Additional comments from the present (Oct. 29, 2019): And the characters keep coming…

July 10, 2019 (originally on Facebook)

Well, kids, I’m back in Fairbanks. Survived the Dalton Highway all the way to Deadhorse & back. It was epic. The three of us conquered a pretty gnarly road, and overcame a few obstacles. Mostly broken KLRs.

Crossed the arctic circle, the continental divide, and met some interesting folks. We escorted Matt on the final leg of Key West to Deadhorse (amazing). Weirdly didn’t see much wildlife until nearly in Deadhorse. So great.

We had good weather. We mostly got lucky. Rode at “night” quite often to avoid trucks. Played it “smart”. Even so, these are dangerous roads. This isn’t a tourist place. For those that don’t understand that, I present a picture of a BMW 850GS 10-15 feet down a ditch off the road.

This was a thing that was accomplished, not a ride to the store. I only say this because I’m slightly amazed I made it. And I got to do it with people that were strangers a week ago, friends from here forward.

I need a beer…

July 10, 2019 (personal journal)

I got up really early today, like 8am early. Felt great, too. Still riding the accomplishment high I guess. 

Busted camp, ate, etc. All before the other two woke up. 

Sort of a weird day, just retracing our path. Nothing super eventful happened. Just kidding, things happened.

I don’t actually remember if it was before (most likely) or after (less likely) Yukon river, but Drew had a problem… obviously (Drew – I know you’re reading this, and there’s nothing but love here… mostly). He hit a bump pretty hard, causing his bike to shed everything strapped to it. The scene looked like a rummage sale on the Dalton. Not a great spot for it. I was wishing I had price stickers, though.

While things were being gathered I noticed water. All over the group, his left boot, and the side of his bike. Crap. Not good. It wasn’t actually water, it was coolant. Less good. Because we were in a bad spot (basically on a blind crest) I told Drew to limp to safer ground. It was there we learned the radiator was cracked. YAY!

It was before Yukon River I remember now. I know because he limped it in, his brother followed, and it allowed me to check a few side roads for fun.

In Yukon River Camp we formulated a plan… Drew would just ride, keep the bike from overheating, and Matt & I would eventually catch up. First we needed naps. Obviously. It turned into a fun ride out. I’d haul off, let Matt think he could catch me, and shatter his dreams. 

I have to say, though… he has become very confident, approaching fast, on the surfaces we’ve been running. For a guy with little to no gravel experience… it’s impressive. He’s also been really receptive to my input, so that’s neat.

We missed the fancy ‘Dalton Highway’ sign on the way in so stopped for pics this time. The smoke was getting really bad again. These fires are awful, literally burning along the road.

We’d heard of a brewery in Fox, just north of Fairbanks, so we stopped or food and beers. Not too bad, but I can’t think of the name. Going to rewind this morning real quick… to while we were waiting to go to Fairbanks. We met a guy (old crazy guy, looked like a miner sort of) that told us about some cabins in Fox. Steve (that’s his name) had been to Deadhorse, but didn’t get a sticker. Matt had an extra one for him. 

Back on track, said cabins happened to be across the street from the brewery, so I called. They had room. It was fairly cheap to sleep all three of us in two cabins. In.

It turns out they’re attached to a bar. They’re dry (no running water… plenty of booze), and the communal restrooms are sort of far. BUT! They’re attached to a bar!

Did some drinking. Closed down the bar. Made camp food in a thunderstorm. All totally normal, right?

Anchorage tomorrow…

Odo Start: 20,210
Odo End: 20,470
Daily Miles: 260
Cum. Miles: 5,907

P.S. Steve is here. He’s the self-proclaimed ambassador to the ‘Howling Dog Saloon’. Ralph owns it. He’s building a moto park. He has a lot of bikes. I sat on his BMW Paris-Dakar. So rad!

July 11, 2019 (originally on Facebook)

Today I went to Anchorage. Just kidding. I didn’t go anywhere. Still in Fairbanks. Still at the bar/cabins.

I did DO things, though. I “washed” the bike. I saw some pipe. Worked on a KLR a bit, sort of. I pointed at a few things. Fixed the hinges on my panniers.

Listening to music. Hanging out. Anchorage can wait for tomorrow.

I did decide that I’m going to Homer after Anchorage. End of another road.

Since not a lot happened today, I’m going to appease Jason’s request for more info on the rest of the people. I don’t have pics, or a lot of info, but here goes.

The four guys are all friends from Jersey originally. I met them in Carmacks, Yukon Territory.

Marshall lives in Colorado. Tuk is the ultimate destination.

Lukas lives in SLC. Tuk is also the goal.

Drew lives in Colorado. Roommate to Marshall. Brother to Matt. Tuk is cool, but Deadhorse is on the list.

Matt lives in Jersey. Rode from Key West. Deadhorse is the goal. Iron Butt challenge. Absolutely nuts. I mean, who the hell would go to Florida on purpose?

Anyhow, they were on a buddy trip I crashed. Luke & Marshall did the whole Dempster. Drew, Matt, and myself have stuck together through the rest of the ride.

That’s about that. Majority of our conversations have revolved around scooters, so not a huge amount to tell about each one. Plus, I’m not making a profile of each.

Have a great night, friends.

July 11, 2019 (personal journal)

The original plan was to head to Anchorage today, but that didn’t happen for a few reasons, all logical.

Matt is planning to sell his bike in Anchorage, so Drew wants to swap radiators. The plan makes sense. Going to add stop-leak to the broken radiator.

I wanted to was the Dalton off my bike, and run a few errands, so more reason to stick around. So stick around we did.

Drew ran to the auto parts store for coolant, stop leak, etc. While he did that I organized some things. Matt… slept, maybe? Probably.

After Drew got back I rode to town looking or a self-serve car wash. Got distracted in a Walmart first, grabbing a few things. Some cleaning stuff, ratchet strap, snack. Nothing super interesting, I don’t think. Clearly nothing memorable.

Finally made it to the wash. Spent nearly $10 to get the bike less dirty. I would never call it clean, just got the bad stuff off I hope.

I did notice that the parts of the center stand facing forwards when folded got completely sandblasted by the gritty dust on the haul road, and are all rusty. Will have to repaint it later, maybe. 

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 29, 2019): I haven’t done that yet… maybe I still will.

Back in Dawson City I had noticed a massive, F550(?) based expedition vehicle from Texas. It looked incredible. I have a huge desire to have one of those European over-landers one day. This was definitely the American version.

