Day 22: Coldfoot to Deadhorse AK; Dalton Hwy, 400 kms

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After a buffet breakfast we left the Coldfoot Hilton for our ultimate goal; Prudhoe Bay & the Arctic Ocean.  This is the farthest place North in Alaska accessible by road. Fortunately, Peter had managed to contact the Caribou Inn Tour people so we could have the necessary security check done  24 hours before the tour.  All we had to do was get there.

Things started out great. More paved road through the Boreal forest until we had to cross the final mountain range.  Then the road turned to washboard for the accent & decent.  It was manageable. Later we hit some distruction ( road construction).  We had been warned that this part of the road contained large sharp edged rocks about the size of your fist  & larger, but our tires survived.

Nice road, eh!

It must be mating season for the Arctic Squirrels.  The sound of our motorcycles caused them to run across the road in front of us. Presumably to see their sweethearts on the other side.  Several times I thought Peter was going to crush one of these little guys, but each one survived.


Yesterday, I just about hit a suicidal rabbit.  He dashed across the road in front of me before I could react.  When he hit the shoulder his left front leg slipped out from under him & he tumbled into the weeds.  After contemplating bunny's fate I looked back at the road to discover the pavement was ending with a 4 inch drop.  Holy crap!  I had no time to slow down.  I just flew out into space like the General Lee.  Bo & Luke Duke would have been proud of me.  I landed safely & continued on; at a slower pace.

We caught to a couple of guys on Harleys during a gravel section.  Naturally, we had to pass them.  I stood straight up on the foot pegs (as Dave had taught me) & did my best Charlie Boorman impression as I went by them (childish I know, but I couldn't resist.)  Actually, these guys were nice guys & deserved more respect.  They were very close to finishing an Iron Butt Sea to Sea Mission.  They had started riding in Pennsylvania, had gone down to Key West & were on their way to the Arctic Ocean in Prudhoe Bay on Harleys.  Pretty amazing.

We were now above the treeline.  Grassy plains surrounded us on all sides and were ahead of us as far as we could see. Caribou & muskoxen kept us company for about 50 kms.  The caribou seemed startled by the sound of our bikes or maybe it was the deer whistles.  Each time as we approached them, their heads would go up & they would move away.  I clocked a couple of caribou running @ 60 kph. Amazing.  The muskoxen looked funny to me.  Almost like a mirage.  Their long coats hung down & brushed the ground as they moved long.  The look like a mop with a Bison head.

Eventually, we were all alone. The last 100 kms was brutal. Now it was cold. We had our rain suits on to help keep us warm, but they weren't doing a good job.  The gravel and high winds were challenging.  It was like riding on marbles with someone trying to push you off the road. Not nice.  Full concentration was required to balance the bike.  All we could do was look ahead, hoping to see Deadhorse on the horizon.

After what seemed like an eternity, Deadfoot came into view.  Exhausted & frozen we stopped at the Prudhoe Bay Motel to ask directions.  The lady mentioned that there was a cancellation we could have if we were interested. Peter & I took one look at each other & quickly agreed.  The room was the same price as at Coldfoot but it included all your meals for 24 hours. Bonus!  The room was way better as well. Double bonus! In fact the whole place was so nice I would have stayed longer, but I'm sure I would have gained a lot of weight from the meals.

Today is the 21st of June. We were going to see the summer solstice in the Arctic.  24 hours of sunlight!

Sleeping Beauty @ midnight

Day 21: Fairbanks to Coldfoot AK: The Dalton Hwy, 400 kms

 Another back end shot of Doug

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Oil for the operator

Yesterday, we did another oil change in anticipation of the Dalton Hwy.  We also removed the feet we had attached to the side stands to help keep the bike upright in soft ground.   Both Peter & I had suffered enough with this good idea which was not so good in reality. It made the bike stand more upright than normal & had resulted in several near tip overs.  We both rejoiced afterward.  It was so easy to park the bike anywhere we wanted now.





The pavement ended with the Dalton Hwy sign....images of the Dempster immediately came to mind.  Oh, boy!  However, the road was much wider than the Dempster.   The heavy truck traffic had created a washboard effect on the road.  (The Dalton is known as the Haul Road to Prudhoe Bay.) For those that haven't experienced a washboard gravel road, it is a road with ridges & valleys across the width of the road.  It looks like the waves cause when a rock is dropped in water.  In a car, the back end of the car tends to move back & forth fishtailing for traction.  On a motorcycle it is like riding a jack hammer.  The bike vibrates up & down constantly.  Then every now & again the bike shoots forward because the back wheel manages to get some traction.  It is not the most pleasant experience.  It is enough to rattle the fillings in your teeth. The bike really takes a pounding, along with the rider.  I had to put my face shield all the way down to block out the sound.  I couldn't stand to listen to the beating Suzie was taking.

