the rain and gray.  We did have our first sightings of the big volcano peaks of Wrangle St. Elias National Park.  Our day was topped off by a small hike to some disappointing mud volcanos near our camp, but it was redeemed by a whole  heavenly delicious patch of cloudberries.  These really are nirvana if it were reduced into composite berry form.

POST RIDE 4, Denali 2

It was another grandiose day.  After a nice simple breakfast, we checked out some gift shops and gathered a little more info for our backcountry trek tomorrow.  Then, we headed out to the furthest spot one can drive a private vehicle, Savage River.  Along the way, we got our first views of Denali Peak.  It is amazing how much prominence has.  We took the Savage River Alpine Trail out of the campground and headed toward the river valley.  It was an invigorating climb with plenty of fantastic panoramic views of the surrounding ridges.  We topped it off with a 2 mile jaunt down the Savage River valley for views of the canyon.  And, lastly, we wandered out the short Mountain Vista trail behind our campsite for a lovely picnic dinner by the stream shore.

POST RIDE 3, Denali 1

Steve made us a delicious send off breakfast with homemade bacon, homemade sourdough bread, and eggs.  We thanked our hosts profusely, and hit the road for Denali National Park.  It was a cloudy, but still pretty ride out to the park.  The central mountain, Denali itself, did remain hidden to us though.  After arranging for our bus tickets and camping reservations we set out for some entrance area hikes.  We combined the Horseshoe Lakes Loop, Taiga Trail, and the Mt Healy Trail for a scenic stroll.  The best bit was the Mt Healy Trail plus a little beyond it to the peak.  We got some great views of several ridges, but still no mountain formerly known as McKinley.
We finished off our first day with a delectable meal at 49th State of halibut fish & chips, halibut burger, a smoky marzen, and a mosaic ale.  Twas a great end to our first Denali day.

POST RIDE 1 & 2, Steve and Alicja

We had a great time hanging out with Ellen's friends from Miami University in their new hometown, Fairbanks.  The delectable celebration smoked ribs after completing my bike ride were just the start. 
Saturday started with an amble through the Museum of the North.  It is a well done amalgam of natural history and Alaskan art.  We found an amazing table with Caribou legs and Dall sheep horn accents that Ellen really really wanted , or burn from existence, I forget which . . . The bird skin jackets and fish skin bags were quite something, though. 

A walk through the farmers market was next. The Vietnamese stand was quite tasty. But, my favorite was the big tin of wild strawberries I bought.

Then, we visited the Large Animal Research Center.  The tour guide was very knowledgeable and fun.  The quiviet was just a bit expensive; the tiniest ball of yarn was $95!!  This under wool of musk ox is just combed out in the spring; it is naturally rubbed out in the wild.  Ellen loved the soft musk ox and really tried to sneak one out for a cuddly new pet.

We finished off the day with an amble through the botanical gardens with humongous cabbage heads, a sampling of Hoodoo beer, and blueberry picking behind our hosts' house.

And, the wild blueberries were made into marvelous pancakes by Steve the next morning! Mmmmm . . . We even caught a hazy view of Denali from their windows. The high humidity was a bit draining on our hike along the High Angel loop trail, but the views were quite nice.  Afterwards, we checked out the Chena Hot Springs.  They were nice, but not as great as Liard Hot Springs.

DAY THIRTY-EIGHT, All Journeys End

My last day on the bike for this trip.  It was mostly very calm and pretty ride, but the green tunnel doesn't always allow for great pictures.  I captured the occasional stream, lake, and glimpse of some low green ranges.  Made a few touristy stops along the way as well.

The Knotty Shop is an amusing tourist trap gift shop.  I'm not sure I understand the north's obsession with wood burls though.  I've run across a few collections this journey.  The animals made out of burls here was pretty cool though.  And, the salted caramel and chocolate covered pretzel ice cream cone was darn enjoyable as well.

A few more miles down the road, I made it to the North Pole!  This is a ridiculously kitschy suburb of Fairbanks that grew up around a gift shop of a Santa look alike.  I went into full tourist mode and got pictures of myself in front of a number of the silly Christmas stuff all over town.  The grass roof houses were neat, at least.  I also made sure to send my nieces postcards postmarked from the North Pole.