I’d seen the truck nearly everywhere we went since Dawson City, and it pulled into the wash while I was finishing. Had a talk with the couple. They were spending a few months on the road in total style. We swapped some info before I headed back (HI, Great White Roamer!).

Their rig was built by EarthRoamer in Colorado, in case you wanted to take a look.

I didn’t go straight back, of course. Stopped at a really cool pipeline viewing spot. Took a few pictures. Learned about pipe pigs that serve various functions. By the time I made it back Drew was nearly done with his radiator swap. I was having issues with my pannier latches, so I fixed that. Cleaned a few things. Put a bunch of stickers on (yes… I did). Took a quick nap.

Drew went with Steve to the wash, so Matt & I found food. A very late lunch, but it was great. The bar has good food. There was a car club meet, which was cool to see.

After that was ‘jam night’. Basically, it was open mic for instruments. Bit interesting if I’m being mostly honest. A good time at any rate.

More drinking. More late night camp food. Very enjoyable.

Anchorage tomorrow for real…

 

P.S. Another awesome storm rolled through late.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 28, 2019): I must apologize for missing last Friday. Things got busy, and I ran out of time… so… here we are, on Monday with a new post.

Going to stick with using my journal for the next few posts. Because of a lack of cellular service things got a bit out of order. 

As you’ll find out, I made it to Deadhorse Alaska, and to the ocean. Technically it’s the Beaufort Sea, but that is part of the Arctic Ocean, so… enjoy.

July 8, 2019 (personal journal)

This morning was miserable. Barely slept. Partly because of the light. Partly the heat. It’s so hot still. I’m in the arctic, and it’s almost 80 degrees. Alaska is supposed to be cold.

Because we decided to ride late the morning was sitting around, napping, trying to relax. Unfortunately, our campsite has zero shade. Add the sun that is perpetually up… yeah, awful.

It didn’t take us long to break camp to head back to Coldfoot. At least they had shade, a restaurant with fans, and cold drinks. Hung out there for a bit.

Ran into Acorn again, who has decided to ride with us to Deadhorse. Nobody seems to mind.

Before leaving we went to the visitor center across the street. In spite of not having A/C it was quite cool. I fell asleep in a movie they were showing. Fell asleep again in a comfy lobby chair. Really needed the sleep, apparently.

It was probably 8pm before we finally turned north. 239 miles to Deadhorse!

Not long after we left I saw a moose with her calf playing in a lake. So cool I actually stopped to watch a  bit while everyone else kept going. I’m usually the fastest rider, so it isn’t hard to catch up.

The road is still not awful. Still a mix of paved, barely paved, gravel, not sure… and all with potholes to dodge. Haven’t been really challenged, and that is a-ok. Having a blast. About 60 miles north of Coldfoot the road begins a steep, switchback-laden climb over the Atigun Pass. This signifies two things: 1) you’re nearly on the north slope, and 2) you’re crossing the continental divide.

Holy crap! Another milestone on this rad journey north.

I guess there is a third thing: the mosquitos are about to get 75x worse somehow. It’s seriously awful. I really don’t get it, at all. I’ve likely used enough deet to go sterile. Still better than being eaten alive.

Nothing really interesting between there & Prudhoe. Yes, the views are still rad. Yes, the pipeline is still majestic. No, you don’t constantly stop. Mosquitos.

This is also the longest stretch without fuel. I carried extra that I didn’t end up needing, but the KLRs did. Even so, I’d run in on fumes. Some day I’ll tame my throttle wrist. Yeah, probably not.

Just about two hours to go caused the sun to pretend to go down. That simply meant you were riding into it just over the horizon seemingly everywhere you turned. Such an odd phenomenon. The temps also started to drop. The KLRs ran out of fuel.

40 miles to go was when it got really cold. We were riding above the clouds it seemed, approaching a point we’d have to plunge in. Ice was all over the distant hills.

I forgot to mention that we hadn’t seen tree since Atigun Pass. This land is eerily beautiful. At one point I surprised a musk ox grazing along the road. Luckily he retreated into the ditch, and not my line.

At this point I could see the inevitable ride into the clouds, and couldn’t stand the cold any longer. I waved everyone ahead so I could add a layer plus a balaclava. All the while swatting the swarming mosquitos.

When you first stop there are none, and seconds later 1 or 2. Fractions of a second later, millions. I really don’t get it. They are the worse. Not sure they should even exist.

At any rate, once bundled I pressed on, plunging into a freezing, near blinding fog alone. Immediately soaked, my visor turning to a muddy window, this was actually a bit of a challenge. The visibility was almost nothing. Never did we emerge from the freezing, impossibly cold arctic fog, yet we managed to find each other again at the end of the road.

We made it. At approximately 2:15am on July 9, 2019 we arrived in Deadhorse, Alaska. Prudhoe Bay.

We needed gas so we hung a left to the container gas station (cheapest in town, apparently – by $.08).

It really didn’t hit me that I’d done it, achieved my goal, until I got gas. I actually did the thing I’d set out to do. Yes, there were delays & detours. Minor setbacks. Mental blocks. Even so, I did it!

This is the furthest road north in the United States. Holy shit!

A list of things to get here:

1. Enter Canada
2. Cross B.C. south to north (bottom to top)
3. Enter the Yukon
4. Detour to the Dempster
5. Visit the NWT
6. Cross Arctic Circle (TWICE!)
7. Cross Continental Divide
8. Survive

I’m so proud of myself for doing this. Even when I talked about it… even when I left home… it seemed impossible – or at least not quite real. It wasn’t impossible. I did it. Not sure how to describe the emotions involved.

Deadhorse. I’m here.

We had planned to camp before Deadhorse, but it was freezing, we were exhausted, not to mention wet. So the four of us decided to try to find a room.

First two places we tried were full. Not unusual, as this isn’t a tourist place. This is a working oil field, really. In fact, there isn’t a good reason to come here if you aren’t involved in the trade, to be honest. It’s simply a destination for some of the crazier adventure riders.

We found Deadhorse Camp, rooms for us, beds, showers. Passing out is going to be amazing.

I DID IT!

Odo Start: 19,701
Odo End: 19,958
Daily Miles: 257
Cum. Miles: 5,395

July 9, 2019 (personal journal)

In spite of not falling asleep until well after 3am I was up and moving fairly early. Somewhere around 7:30. Early enough to have breakfast. Which was fantastic, and actually made to order. These oil folks know how to do it.

