Ride To Alaska

[Scratch33]

I think we lingered in Hyder for about 15-20 minutes, rode around a bit, then beat a hasty retreat back to the relative savoir faire of Stewart.  No customs stop getting into Hyder, we did have to stop at a Canadian customs shack on the way out though.  "I saw you two ride in just a little while ago" said the border guard lady.  "Didn't stay long, did you?" she smiled.  "The travel guides made it sound a whole lot nicer" I quipped.

In Stewart we shopped around for lodgings.  The Ripley Creek Inn was interesting, but I got into a disagreement with the resident rooster that took an apparent dislike to my yellow Nolan helmet and started following me around crowing incessantly.  We settled instead on the King Edward Motel - very nice place; clean and modern - I used the oven in the kitchenette to dry out and apply some more Sno-Seal to my boots and gloves.  That evening we ate in the bar & lounge attached to the hotel portion of the King Edward, and watched on the big screen as the Sens fell to Anaheim.  The locals weren't pleased, and we kept a low profile (actually they took it all very well).
 

[Redfox]

I've never understood the whole Hyder thing among long distance riders. Don't get me wrong, I totally admire that they can do what they do. After visiting Hyder I just still dont understand. Hyder would however be a great place to hide if one were trying to escape the law.
I much prefer Stewart.
Ever walk into a bar after a hard days ride and all the conversation stops? Picture that only absolutly every one except yourselves is wearing the same hockey jersey. Oh yeah the playoffs.

A side note:
Scratch was nearly attacked by a rooster iin Stewart. I'll admit in his red riding gear and yellow helmet he might resemble an alien but the little rooster felt very threatened and wanted some action.

[Redfox]

Another quick note from memory that became a problem for me and my Tiger throughout the rest of our northern Fugawi. Premium fuel is often just not available.
Indeed 90 Octane is often the best you can buy in larger towns but 85-87 Octane only is the most common.
I did discover octane booster but for the most part I just kept out of heavy throttle to avoid heavy pinging. The up side of light throttle was that I often got 15-16 miles per liter which with a 24 liter tank gave adequate range between fillups even in the back country while running in first or second gear for extended periods.

[Scratch33]

I've never understood the whole Hyder thing among long distance riders. Don't get me wrong, I totally admire that they can do what they do. After visiting Hyder I just still dont understand. Hyder would however be a great place to hide if one were trying to escape the law.

Riding to Hyder and getting that stamp allows you to truthfully say that you've 'ridden to Alaska'.  

That being said....

[jwhite518]

I remember that as we turned left at the turnoff from Highway 37 onto the spur road (37A), we passed by a lone highway maintenance worker, with a push broom and wearing a hard hat & reflective vest.  He had long grey hair and a long scraggly beard, and looked to me like a cross between Bigfoot and the Monty Python "It's" man.  We exchanged friendly waves as we rode by.

Wonderful writing. I know exactly what this guy looked like. The "It's" man, indeed.

[Scratch33]

We left Stewart the next morning and rode 37A back past the glacier.  Along the road, with me in the lead and Tam stopped somewhere backaways to take a pic, I approached a bridge over a rainswollen river.  As I rode towards the bridge I saw a pickup truck stopped on the shoulder ahead; I focused my attention on it concerned it might pull back onto the road, and it took me a moment to notice the reason it was stopped:  



This brown bear obviously wanted to cross the stream, but couldn't/wouldn't brave the waters and decided to take a dry shortcut.  That would've been fine, except that when it got halfway onto the bridge it stopped and just kinda stood there looking around all confused-like.

"He's a young one, probably about two years old" said the driver of the pickup.  Just as I was about to respond, I heard the sound of a motorcycle and looked in my rear view to see Tam approaching quite rapidly from behind.  She zoomed past me and the P/U, then suddenly I saw her hit brakes as she finally spotted the bear ahead.  I didn't know Tigers could U-turn so quickly.

[Redfox]

Well as I recall Alaska is still a mighty long way from Hyder and generally a lot more scenic. But its where it is which alows nine states in ten days or ten states in nine days or somesuch. Someone said the mailboat shows up every two weeks. Whatever, I've been there.


Even the view from the hote in Stewart was pretty cool.
 

[Redfox]

Well I WAS ripping along to catch up and couldn't understand why a car was stopped on the bridge.
Then I realized I was the closest one to the bear.
That alone was a great reason to always practice u-turns.

[jwhite518]

Well as I recall Alaska is still a mighty long way from Hyder and generally a lot more scenic. But its where it is which alows nine states in ten days or ten states in nine days or somesuch. Someone said the mailboat shows up every two weeks. Whatever, I've been there.

It's actually 49 states in ten days. The stylin' way to do this is to time your ride so it ends in Hyder during a big party. Some day I'm going to do this. In the meantime I read ride reports from folks like you guys.

[Redfox]

  Dang 49?
Thanks for the linky. I am humbled by both your ability and ambition.  I really do mean that.
We encountered a number of LD types on this trip.
The addition of 200 or more in those two small towns must drastically increase the pop.

