Day 10 - June 15, 2008, Father’s Day
We left Tok, AK, this morning at about 0930 hours headed for Fairbanks, AK, some 200 miles to the north, and stopped for the obligatory photo at Delta Junction, the official end of the Alaskan Highway.
En route to Fairbanks from Delta Junction we found a long, lonely stretch of straight road on which to take some photos of one another while riding requiring that the photographer ride in the vacant on coming traffic lane. Unfortunately, Alaskan State Trooper Rick Swanson took extreme exception to the endeavor, stopping Lane and Tim and stating, “I don’t know what you do in California, but in Alaska we drive on the right side of the road.” The two amigos were warned and advised regarding their errant behavior, and everyone departed unscathed.
Later, Lane suddenly pulled over to the side of road without warning, removing and examining his glasses in the process. He was riding with his face shield up and took a rock right in the right eye. Fortunately, his “Panoptic” polycarbonate sunglasses took the hit with a chip in the lens, as evidence of the rock strike. Note to fellow riders, don’t buy cheap sunglasses.
We left Tok, AK, this morning at about 0930 hours headed for Fairbanks, AK, some 200 miles to the north, and stopped for the obligatory photo at Delta Junction, the official end of the Alaskan Highway.
En route to Fairbanks from Delta Junction we found a long, lonely stretch of straight road on which to take some photos of one another while riding requiring that the photographer ride in the vacant on coming traffic lane. Unfortunately, Alaskan State Trooper Rick Swanson took extreme exception to the endeavor, stopping Lane and Tim and stating, “I don’t know what you do in California, but in Alaska we drive on the right side of the road.” The two amigos were warned and advised regarding their errant behavior, and everyone departed unscathed.
Later, Lane suddenly pulled over to the side of road without warning, removing and examining his glasses in the process. He was riding with his face shield up and took a rock right in the right eye. Fortunately, his “Panoptic” polycarbonate sunglasses took the hit with a chip in the lens, as evidence of the rock strike. Note to fellow riders, don’t buy cheap sunglasses.
Speaking of rock strikes, before leaving Santa Clarita, we fabricated head and passing lamp rock guards to protect our lights. Tim's bike took a rock in the headlight guard which cracked it, but saved his headlight. We talked to another rider who had the same experience on the road. It cost her $140 to have the entire light assembly replaced. I love when a plan actually works!
We passed through North Pole, AK, without stopping and arrived in Fairbanks, the northern-most location of our journey, about 1200 noon. We grabbed some quick made-to-order sandwiches, took a quick walkabout downtown, and some photos. We elected to ride on to Denali Park in lieu of staying in Fairbanks as we had originally planned. We are now headed south for the first time in nine days.
Today we experienced just about every type of weather, clear skies and 60 degrees out of Tok, 80 degrees and cloudy in Fairbanks, and yes, rain again between Fairbanks and Denali, a hundred miles to the south.
The Denali hotels were already booked by 1300 hours, fortunately, a helpful hotel clerk recommended a two-bedroom condominium about 10 miles north of Denali in Healy, AK., where we were able to secure accommodations for the night at the Denali Suites (info@denalisuites.com). Our tents and sleeping bags are still dry and securely tucked in our saddle bags, where it looks like they will remain for the duration.
As for wild animals today, we saw one old male transient on the curb in Tok, one-cotton tail rabbit, and four stuffed Teddy Bears on a couch on the side of a hill overlooking the highway en route to Denali. Not our best day for animal viewing.
We enjoyed a light supper at the well-appointed Princess Denali Lodge in Denali and purchased a few T-shirts at the Denali Harley-Davidson store across the street. People were still white water rafting on the Nenana River at 2130 hours below the lodge. Sunrise today was at 3:00 AM, sunset will be at 12:45 AM, for 21 hours, 42 minutes and 52 seconds of daylight!
We passed through North Pole, AK, without stopping and arrived in Fairbanks, the northern-most location of our journey, about 1200 noon. We grabbed some quick made-to-order sandwiches, took a quick walkabout downtown, and some photos. We elected to ride on to Denali Park in lieu of staying in Fairbanks as we had originally planned. We are now headed south for the first time in nine days.
Today we experienced just about every type of weather, clear skies and 60 degrees out of Tok, 80 degrees and cloudy in Fairbanks, and yes, rain again between Fairbanks and Denali, a hundred miles to the south.
The Denali hotels were already booked by 1300 hours, fortunately, a helpful hotel clerk recommended a two-bedroom condominium about 10 miles north of Denali in Healy, AK., where we were able to secure accommodations for the night at the Denali Suites (info@denalisuites.com). Our tents and sleeping bags are still dry and securely tucked in our saddle bags, where it looks like they will remain for the duration.
As for wild animals today, we saw one old male transient on the curb in Tok, one-cotton tail rabbit, and four stuffed Teddy Bears on a couch on the side of a hill overlooking the highway en route to Denali. Not our best day for animal viewing.
We enjoyed a light supper at the well-appointed Princess Denali Lodge in Denali and purchased a few T-shirts at the Denali Harley-Davidson store across the street. People were still white water rafting on the Nenana River at 2130 hours below the lodge. Sunrise today was at 3:00 AM, sunset will be at 12:45 AM, for 21 hours, 42 minutes and 52 seconds of daylight!
We received some bad news from home this evening. Our good friend and riding partner Janet Zumstein had a mishap and went down on her custom Harley Low Rider causing some severe road rash and damage to her motorcycle. Janet, your friends in Alaska wish you a speedy and full recovery. And, don't worry about your scooter, we'll get it fixed up good as new. Rest up and be well Dear.
Overall mileage today was 320 miles. Tomorrow, we’ll tour Denali Park, weather permitting.
Overall mileage today was 320 miles. Tomorrow, we’ll tour Denali Park, weather permitting.
Note to our viewers: . If you double click on the posted photos they will enlarge to full screen. So enjoy!
1 comment:
Highway Princess and Honey -
Miss you so much.. Great pictures. Glad you are having a great time. Drive safe.
Love,
Louise
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