Deadhorse is actually ~10 miles short of Prudhoe Bay. Because it is all oil fields security is tight. The only way to get to the Beaufort Sea (part of the Arctic Ocean) is to sign up for a tour 24 hours in advance to allow background checks to be done. Obviously, we did that. Would be a shame to come all this way to not touch the water.

Our bus left at 8:30, showing us the oil operations. Pretty interesting, but I just wanted to get to the ocean – LET’S GO! After a while, including going through a checkpoint (seriously, security is real here), we got to the water. The bus actually stops at a man-made rock ‘pier’, and thing you get to go out on and get in the water.

We were warned to watch for polar bears. The ice is melted which means they are coming in. Not frightening at all… right?

Drew and his brother took a full swim. I did not. I went to my knees. Damn that water is cold. Still got my certificate. I’m ok with not having gone full polar bear. It was still an excellent experience that few will have. I did it! Cross that off the bucket list.

When we got back to camp (forgot to mention the tour bus left from where we stayed, which was convenient) it was nap time. They let us stay late due to our late arrival.

Acorn didn’t do the tour with us, and seemed irritated about waiting, so… I guess he left with some other guys. Not a big deal. He was starting to wear a bit, he’s just a lot of character.

Took an amazing shower after my nap. At this point I should describe the place a bit. Deadhorse Camp, and really all the places here, are for the oil workers to live. As such, they’re simple rooms, dorm style baths, mess halls. Working places. Deadhorse Camp assigns rooms. All the rooms lock from the inside (no keys), and it all seems to be built from containers. Oh, shoes off is a strict rule.

The weather today was great, by the way. No fog, and warm in the sun. “Warm” meaning not freezing. I liked it.

Took a while to get the bags packed, but we finally figured it out. I might have been the slowest, until Matt & Drew decided to do random bike maintenance. I relaxed some more.

From there we visited the general store for stickers, pictures with the actual Deadhorse sign, and more ‘celebration’.

There really aren’t any restaurants in Deadhorse, it all revolves around oil. Lunch isn’t as simple as finding a burger joint. Hotels aren’t your normal hotels.

Where we had lunch was on of the bigger ‘hotels.’ Oil companies really pay for them as dorms. Everyone is required to wear booties. The front dest eventually explained it all to us, and it made way more sense.

The mess hall is $19/person, all you can eat, plus you’re free to pack food to go (which we all did – enough for two days). Sanitize your hands, put on gloves, get food. Find table. Remove gloves. Eat.

Do not touch anything without gloves if it isn’t the food you are actively eating. Seriously. Don’t.

Their hygiene practices are serious. Their food is simply ok. Their variety is nuts.

After eating, and packing extra we basically hauled back to Coldfoot. Well, KLRs ran out of gas, obviously. Gotta laugh.

I did find an old fire station that is long abandoned on Atigun Pass. Way cool to poke around a bit while waiting for the guys.

Smoke from a fire somewhere caused the sun to create an impressive ‘sunset’ that we stopped to enjoy a while. I even saw the moon come out for a short hello.

Made it back to Coldfoot before midnight where we set camp. They actually have a free area. Excellent.

Odo Start: 19,958
Odo End: 20,210
Daily Miles: 252
Cum. Miles: 5,647

P.S. Seriously, though… Prudhoe Bay! Arctic Ocean!

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 24, 2019): Greeting AND salutations, good people of the internet! This is another part of the trip where not a lot was posted on the Bookface. SOOOO… I’m just going to relay the story of our departure in Fairbanks, and our arrival in Coldfoot. Coldfoot being the last outpost until you reach Deadhorse. I’ve also reached into some photos that weren’t shared previously.

July 7, 2019 (personal journal)

No the earliest start today, but with the light the way it is, not a big deal. It’s both a blessing and a curse to have 24hr a day light. Great for riding, but terrible for sleeping.

There are apparently 57(!) active fires in Alaska, and we had to ride towards one. The smoke was progressively worse, not clearing until nearly reaching the Yukon River about 2 hours later.

But I was on THE DALTON! Amazing. Heading towards my goal, I was buzzing with excitement. This is really why I came.

The road is mainly gravel, fairly rough in sports as it winds it’s way through switchbacks, and over a mountain. It’s beautiful, as well as dangerous. I can fully see how bad it gets when it’s wet. Luckily the weather is dry – so far.

The weather – Alaska (well, nothing north of Liard, really) has not been as expected. It’s been really hot for the most part, with several days in the mid-high 80s. Not the freezing I was warned about. Crazy to me.

When we stopped at the Dalton Highway sign a few guys rolled up for a quick chat. We saw them again upon reaching The Yukon River Camp. The first stop for food & fuel. Really good burger, actually.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 24, 2019): The road even getting to The Dalton is seriously garbage. It’s paved, but the winters completely kick the crap out of it. Garbage is even a terribly nice way to refer to the road. We saw a camper nearly go over, the heaves are so bad. It’s easy enough to catch air if you want to.

The two guys that stopped at the sign with us… nice guys. A bit older. They bragged about chasing us down, and catching up to us. So, we’d see them on the road to the river, and I’d make a point to chase them down, and beat them into camp. Just because I’m a child like that sometimes. It was so fun!

I mentioned we had to ride next to another fire, and that is what we did. At the time we joked that we’d found the exit to the portal that had led us to Dawson City, but we’d later realize that wasn’t the case. If anything it was just a maintenance tunnel.

Right across from the ‘camp’ is a little visitor’s center. They have stamps for your passport, area info, and a great viewing area for the pipeline.

You can see it here and there throughout Alaska, but this was really the first opportunity up close for me. Damn impressive, and I’ll be riding along it the next several days. Before moving along I had a stroll down by the river for a nap. While lying down I accidentally discovered a geocache. Funny. It was hidden inside the railing I was using for shade.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 24, 2019): Still riding with Drew, and his brother Matt. I’m impressed that we’ve all been hanging out this long, and for this many miles. Really a group that just clicked. Super fun.

Back on the road after a thirty minute power nap. Next stop was Finger Mountain. Just below the Arctic Circle, Finger Mountain is a series of unique rock formations. Totally worth wandering around. Frost heave creates rings of rock all covered in lichen. Really amazing to look at.

Fireweed continues to be everywhere, and adds to the beauty of the landscape.

And hour later found me (us) crossing the Arctic Circle again, back to the arctic we go! Still super cool. Pretty far north, but I’ve got further to go.

Drew kept having chain problems. The thing would fall off every so often, which made for some slow going. The third time it happened the decision was made to replace it. At this point it was almost 10pm. Like I said, slow going.

