June 18th, 2009 | 
Author: We made it to Alaska -again. We are here in Fairbanks getting some extra sleep in these darkless nights…. I’ll back up a bit on the last two days. On Day 5 we left the Bell2 Resort just before the landslide area. It was an awesome place to stay in the middle of nowhere.
Bell2 Resort just before the road closure sign.
It was a light drizzle as we left and as soon as we pulled out of the resort parking lot, there was a black bear munching on the side of the road – we tried to get a picture, but it scamper off pretty quickly. We came accross the work crews on the mud slide area where a couple of construction trucks were buried and one of the workers trucks was carried down the river – or at least that is what were heard as we chatted to people at our stops along the Cassier Highway. The rain stopped as we continued to climb, but there were low clouds that prevented us from see the true beauty of this area – although I do like this perspective with the weather and clouds. We did get some pee-a-boo looks through the clouds. 300 miles later the Cassier Highway hits the Alaskan Highway, which at this junction, is a great road. We can ride fast as pass easliy. For the next 300 miles we are treated with some great scenery which you get the sence of the vastness of this region. The last 125 miles into Whitehorse, the rain intermittent showers came back, with a hail storm thrown in too. But thank god from the Hippo Hands!
Weather Leaving Bell2
I Know - blurry pic but proff that we have been seeing Bears!
Lake along the route - one of MANY
Typical Gas Stations-never pass one up along this route!
Mosquito can get big here...
Entering the YukonTerritory
Views along the Alaskan Highway
Weather Riding into Whitehorse
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Arhhh….
We r in Whitehorse YT, but stuck in a flea bag hotel with no internet access!
Right now,at a bar, but I’malmost out of battery….. Thanks everyone for the comments so far, we get a laugh at them and enjoy it.
Tomoorrow Fairbanks and we will have access – I hope……
525 miles
I was pretty tired last night, so it was more a picture post, Went to bed late last night, around 12:30 am, These long days start to play tricks on you. It didn’t get dark till about 10:30 pm, and even at 11:30, there were still scrapes of daylight left in the western sky.
We got up at 4:30 am., not because we wanted to, but because the sun was up already! But still, we didn’t roll out till 6:00 am. We are slowly getting our packing down, but not yet… plus we were still tired….
Dean called us to verify that the SPOT was tracking- Our Head Stromboli has been indispensable on this trip – thanks Dean!!!
The ride west is still rather a busy route for up here – there is a bit of traffic between Prince George and Prince Rupert, BC with numerous small towns – so gas was not a concern – but Dean warned us about heading north – gas will be farther apart and not as dependable. So we picked up a couple of 2.5 gallon “Jerry Cans” (gas cans) for later in the town of Telkwa.
Our goal today was to get to Hyder Alaska, the southern most town you can get to, before turning north to the main part of Alaska (via Canada).
We stopped several times to amp up (BS with Monster and me with Coffee or Double shots, if I can find them) because we were yawning way too much. The scenery was great- glass lakes, trucks, boats, slow cars, deer and bear… But by 3:30 pm we arrived in Hyder for our “Money shot” and a glass of cold Alaskan beer.
BS in Hyder
The weather was great for most of the day, with some drizzle as we arrived into Hyder and some more drizzle as we left Hyder to start north again on highway 37. We had to stop at Bell II – because the road was closed due to a mud slide from earlier in the week and when the work crews go home – the road is close. It will be open at 6:00 am tomorrow – but this resort is awesome!
Keep the comments coming – we enjoy reading them when we get in for the day.
What views!
Which way to Head?
Closed due to mud slide
p.s. We have lots of pictures, and when we have a better connection – we will post – but tonight we are on a satellite connection
But boy were they beautifu;l. It started early again and it was a chilly day in Washington State as we headed north on I-5 through Seattle.
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We Crossed the border…
And was treated to some awesome riding and scenery. The scenery chaged all day long from Forests, to Woods, to Desert, to woods again.
Funning thing is, it got warmer as we got further north!
But I’m sure that will change tomorrow- I looked at a map and now it gets tough andI realize how far this is… 🙂 I’m going to bed!
Link to more picture of Day 2
BS Ready to Roll
We got off to another good start. This part of Northern CA has some rolling hills with some nice long flats in the valleys. We started be 6:00 a.m. Dean texted me that our SPOT was tracking and we left Susanville CA and headed north on 395 where we were greeted with a few showers. They were brief and before we knew it we were hitting it fast (at least for me) for this 100 mile stretch to nowhere.
We didn’t have a set route today except to be near Seattle WA by the days end. At our first gas stop we decided the weather look better towards Bend Oregon (west) as oppose to heading north east towards Riley.
The first 100 miles was fast – now we were hitting some traffic (meaning we had to pass a few people) and before we knew it we were in Oregon and we were amongst trees and green smelling things – it was great. No rain and it was partly cloudy.
The only drawback as the day progressed was that Oregonians like to drive the speed limit – not 10 over the posted speed limit, but the speed limit. Like 99% of them, or at least this day… and the speed limit on a straight road was 55. So most of the day we admired the scenery and had fun passing the cars – it was like they were standing still……
Day 02 Profile of Ride
We’re off! 5:30 a.m. start time from Lake Forest as we head out on a cloudy southern California day. We opted for the Eastern Sierra route north on US 395 as oppose a more direct route on I-5. It is a lot less traffic and the scenery is much much better.
We hit a bit of morning traffic on I-15 and some dense fog on the Cajon pass just before catching US 395. Once on 395, the sky cleared up a bit and started to get a bit warmer,but we could tell would get a little wet before the day would end.
By 9:30 we were at Ridgecrest where the road opens up to a deserted 4 lane highway which allows for a photo op..
We get a few phone calls from Dean Tanji verifying that our SPOT is traking and before we know it I need my morning cup of Java!
By 11:00 am we hit Bishop and start to make the climb up to Mammoth Mountain, where we stopped to have lunch. By then, more clouds had gathered and we felt a few sprinkles, so on with the foul weather gear as we continue north to Reno, NV. The rest of the afternoon is greeted with us passing through showers – which makes the ride interesting.. 
While in Reno,Tom Botz calls me and he identifies a town about 100 north of us that he had stayed at before, which sounded like a good place to stop for our first day. I don’t know about Steve, but my back was starting to feel it. So we ended our day in Susanville, CA – 592 miles and 12 hours later. But what a treat Susanville is, because the The Bear Restaurant has killer home cook meals! Thanks Tom!
Well, at least that what it said when I started this post.
Thanks for all the comment so far too!
A bit of a change in the game plan. After talking with Steve and going over how far we are going and looking at weather conditions, we deceided not to camp on this trip and concentrate on just making some better time getting there so we can explore more of Alaska. Without camping, we can easliy pick up another 100 to 150 more miles a day, and when you add that over 21 days, that adds up! Also, a hell of lot easier to pack. Basically just pack all your foul weather gear in the hard bags and your clothes in a waterproof bag that you just stap on the back. Then whe you arrive at the hotel, just grab the bag and your done.
Tommorrow evening we meet up with the head Stromboli, Dean Tanji, who just finished this trip two weeks ago with Lisa. We can get some feedback on what we may encounter.
Getting jazzed about leaving now……
I have the Blog up and running! Now just to get the bike packed and waiting for our departure time in two weeks!! I can even do this from my iPhone!