From Haines Junction, we had to climb two mountain passes to get to Kluane Lake, largest natural glacier-fed lake in the Yukon. Along the way, we passed amazing mountain vistas and wildflower-filled meadows. A bald eagle flew over to check us out and we followed the giant foot prints of a BIG grizzly along the roadside. We had two bike issues early in the ride today – our second kickstand bit the dust and our chain jumped the gear, but neither kept us from rolling along. We were kind of dragging after a six mile mountain climb and mechanical troubles when we encountered one of the most amazing sights of the journey so far. From a mile or so away, we couldn’t tell what it was coming toward us. Was it a caravan of bicycles or a horse-drawn wagon or what? As we got closer we discovered a family of 12 riding their bicycles from Tok, Alaska all the way to Dawson Creek, BC, the start of the Alcan! They are the Kingsley/Skarstedt/Stapley family from Anchorage. The youngest rider was 4-years old! Now THAT is ambitious. They totally brightened our day and trip. Check out their blog at wealcan.blogspot.com.

Fought a moderate to strong headwind today after a late start breaking camp and getting away. When it became clear that we could not make it up the mountain and all the way up to Kluane Lake today, we decided we had to stay in Haines Junction for the night. There is nothing — absolutely nothing — in terms of services in the 50 miles between Haines Jct and Kluane Lake. And the grizzly bears in this area are notorious. We couldn’t afford to come up short and have to camp off the highway in the woods. Tomorrow, we’ll head out for Burwash Landing on Kluane Lake.

"On the Road Again…"NIce day of gently rolling Alaska Highway between mountain ranges. We even had the first decent tail wind of the trip! Met Jim and Judy on bike, traveling down to Haines, Alaska from Whitehorse. There was nothing — absolutely nothing — between Whitehorse and Otter Falls Cutoff in terms of services. We ran out of water just before arriving at the Otter Falls RV Park/Campground for the night.

I won’t lie to you — it was tough to turn in that nice camper and ride away on the bicycle again! Spent the day catching up on some classwork, shopping, running errands. Visited the "Old Log Church" and had a late lunch/early dinner at Bocelli’s Pizzeria. Ron and Jane serve up the best pizza in the Yukon!

We finally arrive in Whitehorse, Yukon, the drop off point for our CanaDream truck/camper. We sincerely hope that "Tom & Linda" won’t mind that we re-engineered their roadside stone art a little bit 🙂 There was a rally great Yukon wildlife exhibit adjacent to the Yukon Motel in Teslin, Yukon.

Hate to leave Racing River, but we gotta keep moving toward Alaska. In Watson Lake, we entered the Yukon Territory. Ten years ago, on my bike trek to Alaska, I came through here and hammered up a sign in the famous “sign post forest” at Watson Lake. Today, Linda and I proudly added a new addition to the over 75,000 signs posted there.
We arrived in Whitehorse, Yukon on Monday, turned the camper/truck back over to the CanaDream folks, and spent a day off in Whitehorse Tuesday shopping, running errands, and doing schoolwork on the three web classes I’m teaching. On Wednesday morning, we strike out again on the bicycle toward Alaska.

Making our way up the Alaska Highway toward Whitehorse, Yukon where we will ditch the camper/truck and start pedaling again. This section of the Alaska Highway is the most breathtaking as we change our heading from north to west to cross the Rocky Mountains. Lots of big game and scenic vistas, following rushing waters and climbing mountain passes. We end the day at my very favorite spot along the whole Alaska Highway: Racing River. Not a town, but a place where the Alaska Highway pulls up alongside this amazing rushing river, full of spring melt and glacial silt, and follows it for about 2 miles, then crosses and leaves it behind.

It was rainy and foggy most of the day, so not many scenic shots to offer. This single picture sums up the excitement for the day as we drove from Jasper to Dawson Creek.

Hi All,Rain, rain, rain. Six days of rain plus that wind through Wyoming has put us so far behind schedule that we will not be able to make it to Alaska and back to work in Steamboat on time (July 29), so we made the decision to rent a vehicle and zoom ahead to a point where we can pick up the bike ride and make it to Anchorage in good time (barring any further weather delays). We rented a camper in Calgary that the CanaDream Co. wanted to get up to Whitehorse ASAP, so we are on our way to Whitehorse, Yukon where we will pick up our bike ride for the final 700 miles or so into Anchorage.

Spent last night in the mountain town of Jasper AB; headed for Dawson Creek BC and the start of the Alaska Highway tonight. Once on the AlCan Hwy, internet will be sparse, so be patient and we’ll post new stuff as we can.
Thanks for tuning in 🙂
Jimmy*** & Linda

Day 25 Pictures 6/19/13

Lots of big climbs and big descents today on the way to Cochrane. The rains held off for a day of nice riding. Long glide down into Cochrane on the Bow River.