Day Eight - R&R (Recuperation & Repairs)
Ted and Marilyn provided each of us with our own bedroom and we all slept well without having to try to eek out some REM time amongst all the snoring, Breakfast was served at 0730 and it was easily the best breakfast we'd had all trip. We started getting John's bike up on blocks so we could change out his blown right front fork seal. We got that done and got a parts list put together then headed to a local independent to get Rich's bike looked at. The guys at Thunder Road in Fairbanks moved Rich's bike to the front of the line and were working on it within 15 minutes of us getting there. They had it fixed once around noon but found another problem. Turns out it was in the charging system - they got his bike fixed and he was back on the road.
In the mean time, John, Ted & I went to the Harley dealer to check on my fuel hose. The guy checked the tracking number and sure enough, just like Ted said - sometime tomorrow (Friday) and the UPS guy usually shows up around 1700. That means that even if it shows up Friday, I wouldn't be able to have it installed until Saturday, if they even work on Saturday in the service department - UGH!!! Oh well, guess I'll just have it shipped back to CA and hope my repair holds. Back to Ted's to work on John's fork seal. That turned into a bit of an ordeal but long story short there - we did get it done. Marilyn made sandwiches for lunch.
As for my fuel line - at 1325 the Harley dealer left a message on my phone, my part was IN. Not only a day early but early in the day to boot. I picked it up and we went over to Thunder Road to see if they wanted my business as well. He said, sure and we headed back to Ted's to get my bike. It's 17 miles from Ted's to Thunder Road, I couldn't have picked a worse time of the day to make that ride. I got SOAKED on the way over there. I have all the rain clothes and everything but just didn't contemplate that it would be pouring rain for a 7 or 8 mile stretch. No big deal though - I've been wet before, so far I've always dried out - I've always said that. While they were woking on my bike I noticed the owner - Jerry"s - bike and he had an aftermarket horn on it. He demonstrated it for me & I said, good enough I'll take one. SWEET - all the bikes are ready to roll. We'll be heading out sometime tomorrow, still working on a destination.
Marilyn made lasagna for dinner, we all sat around talking about this and that until it was bed time. Ted has lived up here for over 40 years and some of the stories he had to tell were fascinating. Us guys stayed up a little too late out in the garage/workshop drinking beer kicking tires, while my boots and gloves were drying out under next to the wood burning stove.
Before we move on, I want to say a special thank you to Ted, Marilyn, and Nick. Without those people, we would be stuck. They took us in and we were immediately family to them - not too many of those kind of people out there and we couldn't have made it this far without their kind assistance.
Day Nine - Glaciers right and left (Fairbanks to Tok)
When I got up this morning & looked out the window, all I could see was blue sky. At that point I was pretty sure we were going to take the Top of the World Highway on the way home. We were warned that it was a bad road but I really wanted to see something besides the ALCAN on the way home. Over breakfast (last night's lasagna) Ted & Nick once again came to the rescue. They pointed us to the road called the Tok cutoff, and we were not disappointed with the road or the scenery. I'm still working on the pictures but hope to have at least some of them up for you to look at very soon.
I spent so much time taking pictures that John and Rich just left me to my hobby and pressed on. We met up in Glenallen and headed back to Tok. When we pulled into the parking lot at the Westmark it was like deja vu all over again. Someone had taken our primo parking spot but we got one right next to it. Same room as before too, three twin beds. Rich noticed this little cafe on the way in to town so we went there for dinner vs. another Westmark experience. The food there was all home made and excellent; we all had the split pea soup. We were thinking about heading to the local bar but opted instead for a stop at the liquor store and some in room adult beverages. Rich was able to find his Heineken Dark which brought a big smile to his face, Don Julio Banco for me & wine coolers (I believe) for John.
It was just a short day (under 400 miles) but the combination of a late start and our first day back on the bikes has everyone a little more tired than we expected to be. Looking forward to a good night's sleep.
Day Ten - Rough Break (Tok to Whitehorse)
The worst stretch of the ALCAN is on this leg of the trip. There 75 mile stretch where the road is awful. From what I'm told, frost heaves are what cause the damage. I guess the frost under the ground lifts the asphalt up, or it thaws and the road sinks - whatever it is - it's ROUGH. On the way up we were trying to keep the speed around 70 mph and got killed, on the way back through, we were closer to 60 mph and it was much less painful.
