There Are Strange Things Done In the Midnight Sun...

Today's Homework Assignment: Read some Jack London. Call of the Wild, White Fang, and/or To Build a Fire

Pop Quiz: Who and what am I quoting in today's blog title? The first correct answer posted in my comments gets a prize. Seiously!

Put on your 'Must do in my lifetime' list: Ride the White Pass Yukon Railroad from Skagway to Carcross.

Today was absolutely fantastic! I took the White Pass Railroad to Carcross, a gorgeous and relaxing trip.


It was so nice to have something else providing my forward motion. My legs were loving the lazy day.

The railway was built during the Klondike Goldrush to haul supplies over the mountains to the Yukon.


Gold was discovered in the Yukon in 1896 but it took until '97 for the news to reach the lower 45 states. The gold miners who had struck it rich took a ship to Seattle and brought the sacks of gold that they had discovered with them. News spread like wildfire and over 100,000 people took to ships to head north.

Tens of thousands of people ended up in Skagway, which had sprung up overnight as a lawless tent city. To get to the Yukon, Stampeders, as the newly arrived greenhorns were called, had to cross one of two passes to the north. The more popular trail was the Chilkoot that left from Dyea, eight miles to the west of Skagway. This was a strictly foot path with a steep final ascent to the pass called the Golden Stairs. The other path was through White Pass. This was heralded as easier since pack animals could get through on it. Because of the sheer numbers of people and their incompetence, however, the trail turned into a quagmire and thousands of horses died along it.

The Canadian government required every person entering the Yukon on these trails to have one ton of supplies to see them through the harsh conditions. These supplies were carried up on the backs of stampeders 40-50 pounds at a time. The Chilkoot trail to Lake Bennett, where the staging area was to head farther north is around 35 miles. That's 70 miles round trip. To carry the ton of supplies up the pass required each person to walk the trail about forty to fifty times covering around 3500 miles. And, this was all in the winter with temperatures of 50 below, howling winds, only a few hours of daylight, and massive blizzards.

The trip up the Chikoot was only the beginning. Once the Stampeders got to Lake Bennett, they erected the largest tent city the world has ever seen and proceded to build boats so they could float down the lakes to the Yukon River when the ice on the lake finally broke.

Most of these people were completely inexperienced. They were office workers from the cities. And now they were building boats in the middle of winter. When breakup came, the entire town packed up and floated downstream.

Almost none of the Stampeders made any money from the gold rush. All the good claims were already taken even before news about gold had reached Seattle.

Bennett was the lunch stop on the train trip today. There is nothing left of the town of Bennett except the church and the rairoad depot. It is in an absolutely fantastic spot at the head of this huge lake.






-- Post From My iPhone

A Strike is Declared

The warning signs had been there for several days but I ignored them. My legs were threatening a general strike claiming unacceptable working conditions and I just didn't listen to the signals they were sending. My quads started hurting (something they haven't done in over 1000 miles) especially when pushing hard and just didn't want to respond. Any chance at negotiation disappeared when I continued to try to press on to Skagway into yet another day of headwinds, now gusting to 40 mph after four days of tough riding with severe headwinds.

The ride down to Carcross the day before the push to Skagway was particularly tough, especially after taking the Tagish Cutoff after Jake's Corner with rough chipseal to go with the nasty headwind.

I crawled into camp, ate dinner at the diner so I wouldn't have to bother cooking and collapsed in the tent.

Two days ago, the day that strike was declared, I headed out along a string of lakes that lead towards White Pass and on to Skagway.


The valleys that the lakes are in serve as fantastic funnels for wind. And, Boy Howdy, (as a Texan I met on a different trip would say) the wind was funneling. I was told by a Mountie I met later that it was gusting to 40 mph and holding steady at around 30. In biking terms, it meant an all out effort to go 5 mph on the flats, three gears from the bottom. Any hill, even the dinkiest little pimple required my granny (lowest) gear and a Herculean effort to go almost 3 mph.

There were some neat looking old mine workings along the way, which briefly took my mind off of my suffering.


After 28 miles of this fantastically enjoyable riding experience, I stopped at a rest area on the shores of one of the lakes for lunch. It was chilly so I pulled out my stove and made some hot chocolate to go with the bagel sandwiches. When I finally was ready to stand up to pack up and go, I found that my legs were not cooperating. I walked around a bit and realized that another 25 miles to the pass was not going to happen.

I walked around the side of the lake and found a sweet little campsite, set up the tent, and collapsed for a four hour nap.


I woke up, cooked dinner, and shared the campfire that my neighbors had built. The spot I had found was well known to the locals who go there to camp and fish. My neighbors were Shannon and Tom, the Mountie I had mentioned earlier.