Turns out, neither Drew nor Matthew had ever really changed a chain themselves. It’s been quite a while for me. This was going to be interesting. While Drew found tools (and parts), I remembered how things worked, and Matt made some food. He also gave us a shot of ever clear, which probably jogged the memory.

Once the chain was fixed, and we were packing back up, I heard something. Something large was in the trees on the other side of the road. Not great. Noise was made, bikes were started, and the culprit (likely a bear) disappeared.

There best of the run to Coldfoot was easy, even mostly (poorly) paved. We hit Coldfoot minutes after midnight, and the restaurant was kind enough to serve us even though they were technically closed.

While we ate we decided to camp at Marion Creek a few miles up. We also decided we would spend the day relaxing, not leaving until sometime around 8pm. Cooler temps with plenty of light, nearly no trucks or construction provided another advantage to a night run to Deadhorse.

Finally set up camp at about 3am. Time to pass out. Long days are long. Really long.

Odo Start: 19,400
Odo End: 19,702
Daily Miles: 302
Cum. Miles: 5,238

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 23, 2019): This could be confusing, but we’re sort of back on track. I didn’t really write anything on July 6, so I’m here to fill in the details of what happened after the insane airbnb situation.

Actually, this entry will completely be comprised of my journal, plus a few photos. The next few days didn’t have much going as far as FB goes. Spent a lot of time out of cell coverage. So…

July 6, 2019 (personal journal)

Spent today in Fairbanks getting some things done. Things like maintenance, and errands. Oh, and another rear tire (and front).

Part of the reason I chose not to go up the full length of The Dempster was how far over (~1k miles) I was on maintenance. Another part of the decision to turn back was my rear tire. It was being sacrificed to the ‘wrong’ highway.

Last night (this morning) I contacted Adventure Cycleworks, who are apparently open 24/7 in the summer to help adventure moto guys. Dan, the owner (the whole company, honestly), texted me while I was asleep.

He is a bit strange, and his texts remind me of some 8bit Nintendo character, straight out of the original Zelda. Behold:

So yeah, I’ve taken to calling him “The Wizard”. Just as odd in person, honestly. He was eventually just talking about poachers. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a super cool guy, and I’m glad he does what he does. He’s just different, and it’s honestly pretty rad.

As odd as the guy is, he had the tires, so I was on my way. I should have expected his ‘shop’ was in his garage, but for some reason I did not. Cool setup at least.

Dan is an older guy, probably in his 60s. Long white hair and beard that totally contribute to the wizard vibe. No robes, though.

There was nobody else there when I arrived, so he started straight away. Two tires, an oil change, oddly stunted conversation, and I was all set.

While I was there a guy from North Carolina (I think…) showed up, as did Drew (one of the guys I’m riding with). The guy from NC calls himself ‘Acorn’. You can’t make this stuff up. Everyone is a character. Unreal.

After breaking free of the awkward conversation Drew, Matthew, and I had lunch at The Cookie Jar, a place that was on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives. Decent food, but somewhat (ok, very) whacky service.

My bike’s air filter had to be hurting after all the dust so Drew & I stopped at the BMW dealer (after heading to Kawi first) for a replacement, discovering yet another interesting Fairbanks spot.

The dealer is Polaris, BMW, STIHL, and… Harley. Never been to a BMW store filled with mostly Hell’s Angels. It was quite the contrast. And I really mean patched HAs. Most carrying guns. Total contrast.

Headed back to the hotel for parking lot maintenance time. Changed the air filter, which was, as suspected , filthy. Discovered that the steering lock isn’t functioning, nor is the locking gas cap. I suspect the moving parts are frozen, but future me can deal with it.

Did laundry at the hotel. Also had dinner there.

Tomorrow we head up The Dalton!

Odo Start: 19,394
Odo End: 19,400
Daily Miles: 6
Cum. Miles: 4,837

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 22, 2019): The last entry had a partial post from July 6. It was partial so I could tell you all about Dawson City, and tell you I did. We thought maybe leaving Dawson would see a return to normalcy (or at least what passes for normalcy in our lives), but we were wrong. Not insanely wrong, but wrong. 

I’ll elaborate on some stuff below, because it needs to be elaborated on. Alaska must have the same something in the water…

July 6, 2019 (originally on Facebook)

Grabbed the ferry out of Dawson City, and onto the Top of the World Highway. Quite fun riding with more amazing views. Crossed into Alaska(!) at Poker Creek. So rad to make it here. This is the most northerly land border port in the USA. Pretty neat.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 22, 2019): We actually didn’t leave Dawson City until nearly 2pm. At one point we debated just staying another night, but in the end pushing  on won out. Before we went we did some local exploring, heading up Midnight Dome for an epic view of Dawson City, and the Yukon river. Even snuck a nap in on top of the dome.

The views along the Top of the World Highway are simply incredible. You’re super high up, on gravel, with no guardrails, looking down into some of the most pristine wilderness in the world. There are plenty of opportunities to mess things up if you pay too much attention to the view, and not the road. It was breathtaking all around. 

The border crossing was really neat as well. Population of 3, and those are the border agents. Super friendly guys. Collected a really rad stamp as well. The agent asked Drew if he was sure he didn’t want to get his passport, and Drew wasn’t sure why until he saw our stamps. He immediately dug his out for one as well. Worth it. The border crossing is only open during the summer if you’re looking to collect your own.

Alaska is beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. It’s amazing how different it is from Yukon. Amazing.

We stopped in Chicken, so named because the founders couldn’t spell ptarmigan. That’s a local bird they used for food back in the mining days. Pretty odd spot, but neat to check out.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 22, 2019): Before we got to Chicken there was some sort of accident on the road. I nearly got run off the cliff so kept going because I was annoyed. Eventually, I realized Drew & Matt were nowhere to be found, and the car I flagged down hadn’t seen them. So back I went to find them, fearing the worst. Luckily they had just stopped to help clean up a mess. That was a relief, and made me feel a bit like a jerk for not stopping. In all fairness, I stop quite often for stranded folks. 

Chicken was intersting. We had reindeer sausage in our pasta. We bought souvenirs. We saw both the ‘new’ Chicken, and the ‘OG’ Chicken. We didn’t stick around too long. 

After that we took a nap about half way down the road, which was much needed.

The rest of the day was spent booking to Fairbanks, so not many images. So many rivers, and lakes, and trees, and… all excellent. Rad bridges as well. Also, saw the Alaska pipeline. Pretty dang cool.