After a Coca-Cola calorie refuel, I continued for the last leg.  It was the toughest climbing I had to do for a couple weeks now.  But, it had plenty of downhill rewards.  And, it was nice to have a real challenge to finish up.  The scenery was pretty sweet to boot.  I did have to put some music on to make the final 4 mile push.  And, who was waiting there!?  Ellen!  It was great to see her beautiful face.  And, now we get two weeks to drive around and see our majestic 49th state.

DAY THIRTY-SEVEN, Penultimate Ride

Twas another grey day starting from the campground outside Delta Junction.  It was a bit of a green tunnel as well.  But, it had cleared up by the time I reached Quartz Lake.  I went for a nice 7 mile hike to catch some views and ended it with a wade through the lake.  Along my route, there was an old homesteader cabin with a moss roof that raspberry bushes had populated.  Passed a family with a young kid shortly after.

"We're almost done hiking." says the kid.
"Oh."
"Did you pass the cabin with the raspberries!?"
"Yeah."
"I got to eat the roof!"
"That's pretty neat; you don't usually get to do that . . ."
"There were raspberries on there!  So, I ate the roof."
"Have you ever tried to eat the roof at home?"
All bug-eyed, "No. No, that's not food stuff."
"Oh. I see."
Anyway, i continued up the Richardson Highway for a few more frustrating miles.  I ran through all my tubes, but luckily the last one held.  Wound up at Birch Lake for the evening and a glorious pseudo sunset. So, it wasn't all so bad.

DAY THIRTY-SIX, Almost Zero Day

Well, after the crazy random party/gathering, I dragged myself out of bed for the agreed upon breakfast time, 8:15, but nobody was about.  So, I started to watch some Good Eats, eager for wild blueberry pancakes.  About 30 minutes later, my host, Lonnie, comes running downstairs.
"There's been a change of plans. My dad fell down yesterday. He only called me this morning.  I have to run him into the clinic before work.  So, I brought you this tangerine and bread."
Well, I expressed concern for her Dad, and accepted the proffered gross stone fruit.  Luckily, I had bought strawberries and chocolate milk the day before. 

Well, it turned out her father was okay, maybe some bruised ribs.  She also gave me a half price deal.  So, the Hillcrest Bed and Bed gets 2 thumbs up from me.

Anyway, I went back to bed for a bit and finally got out by 12:30 to explore the town.  Delta Junction is far more enjoyable than Tok.   The farmers market was small but tasty (snow peas, meat pie, amazing brownie, and pumpkin chocolate chip bread).  And, the roadhouse museum had lots of great info and artifacts.

Other than that, I just updated the blog and waited out a rainstorm at the library before heading out to a free camp ground just out of town.

DAY 34 and 35, Dot Lake and Delta Junction

Twas a grey day heading out from Tok.  I ran into Ed, Marta, and Frank at the Grocer on the way out of town.  It wasn't the most picturesque day with all the gray, but I ran into another couple of Pan America Highway bikepackers on the way out of town.  And, when I stopped at Moon Lake, I met Marten and Eva from Austria doing a meandering bike tour through Alaska and Western Canada, ending in Vancouver.  We shared some tea and cookies and swapped some stories and advice, and a few laughs.  I made it into Dot Lake for another free campsite and some good eats about 6.  Mmm, cheddar filled sausage and sauerkraut.

Day 35 started out rough, the rain I had been expecting all day yesterday showed up during the night and stuck around.  I hid in the tent reading more of the Commonwealth series, eventually rousing myself out of the tent at 11, when the rain had settled to a light drizzle.  The gray was even more pervasive though.  So, I brought back the tunes to keep me motivated for the 62 miles into Delta Junction and the end of the Alaska Highway!  I made it!

Decided to pamper myself for the accomplishment and stayed at the Hillcrest B&B.  Twas a nice house halfway to Clearwater.  Got myself setup and unpacked the bike.  Then, headed out to check out Clearwater State Park.  It was a nice little ride through farm land and the park was a sweet section of the Clearwater River.  I got some pretty good sunset shots before heading back.

Along the route back, there were a crew of people hanging out on a porch.
"Hey! How's it going?"
"Pretty good", I said
"Want a beer?"
"Sure."
So, I turned around and headed over. 
It was a mix of locals and people who had moved from New England.  So, I wound up hanging out with this random group and enjoyed some locally caught fish, vegetable kebabs, beer, and, of course some good anecdotes.

