Valdez to Beaver Creek

Day 1, Friday June 10, 84.9km

Up at 4:30am and during packing I put 2 boiled eggs on the picnic table. When returning from the washroom I see a crow flying off with something white in its beak. Back at the table I notice that both eggs are gone! Oh well, I still have 10 left.
This is the first time we will be riding a fully loaded bike. We are taking off by 6:30, the temperature is 10degC.
I am pleasantly surprised to find a paved multi purpose trail parallel to the Richardson highway for the first 10km. After that we are on the road but traffic is light and there is a wide paved shoulder. The road is flat but that is not going to last. We have to get over those mountains to get to the interior of Alaska.

After a few hours we enter the Keystone Canyon with steep cliffs on both sides and many waterfalls rushing down.

Once through the canyon the view widens and the real work begins: the Thompson pass.

We start the climb at 10:00am and reach the summit at 2:10pm at an elevation of  824M. Had to stop many times to let the heart rate come down but we made it. The posts on the next picture are not lamp posts, they are markers for the snowplow. This pass is getting the highest snowfall anually in Alaska.

After the pass this great landscape just continues.

At 4:20 we reach our target for today, the rest area at the Tiekel river. To my surprise I find shelters with picnic tables and the river is close by as a water source. I pitch the tent underneath one of the shelters. This is a remote location and I use my whistle frequently to alert local bears. After preparing and eating a simple meal I am off to bed. My upper back and shoulder are hurting!

Day 2, Saturday June 11, 51.6km.

Up at 5:10am, I am late this morning. Bit of a chilly night, the temperature this morning is 5 degC. We only have to do 50km today, a breeze compared to yesterday. There is a cold wind blowing but is behind us. Mostly sunny with some scattered clouds.

We reach the Squirrel Creek State park by 11:10 and self register for site 7. The fee per night is $15, pretty steep considering the only facilities are pit toilets.
My site has lots of trees to hang my hammock and that is how I get through the rest of the day.

Day 3, Sunday June 12, 83km.

A bit more challenging to get everything done this morning. It is only 2 degC when getting up at 4:30am but the sun is already up and things will warm up soon. All dressed up and gloved I am going to work.
We start off with a long slope up, nothing better to warm you up. All of a sudden an annoying high pitch squeak is coming from somewhere on my bike when I pedal. What can it be? Better not be my headset or bottom bracket. I decide that it is the right pedal and put some oil between  the pedal and the crank arm.
We have now biked out of the coastal mountain range and the landscape is a bit flat but it does not take long for a good size mountain to appear on our right in the distance. It is Mount Drum, an old volcano and it is a part of the Wrangell mountains. We have to go all around those mountains and will be biking on the other side on the Alaska highway in a few days.

At 1:00pm we have reached the junction of the Richardson and Glennen highways and there is a tourist information centre where we get information on a possible place to stay for tonight. The Gakona lodge is about 3km on the Tok Cutoff highway, just a bit further than we have planned.
At 2:35pm we reach the junction of the Richardson and Tok Cutoff highways. There is an sign announcing 24 miles of road construction on the Tok Cutoff highway. Traffic is stopped by a flag woman. There is active construction on the next 3.2km and we have to wait for the pilot car. She suggests I take a lift with the pilot car but this is too involved with the bike and trailer. She agrees and suggest I go last, once traffic is moving again. She wants to know if I will be able to keep up with the traffic. Certainly not! When the pilot car comes back I will have to go to the side until the traffic from the opposite direction has passed.

I find the lodge just past the construction area.

People in Alaska are mostly friendly. The owner of the lodge tells me that there is no official campground but I can pitch my tent for free on the lodge property. I find a good spot behind the lodge to pitch the tent.
I really like their business hours sign.

I have a meal of meatloaf and baked potato and a salad at the restaurant. I really like Alaska. Life is perfect were it not for my upper back and shoulder blade. They are aching again after this long day.

Day 4, Monday June 13, 100km.

Just as I remember from Labrador, there is no dew. The tent is bone dry in the morning and that makes packing it up very easy. And there is 24 hours daylight.
We continue the Tok Cutoff highway today. Soon I run into more construction. It is all gravel on a 2.5 km steep slope up and if I put too much torque on the crank arms my rear wheel starts slipping.

A good thing they wet the road all the time otherwise it this would be a very dusty ride. The gravel lasts for 12 km and I am so glad to see pavement again. The annoying squeak is back again. I now am certain it is the left pedal. Try some oil on this one.
Great views on this highway, those Wrangell mountains are always in view on the right and in between tundra with lots of black spruce.

After about 60 km we are in the mountains again. There is a mountain range on our left now. These must be old mountains, the tops are very rounded. And those Wrangell mountains always remain in sight.

