Day 42 – Whistler, BC

Whistler was always on my life list…for skiing and mountain biking….and I got to cross one of those off today. After a hardy breakfast…well, as hardy as a banana-Nutella crepe anyway…I was off to rent a mountain bike.   

Morning on the mountain...

Whistler Village

Whistler Village

 Those of you who know me know that I have more miles on a mountain bike than I do on a motorcycle….present trip included. The kind of mountain biking I do is called cross country…which means we ride up the hills…we ride down the hills…and everywhere in between. Well, there is a whole other facet to the sport called downhill…which is done almost exclusively at ski areas on specialized mountain bikes. You and your bike take the chairlift up the mountain, as the bikes are too heavy and so specialized at going down, that they are unable to go up! Downhill is all about going downhill…fast…really, really fast…over all manner of jumps, rocks, kickers, table tops, banked turns and all sorts of other terrain. The bike I rented was a full on downhill rig and weighed in at twice what my dual suspension mountain bike weighs…it was over 50 pounds!   

My Rocky Mountain downhill bike...

 They are built that heavy to endure the pounding that they take flying down the hill bouncing of the scenery….it’s almost like an off-road motorcycle without the engine.  So with my newly acquired steed and a lift ticket, I was on my way up the hill.  

At the top of the chair...

Now, mama didn’t raise no fool…so despite the fact that I’ve been riding mountain bikes for 20 years, I figured I’d warm up on some intermediate difficulty runs to get used to the new bike. After two runs down, I felt pretty good and the speeds that are possible on these big downhill bikes is amazing!   

This was a cool board section they built...

 My third trip up I was ready for the big show, and a steered the rig over to the entrance to A-Line…Whistlers signature black diamond downhill run. If this were golf, it would be the 13th at Augusta National or the 18^th at Pebble Beach. They have a warning sign and a jump right at the entrance…just to make sure you don’t accidently start down the run and kill yourself!   

"The warning" sign at the top of A-Line...

The jump at the entrance to A-Line... It was not huge, but it does look really small in the picture!

Well, all I can say is it was an awesome ride! I’ll admit I wasn’t man enough to take the big jumps at full speed…which could easily put you 20 feet or more off the ground! I’m just glad these bikes also have huge hydraulic brakes to control the speed. After 2 more runs down A-Line, I spent the rest of the afternoon exploring some other runs.   

Whistler Village from on the mountain...

Been riding a bike all day, took 10 pedal strokes..but I'm beat!

Yep, that black dot is a bear just above where the chair lift drops you off!

The lifts close at 5 and I was kind of glad because my shoulders and quads were thrashed and couldn’t take any more anyway! Next it was back to the room for a shower and to catch up on the blog. For dinner I found a good sushi bar and stuffed myself with pricey bait.   

Sunset on a good day at Whistler...

On the way back to the room I got sucked into a bar having a bit of an Oktoberfest celebration….and I’m not sure if it was the oompah band or the waitresses dressed in dirndls(Thanks to Andria for that!). Either way, I was good for 2 steins worth before calling it a night.

Day 41 – Prince George, BC to Whistler, BC

Day 41 – Prince George, BC to Whistler, BC     09/30/10     Mileage: 387  

Cold. Wet. Yep, that was my morning. Fortunately the place I camped came with a hot shower…which I used to chase off the morning chill! After packing up the soaking wet tent (from heavy dew and fog), I hit the road. The first hundred miles were cold and miserable, but then the sun came out and all was right with the world. That is until the truck I was following locked up its breaks and started swerving wildly! What he was trying to avoid was the large male elk that was on other side of the road….but spooked as we approached. First he swerved to the right…then back to the left which caused the trailer to fish-tail…all while smoke was pouring from the wheels from the locked up brakes. I was hard on the brakes as well trying to scrub some speed. The elk, which ran from left to right across the road didn’t fare so well, as the truck got a good piece of it apparently. The last thing I saw was the elk spinning in mid-air 10 feet of the ground and landed in a ditch at the side of the road as I went by. Mack truck – 1, elk – 0. I also met another biker from Germany who is also planning on riding all the way to Argentina! His name is Edmond and he flew his bike in to Vancouver from Germany…went up to Alaska…and is now heading south same as me.  