We ate at some pretty nice Italian place just up the street. The drinks were good as well as the food and the service. We were lucky to get in there when we did - they were absolutely packed 35 minutes later.
I did mention that the ALCAN was a rough road didn't I. Today we discovered that Rich's rear pipe was torn in half; right behind where it mounts to the transmission. We thought it was just a crack but after we investigated further - it's in two pieces. Not too sure what we're going to do at this point. Time to go to work - in the rain.
While we were out in the parking lot here at Canada's Best Value Inn we heard a commotion across the street; the cops were there trying to get a drunk off the roof. It was pretty sad but in a funny kind of way. This neighborhood ain't the greatest but we aren't worried, we can take care of ourselves. While we were working on the bike some drunk girl came over and asked us if we had any cigarettes - all the while holding out a package of rolling papers. John calls them all chronics - I guess because they have a chronic addiction of some kind or another.
We got the exhaust pipe off the bike but were pretty much at a loss for anything to do. I called welders but nobody was available this late. There was one guy that did 24 hour service but he was 600 miles away and in the wrong direction. Having made absolutely no progress, we are turning in for the night.
Day Eleven - And Then There Were Two (Whitehorse to Dease Lake)
We could have gone to Dat Lake but chose Dease Lake instead. Okay - that was a fairly lame attempt at humor on a day with very little in it. John's bike will be finishing the trip on a trailer. It's had a knocking in the rocker box that sounds to us like a rocker arm & it was so bad at the end of the day that he decided he wasn't going to ride it anymore.
I planned a short day today because we had to put Rich's bike back together before we could go anywhere and we needed to get some hose clamps to help hold everything together. Wallmart opened at 0800 and I was there but they don't sell hose clamps at Wallmart so we waited for the Home Hardware to open at 0900. We patched things up best we could and were on the road by 1030.
It was a bit of a rainy day but the roads are in much better shape down here. We did hear that when we turn off the ALCAN the 37 has some of those frost heaves on the first 100 miles or so. They were right, but it wasn't nearly as bad as some we've seen. There were a couple stretches of gravel road and that's never fun with a top heavy bike - but we all made it through the difficulties.
Oh yea - one more little issue today was the moose. She was a big one and had a calf with her. Came from nowhere out of the trees on the side of the road; she was coming at full speed too. It looked like she was going to pass behind me but not by much, it looked like I could reach out and touch her. She turned away when she realized something fast and loud was going to be very close to her and her calf which is a good thing because had she passed behind my bike, John would have probably hit her - lots of people die when that happens. We were all wide awake for the last 45 miles.
I almost forgot - hail too. It wasn't all that bad but it sure hurt when it hits your face. It only lasted for three or four minutes and was nothing like the hail we got outside Williams, AZ on the way to Sturgis in 2000.
Dinner was at the only restaurant still open and she only had one serving of the lasagna left so Rich and I had soup & a sandwich. It was good - but then just about anything is good at the end of a riding day. Back to the room which has Wi-fi but no cell phone coverage. I doubt that we'll be staying at the Arctic Circle Inn next time around.
Day Twelve - The Bear Day (Dease Lake to Smithers)
The guys taking John's bike to Smithers wanted to leave early so we were all out there and ready to go at 0700. It was COLD - the coldest it's been so far. Since John was going down in a truck Rich & I took the opportunity to unload our bikes and enjoy the ride "chase truck style." Thank God for Gerbings - if you ever need heated gear, that's the stuff to get. It was raining, my boots were soaked and the temp was in the high 30's - I was still nice and cozy in my Gerbings. Of course there are plenty of other things to make you uncomfortable when you're riding in the rain - like knowing that your rear tire is just about bald, the rain hitting you in the face & the reduced visibility you get because you have rain on the outside and inside of your glasses. Things like that.
There were a lot of bears out today. We were told that the salmon are about to start running up that river and that's why they are hanging around. I only saw black bears but Rich saw two Grizzlies, one of them even stood up on his back feet. Rich said that made him really nervous but instead of making a threatening gesture, he just waved as Rich rode by. I would have liked to be on this road on a clear day, the guy that hauled John's bike said the road runs through what they call Canada's Grand Canyon; hard to tell though when the clouds are so low & it's raining.
