Ride Report- Mississippi to Alaska & Back - Pic Heavy

[DK Custom Products]

Heading out of Haines Junction, gonna ride thru Whitehorse, and on to Teslin. Stopping there for the night before leaving the Alcan down the Cassiar.

This is all road we traveled a few weeks ago, but different weather and different direction makes most of it new.

Another perfect day for riding!




Roads are good, curves are plentiful, and we feel like we could ride up here indefinitely.




Before we know it we are getting close to Whitehorse, capitol of the Yukon.



Roads like this remind me of the song (Irish Prayer) "May the Road Rise up To Meet You"




We hit the City of Whitehorse and I decide to go to the Harley Dealer. The front tire is not going to make it to the Lower 48. In Anchorage I had 3/32" tread left, now I have about 1/32". We still have over 1600 miles to go with lots of curves.

HD Dealer is no longer there. But the Yukon Motorcycle Centre is.



They have the tire, and will install and balance it for $310, much less than the HD Dealer in Anchorage.

Plus, they have a picnic table for us to eat at, and they will have it done in less than an hour!



A little before we left, 3 baggers and a Tri-Glide came in. The Road King had had it's headlight shattered on a gravel road by a rock kicked up from a truck passing him.



As we leave out of Whitehorse we take a little detour on our way to Teslin. We take the Klondike Hwy down to Tagish, then turn left and head back to the Alcan.

Lots of lazy winding roads.



I'm now totally comfortable with the Canadian way of riding.

In town, obey the (very slow) speed limits.

Out in the open road, ride however fast you want...up to about 80-85 mph. These roads are fun for us at 70-75 mph. (speed limit varies between 56-62 mph).




We saw this emerald colored lake and had to stop for some pics.



More in next post.

[DK Custom Products]

A panoramic shot of the lake. The pics don't really do justice to how emerald the color was.




Another lake a ways down the road.




This is a big country, and we are realizing that even with the weeks we have spent here, we have not even scratched the surface!



Turning off the Klondike Hwy at Tagish to head back to the Alcan.



Crossing the Tagish bridge. This is BIG country!



More roads to just make you want to stay and explore them all!



An "over the shoulder" pic.



Going thru a double S, this is one of those perfect riding days, start to finish.



Getting close to Teslin!



Here we are. Gas station, groceries, and our motel.

There is one other gas station, and a few businesses, other than that, not much here.



Tomorrow we will continue on the Alcan, toward Watson Lake, but before getting there we'll be turning south onto the Cassiar Hwy. We have heard a lot of conflicting reports of the condition of the road. But we have a new front tire, and we're going to do it, even though a lot of folks warned us off it.

[Wicker Big Blue]

We are going to Bear Tooth pass and northern parts of Wyo. the last week in Aug. Can't wait for the ride. Thanks for the wonder pics

[Countryal]

Thank You for the great pictures and the description of each picture. I started looking at this and could not stop. Will be looking for the next post. Be safe. Larry

[dano309]

really enjoy the pics & write-up's.........looks like an adventure of a lifetime......hope to do something like this someday....you guys have a safe trip & looking forward for more pics.....

[427dave]

We are totally enjoying the pictures. It is wonderful going on this trip with you Kevin and Mary. Ride safe. Just as a comment, I put a rear tire from a 2008 Ultra on the front of my trike. I now have 18,000 miles on it and it still has lots of tread left. My original Triglide tire wore out at 20,000 miles. Good luck... and keep the pictures coming

[NEWTrk]

What a trip of a life time the two of you are having. My husband has been reading your thread and telling me that I needed to read it too. And once I started it this afternoon I had to read until I was done.

Alaska has always been on my bucket list, but your thread has now put it on Phil's. He just retired at the end of June, and is planning to ride the 48 lower states in 60 days next year, so I think Alaska will be in 2015.

Travel Safe - Please keep the post and pictures coming.
And BTW - I love Mary's cloud pictures. I tend to take a lot of them on our travels too!

Diane

[DK Custom Products]

I am really behind on reports...few long days in a row. I am really going to try to get 1 or 2 up tomorrow.

In the meantime, here is a look at some pretty amazing cloud pics Mary took.