Edmond from Germany...on his 1991 KLR650 Tengai

We exchanged emails and will try and catch up somewhere along the road. The riding so far was good, but average.  

Along the way from Prince Rupert on Rt. 99

That is until I turned off of Canada road 97 onto road 99…which is 120 miles of motorcycle awesomeness! It connects road 97 and Whistler…and it was not only scenic, but chock full of ups, downs, twists and turns…motorcycle nirvana!  

Alpine lake along Rt. 97. And yes the water is that clear! Looks like it's 6 inches deep, but is actually 4-5 feet deep! Now that is clear!

Another shot of the same lake...

Scenery along Rt. 97

More from Rt. 99...

Log jam!

Does it get any better?

So after all that good road, the cherry on top was pulling into Whistler, BC! I immediately liked the vibe of this place, and I had it in my mind that I was going to ignore the budget and splurge a little on a nice room and some good food. As for the former, I found a room at the Whistler Inn and Suites right in the heart of the Whistler village. To satisfy the latter, I walked the village from end to end looking at the menus…and settled on a place called 21 Steps which had a great tapas menu. The clincher was a deal they had to choose any 3 tapas dishes for $25. Sold. After ordering a nice Bavarian beer, I weighed my tapas options and settled on these three dishes:  

– Smoked sockeye salmon with grilled red onions and toasted baguette.
– Grilled lamb sausage with roasted peppers and onions
– Goat cheese with caramelized white onions and ginger reduction.  

That beats a tunafish sandwich any day! After that I made the rounds and sampled the beer at some of the local pubs in the village, then called it a night. Of course…there was the small matter of a black bear blocking the entrance to my hotel! As I slowly backed away fumbling around for my camera….a local gal walked up and ever the chivalrous gent that I am, I warned her of the bear. Well, she turned out to be a local and was no stranger to nightly bear encounters in town! Apparently a few bears have their nightly route around town looking for food, and are quite accustomed to humans and not very dangerous. I guess that would explain the live bear trap immediately behind my first floor hotel room balcony!

Day 40 – Prince Rupert, BC to Prince George, BC

Day 40 – Prince Rupert, BC to Prince George, BC     09/29/10     Mileage: 466  

This morning I was out the door and on the road by 8:45 after a shower and granola bar for breakfast. Today was more about making miles than smelling the roses, so I took few pictures despite the good scenery.  

Along the way to Prince George...

More roadside scenery...

I did monkey around with my HERO sport camera a bit though.  

View from my HERO cam mounted on my handlebar...

Another HERO cam shot...

...and another...

...last one...

The fall foliage along the way was spectacular…almost as good as Vermont. But what this has that Vermont doesn’t is high soaring peaks like the Rocky Mountains to cap off the vivid fall colors. What made it even better was the overcast skies that eventually gave way to bright sunshine. One other comment about this area of the Pacific Northwest, southeast Alaska and Alaska in general…is the sheer vastness of the wilderness. What is seen from the thin ribbon of asphalt that connects these remote towns can hardly be half of 1% of what is there. The amount of track-less wilderness up here is hard to wrap your mind around.  I found a campsite just south of Price George as there is no rain in the forecast.  

I had this campground all to myself!

Sunset on another great day...

Tomorrow I’ll be heading for Whistler, BC…and another check off for the life list.

Off the ferry…

Hi All,

I got off the ferry late last night and I’m now in Prince Rupert, BC. I’ll be heading for Price George, BC today and will update the blog as soon as I can! Thanks for all the great comments!