We arrived late, at about 1:30 by the time we’d had dinner, and that is where this should all end. However… we’d booked an air bnb, and things were weird at best. Walked in and the owner’s stuff was everywhere like they’d just disappeared. A few bags of groceries were even by the door. So, needless to say, we left to find a hotel. One of the guys is dealing with AirBnB, I’m gonna get some shuteye.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 22, 2019): As usual, the story above is really only part of it all. I’m going to tell an expanded version of our initiation into Fairbanks.

We didn’t get into Fairbanks at an insanely late hour, but one of those times where it’s late enough that food is hard to find. Some internetting pointed us to a bar (I think it was a bar) that was a bit shady looking, and had an interesting group going in & out. Turns out, the restaurant is in the bar, which is in a nightclub, which has a cover, and… none of it was too appealing, so we decided to push off and find somewhere else. Actually, a guy in that parking lot told us of an all-night diner. Thanks, random stranger! The diner was even good.

After we ate, we headed out to find our airbnb, which wasn’t as straightforward as it should have been. Even so, we eventually located it in a block of condos in an area that gave off a bit of an odd vibe just riding through. No matter, we just came out of the wilderness… we’d be fine.

Upon arrival I needed to use the restroom stat (sorry, but it’s true), so I wasted zero time unpacking, and all the time making my way for the front door. A door I was the first to enter, therefore the first to see the inside of our airbnb. I nearly immediately turned back the way I came. You might think that a strange thing to do, and I might agree with you normally. This time, though… not so strange. What could have caused me to nope on out nearly immediately? Let me tell you what I saw.

Just inside the door were two grocery bags, neither fully unpacked. As I looked to my left I noticed a giant duffel bag stuffed full with extra items on top. Almost as if someone forgot to grab their travel bag on the way out the door. The couch had piles of mail on it. There was a glass of water on the kitchen table. It truly felt like I was about to walk in on someone. Either that or I was entering a crime scene. Something was off. 

Being the great guys we are, Matt & I elected Drew to lead an expedition further into the condo. We armed him with bear spray, gave some advice, and aimed him up the stairs towards the second story. I’m not a wuss, but I was creeped out… enough that I didn’t want to lead the way. 

The good news is Drew lived, and didn’t have to fight anyone. The weird news is what he found. No, not any people, at least not physically. The signs of them were all over, though. In the bedroom was a half-packed bag. In the bathroom it looked like someone had just stepped out of the shower, complete with clothes on the floor where they’d been discarded. Nothing about it felt comfortable.

Did we interrupt someone? Was someone coming back? Were we going to become victims? The only thing we did know is that we didn’t want to stay there. It just wasn’t comfortable in the slightest. So, we called some hotels, and headed towards ‘safer’ waters. 

Drew called airbnb, who wasn’t sure what to make of things. Nobody could get in touch with the owner. It didn’t look good. In fact, it looked bad enough for a non-emergency call to the local police just in case. 

Oh yeah, our hotel wasn’t without a slightly creepy situation of it’s own… one of the rooms on our floor had the door open, but in a super creepy way. I can’t describe it, but I didn’t like it. So yeah, Fairbanks started off with a definite impression.

Lots to do tomorrow. Bike needs tires, maintenance, etc.

Night everyone.

Odo Start: 18,974
Odo End: 19,394
Daily Miles: 420
Cum. Miles: 4,831

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you a special announcement. Not only is it Back to the Future Day, but it’s also the day to tell you about another project that just launched – my new podcast. Ok, it isn’t just mine, but I’m on it!

My friend Matthew and I are doing a podcast together, and we’d love if you’d take a listen.

It is called unGROWN-UPS, and it’s a celebration of the things that keep us young. Well, it’s really us talking about all the things we enjoy; conversation about toys, technology, transportation, travel, tacos, and other things that amuse us and people like us.

We can be found on the usual suspects, meaning Soundcloud, iTunes, and Spotify (Android coming as soon as they approve us).
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/…/podca…/ungrown-ups/id1483882212
Spotify: open.spotify.com/…/4WtTlCENoO7V36i1zIo6l4
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ungrownups/episode-0-the-beginning

So be sure to check it out, and if you like it, give us a like. Maybe even subscribe if you’re feeling like you’re into it. We’ll be rolling out new episodes every few weeks, and we’ve got friends so you won’t just have to listen to us.

Thanks, everyone. I promise we’ll get back to the story tomorrow. For now, I’m gonna make like a tree and get outta here…

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 18, 2019): This entry will take us up The Dempster, and back to Dawson City. The dates on the entries are when they were actually posted, as not much cell coverage was available. I’ll add stuff in italics again as needed.

To be honest, I was sort of confused myself about what happened when, so a lot of journal referencing going on. My apologies if the below reads confusing. I tried to have the journal stuff at the end of what was originally elsewhere.

July 3, 2019 (originally on Facebook)

Hi, everyone! Was out of cell coverage, and will be again, so…

Yesterday saw us (still with the group) head up The Dempster. Not a bad road up to Eagle Plains, but it is a beautiful road. Takes a long time, even if we weren’t stopping often for pictures. Epic scenery, great riding. Really enjoyed it.

Started at about 11, and arrived at about 10pm. A LONG day. Camped last night. The sun makes it so damn hard to sleep. It never goes down.

July 2, 2019 (Personal Journal Excerpts) 

Today we all departed Dawson City for The Dempster. Destination: Tuktoyaktuk.

Pretty slow going today. Not because of the roads, really. They were excellent for the most part. Slow because of the scenery. So. Friggin’. Beautiful. And diverse.

Rode through Tombstone park. Saw mountains, lakes, rivers, forests, barren tundra, and so much more. The weather was great as well, on the cooler side, but tolerable.

The Yukon is so immense & gorgeous. The clouds in the sky looked fake. Really, it all did. Like walking into a Bob Ross painting. 

We ran across a river with rust colored rocks that was simply amazing, providing a neat contrast to the surrounding forest. Found a spot at the top of a pass overlooking a valley that was perfect for a nap. I laid right next to my bike for a few hours. Most of the day was spent hauling down these amazing roads until I reached a picture spot. And then waiting for everyone else. Highly enjoyable.

The surface has been amazing with perfect traction. Sticky, tacky clay to fast gravel. Today had it all.

Long day saw us arrive at Eagle Plains at about 10pm. Had a few beers. Set up camp. It really is hard to put into words how picturesque it is out here. I wish the fires weren’t hazing the views, but so goes life. 

The lodge at Eagle Plains is certainly interesting. The people continue to be characters.