Suddenly out of now where, pavement appeared.  I couldn't believe it!  The Dempster wasn't like this at all.  We rode for over  two hours enjoying the scenery.   Mountains on the right; the Yukon River on the left & the sun shining.  Wow! It was just another Sunday ride in a Boreal forest.  Huh!

After crossing the Yukon River we stopped for lunch & a gas top up.  Although, I had joined the gerry gas can club in Whitehorse ( yes Ken,  I actually have my own gas can now) we still fill up @ every opportunity we can. That's when I noticed that Peter's rear tire needed some air.  It turned out it need another plug to stop the leak.  A small stone the size of the end of a lead pencil had punctured his tire.  Unbelievable!

Peter installing plug No 2

The locals watching Peter sweat it out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the tire repaired we went into the restaurant for lunch.  We each had a bowl of salmon chowder soup & split a sliced turkey sandwich.  The soup was fantastic! It contained a generous portion of large salmon chunks. We decided right then & there that we were going to stop @ this place for lunch on the way back.

After lunch we headed to Coldfoot our overnight stop & next gas stop.   The price for one room with two twin beds was $220.  

Luxury Accommodation in Coldfoot

The Coldfoot Hilton

On the way to Coldfoot, we crossed the Arctic Circle for the second time.

Day 20: Tok AK to Fairbanks AK; Alaska & Richardson & 2 Hwys, 300kms

This was our first easy day in quite some time. Imagine, Only 300 kms & all of it paved! The sun was shining & the temperature reasonable. Sweet!

Since we had a lot of time we made a few side trips.  We saw this fantastic bridge over a river & decided to see what it was like from the river bed.  We stomped down through the brush to take some pictures.  The climb  back to our bikes was a good workout.  We had forgotten to take off our riding gear so it was a huff & puff climb to the road.  My riding pants & boots were clean for the first time in 10 days. Bonus!

We continued on until I noticed a dried up riverbed.  Peter had wanted to do a river crossing so we rode down to the riverbed to get some shots.  Funny, the rocks & slippery conditions didn't phase us.  (Dave you taught us well.)

As we neared Fairbanks we watched for the end of the Alaska Hwy so we could get some more pictures.

Peter takes one for the team

Mile 1422.  We did it!

It was funny today.  Both Peter & I found it hard to concentrate on the pavement.  The ride seemed so long  & yet it was supposed to be one of our easiest days.  When we got to the hotel we were both exhausted. Huh!

Day 19: Dawson City to Tok AK; Top of the World Hwy, 400

Today we had our last breakfast with Dave.  He was headed back home the long way.  He gave us his contact info so we can visit him in Penticton BC on our way home.

We decided to wash the Dempster off  our bikes before we left.

With our clean bikes we head up the only paved road in Dawson to the ferry.  Did you know they just paved the road last year and that is the only road they intend to pave. Huh!

Stern wheeler that brought the Gold Rush to Dawson City.

Yukon River

We crossed the mighty Yukon river without incident & headed up the "highway".  The Yukon River seems to have one speed; fast no matter where you see & it is usually wide.  It is no wonder that so many gold rush stampeders lost their lives on it.

This highway was just like the Dempster; narrow, washboard, dirt & gravel with occasional paved sections. .Oh, this gravel has a centre line!  As usual, we were playing tag with the dark clouds.  We hadn't bothered to put on our rain gear because it was so nice in Dawson & it said 30% chance of rain. Mistake!  By the time we slithered to the boarder crossing we were two very cold, drown rats.  No searches & we were on our way.  Suddenly, the sun came out & things seemed better.  We really did feel like we were at the top of the world.  The view would have been amazing had it not been cloudy & foggy.   The road was still treacherous in places. You had to watch for truck traffic in both directions.  I heard one truck before I saw him in my mirror.  As he passed us his second trailer swished back & forth across the highway like a pendulum.  Great!

"Top Of The World" Break Tim

Our next stop was Chicken AK population 20 in the summer; 6 in the winter.  Early miners wanted to name the town Ptarmigan but couldn't spell it, so they settled for chicken instead. Huh!  As you would expect the town has a "chicken" theme. There was a sign with a large egg & chicken on it & two holes for peoples heads. The caption read, " I got laid in Chicken".  Peter & I decided to pass on that photo op because it wasn't appropriate.  Downtown Chicken had been invaded by two tour buses so tourists were wondering around aimlessly.  Several came up & began talking with us.  We were getting used to this by now. It happened where ever we went & just about anytime we stopped.  It seems that a few other people would like to live our dream.