[DK Custom Products]

Thank You for the great pictures and the description of each picture. I started looking at this and could not stop. Will be looking for the next post. Be safe. Larry

Cool. Quite a bit more left before we get home...just running a bit behind on the reports.

really enjoy the pics & write-up's.........looks like an adventure of a lifetime......hope to do something like this someday....you guys have a safe trip & looking forward for more pics.....

Thank you. Highly recommended. We already know we will be back to BC.

We are totally enjoying the pictures. It is wonderful going on this trip with you Kevin and Mary. Ride safe. Just as a comment, I put a rear tire from a 2008 Ultra on the front of my trike. I now have 18,000 miles on it and it still has lots of tread left. My original Triglide tire wore out at 20,000 miles. Good luck... and keep the pictures coming

Thanks!

I am going to look at something for the front. The way I ride in the sweepers and twistys just shaves the rubber right off.

What a trip of a life time the two of you are having. My husband has been reading your thread and telling me that I needed to read it too. And once I started it this afternoon I had to read until I was done.

Alaska has always been on my bucket list, but your thread has now put it on Phil's. He just retired at the end of June, and is planning to ride the 48 lower states in 60 days next year, so I think Alaska will be in 2015.

Travel Safe - Please keep the post and pictures coming.
And BTW - I love Mary's cloud pictures. I tend to take a lot of them on our travels too!

Diane

Diane, very cool. Alaska, and going thru Canada is an amazing ride.

btw, I posted the cloud pics (cause I just did not want to take the time to do a full report) and then I saw your note on Mary's cloud pictures. Synchronicity!

[DK Custom Products]

Getting ready to head out of Teslin toward Watson Lake. But before getting there we will turn South on Highway 37 (Cassiar Hwy) that we have been warned about...we can always turn around. lol




Teslin is little more than a gas stop from what I can tell. There is no gas for quite a ways in either direction.

You can see the line of everyone wanting gas (or Diesel).



On our way. Long bridge directly out of Teslin. Lots of 2 wheelers don't like these, with 3 wheels, no problem.




Oh yeah! What a way to start the day, 8 gallons of gas and lots of good road!




Mary starts getting more creative with her shots.

btw, while looking at my boot, I should mention these are not the boots I started this trip with.

Having had 9 bones broken in my right foot by a F250, I have been wearing a comfortable pair of cowboy boots for a couple of years.

I knew when it rained my feet would get wet, but I thought it was coming in the top off my pants. When we left out of Pigeon Forge, Tn in the deluge, we were wearing our rain suits and my feet still ended up in a puddle of water in the bottom of the boots.

Sooo, the boots were leaking around the seam at the sole. I knew before we got to where it was cold I would need a new pair of boots.

When in Missoula (where we traded our mesh for our leather) I picked up a pair of guaranteed waterproof boots and left my other boots with our mesh.

These new boots have been warm and dry in the cold and rain, and I have walked in creeks up above my ankles...no leaks!



Wow, fun road! (this is still the Alcan)



Pic of one of the hundreds of rivers we have seen along the side of the road.



Great riding on the Alcan, has me replaying all the warnings we have had about the Cassiar Hwy.



Ok, here we are. Turning onto Hwy 37.



From what we have been told, plus what we read in the milepost, there is very little gas on Hwy 37, AND very little lodging.

We have already made reservations at a motel in Dease Lake.

This equals out to about 145 miles. This is no problem with the 6 gallon tank, but we have an extra 2 gallons on the rack. I learned my lesson about stations being closed up or out of gas.



More in next post.

[DK Custom Products]

We are on the Cassiar, looks pretty good at first. A bit narrow, and no lines, but not the rough torn up logging road so many warned us of.



Then it turned to this. I am on the wrong side of the road because on the right side there are 8-12 inch variations in road height side by side.



This, along with potholes and gravel for the first 40 miles had us resigned to a long, slow and bumpy ride to Dease Lake.

But after the first 40 miles it smoothed out and there were only a couple of gravel spots! YEAH!



We have been climbing steady for awhile now. Got some rain, not real heavy, but enough for Mary to tuck the camera away.



One of the hundreds of waterfalls we have seen along the road.



I do not know the elevation, but it is getting pretty cold. Mary has here electric jacket cranked up all the way, I am about 3/4.

We decide to stop at the Jade Store.



Interesting place (and warm inside!). These mountains are full of jade. They pull it out and do a little work with it here, but most of the stuff they ship off to China to have cut & polished into all kinds of designs.



