I am in Anchorage

Hi from Anchorage, Alaska

The three guys from Indiana, the Swiss guy from Wisconsin, and I drove our motorcycles from Fairbanks to Denali National Park Thursday. Denali is west of Fairbanks, about half way to Anchorage. Denali is always a highlight of any trip to Alaska because it is the highest mountain in North America, and one of the highest in the world.

Once we got to Denali National Park, we set up camp and promptly signed up to take a bus trip to see the park. The bus is the only way people are allowed to visit the park, and it takes people a long way, dropping them off if they want to hike and explore.

We were disappointed that we could not see the actual Denali Mountain. As usually happens on almost every day of the year, the sky was cloudy and the big mountain was covered. We were able to see quite a lot of the Alaskan Range of mountains, though.  They looked like this------

These caribou antlers were just lying there on the ground. I couldn't resist adding them to the picture. They came off one of these guys-------

He was just trotting along trying to look cool, but I think he looks rather motley myself. I guess he will look better by Autumn when he will need to impress the women caribou. Caribou, apparently, do not shed their antlers like the whitetail deer back home do. The reason I think this is because every set of antlers I found in Denali still had the skull attached. Quite a thing to lose your head over.

This big boy was sleeping just off the road, but he decided to get up and amble around a little. Look at how wet he is. I would get up too if I were being rained on like he was.

The next day, it was time for Bob from Wisconsin to head home. His vacation was over. While he headed back east, the rest of us continued on to Talkeetna. This funky little town is where all the mountain climbers start from. They fly from there and land on a glacier on the mountain, and then start their climb from the plane. It usually takes them about three weeks to do the total climb.

There was a time, not all that long ago, when I would have wanted very much to climb that mountain too. Sigh!

They say that only about 16% of the people who visit Denali get to actually see it, but look-- there it is.

I took this picture beside the river that flows along at the end of the main street in Talkeetna. Now I belong to the 16% club!  Wow!  How far away would you say that mountain is in this picture? Give up?  It is 60 miles away.  Big, isn't it. It is over 20,000 feet high. That's almost 4 miles high. Wow, again!

It was lucky for me that I ran into those guys from Indiana because they have friends who have friends who have --- In other words, they have connections everywhere. One of these connections has a lodge in Talkeetna and graciously let us use it.  We did laundry. Slept late. Explored the artsy little town. It was great. 

 

Today, the Indiana crew had to start thinking about heading back home and back to work and responsibilities. As for me, I am moving on down the highway. I left them studying their maps and discussing their plans, and I headed on for the seacoast.

So here I am, in Anchorage, beside the ocean. It is time for me to be thinking about where I am going to stay tonight. Time to close down and start looking on the internet for a campground. Tomorrow, I am off to Seward.

More later,

Ron

Good Morning from Fairbanks, Alaska

I am still riding with the Indiana/Wisconsin guys. We wanted to go up the Haul Road (Also known as the Depster Highway). It is the one made famous in the Ice Road Trucker TV shows.  It has a reputation for being very hard, so first I had to get new tires for Odysseus. My old tires were worn bare.

I bought my tires at the Harley shop. They won't work on a Suzuki, but they would sell me tires and mount them on the wheel if I would take them off the bike. The other guys did most of the work. Odysseus looks a little strange here with no legs.

But soon we were on the road again, and before long, just north of Fairbanks, we reached the Arctic Circle.

Of course, we stopped and took each others pictures. This one may have to go in a frame and get hung on a wall at home.

The road is dusty and broken in places, rocky in other places, but paved and nice quite often. They don't like this dust, so they run water trucks up and down the road. This turns it into slime which is slick as goose droppings on a hot griddle. The dust coated our bikes and turned into a solid, rock-like substance. And when it rained or when they watered the road, we would slip and slide all over ther place. You just have to let the bike squirm around underneath you and go with the flow. It doesn't do to try and fight it.

After awhile, we had to go up and over the rugged Brooks Mountain Chain. It got foggy and misty up there, and it was hard riding with water and dust over the visor of the helmet, and the road all slick and broken. I dropped down out of the fog once, and right there in front of me was a big mama moose with her young calf. Quite impressive (but moose are not very pretty, I hate to say).

When we dropped down out of the mountains, we were in the famous North Slope -- famous because it is here that they drill for all the oil.

It is cold and frozen up therer on the North Slope, all tundra and Caribou and musk oxen (which did not put in an appearance for us), and tons of mosquitoes (which did apperar in hungry clouds). It is pretty though. The big caribou herd (thousands of animals) is due to arrive next week. They will have missed us. I bet they will be sorry about that.

The gas stations are far apart. We stopped and topped off each time we came to one. Notice the price: $5.39 a gallon. They take all that oil from up there, pump it to Valdez. Truck it to a refinery. Then truck the gas back up the Haul Road to the few gas stations like this one. Whew!

They work on the road all the time. I didn't enjoy standing in the mosquitoes waiting our turn to drive through the rocky, torn-up road. It was quite a challenge.

But after a day and a half or riding, we reached the great industrial complex of Prudhoe Bay. Quite a place it is. Oil well companies every where. They showed us where the oil enters the pipeline. Here I am in this picture standing in the Arctic Ocean.

About that time, my bike got so it wouldn't shift anymore. I had to get it fixed, but I had to do that back in Fairbanks, 500 miles away. So, I got up early in the morning, leaving the other guys in their soft beds, and started my slow, lonely trip back.

Once back in Fairbanks, I went immediately to the Suzuki dealership. Both Odysseus and I were filthy dirty, but the guys in the dealership dropped everything to help us out. In less than an hour, they had fixed my shifter, put on new brake pads, tightened all the bolts and replaced those things that had fallen off on the haul road, and changed my oil.  All for $125.00. I couldn't believe it. I am so appreciative.

Some friends of friends, Phillip and Josie, had been kind enough to store a bunch of our gear for us as we rode the Haul Road. When the Indiana riders finally caught up with me, we went to Phillip's and Josie's home to retrive our gear. Surprise, they had a fantastic meal of caribou appetizers, spaghetti, and moose meatballs waiting for us. What great people.

So, after a good nights sleep, I am typing this, doing some laundry, and getting ready to head for Denali. The sun is coming out. Should be a good day. 

More later,
Ron