The Long Road South

Where did that five days go?? What a waste of time cleaning the bike was!

You cross the border back into Canada about 120km from Tok, no hurry I was the only one there, I’m sure it would have got slightly busier later in the day? Maybe not. The Alaska Highway seems to get worse a little after that. There are patches of loose gravel at frequent intervals and the road crews are repairing the last winters damage at a frantic pace before next winter sets in again. They spray water to keep the dust down (and to make the gravel set again?) but instead of laying tarmac they seem to dig up the current surface and then re-roller it again. I don’t pretend to know how it works but it does. It also covers the bike in sh*t form front to back and anyone who knows me will tell you how I feel about a dirty bike.

The plan was to get back to the same motel in Whitehorse and use their guest laundry to clean up a little. That plan went out the window as soon as I rode into town. The motel was fully booked, and so were the next two she rang for me. I finally got a room at the Motor Inn 202 and resigned myself to staying a little grubby for a little longer.

I don’t like backtracking, it’s just covering the same ground but from the other way, but there is no other choice on this leg of the journey. I didn't particularly want to stay in Watson Lake again and pay the high price for the accommodation there, so by the time I had done 500km that day I pulled into the roadhouse at Rancheria for lunch and noticed they had cabins there. $90 bought me the more expensive one with a lovely view over the lake at the back, and a chance to watch the Beavers playing (or working) in the evening.


The accommodation at Rancheria


With a lovely view over the lake


With the Beavers swimming around in the evening


For all you Aussies out there. The giant Beaver

The run to Fort Nelson on Wednesday was another long 650km day. The only bonus was another day of Black Bears six of them in all, or seven if you count the little ball of fluff running after it’s mama for all it was worth, when she took off for the trees. Unfortunately I haven’t been as lucky in getting them to stand still and pose for the camera as I was before. I also saw some wild sheep, deer, elk, and one very dead moose that had been hit (by a truck I presume) apparently they are the biggest cause of road fatalities in Canada each year!! So all I got was some film of the rams.


Some of the sheep you have to avoid

There will be a marked lack of photos for this entry mainly because kilometre after kilometre of road lined with millions (no exaggeration) of trees is not that interesting, and it gets a little mind numbing after a while. This has been the pattern for the last week through Dawson Creek an Thursday and into Hinton last night. It got a little better towards the end of yesterday because This town is on the northern end of the Jasper and Banff National parks right through some of the most spectacular scenic driving in the world in the Rocky Mountains. Bring it on.


The Start of the Northern Rockies


Thousands off kilometers of this (well 2000km)