Grace:
"Before I started hanging out with you guys, I had never really hung out with non Deltans.   You can tell the people that grew up here and those that didn't.  Like the people who grew up here, when they meet others, are like, 'what are the lower 48 like?'  We have this vision of the lower 48, and it's  . . . Scratch off lottery tickets, culdesacs, and everything is so cheap . . .

Anyway, it was a good night of bonfires and laughter.

DAY 32 and 33, Lakes, Berries, and Tok

Made an easy go of it for day 32.  I left my free campsite at Seaton Roadhouse Access area at like 8 am.  It was only a 5 mile ride to Hidden Lake Trail for my first stop.  Twas a leisurely mile stroll across a boardwalk path through muskeg to the lake.  Oh! And, crowberries and big blueberries were ripe and delicious.  I was a little disappointed to discover the free boats available for use were rowboats.  Who thought a boat you can't see where your going in was a good idea?  I guess they were catering to groups larger than one . . . Anyway, I still had an enjoyable paddle around the lake and got to see a pair of Trumpeter Swans and their cygnets.  A relaxing nap in the middle of the lake was certainly agreeable.

Then, it was on to lake two, Deadman Lake.  This was just an 11 mile ride up the Alaska Highway.  While the interpretive walk was not very exciting, the relaxing swim was.  Eventually, it was time to get to my planned campsite.  So, after another 9 miles on the bike, it was Lakeview Campground.  The water here was also an agreeable temperature and, of course, another swim had to occur. 

Day 33 was more gentle up and down, with a general trend toward down, through the Taiga, northern boggy forest and wetlands.  The scenery was pleasant, but got monotonous.  I found myself taking much fewer pictures today. 

The most exciting thing about Tok was that I finally had cell service.  So, I got to call Ellen.  I met three fellow bikepackers in the campground.  They were of course all headed south from Deadhorse.  There was a couple from Edinburgh, and a fellow from the States.  I warned them about the rough roads of the Yukon, but apparently the ride from Deadhorse to Fairbanks is worse.  So, they are used to it.

We enjoyed swapping adventure stories and tips.  Apparently, I need to get myself some Schwalbe tires, when I do my next bikepacking trek and need to get tips from crazyguyonabike.com . . .

DAY THIRTY-ONE, U S A!!

Made it across the Alaska border and back into the land of freedom today!  It felt pretty awesome to have made it this far.

Let myself get a late start again today, because of the rain last night; I let my tent dry off a little.  I skipped breakfast.  Purportedly, I was only 7 miles from Beaver Creek, the most westerly community in Canada.  Somehow, that 7 miles turned into 13 . . . Anyway, after enjoying some internets courtesy of the Visitor Center, I stopped into Buckshot Betty's for some brunch and ridding myself of my Canadian money.  Had myself a full breakfast and bought 2 enormous and delectable cookies, but still had a little left over.  So, I stopped at the last establishment in town to get a few candy bars.

It's weird. For some reason, there are 20 miles between Canadian customs and US customs and neither are on the actual border.  Canada doesn't care who leaves their country; I pedaled right past that station.  The area between is mostly a tight thicket of trees.  The bizarre thing is at the exact border they have it clear cut straight down the line.  I cannot see the point of that expenditure . . . I, of course,  stopped at every sign that indicated the momentous crossing and got a pic.  There were some nice RVers who got a shot of me on the bike before the largest one. 

When I got to the customs station, it had a big sign that said wait here of light is red.   So, I stopped and waited.  The agent had to yell out,  "Come on already!"  Apparently, the light is only for cars, but there is no sign indicating thusly.  Agent Petta just glanced at my passport,  handed it back,  and then asked me about my trip.

"Where'd you start?"
"Montana"
"Where are you going?"
"Fairbanks, well,  then we're renting a car"
"Oh? Is there someone else with you?", he said craning his neck back to see if there was anyone else coming.
"No. I'm meeting my girlfriend there.  She's flying in."
"Oh. She's the smart one."

Right after the station there were all these bizarre abandoned buildings in the muskeg.  Also,  all the electrical poles were askew,  majorly, and in every direction.  It was a little disconcerting.

Well,  the place I had set out to stop at is no longer in business. So, I set out to go a little further.  Found out about some free camping in the Tetlin Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center, and about a free boat to use.  I stopped at the first free campsite, and got some hiking in. But,  I can't wait for Hidden Lake tomorrow with some hiking and boating.