-Lenny

Day 17 – Teslin, YT to Beaver Creek, YT

Day  17 – Teslin, YT to Beaver Creek, YT     09/06/10     Mileage: 394  

Morning came and of course it was raining. The forecast was for clearing mid-morning so I decided to wait and make use of the internet connection while I had it. I also did some maintenance on the KLR and noticed the rear tire is wearing down much faster than I had planned. It was brand new right before the trip, and I was hoping it would make it to Seattle. At this point it will be lucky to see Fairbanks…and I hope it does as that’s the only town I can get a replacement at this point! So, at the crack of 11 I started making my way out of town…with one last stop for gas. As I pulled up to the pump, there were two other riders there…one on a Kawasaki and the other on a Honda Goldwing. We got to talking and they are both from Fairbanks making their way down to Vancouver. Pete, the big guy on the Gold Wing has put 45,000 miles on it in two years…including a cross-country trip to the Jersey Shore….pretty cool!  

Fellow bike travelers...

So after the standard telling of stories and lies, I was off and making tracks towards Whitehorse. The weather was overcast with spots of rain, but I’ll take that over the total soakers of the last 2 days.  

On the road to Whitehorse...

In Whitehorse, I ran some errands, had a quick bite and met a great group of riders while topping up the tank. They were on their way back from Inuvik, the farthest town accessible by road in Canada. The couple on the left is from Nederland, CO…very close to my friends Paul and Kim in Golden. I had breakfast two minutes from their house just over a week ago…small world. The gal in the middle is from Georgia and rode up from Colorado also. The other couple was riding two-up with luggage on an old model KLR from Seattle….and I thought my bike was weighed down!  

L to R: Couple from Nederland, gal from Georgia, couple from Seattle

After wishing each other a safe journey, I was off again…this time to try and make it to Beaver Creek, YT close to the Alaska border. I don’t have many pictures as the weather was dreary, the light flat and I wanted to make up for the late departure this morning. The scenery around Haines Junction all the way to Beaver Creek was outstanding, it’s too bad the clouds obscured the peaks of the mountain range or I would have some great photos!  

Mountains near Haines Junction, YT

Gas stop near Destruction Bay, YT

At least it's not raining!

The weather did clear and the sun came out for the last hour into Beaver Creek…so that was a welcome change.  

Sun at last!

Dinner was at Buckshot Betty’s and I found a reasonable room at the “1202” motel. Tomorrow, it’s on to Fairbanks, AK where the KLR will get a new pair of shoes and some much needed maintenance.

Day 16 – Tetsa River, BC to Teslin, YT

Day 16 – Tetsa River, BC to Teslin, YT     09/05/10     MIleage: 419 

The cabin was chilled by morning as the wood stove had long since burned out. I quickly packed up, said farewell to Ben and hit the road. The ground was still wet and the weather dank and overcast, but at least it wasn’t raining….so I consider that an improvement. The climb over the next pass was cold and the mountains all around had a fresh dusting of snow from the night before. The snow line at the top of the pass was perhaps only only 500-1000 feet above the road…not a good sign. 

Snow just above the mountain pass...

Fresh dusting of snow from the night before...

And more snow...

As I descended the pass the weather began to improve and the roads were now dry. 

Sun at last!

 The scenery around Muncho Lake was spectacular and the lake itself crystal clear….reminiscent of Lake Tahoe. The sun was now out and the temperature had inched its way into the low 60’s…perfect! 

Scenery in the Munch Lake area...

Scenery near Muncho Lake...

There is a picture at every bend in the road up here...

The KLR taking a break...with a view.

Muncho Lake, BC

Muncho Lake, BC

Next stop was the Liard River Hot Springs and…WOW…what a find that was! The hot springs themselves were kept rustic and natural…and it was only $5 to enter the park. I soaked in the hot springs for over an hour which was a treat after all the cold and rain. 

Liard Hot Springs

Liard Hot Springs

Liard Hot Springs

Liard Hot Springs

Soaking it all in....

After the soak it was time to make some tracks as the clock is ticking louder by the minute. I spoke with a local at the springs and they confirmed, at least in my mind, that winter is indeed coming early and this unseasonably cold weather is not just a fluke. They got their information not from some PHD meteorologist, but from the caribou and geese…both of whom departed the area 2 weeks earlier than normal…a sure sign of an early winter.  For now though, the weather was perfect and I was on the throttle making time. 

Roadside buffalo...

More roadside buffalo...