Downtown Chicken

Doug's getting thirsty

Day 18: Eagle Plains to Dawson City; Last of Dempster, Hwy 400 kms

It had rained all night in Eagle Plains.  We discussed whether or not to stay another day or leave & attempt the final leg of the Dempster. The forecast looked worse for tomorrow, so we set out after a big breakfast. There are no services on this section of the Dempster.  Dawson City was the goal (as well as keeping the bike vertical) the rest of the day.

The sky looked somewhat favourable with blue patches ahead.  The road on the other hand was unbelievably bad!  More slippery soup; very slow going for all of us.   I fell behind quickly.  For some reason, I fixated on the oncoming ditch.  The more I tried to avoid it, the more I headed toward it.   Instead of  looking where I wanted to go, I looked at the ditch.  I started pulling on the right handle bar to change direction.  The bike ignored me.  Double brain fade! I should have been pushing the handle bar to initiate the turn. The bike went slowly into the ditch. I came to a stop upright beside the road.  One foot on the road, the other foot in the weeds with the bike parallel to the road.  Then I felt the back wheel sink down in the mud.  The front tire sank down until the engine skid plate stopped it.  Huh!

Now what was I going to do?  Having the other guys come back to help me was getting to be embarrassing.  I really didn't know how I was going to get out of this mess.  I took my sun glasses off. They were fogging up from the heat.  Okay, let's try second gear to get out of here.  I stalled the bike my usual 3 times before it magically leap out of the ditch & started up the centre of the road.  Unbelievable! Suzie, Suzuki saved my butt again.

It took us 4 hours to travel 100 kms.  It was going to take forever to get to Dawson.  The only good thing was we didn't have to worry about riding in the dark.  Each day the daylight hours expanded.  At the first break we decided that we had done the right thing.  The road was only going to get worse with 3 days of rain.

We met several bikes headed towards Eagle Plains.  Little did they know what they were in for.  During one slippery phase, Dave waved to them as bikers do on the road.  None of them responded. They were too busy trying to stay vertical.  One guy on a V-Star 1100 was in the middle of a tank slapper (good luck buddy.)   Dave was crushed.

All day we played tag with the rain clouds. Sometimes we won because the road moved away from them. Other times we lost.  I didn't put on my rain gear.  I hate rain gear after 16 days of rain in Newfoundland.  The liner in my jacket worked well, but it channeled the water down into my pants then through them, through my long johns, through my boxers.  Oh, that water is cold.  I had forgotten to put the liner in my riding pants. Huh!

Lunch On the Dempster

 Amazingly, the sun came out and the wind dried out the road. We did the celebration photo @ the end of the Dempster & headed toward Dawson City.  Only 10 hours on the road today!  These 400 km days are such a breeze.  We all collapsed when we got to the Downtown Hotel.  After a shower we had supper.  Amen.

Day 17: Inuvik to Eagle Plains; Dempster Hwy, 400 kms

 Did you know that construction of  Dempster Hwy began in 1959 & was completed in 1979?  It is named after an RCMP corporal who "patrolled" the area by dog team.  He made the trip to Inuvik 6 times.  Now the Mounties use 4X4's.  Huh!

Last night we had supper in the only restaurant recommended by the locals.  I had a Greek salad; $23!
I thought the town had a government feel to it.  All the houses and apartments looked the same.  They are built on short stilts to protect the permafrost from the heat of the structure, as are all the buildings.  Outside of the motels, a giant department store & some other miscellaneous companies there isn't much.  A new gigantic super school dominates the downtown.  All grades will be included.  According to the lady in the Visitors Centre, the original schools are being torn down .  I said that was kind of a shame.  She said they don't seem to care.  Maybe, school wasn't much fun in the old days.

 

Our hotel

Igloo Church

Inuvik is the most Northerly community that can be reached by road.  We are in Baffin Island & Greenland territory for latitude now. Huh!

When we gassed up, Peter noticed that his back tire was going flat.  We pulled over near a self serve tire store & fixed the flat before we headed out for another day of slip sliding. 

 

We slipped on down to Fort McPherson for lunch at the COOP.  After lunch we did our first ferry crossing.  Peter's bad luck continued when he rode off the ferry.  The deep soft stuff grabbed his front wheel; down he went.  No damage to him or the bike.  No harm no foul! 