Dease Lake to Smithers is only about 375 miles but I decided to take a side trip to Stewart to see Bear Glacier. It wasn't anything spectacular but pretty cool. I took a few pictures that I still haven't gotten around to developing, been too busy with the ride blog and just too tired at the end of the day to edit pictures. Everyone wants to see more pics though so I think I'll try to get at least some of that done tonight.
One of the reasons we came to Smithers is because there is a Harley dealer in town and we need new tires Rich didn't take the side trip so he got his bike in first, he got front and back tires and brake pads. My bike won't go in until the morning - but they said first thing, you know how that goes. Check-out time here is 1100, we'll be lucky to make that. Okay - time for dinner.
Day Thirteen - Fresh Meat (Smithers to Prince George)
Never did get to those pictures last night - too much fun at the bar. We went over to eat & had a couple drinks then John and I left for the room. Rich however was making friends with some of the guys at the bar so we left him there figuring he'd be along soon. He wasn't - so I went over to rescue the guys at the bar from Rich. That did't happen either - I fell right into the conversation, ordered another beer or two and I think somebody bought me a little more Jameson's. I'm a little hazy on the details after that but I do know I went back with Rich and that it was around 2230. I also know that I didn't get any pictures done.
This morning I was somewhat worse off than I had hoped for, but it wasn't a surprise & I've been way worse. Breakfast at around 0745 then wait around for 0900 when the Harley shop opens. Rich's bike wasn't "quite" done last night so they had to finish it up before they started on mine. Everyone there is nice enough and it didn't look like they were messing around but it was taking a lot longer than I expected - which is normal. We got the check-out time backed up to noon and barely made that. Guess it's a good thing I planned for this to be our shortest day on the road.
Still a little rainy and cold on the road but with the new tires it was a joy to lean the bikes over in the turns. If the roads had been dry it would have been awesome. Of course as we get closer to civilization the traffic picks up and today was our first day of actually having more than one or two cars to deal with since we left Abbotsford on the way up (with the exception of Fairbanks of course). We are also heading for flatter land, you can actually look around and not see a mountain in every direction.
Since we were leaving so late and it was just a little over 200 miles we thought we would be okay without all the rain gear. You know the rest of the story - 20 miles out of Prince George it started to rain, just a little at first but it got to medium for a little while. We could have stopped and actually talked about it before the first drop fell but we aren't that smart. We pulled up to the Travelodge wet from the knees down but not soaked.
Most days I get ahold of Robin (my wife) tell her where we are planning on spending the night and she finds us a place. She has a long list of things we would "like" to have and a short list of requirements - she has been doing a GREAT job. Tonight was no exception; there is a sports bar right next to the hotel, and the food was plenty good. Rich and I thought it might be a good call to take a night off from the drinking, other than the two beers you have to have with dinner of course.
Tonight is my night to do laundry (which is giving me a chance to catch up on this stuff) & it's also my night in the roll away. However - - - they don't have roll aways here, what I have is three thin couch cushions taped together with bedding & tossed into the corner. I should have picked tonight to get hammered.
Day Fourteen - Two Weeks - Really (Prince George to Bellingham, WA)
This was the official back to civilization day. Long lines of cars that need to be passed, with long lines of cars coming the other way that need to be avoided while passing. Still some beautiful country but we came this way on the way up, so it's the same thing just a different direction.
Today started out cold and wet. We both started out in our full rain and cold gear & were glad for the decision. It wasn't pouring down or anything just one of those spitting continuously rains that while not enough to make your wear a rain coat, is certainly enough to keep you off the golf course. None of the golf courses we passed had anyone on them, I was looking; already thinking about golf again - still a long ways from home to start that. Then again, we've been gone for two weeks and I'll be home in three days.....
So, that was the first 300 miles or so, but in Cache Creek it started to warm up a little and it looked like we might be fairly dry for the rest of our ride down to Bellingham. We stopped for gas at a station that just happened to have an A&W associated with it. They were doing a land office business in there but we waited our turn & enjoyed a burger and root beer for lunch.