Welcome to the Yukon!

The famous Signpost Forest in Watson Lake

It would take weeks to look at all the signs!

It wasn’t meant to last though, as the clouds began to form on the horizon and the temperature was dropping as I rode north and west. 

Clouds again...and soon more rain and cold...

Soon my old friend returned and I was again wet and cold. I hunkered down behind the KLR’s meager fairing and pressed on into the Yukon Territory to Teslin. Cold and wet like the night before, I found refuge in the Yukon Motel in Teslin which is quite a nice place by my recent standards. My room came complete with heat, running water and even a flush toilet…luxurious!

Day 15 Dawson Creek, BC to Tetsa River, BC

Day 15 Dawson Creek, BC to Tetsa River, BC     09/04/10     Mileage: 353 

It was a bit warmer sleeping last night but not by much. It rained on an off all night but thankfully had stopped in time for me to pack up and get on the road. The KLR seems to thrive on the cool dense morning air which is good because I was on the throttle hard trying to make time. I don’t have any deadlines on this trip save for one…and that is the goal of getting to Deadhorse before winter comes to the north slope of Alaska. Ever present in the back of my mind now is the ticking of the clock. It is definitely a calculated risk to push so far north this late in the season, and I will need some luck and good weather to make it. So far the temperatures have been unseasonable cold, and I’m hoping that is just a cold snap and not the early arrival of winter. After 40 minutes of riding, the rain started so I had to back off the pace a bit. I topped off the tank in Buckinghorse, the last gas (or anything else for that matter!) for  100+ miles until the town of Fort Nelson. This area is dominated by logging and it seems some gas and oil drilling also. As such, the services are rather industrial in this area and cater more towards field workers than overland travelers. 

The "restaurant" in Buckinghorse

The "motel"

The "gas station"

 The “motel” is a series of self contained rooms on skids that they slid of the back of trucks and presto..instant motel! In Fort Nelson I topped up the tank and had a quick bite to eat. It was still raining and the forecast was bleak until tomorrow late morning. Camping was out so I called up the road and tracked down a reasonable “rustic” cabin at Tetsa River Lodge…about 80 miles farther. Just outside of town, the road turned toward some ominous looking weather. The smart thing to do would have been to turn around and head back to Fort Nelson, but apparently I’m not that bright. So with gritted teeth, I steered the KLR into the dark clouds and met the full force of the cold driving rain. It’s at this point that I began to wonder what the f-ck is wrong with me to want to do trips like this. Why can’t I be like most people and just bugger off to the Caribbean, lay on the warm sand and drink fruity rum drinks or take a cruise? At the moment that seems infinitely more appealing than the abject misery of the moment….cold, wet and riding on an out of balance washing machine. Then, up ahead from behind my fogged up face shield, I could see the sign for Tetra River and it could not have come soon enough. 

Tetra River Lodge

Inside Tetra River

In through the front door I stumble sopping wet but spirits lifted. I’m greeted by the owner Ben who immediately offers up some hot coffee and one of his fresh out of the oven “best cinnamon buns on the highway”. It lived up to the billing, all 3000 calories of it. 

"Best buns on the highway."

Just then the door swung open and in walks another biker dripping wet and looking as miserable as I did 20 minutes ago. He looked at me and said something to the effect of being a beautiful day for riding, to which I responded that at least we’re entertaining our masochistic side. We both laughed, because if we weren’t laughing we’d be crying. He grabbed a coffee as well and we got to talking. John is from Vancouver and owns 1% of 10% of an energy company that makes fuel cells, and is out riding his Harley Fat Boy up to the Arctic Circle for “something to do”. I know what he means; I’m flogging my KLR clear up to Deadhorse just to take a picture. Both are meaningless ends, the goal is the journey itself. John found a room a bit farther up the road, so he continued on while I retired to my rustic cabin. 

Me and John

 And rustic it was, a wood stove for heat, plywood bunk beds, no electric after 10pm and no running water. Oh well, even at $60 it still beats a tent in this weather. 

My cabin for the night...

Inside my cabin...

Inside my cabin...