We managed our second ferry crossing without incident.  Yes!  Three of my goals had been met.  I got off & on each ferry & I made it to Fort McPherson knowing that the road would get better. NOT!  The rain had turned it to mud.  Some of it was 3 inches thick.  Dave stopped from time to time to give us pointers on how to attack various sections of the road.  The 70 kph thing worked.  The front wheel floated over the soup.  If the bike started fish tailing you had to accelerate gently to straighten it out and to regain "control."  Not the least bit intuitive to say the least.  I found I had to do a lot of self talk to keep the bike vertical in the brown soup.

Things were going okay until suddenly the back end of Peter's bike broke violently to the right. Down he went in a slow sideways slide down the centre of the road.  I couldn't believe it. One second everything is okay; the next second he was down.  Huh! I stopped my bike & began walking to help him get his bike up.  The mud was sticking to my boots like flip flops. This stuff is really slippery.   He was okay.  Again, no harm; no foul.  When I got back to my bike I had to use the foot pegs to scrap the mud off my boots.  I started my bike & looked up, Peter was heading up the mountain of mud.  Oh, great!  He was gone in no time.  I stalled the bike 3 times going up the hill.  Each time I had to start the bike & slowly start off so I didn't have the back end break loose.  Somehow I made it to the top of the hill & continued on. 

Eagle Plains sure looked good when it appeared.  Tomorrow had to be a better day.  The first part of the Dempster was where I seen the prospector Santa in the clouds.

Day 16: Eagle Plains to Inuvik NWT; Dempster Hwy, 400 kms

Did you that the Eagle Plains complex is located on the only bedrock on the entire Dempster Hwy?  It was built in 1974 @ a cost of 3.5M$ (when the cost of the average house was 49K$ ) and is exactly half way to Inuvik. It really is an oasis along the way. There are 36 guest rooms, a dining lounge, bar, gift shop and car/truck repair facility with gas.  It is located at the top of a ridge so the view is breathtaking. You can see for days.  Huh!

It had rained all night so there were some slick patches to the first of  objective of the day.  The Arctic Circle.

It actually was that warm

The sun dried up the road on our way to the NWT/ YT boarder.  The road is used as an emergency landing strip in a couple of places.  Beside the signs stating this, you could tell these areas because the road was extra wide & in excellent shape. Huh!

I dumped the bike coming off the ferry before Fort McPherson.  Getting on had been scary.  They had added lots of dirt to level the ferry landing. Unfortunately, the truck traffic created deep soft ruts which grabbed my front wheel. Over I went, in a slow motion dump.  No damage to me or the bike.  A native ferry worker helped me reconnect the clutch interlock so the bike would start (that is going to get bi-passed when I get home.) We had lunch in Fort McPherson by shopping at the COOP.  The two RCMP just laughed when we asked about a restaurant.

After "lunch" we boarded the last ferry before Inuvik.  It wasn't pretty, but no problems.  Now the road was 3 inches of gravel & dust.  The trucks created so much dust we almost had to come to a complete stop when they approached.  You couldn't see anything.  Dave who was leading, got pelted by stones several times.  He felt they were purposely slamming on their brakes to stone us. Ouch!

I was having a hard time keeping up to the guys.  I got into a tank slapper.  Each handle grip took turns trying to touch the gas tank.  The front wheel went from side to side.  I reacted quickly saying " I got it! I got!" Another voice said, " Are you sure?"  I responded,  "Yes I have it. See it straightened out." I was only going all of 50 kph.  Dave suggesting doing 70 kph to get the front tire floating over the gravel and I thought 50 kph was scary.  However, with a leap of faith I tried it.  The bike seemed to be better. No more tank slappers.

Late in the afternoon Peter's bike cover & chain lub fell off his bike in front of me.  I stopped to pick it them up. The guys circled back when they couldn't see me.
This wasn't near as dramatic as when the logging truck sucked my sleeping bag out from under the straps on my bike.  The sleeping bag floated up like a helium balloon, landed in the oncoming lane, did an triple axle onto the far shoulder of the road.  From then on the tie down straps went through the loops on each bag.

Finally, we hit 10 kms of pavement to downtown Inuvik.  We stopped at the first motel & booked the last two rooms in town. There was some sort of  NWT convention going on.  Imagine that?  We had seen a number of bikers heading South as we approached Inuvik and  wonder why they were heading back then.  I guess they didn't like the 200$ per room price.   They may just have been keen.  Afterall, the sun was shining 20 hours a day @ this point.

The temperature was 24 degrees!  We had to open the windows to let in a breeze.  Funny, how the farthest place North is the warmest!  Must be closer to the sun.