More in next post.

[DK Custom Products]

Leaving the Jade Store we continue climbing. Great road, and I have my jacket on full now.



Looks like some more rain ahead. But it's not rain. It's snow and sleet. But it is melting as soon as it hits the road. Mary put the camera away, more to keep her hands warm than anything else. She can't operate it with her heavy gloves on, and it is cold!



We start coming down the other side of the pass. Not as cold. We see the north end of Dease Lake.



Stopping for a bite to eat next to the lake.



Some of the road had disappeared...they replaced it with gravel.



Very happy Mary made reservations here. We saw a dozen people try and get a room...everywhere is full. We offered to share with a few folks, but decided to make use of their camping gear.

[ktnhog]

Cool series of posts. Question, what is on your ram mount on the right?

One of these days when you have time, it would be interesting to know about any mods you have made to your bike for the trip, and how they have worked out.

Ride safe!

[Retcsm07]

This thread has been super, from day one. Great info, photos, and dialogue. I really enjoy the clouds. A once in a lifetime opportunity so keep enjoying and ride safe. Thanks for sharing.

[87Trike1200]

This thread has been super, from day one. Great info, photos, and dialogue. I really enjoy the clouds. A once in a lifetime opportunity so keep enjoying and ride safe. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for taking the time to "take us along" on your ride - it's great. Be safe...

[slick rick]

,,,,I agree ,,,seems like with even with the best of planning there's always surprises , it's not a trip for the novelist !! Tell the wife she does a great job with those pics ( she's the one with the job ) and keep 'em coming . GOOD LUCK RICK ............

[DK Custom Products]

(This is a partial report for the day, will finish it up tomorrow)

Leaving out of Dease Lake on the Cassiar to Stewart.



Right off the bat we hit some road work.




A little bit of this...



A few km's of this.




A bunch of this...another great day to be riding!



Then we hit this...it was way too tempting, I was drifting thru the corner as Mary took this pic.



This will be a really fun S when it is paved!



A lake along the way. Amazing country!



We had a bit of rain off and on for about an hour, nothing much, but it kept the dust down!



Some of the road had disappeared, so they cutting into the hill a bit for some more.



Ride report to Stewart to be continued tomorrow.

[DK Custom Products]

Cool series of posts. Question, what is on your ram mount on the right?

One of these days when you have time, it would be interesting to know about any mods you have made to your bike for the trip, and how they have worked out.

Ride safe!

Thank you.

That is a Drift HD170 Video camera. We've gotten some pretty good vids, but the editing and uploading will have to wait til we get home.

Will do on the mods soon.

This thread has been super, from day one. Great info, photos, and dialogue. I really enjoy the clouds. A once in a lifetime opportunity so keep enjoying and ride safe. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you!

Thanks for taking the time to "take us along" on your ride - it's great. Be safe...

,,,,I agree ,,,seems like with even with the best of planning there's always surprises , it's not a trip for the novelist !! Tell the wife she does a great job with those pics ( she's the one with the job ) and keep 'em coming . GOOD LUCK RICK ............

Yep, we've had a few surprises, but it is all part of the adventure.

Will tell Mary.

There's an old saying, "It takes more love to share the saddle than it does to share the bed."

I couldn't ask for a better riding partner.

[Nana]

Still following avidly along with your posts and Mary's pictures, and enjoying every moment of it!

[DK Custom Products]

We left off less than a 1/4 the way to Stewart yesterday.

Stopped at this gas station. Really old pump, the kind where the mechanical numbers roll in a circle. Did not get a pic!

Did meet a couple of German guys riding there. BMW and KLR. The KLR was changing his oil in the parking lot. We have seen them off and on for a week as we are traveling similar routes.



When Mary went inside to pay for the gas, she got a few shots of the store decor, here is one.




We had rain off and on all day, enough for the rain suit pants...sorta cold too, but the heated jacket liners did their job.




The trucks up here aren't shy of the roads, they move right along, but they are pretty good about staying in their lane.



We are getting into some of the mountains leading up to Stewart!



Amazing views. BC is full of incredible mountains and surprises.





One of those grated bridges some of you were asking about.



I sure am happy that only the first bit of road was bumpy. This has turned into a fantastic day of riding!



More in next post.