"Chopping" wood for the stove...with my Leatherman...

Day 14 – Jasper National Park to Dawson Creek, BC

Day 14 – Jasper National Park to Dawson Creek, BC     05/03/10     Mileage: 364  

It was a cold night’s sleep as I only have a lightweight summer sleeping bag to keep the weight down and save space. I had on all my thermal clothing and my riding jacket draped over my sleeping bag. Hopefully tonight will be warmer…at least the forecast looks better. The couple next store to me offered me a cup of coffee which I gladly accepted as my camp stove is giving me trouble. After 20 years of service it finally gave up the ghost…I can’t complain I guess. After packing up I continued north towards the town of Jasper and passed more unbelievable scenery.  

Athabasca Falls

Athabasca Falls

Below Athabasca Falls

Jasper National Park

Prong horn sheep? ......anyone?

 I had breakfast in Jasper and went shopping for a new camp stove, but no luck there.  

Town of Jasper

I continued on heading for Dawson Creek via Grand Prairie. The scenery was getting more ordinary, but that was inevitable given the immense grandeur of Jasper National Park and Banff. I was pushing the KLR hard to try and make time because the clock is ticking…winter is drawing near and it doesn’t play nice with motorcycles.  

Welcome to BC!

Mile 0 of the Alaska Highway....Dawson Creek, BC

I rolled into Dawson Creek and settled into the Mile “0” Campground. Just after getting settled, a storm front came in with a fury and wind gusts over 50mph! It nearly flattened my lightweight backpacking tent and threaten to tip the KLR over(again!). I had to tie them both to trees until the storm past. The campground gets its name from the fact that Dawson Creek is the official start, or mile “0” of the Alaska-Canada Highway( AlCan for short). The other end of the highway is roughly 1400 miles northwest in Delta Junction, Alaska just south of Fairbanks. Tomorrow I start my run up the famous AlCan.

Day 13 Banff, Alberta to Jasper National Park

Day 13 Banff, Alberta to Jasper National Park     09/02/10     Mileage: 327 

After putting the KLR’s rear end back together, we packed up and went to meet Webble for breakfast. He suggested, in fact, everyone suggested Melissa’s…and specifically the french toast. Well, it lived up to the billing and was really delicious.  

Breakfast at Melissa's

Melissa's famous french toast...

Paul, Webble, and I in front of Mellisa's...

After that Paul and I shot over to the Banff information kiosk…he in search of a map and me to see what the area has to offer besides the town itself. With that done, our ride together had come to an end. Paul was turning the Beemer south back towards Colorado. He was going to try and make it home by Saturday for his son Lance’s first football game. I would continue northwest towards Lake Louise, Jasper an onward to Alaska. So with a final farewell, we parted ways and I was on my own once again. We had such a great time on the road…I miss riding with him already.  

Parting shot...

So long my friend, it was great riding with you!

My first stop was to check out the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel…and wow is that place spectacular.  

Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel...wow!

Fairmont Banff Springs

Banff Springs Hotel gold course...quite a setting for a course...

Downtown Banff...

Downtown Banff

Next I rode up to an overlook where you could see all of Banff and the surrounding mountains and valley’s…quite a view for sure.  

Banff and the surrounding mountains

On my way to my next stop, Morraine Lake and the Valley of the Ten Peaks, I saw a huge elk feeding right by the side of the road!  

Roadside elk...

He never gave me a second look as I sat there on the bike for 10 minutes watching and taking pictures.  

Along the way to Lake Louise...

Mountains on the way to Lake Louise...

The ride to Morraine Lake was great and the lake itself is stunning (thanks to Andria for the suggestion!).  

Morraine Lake and the Valley of the 10 Peaks...

Morriane Lake

Next stop was the Chateau Lake Louise which is a hotel set on the edge of an alpine lake of the same name that is nearly as stunning as Morraine Lake. The hotel itself is nice, but not in the same league as the Fairmont Banff Springs.  

Lake Louise

 After a quick PB and honey on flat bread, it was off to Jasper National Park. On my way I saw my first bear of the trip! Just as the elk did earlier in the day, he could care less that I was there watching and didn’t even look my way.  