At 5:15pm we arrive at the Porcupine Creek state park. Again the facilities are minimal and even the hand pump does not work. No problem, Porcupine creek is nearby and I have my filter. Another hard working day is behind us.

Day 5, Tuesday June 14, 96.3km.

On the bike by 6:40am and we continue the Tok Cutoff highway. Those early mornings on the road are the best part of the day. Also the best time to see wildlife. At 6:50am there is a moose on the road and I take a picture while biking. Before I get close he is off over a steep slope. That squeak is back again. I do a close inspection of the left pedal.There is too much play in the bearing closest to the crankshaft. This is not a good development. These are new MEC pedals and they were not cheap!
The weather is starting to change. Thick cloud cover ahead and it feels damp. Feels like rain on the way.

The mountains are closing in on both sides. We go through a narrow valley and it starts raining. By the time we put our rain gear on it is raining hard. The valley opens up again and the sky lightens. Done with the rain for now. That squeak is driving me nuts. During a break I take the pedal off the crankarm (don't forget, this is left threat!). I don't have to take the tools to take it apart. I work some of my wonder oil into the area of the bearing and put it back on. Have not heard the squeak since. About 10km before Tok a paved multi purpose trail starts. We now have a road and trail all to ourselves. We reach Tok in light rain at 3:35pm and check into the Golden Bear Motel. There is a good grocery store here and we stock up. We will be heavy tomorrow. Have to lay down now, my upper back and that shoulder blade are killing me.

Day 6, Wednesday June 15, 81.2km.

Feeling much better after a good night rest. Ready for another day. Shortly after leaving the motel we reach the junction of the Alaska and Tok Cutoff highways and we are at the most northerly point of our trip. We are at 63deg 20.146' North. When we got up it was sunny but now a thick fog has settled over Tok. There is a paved multi purpose trail for the first 2km. The Alaska highway is straight as an arrow and flat here. Over the next few km's I see 3 moose. Soon we bike out of the fog. Looking back the fog bank is still there, there must be a big body of water near Tok.

We are back in the mountains again. The road is partly up the side of the mountains with a great view of the valley below. The road is never flat now, I am either working hard to get up long hills or coasting down at the other side. This is the way it is going to be until we reach Beaver Creek.

We reach Northway Junction at 3:00am and there is a gas station / general store / campground run by the natives where we will camp for the night. Fee is $10 and $2 for a shower. The showers are at the store, only facilities at the campground are 2 outhouses and everything looks run down. The tap water at the campground has all kinds of particles floating in it. Making good use of my filter this trip. I have my $2 shower at the store. The shower stall is clean but I don't want to touch the shower curtain, it is black with mildew.
According to my GPS sunrise is at 3:21am and sunset at11:32pm at this location. No wonder it does not get dark.


Day 7, Thursday June 16, 99.2km.

We depart Northway Junction at 6:30am. Although this is my scheduled day off, I will delay by one day. There are no facilities here and I may have better luck in Beaver Creek. There is thick cloud cover in the south, the direction we are heading. At 11:00 it starts raining and we change into rain configuration. The rain does not last long but there is more on the way.
I see an interesting sign on the side of the road, let's have some fun with this.

We reach the Canada - USA border at 2:20pm and take some time to look around. Canada customs is 27km further down the road near the community of Beaver Creek. Sorry to say goodbye to Alaska. That was a tremendous bike ride,  Bob and myself really have enjoyed ourselves. We are now entering the Yukon, yet another province we can add to our list. We move the clock ahead by one hour, we are now on Pacific time. The road surface changes from smooth asphalt to coarse chip sealed stuff. A sign announces road construction ongoing for the next 185km. We are already running into to sections of gravel and it is very dusty.

Just before we reach Canada customs it starts raining again. There is a bit of a lineup. Can I jump the Q? Better not take any chances and I wait in line in the rain.  Besides the usual questions the officer also wants to know if I carry bear spray or other irritants. Yes, I do. As long as it is clearly labeled that it is intended for bears it is OK. Glad that they did not take it from me!
It is raining hard now and I check into Ida's motel.

Day 8 & 9, June 17 & 18

Today it is Friday June 17 and it is my day off. We are in the community of Beaver Creek, the most westerly community in Canada. The visitors center gave me a lead to a RV park where there is free Internet access and that is where we are now working on updates to the blog. There is also free coffee and a laundromat so I can do my washing at the same time. We checked out of the motel and will be camping in this park tonight.

Time goes fast, ......by now it is Saturday June 18 and it is 7:20 in the morning and I am still blogging. Did not get it all done yesterday and since facilities are great here, I decided to take another day off. This will give me a good rest and it will be a good feeling to get this blog up to date. We will still be on schedule.
It is satisfying to know that some child may benefit in the future by me doing this.
We now have 20 followers and already lots of comments. Thank you.