Gravel Roads Ugh!!!

Saturday July 11, 2010


I began the day with breakfast and gas at the Fas-N-Go and took off along the Alaskan Hwy. With bright sunshine on my back and clear blue skies through my windshield I was thirty miles or 15 Kilometers Canadian when the road turned into a mix of gravel and one way lane traffic for several miles.

Some portions of the roads had several inches of gravel and other portions had hard packed gravel enough to drive fairly comfortable. To keep the dust down the used water which made for a muddy adventure and a ugly bike. Either way it made for some slow maneuvering along the road.

While waiting for the pilot truck to return at one section I made friends with the road the flag girl named Brittany who is a college freshman working in the Canadian heat and dealing with the bugs. She had enough bug spray on her that I could smell the off and cutters ten feet away. The driver behind me was a gentleman from China who visited his daughter in New York and drove across the US toward Alaska where he will fly out to back to China. We all took photos.

I took some photos of the ride of beautiful vistas, including a bear, and a couple of Elk alongside the road. I met up with a couple of guys who I road with the day before where we ate lunch and talk with two truck drivers from Canada.

While there, a slender black gentleman rolled up on his bicycles which at first startled me since I thought I was the only black guy in these parts. He was on his way to Key West from Fairbanks Alaska. His journey will take six months. He said he is riding for Christ. A very inspirational man, since he has a long way to travel.

I spent the night in Watson Lake in the Yukon Territory of Canada at the Air Force Lodge. This place reminds me of the German Guest Houses, very quaint with individual rooms. Mine had no televising and the bathrooms and showers were separated for men and women.

One group of bikers showed up to get rooms however the women decided they didn’t like sharing toilet and shower facilities with other women.

The place soon filled with mixed group of older couples and one in particular a gentleman who at the age of 72 has an 18-month old son named Jordan. Yes 72, and his wife is thirty years his junior. One brave man!

We all sat around the dinner table and chatted for about two hours with other staying the night. Great times had by all.

It is 11:06 pm and the sun is just below the horizon. I will attempt a photo of this while in Fairbanks. It is really weird seeing the sun never setting and just sitting just below the horizon.