Odo Start: 18,202
Odo End: 18,459
Daily Miles: 257
Cum. Miles: 3,896

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 18, 2019): The bartender/waitress/front desk worker at the lodge was an absolute riot to talk to. She had lived up that way her whole life, I believe. We learned a lot of stuff just chatting with her. We also ran into Tim and his buddy, also heading north. Tim will pop back into the story later. Nice guys that held my food in their room when we learned bears were everywhere out here (I forgot my bear vault at home… idiot!).

Oh, I should also tell you about the crows. The crows up here are massive, and they travel in packs. The ones in Dawson City are put to shame by the bastards in Eagle Plains, though. You can’t leave anything on your bike unless you are ok with the crows taking it. They’re even known to destroy people’s seats.

(Back to Facebook) Today we headed up further. Crossed the arctic circle! Absolutely insane. So cool. Made it to the Northwest Territories as well. This is, and I know I keep using this word, surreal… but it is.

Stopped in Ft. McPherson to figure out if we are pushing on to Inuvik, or heading back. The weather isn’t looking great, and these roads aren’t going to be amazing wet. Eventually we are going to call it.

Leaving cell coverage again, so… I’m alive, and having fun.

July 4, 2019 (originally on Facebook)

Well, decided not to push to Tuktoyaktuk. Returned to Eagle Plains to bear some weather. I’m not really intent on going to Tuk, so all good. Came back with two of the other guys.

I’ll head back to Dawson tomorrow, then Fairbanks the next day.

Such a great trip.

July 3, 2019 (Personal Journal Excerpts)

Didn’t sleep well last night. The constant light is the issue. Not sure any of us slept well, honestly. 

Eagle Plains sits at kilometer 371 (mile 231) of The Dempster highway, Yukon Territory. It’s the first fuel after kilometer zero. They have rooms, food, fuel, and camping. Of course there is also a bar.

After everyone was fed (the food is ok enough) we headed north again. We’ve been watching the weather reports closely, as they change quite quickly. Rain makes there road a muddy mess, and we have been lucky so far. Hoping for that luck to hold. 

Again the roads are good, fast, and fun. I find a groove, really loving the morning. It isn’t long before a significant milestone is reached: The Arctic Circle.

Holy crap! I made it this far. This is the furthest north I’ve ever been. Pretty incredible. It really marks a significant milestone on this journey. I’m officially in the arctic. Wild.

After we’d all soaked it in, taken our pictures, congratulated each other, it was time to push on. Another goal awaited.

There was a problem, though. Marshall’s bike wouldn’t start. Turns out the HID ballast on one of his headlights had gone bad, causing a short. We got it all sorted eventually, but burned nearly two hours. A few of the guys wondered about going further, and int he end the desire to push on won out.

It wasn’t long, maybe an hour, before we hit the next cool marker. The border to The Northwest Territories.

The roads turned to crap as we approached. Deep gravel, soft mud & dirt. Harder riding. The scenery also shifted from forest and shrubs to huge prairies of wildfires. Hardly a tree in sight as the elevation also rose.

The Northwest Territories are incredible. Once we crossed the border the roads immediately improved as we were told they would. 

The first hours riding in the NW Territories felt like what I imagine the Scottish Highlands are like. Craggy rocks, ice cold rivers, creating a feeling of having been transported back in time. Breathtaking. 

Every time we stopped for photos someone would ask, “where are we?” It’s that amazing, and diverse. Awe inspiring at every turn. 

While the weather had started overcast, bordering on cold, it heated as the sun emerged. Eventually it was actually hot.

Approximately 1 hour from the border is a ferry that shuttles you across the Peel River to a small native town called Ft. McPherson. It has fuel.

Food was nearly impossible to find until we stumbled on a work camp cafeteria. Good enough.

One of the guys overheard a thunderstorm warning on the radio, so lunch talk inevitably turned to the plan. 

The initial goal was Tuktoyaktuk, but other factors were at play. Matt’s ultimate goal (and mine, actually) is Deadhorse, AK, and this is just a nice detour. Drew, his brother, doesn’t want to leave him alone, but can go either way. Luke & Marshall are wanting to keep going.

Me? My plans never included Tuk, so this is all bonus time to me. The factors I’m thinking about are maintenance (overdue), and rear tire (being used up). I can go either way, but lean towards heading back. 

In the end, only Luke and Marshall decide to press on. The other three of us wish them luck, somewhat reluctantly turning back for Eagle Plains. 

I know it was the right decision, but a part of me wishes circumstances had been different. I’ll just have to add Tuk to the list. Sooner than later. Still amazing to have come this far.

The ride back was smooth, easy, mostly uneventful. I did get to stop and lay in some snow we found along the road. It was nice.

I remain absolutely amazed at the constantly changing scenery around me. It really is something to behold.

We’ve not seen much wildlife other than birds the last few days. Sort of a bummer. Really hope that changes.

Back to Eagle Plains at about 18:30. Plenty of time for food & beers. Three of us sharing a room this time. Hoping for better sleep.

Odo Start: 18,459
Odo End: 18,693
Daily Miles: 234
Cum. Miles: 4,130

July 4, 2019 (originally on Facebook)

My first Fourth of July out of the US was today (I actually don’t know that for sure). Missing home, but still having a blast.

Woke up to wet roads, cloudy skies, and cool temperatures. At least it wasn’t actually raining. The mosquitos seemed to be enjoying the weather…

We (still riding with two of the guys I met days back) hit the road back to Dawson City, and the conditions couldn’t have been better. Stuff was wet, but the roads were tacky, making the riding fairly fantastic.

Good pace all day for me. Really enjoyed wringing it out in a few spots. Man, it was epic. Everyone was having a great time, and we were humming along.

A few hours later saw a bit of an issue, though. One of the KLRs seemed to have a slightly clogged carb, so he was severely speed limited. Luckily it was towards the end, so we decided to just press on for Dawson City, and deal with it there.

The variety of scenery in this part of the world is insane. Gone from tundra to what could have passed for the Scottish highlands to pine forest to prairies to Rockies. Absolutely gorgeous.

Back in Dawson City for the night. Going to wander around a bit. Alaska tomorrow.

Happy 4th, friends.

July 6, 2019 (partial FB post)

This is gonna be a longer one, because I’m actually going to start with some of yesterday’s shenanigans after getting back to Dawson City.

We called the local “Kawasaki dealer”, who is actually a guy we met the first time into Dawson City to see if he could help with the bike. There was also some welding to be done, so… only in Dawson is there a KLR being worked on in the street in front of a hotel. Totally normal. Even tripping the breaker with a tig welder didn’t phase anyone, and the hotel owner even offered to reset it as needed. He deemed this to be within reason.

