Indecision is the key to Flexibility

  Tok, Alaska, United States
Sunday, August 26, 2007

    I heard from Danner yesterday and they have started to head south. They wanted to keep going north but the road is under construction and is in such bad shape that it didn't seem like a good idea to continue north. They sound like they are having a good time. They want to catch the ferry that will take them to Vancouver Island, Canada. It is an 18 hour trip along the coastline but they haven't been able to find out if there is room for them on the boat.

     When they were riding yesterday Danner was in the middle, going about 65mph or so. Danner saw a huge 350+ pound bear come running out of the woods crossing the road. He immediately started braking and missed the bear by about 30 yards. He said it happened really fast and the bear cut across the road in between the 2 bikes. Yikes.

       I just got off the phone with Danner and now they aren't sure if they want to continue south or go back north. The motto for their trip is "indecision is the key to flexibility". They are all just a mess.  He said that they are going to force themselves to make a decison at dinner. The campsite they are at tonight is having some kind of festival. There are about 30 campers and one restaurant. The local exciting Saturday night action.

      More later...maybe. I am heading to Florida to spend a week with my daughter and her family at the beach. I'm not sure if I will have Internet access or not. BFN, Katheryn

 
Day 16, Sat, 25Aug, Wasilla to Tok, AK
 
Today's ride was uneventful, pleasant.  We got in early and ate at Fast Eddies again and set up camp at the Sourdough Campground again.  They had all sorts of stuff going on as they were closing after Sunday.  The owners go to Oregon for the winter.  I guess that would be a warm spot if you were from Tok.  If you don't mind camping in the snow, you can for free.  There's no one there to collect fees.
      We had some neighbors that got cold during the night and got in their cars to run the heater.  It did get gown to 28 degrees but warmed up nicely as we departed.
 
 
Day 17, Sunday, 26 Aug, Tok to Haines Junction, Yukon Territory
 
 This was a nice ride with good weather.  I stopped to take a picture of Nick and Dick approaching a bridge.  They look like two ants.  While speeding to catch up with them, I didn't notice they had pulled over to wait for me.  They didn't notice when I zipped by.
Two hours later we got together again.  Cell phones, when they work in the North, are of little help while riding a motorcycle.  We had a nice dinner at the only spot in town.  Dick decided he wanted to camp at the Million Dollar Waterfall Park.  Nick and I opted for $70 hotel rooms that were overpriced.  We would pick up Dick at his campsite on the way to Haines the next day.
 
 
Some road         &n bsp;         &n bsp;   The ants

 
Day 18, Mon, 27 Aug, Haines Jct, Haines, AK, back to Haines Jct, then Whitehorse, YT
 
Our hotel rooms were warm; Dickie froze.  There was ice on my seat as we left.  First off,  the fog got us, followed by light rain and road construction.  But this route offered some pristine asphalt and stunning scenery.  We stopped in to pick up Dick but couldn't find him.  He had packed his tent, loaded all his gear, and walked down to see the waterfall just as we rode thru the campground.  After checking the jail and hospital, we finally met up again just four hours late.  Lunch and touring at Haines then the reverse route back to Haines Junction in drier weather, a nice ride.  Then it was back to Whitehorse at our favorite campground.
 
 
Day 19, Tuesday, 28 Aug, a day off in Whitehorse
 
Time to be real tourists.  It was 30 degrees this morning.

   
Bus and train to Skagway.
 
Dick Speer:  On the train - WOW - following the sourdough trail of the miners.  The Chilkoot trail from Whitehorse to Skagway, AK, gold mines.  Whitehorse, where Jack London ran the rapids and charged $25 a trip. The rapids reminded the miners of a white horse's mane, hence the name.
 
Danner:  This was a highlight of our trip.  It cost $115 for the bus and train ride.  Both were very nice.  The train runs on narrow gauge track (36 inch).  Laying that track could not have been easy with steep mountains, streams and lakes.  The train stopped twice on the way to Skagway to pick up hitchhikers who had been walking the miner's trails.  Some had been out for weeks.  We had fish and chips in Skagway and gawked at all the tourist coming off the cruise ships.  The bus ride back to Whitehorse was nice.
 
 
Day 20, Wed, 29 Aug, Whitehorse to Junction 37 (near Watson Lake)
 
Rain in the latter part of this leg.  We found the $45 sleaze bag hotel, a new low.  You have to see the pictures to appreciate it.  It was so bad that when the manager came to check on us, he offered a $20 rebate or we could leave with full refund.  We stayed; it was raining and getting cold.
 
                            
 
Day 21, Thur, 30 Aug, Junction 37, Yukon to Bell 2, BC
 
Back on the Cassiar Hwy, but this time we are heading south.  The beauty of this route offsets the rough ride.  It was not really that bad.  We arrived at Bell 2 early to find rooms were $180 per night.  There is only one hotel, restaurant, and gas station.   Bell 2 is really an upscale heli ski resort that has RV and tent camping.  They had three helicopters.  We camped out with the mosquitoes and bugs.  I pitched my tent on a grassy median, not the tent sites, as they were rocky.  The restaurant was pricey but nice.  Breakfast then back on the Cassiar.
 
 
Day 22, Friday, 31 Aug, Bell 2 to Burns Lake
 
We stopped at the end of the Cassiar at Kitwanga to gas up and eat.  Then we headed to Burns Lake on the Yellowhead Hwy.  Dick decided to depart the group to do a high speed run to Oregon.  Nick and I would continue on our more leisurely route.  We wound up at the same Korean hotel in Burns Lake.  Mrs Kim did our laundry while we went to dinner, nice lady.  She also gave us suites.
 
 
Day 23, Sat, 01 Sep, Burns Lake to Cache Creek
 
Enroute we saw a dead black bear on the highway, just a reminder that moose, elk, and others can easily take out a motorcyclist.  Maybe we should slow a bit.  We arrived early and found a nice quite hotel run by an English lady who brings babbling up to a new level.  She sent us to a nice restaurant for dinner.  My plug patch of my rear tire is leaking so it's gas and air at each stop.