Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Day 7 – Yukon Border to “Chainsaw Massacre” Campground

Friday, May 30, 2008


By morning the rain had cleared up and we had a bright clear sky, so as we packed our things I charged another batch of batteries, and we set some of our things out to dry in the sun.

At the roadhouse gift shop, we had a chance to check our email, and we bought Alaska decals to put on our bikes like badges of honor. It had taken about a week, and the Alaskan highways had proven to be a worthy challenge that had broken us in more than enough. My whole body ached from the previous day of riding, but it was time to head back out on the road. We called home from the roadhouse payphone, then set out to cross the Canadian border.

Remarks on Alaska

I’m not sure exactly what I expected Alaska to be like, but I was surprised around nearly every corner. My exposure to Alaska before this had only been what I had seen on TV and in pictures, but they almost never show some of the things that I feel truly represent the sections of Alaska we had traveled through. Much of it felt familiar, but so much more of it felt strange—larger than life, in just a few words. The sky is bluer, the mountains rockier, the sun hotter, the wind colder, the climbs steeper, and the roads rougher.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Day 6 – Tok to Alcan

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Before we left on our trip we had visited many websites and Internet forums trying to find some good information and good advice about the types of distances we'd be able to ride. This was particularly important to us after we had learned that we would need to average 75 miles per day in order to meet our dad in Vancouver when he would arrive. I remember that several people said that it would be impossible for us to average 75 miles a day up in Alaska and Yukon, but the fellow whose blog we had been following said that we definitely could do 75 miles per day, but that we'd be hating life. Well, we had just finished a 90 mile day the day before and we were feeling mighty proud of ourselves. Getting up bright and early we had another 90 mile day ahead of us.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Day 5 - Chistochina to Tok

May 28, 2008


In the morning, there was still a light wind, but Mark and I were ready to deal with it. Well… almost.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Day 4 – Glennallen to Chistochina

Monday, May 27, 2008

This was the day that our real trouble started—at least, for Alaska and Canada.  Bright and (ahem) “early” at 10 A.M., we awoke to a patchy sky. Of course, the very first thing we noticed each morning was the weather, as it would greatly affect the rest of the day. The patchy sky didn’t seem so bad. The clouds looked heavy and fluffy, but seemed too small on their own to cause us any woe—but if they ganged up on us, we could see it being a problem.

Friday, February 6, 2009

Day 3 – Sheep Mountain to Glennallen

Monday, May 26, 2008

How long had we been riding? Only four days since we had left home, and I had already lost count.

Do you ever notice that no matter how odd the changes in your life may seem at first, you eventually accept those changes as your reality? Perhaps it isn’t the same for everyone, but it is the case for my brother and I. We weren’t quite used to it yet, but we were definitely adjusting.

Bright and early, we were awake and ready to make up for the time we had lost the day prior. There was a spark of excitement within us. The sky was a picturesque blue with many small, fluffy clouds, and we were warm and dry. We packed up our bikes and I plotted our course.

Friday, January 9, 2009

Day 2 – Chickaloon to Sheep Mountain

Sunday, May 25, 2008

I couldn’t tell if I was alive or not. It was all dark, and nothing made sense. Vague shadows of thoughts tried to break into view, but a shadow in darkness has no form. Something about “The Jetsons.” What? That couldn’t be right. Nothing made sense.