[Scratch33]

We let the pickup truck driver run interference for us across the bridge.  All it took was a toot of his horn and a little engine revving, and the bear hustled on across and into the underbrush on the other side.  On the way back to the Cassiar, we passed Mr. Bigfoot/"It's" Guy again, in nearly the exact same spot.  

Prior to our trip I'd been told by another rider that the ride to Telegraph Creek from Dease Lake is well worth it, unfortunately the road was closed due to the flooding.  We rode up the Cassiar and stopped for lunch and fuel at the Belle II Lodge, then continued north all the way to the Yukon Territories for our next stop, Watson Lake, where the Cassiar ends and intersects with Highway 1.  Total ride that day was about 400 miles.

[Redfox]

The Cassiar up to the Alaska highway was pretty cool. We saw the brown bear, so many black bears I lost count, wild horses in the road, and I saw my first moose. Maybe a little more closely than I had wanted...

[Scratch33]

Yeah, that damn moose.  We're riding along, me in the lead and Tam not far behind me, when suddenly this huge freakin' moose bolts outta the underbrush from the left and goes loping at an angle into the road in front of me.  

I grabbed a handful of brake and dove behind him and to the left, just missing his ass.  For a second or two as I decelerated we were just a foot or so apart - Tam says as I passed behind him he 'cow kicked' backwards at me.  I didn't see that, I was concentrating on not going off the road.

[Redfox]

Watson Lake on the Alaska Hiway is the type of town that knows how to handle muddy boots. It also looks a lot like a truck stop in the middle of nowhere. But the hotels were ok and seemed resonably priced. They were also the first where I had ever stayed that had good heavy black out curtains. The further north we rode the more important this became as the days grew ever longer. In Dawson and points north the sun never set at all but just turned to light twilight at around midnight before bright sunrise at around three AM. I got pretty good at improvising with blankets over the window. The best blackout curtains often were in the older hotels where workers stayed.
When the Alaska Hiway was built Watson Lake was a depot and so as the workers passed through the put up roadside signs to remind them of home. Today these are maintained by the gov't.



I was struck by just how big the distances are in the north and how unpopulated it is, and LOL how many RVs there are

.

[Scratch33]

That stop at Watson Lake (we stopped there again on our return leg) we stayed at the Big Horn Hotel.  Though there are several hotels/motels/B&B's to choose from in Watson Lake, dining choices are relatively limited.  The Belvedere Hotel, right next door to the Big Horn, is the one place in town that has the big restaurant and bar - that's where all the tour buses wind up. So if you prefer the buffet, you better hit it before the blue hairs do.  

[Redfox]

From Watson Lake it was a pretty long day to Tok eh?

I remember the road gradually devolving. At first it was under intensive repair for long stretches, then it became very rough with little red flags on the shoulder marking the really bad spots. Finally, as if the effort to remain paved was just too great it lapsed into gravel as we arrived at the dry lake bed and after to the Alaska border. LOL At least here the gravel was only an inch or less deep.

Pilot car drivers dont mind if you crash the front of the line to avoid eating dust at a construction zone but they really dont like it when you pass them.

RV's create huge jams and long lines at the few fuel stations. They also like to ride together in large groups.

Tok is pronounced toke and named after a husky dog. Ripper was a pretty cool dog who thumped his tail when you spoke his name.

The condition of the road is much better in Alaska.
 

[Scratch33]

From Watson Lake it was a pretty long day to Tok eh?

Whitehorse, m'dear.

[Redfox]

 

 
LOL Yup That was a really long day!
I remember now thats where we tried to get Olliver a raise and some time off.
They even had a Walmart so I could buy drugs and a Canadian Tire for tools and stuff!!!!!
I had a pretty bad head cold by then and dont rememeber a lot except a really nice dinner.
I also was hating my windshield and gel seat, a lot.

[Scratch33]

Between Watson Lake and Tok we stopped in Whitehorse, a large city with a Wal Mart and Canadian Tire and motorcycle shops and movie theaters 'n all.  Quite a going concern.  

Here's Tam at the overlook outside the town of Teslin, about halfway between Watson Lake and Whitehorse:



Upon check-in at the Best Western Gold Rush Inn in Whitehorse, there was a minor snafu when I came barging into my hotel room, pushing a luggage cart loaded with motorcycle gear, and found the room already occupied by an elderly couple in various stages of undress.   After confirming that both our card keys did in fact unlock the same door, the husband (a retired cop from Toronto, IIRC) and I laughed, then stomped down together to the front desk and had a fun few minutes double-teaming the poor desk clerk and his boss with feigned indignation and outrage.  We snagged a discount on our rooms and coupons for a free dinner outta that act.

Once we got all that sorted out and unloaded our gear, we rode down to the City Hall and got our free 2 (or was it 3?) day parking passes.  We rode around a bit more exploring the town (Whitehorse has a helluva lot of motorcycles), then came back, parked, and walked down the main street to the Edgewater Hotel for a great steak dinner.

[jwhite518]

Tok is pronounced toke and named after a husky dog. Ripper was a pretty cool dog who thumped his tail when you spoke his name.

Thanks for clearing that up.