Roadside Bear!

The scenery as I rode north was unbelievable. My jaw would have dropped to the ground had my helmet chin strap not been there to catch it.  

Jasper National Park along the Icefields Parkway

Jasper National Park

Jasper National Park

Jasper National Park

Jasper National Park

Jasper National Park

Glacier in Jasper National Park

Home for the night would be the Honeymoon campground about 30 miles south of Jasper where I got some great twilight pictures of the mountains reflecting in the lake.  

Honeymoon Lake, Jasper National Park

Now that seat has a view for sure...

Could be one of the best pictures I've ever taken...

Yep, that's a good pic for sure...

Tomorrow it’s on to the town of Jasper, then Dawson Creek.

Poker in the rear….

So, after yesterdays second tip over, the right side rear sub-frame and side bag rack were bent inwards requiring a little backyard ingenuity. We had to bend the rear rack back out, and we needed to apply some brute force…and what we needed was a strong lever, say, like a steel fireplace poker! 

Poker inserted into the rear....subframe rack that is.

After the poker was inserted, it was time to apply some brute force, or at least as much force as a doughy IT desk jokey can apply. 

Applying some pressure...

The top rack had also been tweaked upward, so we strapped the poker across the back rack and bent it back downward. 

Mission accomplished!

OK, so it ain’t perfect, but its way better than it was. The only casualty was a severely bent poker, but at least her rear looks great!

Day 12 – Babb, MT – Banff, Alberta, Canada

Welcome to Canada, eh! It was only 30 miles to the Canadian border which we crossed without a hitch.    

Welcome to Canada, eh!

Waterton Park...sister park to Glacier.

There's snow in them thar hills....

Looking into Waterton Park...

I had the GPS set to avoid highways so we can stay more on the secondary roads which are always more interesting and enjoyable than the super slab. The GPS did such a good job of avoiding highways, it managed to avoid pavement all together for around 70 miles!    

No pavement in site!

Paul is all smiles...dirt roads are fun!

Gravel goodness...

Paul taking in the awesome scenery...

Dirt, dirt and more dirt road...

 The bikes got a good workout in the dirt and so did we. The views were amazing and we had them all to ourselves. I had the first of two tip over’s today. I stopped to let air out of the tires to ride the dirt roads, and just when I went to get back on the bike tipped over the other way. No damage…just knocked the mirror loose which I easily tightened back up. An hour later we stopped just after getting back on the pavement to air the tires back up…it tipped over again when I was getting it down off the center stand. This time the right side pannier rack got bent in a bit, but Paul and I are going to see if we can straighten it tomorrow. With the bike loaded, the kickstand is just a bit too long…and I’m contemplating having it cut down and welded….we’ll see. After that it was a straight run into Banff, which is a great town!   

Banff!

Main street in Banff...

I’d never been here and it did not disappoint. Paul has a friend Andria that has a friend Webble that has lived in town for 25 years, so we gave him call. It turns out by chance that he was having a beer across the street from where we parked the bikes…great! So being no strangers ourselves to drinking beer, we joined him and some other friends for a drink.   

L to R: Carl, Paul, Ali, me, Webble

His friend Carl hooked us up with a sweeeet lodging deal with the company he works for. Thanks Carl! After that it was off to check in and then out for a bite to eat.   

Sweet digs thanks to Carl!

Roughing it...not.

We settled on a $25 all you can eat sushi deal which was very average. However, at the end the waitress wanted to charge me extra because I didn’t finish the three teaspoons of rice on my plate.   

That is a saucer size plate...not a dinner plate!

I told her politely that I am full and not going to eat the rice…nor will I pay an extra fee.  Well, she became indignant and insisted that I either pay or finish the rice. I told her I will not clean my plate like a 3 year old, and I will not pay the fee, and I’m happy to sit here all night or talk to the owner, but I’m sure as shit not paying extra or eating the f—king rice. Well, she brought the bill…with the fee…so Paul and I paid cash, less the fee and no tip. What a hoser.