Afterwards we went for drinks, and a good time. The reason I’m telling you all this is because we ended up exploring some old abandoned river boats. They were beached about 100 years ago when they were no longer useful. It was really cool, and I figure you’d enjoy some of the images. It also explains why we didn’t hit the road until around 2.

July 4, 2019 (Personal Journal Excerpts)

We didn’t leave Eagle Plains until close to 11 this morning. We’ve all realized it doesn’t matter when the sun never goes down. You could ride all night if you wanted.

Its as cold & wet when we started, but would end up hot and dry in Dawson City. Par for the course.

Another great riding day. Getting to see the terrain in the opposite direction afforded a different take on things. We stopped often due to this. Really enjoyed everything.

With maybe 100 miles to go Matt’s bike decided it didn’t want to rev over ~4,500rpm. It would stutter, protest, but not rev. Needless to say , it was a slow ride out, but we made it.

We actually sent Matt ahead because of how slowly he was moving at times. Drew & I took some time knowing we’d be able to catch up, but it actually led to a somewhat comical situation. Matt got much further ahead of us than we assumed he would, which caused us both to panic, thinking he crashed or we lost him somehow. Some mental math made us realize he really was that far ahead of us, and we booked to catch him. Quite fun, actually.

Just about at mile 0 the road drops down a hill providing a spectacular view. You could see smoke from several fires. I found a spot to watch, and take a few pictures. It was eerie, but strangely beautiful.

Apparently there are a lot of fires right now, causing skies to be full of smoke, impairing visibility. Once we reached Dawson City we found our new rooms at the bunk house.

As has become normal on this trip a KLR was then being torn apart in front of a hotel. 

Max even came by to weld a broken crash bar. Plugging in the welder caused a breaker at the hotel to pop. The hotel owner found all of this perfectly reasonable. Only in Dawson City.

I remain convinced we are in either an alternate reality, or something like ‘The Truman Show”. We have yet to see anyone besides Max that was here during our last visit mere days ago. I even went to the Sourdough Bar to buy some beers to go. 

Heading to Gerties for dinner. Might actually be all that is open.

Odo Start: 18,693
Odo End: 18,974
Daily Miles: 281
Cum. Miles: 4,411

After dinner, and what qualifies as a bar hop around here, Max talked Drew & I (no idea where Matt went) into crossing the river on the ferry to check out some 100+ year old paddleboat that were beached and abandoned. We also had Tim (I told you he’d be back) with us. 

The boats were so awesome. We climbed all over them exploring. Max even climbed inside the stack of one. Nutter.

Didn’t get back to our rooms until 4:30. Going to be a long day tomorrow.

 

 

Hi, everyone! I really hope you’re enjoying reading about the trip as much as I’m enjoying writing the stories. Stories we’ll get back to tomorrow, I promise.

While I was writing about meeting new friends, riding through a fire, and Dawson City a thought occurred to me – this doesn’t seem all that weird, really. Not when you write it down. That thought was backed up by a text from one of the guys:

That exchange prompted me to write this in lieu of our standard story continuation – have no fear, it returns tomorrow. We even go back to Dawson City.

What is really hard to convey is how not normal everything actually was. It all really started with the fire. On it’s own, not a big deal. But throw everything else in, and the feeling that you weren’t in reality any longer became amplified.

Another interesting thing was just meeting at the gas station. The number of variables that went into it are pretty astounding, really. I actually learned later that we were all nearly at the same bar the night before. If we’d ended up at that bar would the events still have played out the same way? For some reason my gut says no.

Nobody in Dawson City (save a small handful of folks) seemed real. Yes, they were real people of flesh and bone (probably), but they all seemed to be acting a part. The feeling of being in a world where everyone was assigned a role increased with all of our interactions. No way could this all just be happening.

If you’ve seen Westworld (a reference I made previously), then you might have an idea of what I mean. Scenarios almost came across as pre-planned. In my mind I imagine a vast underground network with casting, costume, etc. The Disneyland of the Yukon.

The juxtaposition of the preserved gold rush town with modern touches, mixed with the eerie feeling you were caught in a trap, the unlikely scenarios, and negotiating in cryptocurrency all contributed to the feeling of being in 3019, not 2019. It really messed with one’s brain.

The characters really were characters. At the time none of us would have believe these types of people could exist anywhere outside of Dawson City, it just wasn’t possible. As you’ll see the portal wouldn’t let go for quite a while. Even so, in those moments we were constantly exchanging looks of “WTF” even while in the midst of things.

A few examples:
Meatloaf – boisterous, motorcycle jacket wearing, guitar toting… nomad? I don’t think any of us got a good feel for the guy at all. At one point he was found sleeping in our hotel foyer.
Welder Girl – I have no idea what her name is/was, and I don’t care. She rolled up out of nowhere to constantly yell about how much she hated me, but loved me. It was very creepy, and costume apparently only issued 1 uniform.
Santa Claus – Another character that came from out of nowhere. Might have worked at the jail as a guard. Wandered off with Welder Girl to the bar as bike repairs wound down. Guy said he didn’t drink…
Hotdog Guy – Sells cheddars at night, raps for cheddar by day. Yeah, totally normal.

Those are just four. Out of hundred of people we saw. Weirdly, you’d only run into many of the folks once. Where did they go? Dawson City is not large.

The people walking in actual period correct costumes didn’t help things. In fact, it probably made things worse.

I truly wish you, dear reader, had been there. Words really don’t convey how insane everything was, and would continue to be… find out more tomorrow.

-Ryan

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 16, 2019): This is going to be another longer entry, but for good reason. Just warning you up front. I’ve also spliced a lot of new content (in italics) with what was originally posted. Hope you enjoy.

The Tale of Dawson City, Cont’d

July 1, 2019

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 16, 2019): The date on this should really be the 2nd, due to it being written in the wee hours of the morning, however I’m using July 1, because that is when it all actually happened. Just want to clear that up before the first sentence confuses someone.

Today, well yesterday, was… odd. Dawson City is odd.

I had planned on staying in Dawson City for Canada Day, so I did that.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 16, 2019): We all wandered around the town for a bit before grabbing breakfast along the river to watch the Canada Day parade. Canada Day celebrates the formation of Canada from separate provinces in 1867. 