DAY THIRTY, Snag Junction

Waited out the rain in the tent or at least tried to . . . A break in the rain tricked me when I got up to pee. By the time I finished breakfast underneath a little pavilion, the storm was all but finished. I only did 37 miles today, but the roads are getting pretty rough. 

I took a leisurely pace and stopped at all the rest areas at which there was anything to see.  I stopped at the Discovery Yukon Lodgings because they had a collection of antiques, mostly from the Alaska Highway project. I bought a coke, so they would let me wander.  Twas pretty nifty.

Unfortunately, a few miles down the road, I got my second flat of the trip.  It was a very pretty place to stop, but not the most convenient as far as flat surface away from the road to work. 

 I had a bunch of cars pass by.  Only one stopped briefly to ask if I was alright.  I put a gel tube on for the first time.  So, we'll see how that goes.

Arrived at the campground about 3.  I immediately headed down to the water.  It did get deep pretty quick, but it was a good temperature close to shore.  So, I got a good 40 minutes swim in or so.  There were so many fry right near the shore!!  There must be some great fishing here.  Anyway, I set myself up with a nice fire and some grub before hitting the hay.

DAY TWENTY-NINE, Woohoo! Tailwind!

Woke up from another bandit campsite between Destruction Bay and Burwash Landing and biked a little way into Burwash Landing and its museum.  The museum was pretty good and worth the 5 dollar admission.  I learned a bit, including that grizzly bears will eat black bears.  In fact, grizzlies are there main predator.  I also realized the 'falcons' I saw over the Yukon River were in fact Golden Eagles. 

The rest of the ride was pretty sweet.  It was largely downhill and I had a slight tailwind.  The road got a bit rough in parts, but I think the tailwind made up for it.   Rode past tons of creeks, ponds, lakes, and rivers.  Twas quite picturesque.

DAY TWENTY-EIGHT, Zero Day??

I suppose I did take a zero day at otter falls cutoff, but still today was supposed to be a zero day since I did two days' worth of mileage yesterday.  I think I'm going to retool the itinerary once more. 

I did get 30 some odd miles in on the bicycle.  However, I also got 15 miles in hiking.  Kluane National Park is quite majestic.  The tallest mountains in Canada are in this park.  They are also some of the youngest at only 10 million years old. 

Anyway, woke up and had a nice breakfast on the beach and got some pictures of camp in the morning light.

Then, I got moving, though with plenty of picture stops.  Stopped at the Tachal Dhal visitor center to get some hiking info.  Did a loop up the Buillion Plateau Trail and down the Sheep Creek Trail. 

For the first half, I did something I typically despise.  I played music out loud while hiking!!  Being alone and seeing so much bear poop along the way,  I needed to be making some noise. Got some serious rain towards the end of the hike.  But, the sun came out shortly after I got back on the bike and dried out my soaked clothes. 

Checked out Destruction Bay and then found myself a spot for the night.

DAY TWENTY-SEVEN, Kluane Lake

Well, today was a pretty glorious day.  It started out a little gray, but it was at least dry. I got a pretty late start, allowing my tent to dry out.  Though, part of it was probably because I was a little grumpy from all the rain.  Came across another bikepacker going south, the first one to pull over to my side for a chat.  All the others had just waved.  Natalie is doing the whole PanAmerica Highway, from Alaska to Argentina and then plans to go to Europe and bike down to New Zealand.  Natalie thinks it'll be a 4 year odyssey.  I admit a little jealousy.  Sounds amazing . . .  Anyway, you can follow Natalie at Nataliebybike.com

So, I got into Haines Junction about 2ish, and followed Natalie's suggestion to stop at the Village Bakery.  Twas the right call.  I got myself a large roast beef sandwich on sour dough bread (baked on premises), a huge mixed berry scone, a gigantic dill pickle, and a cranberry bar.  It was quite the little feast. 

The rest of the ride was quite lovely and not too difficult.  There was an extended uphill, but it wasn't very steep at all.  The sun came out to play.  The highway was lined on either side by beautiful purple wildflowers and the occasional yellow patch.  The mountains were snow capped and everywhere.  And, I ended the day by finding a sweet free camp site by the shores of Kluane Lake and catching an awesome sunset. A great day for sure!! 