As we descended out of the mountains, it really started getting warmer. I had to pull over and take my electric jacket liner out - it hadn't been on for a long time but even just the liner was getting to be too much; while I was at it I switched to my summer gloves. I still had my gaiters and rain pants on though and that was going to have to change pretty quick. OK - construction stop, we go straight to the front and ask the flagman how long it's going to be. He doesn't say but tells us what the last car in the line will be since they are already coming. Fast as we can Rich and I are stripping off rain gear and cold weather gear and stuffing it in our saddle bags. I don't have time to get my rain pants off though and we jump back on the bikes, first in line for the one way construction zone. Well - the vehicle we were in front of was a heavy truck and most of the one way road was up hill, so when we got to the end of the construction we were far enough ahead of the line of traffic that I had time to finish getting out of all my extra gear. THAT felt good - first time I've been able to ride in jeans and a t-shirt since the day we left.
Pulled into the Econo Lodge here in Bellingham around 1645. It was another great choice, right next to a casino that is also a bar and restaurant. It's also right next to the freeway but we can't really hear any freeway noise. It's good to be back in the good old USA.
Day Fifteen (Bellingham, WA to Winston, OR)
We started out this morning at around 0900 in order to hopefully avoid traffic in the Seattle area. John tried to get us to just go on without him since he wouldn't be able to go as fast in a U-Haul as we could on the bikes but Rich and I were having none of that - all for one, and one for all. Seattle did have some traffic but it wasn't bad - certainly not by Los Angeles standards.
Everything was going along just fine until we got to Portland. We were going very slowly (about 10 mph) because of some construction that I never did see, and just about to go over the Marquam Bridge when my bike quit running. I knew it was electrical because the speedometer was stuck at 10 mph and the only way to make that happen is to turn the key off while the bike is moving. It was pretty easy to get over to the side of the road since it was down to two lanes & I got the bike restarted in less than a minute. That however was long enough on the side of the road for John to pass us in the U-Haul. I was concerned that he might try to turn off somewhere and come back so when I got my bike running we went as fast as we dared to catch up to him. We caught up with him within a mile or two and we made it to Salem with no more incidents.
Salem is where we will continue south on I-5 and John will turn left and go to Sisters, OR. We got off the freeway at the exit for Sisters and found a Mexican food place for our last lunch together. The food was acceptable as were the margaritas. We wished John well and he was off to his daughter's house while we were off to our friend's house in Winston. I was hoping that my bike's little problem was an anomaly and would never be seen again; that was not too be. Once more on the way to Winston it quit. This time, because we were at freeway speed, I got it restarted on the shoulder while I was still coasting along at 20 mph. Hmmm, now I've got to start thinking about what could be causing this…. But we aren't stopping, or slowing down.
Our friends in Winston met us with a glass of Don Julio for me and a beer for Rich. We moved to the back patio where we enjoyed conversation, more adult beverages, and pizza. We should have called it a night much earlier than we did but hey, we haven't seen these folks for a long time.
Day Sixteen - Easy Eight Hundered (Winston to Home)
It was our intention to leave fairly early and I did set the alarm on my cell phone but the late night before called for a sleep-in day. Oh well, no big deal since we are only going to Salinas, it's a fairly short day anyway. We were able to put our bikes inside the fence at our friend's house so we didn't have to unpack them and getting ready to go was as easy as putting yesterday's dirty clothes somewhere and pulling out. That happened around 0900 and we were once again southbound on I-5.
I called our hotel coordinator and requested a room in Salinas and she assured me she was on it. In Redding I got a text message that said all the hotel rooms in Salinas were very expensive so Rich and I decided to just go down the Five until we got tired and if we didn't get tired, we would just press on and be home that night. At that point we'd been on the road for 250 miles and home was over 550 miles away. So, that's what I set my sights on, 550 more miles - over 800 miles for our last day.
My motorcycle did quit one more time, but by now I'm getting pretty good at getting it restarted and although there were a couple places it would have been VERY bad to have a dead motorcycle, it happened on open freeway and was no problem.
Rich's bike is leaking pretty good out of the primary case and the drive belt is in pretty bad shape because the main drive gear bearing is loose so the gear is wobbling and slowly eating the belt. Once again though, we aren't stopping. About the time we got to Sacramento we'd pretty much decided that our destination was home & we were going to ride the bikes until we got there or they until they broke. We did make it home - I got home at 2245 and Rich got home at 2315. Official mileage varies between devices (GPS & Odometer) but we'll say 7,300 miles and I'm sure it's within 50 miles either side of that.
It was a great adventure and I'll have some final thoughts when I post the rest of the pictures. For now, I'm going to take a couple days and just relax.