The parade was pretty fantastic. I’m fairly certain everyone from town was in it, and they even had a classic car group from Fairbanks show up. Something I didn’t get, though (maybe a Canadian can explain this one, or maybe there is no explanation)… all the vehicles in the parade were throwing frozen popsicles in addition to candy. Why? It made about as much sense as the woman dressed as a lobster.

So, the guys I met yesterday are all on KLRs, and they were about ready (at least Marshall still thought so) for new (rear) tires. Normally that wouldn’t be an issue, but we are in the Canadian Yukon.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 16, 2019): There are a LOT of bikes coming through Dawson City because of it being a bit of a gateway to several other places, so it is surprising someone hasn’t actually opened a seasonal shop. They’d probably do ok.

One of the guys (Marshall), and I were walking around town after the parade just checking things out. Happened to stop a guy on a bike for some intel (I believe he described the road as like ‘riding on Nutella’), and he points us to the visitor center. The visitor center tells us what they know about the Dempster Highway, and points us back across the street to the Northwest Territories visitor center.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 16, 2019): Before we actually got to the visitor center, Marshall & I split off from the group to check out the town, buy some stickers (yep!), and generally wander around. The whole city is right on the Yukon river, and they have a paddleboat out of the water you can tour. It’s massive. It also scared the crap out of us. They blast the horn every so often, and this time it happened to be while we were standing right next to it. Needless to say, it scared both of us.

While we’re in there hearing about road conditions, there’s another guy looking around. Marshall mentions tires, and the guy says, “I have tires for a KLR.” He didn’t even know what bikes these guys are riding.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 16, 2019): We actually walked in on the mystery guy having an interesting conversation with the woman in the NE Territories visitor center which means we looked around a bit before we were actually able to speak to the woman working.

Once we were able to speak with her we learned a few things. 1) the road conditions are all about the weather, and 1a) we were looking good according to the forecast, and 2) everyone knows Dick the Tire Guy. Marshall asked the woman working about tires, and sure enough she asked if he’d tried Dick yet. The jokes write themselves, so I won’t. 

The guy overheard the tire conversation, and just deadpanned the line about having tires. Our expressions must have read as incredulous, because he followed it up with, “I’m serious. I’ll show you.” He then explained that his trailer was just a few blocks away, and we could just follow him. Nothing at all sketchy here, folks. Just going to follow a stranger to his ‘trailer’…

It all felt really weird, and I might have lagged a few steps behind just in case a rumble went down (a rumble?). It turns out the guy was completely legit. He actually had a trailer parked a few blocks away that had several KLRs & tires in it. Many of the tires new. The odds of this are… nearly zero I would guess. Marshall and I kept looking at one another with looks of amused amazement. 

While tires were being dug out of the trailer we learned a bunch about our new friend, Max. Max had just, and I mean just as in mere days before, moved to Dawson City from Calgary. He packed everything he owns into a trailer, headed to Dawson City to look for mining work. Or start a mine. Or… something with mining. He ended up in a situation where he found not one, but three deals on KLRs right before he moved. They came with spares. He had spares.

As if all of this wasn’t strange enough, we eventually got one of the other guys to come down and help us carry tires. At this point the ‘negotiation’ began. Not only over which tires, but how much. Eventually a price was settled upon, and Max was ok with not getting cash until later, as the only working ATM happened to be in the casino that had yet to open. Drew offered to pay in bitcoin, Max said he’d prefer dogecoin. I’m not making this up.

Yesterday we passed through a portal into Post Fire. Today we reached a new place that we began to call PT, or Post Tire. We’ve ended up in a post-apocalyptic place where bartering is the way of life, and cryptocurrency has completely replaced paper, and it might actually be 3019. Post tire is a strange place.

We haven’t even had lunch yet…

Welp, not too long later we’ve made a new friend, tires are being changed in the street, and nearly all the locals are stopping by to check things out. Surreal.

Oh, the same guy also happened to have some rear pads one of the guys needed badly. Like, pad was toasted badly. Unbelievable.

A guy came by with a guitar. Totally normal.

I can’t really describe accurately what today felt like. Nothing felt real. It’s like being in a weird video game. Maybe I’ve stumbled into a time warp, and this is actually what the future becomes. Such a strange, but wonderful day.

Additional comments from the present (Oct. 16, 2019): After the tires were procured we ended up back in front of our hotel to change them. Well, Marshall would do the bulk of the work, the guys would help, and I would mostly watch while writing. My bike was fine.

That doesn’t mean nothing else interesting happened. It isn’t totally normal to be changing tires in the dirt street in front of a hotel, so we had visitors coming by. The Captain stopped in to check on his wife, offer some advice, and tell some crazy stories. A guy that looked like Meatloaf came by, eventually playing his guitar for us. He got mad when I asked if I could call him Meatloaf, wouldn’t play the guitar for the toonie I offered, but he took a beer. This after he said he only plays for money. 

I think nearly everyone in town came by at one point. It was truly… not to overuse the word, but… surreal. People came to watch. They came to ‘help.’ They came in waves. Drew even had another guy (I can’t recall his name) scouring town for brake pads. A totally normal day in Dawson City.

As if all this wasn’t enough, something else remarkable happened in a pretty unremarkable way; Drew prevented the hotel from burning down. Yes, you read that correctly. He saved Dawson City. While he was doing laundry he discovered a smoldering box of rags in a hotel closet. He took them outside, doused them with the fire extinguisher, and informed the hotel. All of it in a very calm, matter-of-fact way that I imagine only Drew could pull off. 

After we got the bikes sorted we headed back to the Sourdough Saloon to meet Max, have some beers, and watch Drew take one more crack at buying more parts off Max’s stash of KLRs. Earlier Drew had asked about rear brake pads, but Max was hesitant. This time, he was all for it. It seemed like Max was going to sell them a whole KLR one piece at a time. So we ended up changing brake pads at some hour of the night. You can’t really tell when the sun never goes down.

If I wasn’t there it would be hard for me to believe all of these things just happened. In fact, I still find some of it hard to believe. There are things I missed, but the main parts are here. Dawson City, Post Tire just isn’t a normal place. Neither was Westworld, though.

Tomorrow will see the group of five of us travel up the Dempster to Tuktoyaktuk. Six days up & back. Not really certain what the conditions will be, but we’ll go as far as we can.

For those that don’t know, it’s the same road featured in Ice Road Truckers, but clearly in summer.

I’ll be out of cell coverage for a while, so nobody panic. Tracker is on – https://share.garmin.com

If you want to know more about Tuk: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuktoyaktuk

Arctic circle bound!

Also, it’s 2am… the sun is still up. It’s insane.