After dinner and a beer, kindly supplied by my neighbors, I went back to bed. I had finally gotten the message my legs were sending: more rest and more food. I decided that I needed a rest in Skagway.

The ride the next day over White Pass was spectacular. The wind had died down to what I now considered negligible but on previous trips would have called strong. I finally made it to the pass and entered Alaska.


There was a helpful sign pointing out the direction in which the sun can sometimes be seen. I was lucky and did see it!



I then got a glorious 15 mile downhill through a gorgeous valley.





Skagway is a neat little town that was established in 1897 during the Klondike gold rush. Iit's a bit touristy because of all the cruise ships that visit.


The food is really good, though. My favorite place is The Red Onion Saloon, which used to be a brothel during the gold rush.


Tomorrow, I'm taking a ride on the famous White Pass railroad up over White Pass to Bennet and Carcross and back. It'll be great to let something other than my legs provide forward motion for a change!


-- Post From My iPhone

Food

Eating the right food and enough of it can be a real challenge on a long bicycle tour. I spend between five and ten hours in the saddle every day, which requires a lot of energy. A google search for calories burned during moderate bicycing (is riding a 70-80 pound bicycle on these roads up these hills considered moderate?) is around 500 calories an hour. So, that's between 2500 and 5000 calories per day in addition to the roughly 1500 base metabolic calories I need per day.

Eating 4000-6000 calories a day is actually pretty tough and I usually don't so I've been steadily losing weight. I have to be careful, though, because if I don't eat enough, I 'bonk', which means I have no energy and really struggle riding even a few miles. I'll also get cold really easily and start shaking.

I notice the cold bit usually at the end of a long day. During the last 15-20 miles, I get impatient to get done with the day so I rarely stop to eat. I just push through even if I'm really hungry thinking that I'll have dinner soon. Then, when I finally sit down to eat, I'll start shivering even if it's not too cold until I start digesting my food and start filling my energy deficit. About an hour after I eat, I warm right up.

So, what do I eat? I work on the Hobbit diet: breakfast, second breakfast, lunch, onesies, etc. I can't eat too much at one sitting and then immediately hop on the bike since pedalling on a full belly is really uncomfortable. If I do eat a big meal, I leave time to sit and digest for a bit.

If I'm preparing my own food, I have cereal or packets of instant oatmeal and tea or hot chocolate for breakfast, sandwiches (peanut butter or cold cuts and cheese) for lunch and a Knorr pasta meal and hot chocolate for dinner. Snacks include fruit bars, fruit, fruit juice, milk, or yogurt from convenience stores, crackers, and the occasional soda, candy bar or ice cream bar.

Here is my picnic lunch from yesterday. Unfortunately, Yukon rest areas don't have picnic tables so I have to eat sitting on the ground.





Here is my usual pasta meal dinner.





The foil thing around the pot is insulation so my food doesn't get cold in the pot as I'm eating it. It's not easy getting all that pasta down so it's important to keep it hot otherwise it becomes absolutely disgusting.





Unlike at home where I focus on trying to restrict how many calories I eat, here, I'm always trying to increase them. I put butter on my sandwiches, in my pasta, and in my oatmeal. I also grate extra cheese into my pasta meals. I drink 2% or whole milk, and scoff at fat free foods.

Sometimes, during my meals, I have uninvited company so I have to keep a close eye ony food to ensure that it isn't pilfered. This little guy was quite brazen.





Now that I'm out in the boonies, I stop to eat in restaurants for dinner and especially breakfast if I can, which isn't all that often because there isn't much out here. It's a nice break from the oatmeal/ pasta meal diet when I can get it. I focus on high protein and higher fat foods as opposed to low fat high carbohydrate foods so I eat lots of eggs and bacon or ham and rarely eat pancakes or french toast. I've found that high protein and fat foods allow me to eat less and give me a longer, more steady source of energy than high carb, low fat foods. My sugar cravings that I battle during the school year are completely gone so I don't eat many processed sweets like candy bars or ice cream.

I do try homemade deserts like the famous rhubarb pie at Dawson's Peak Resort.






So, that's how I fuel the engine. It's nice being able to eat whatever I want in large quantities but I am mindful that it's purpose is to fuel my legs so I can get through the day.

I was amused at the gas bill for filling up a large RV at a gas station I stopped at yesterday: $157. My fill up of food that day was about $5. And, it's a lot more enjoyable filling my belly as opposed to a gas tank!
-- Post From My iPhone

Awful Day and the Kindness of Strangers

I had breakfast and got going but quickly realized that I had a headwind. It got stronger and stronger as the day progressed until I was barely going 7 mph on the flats when I usually go 11ish. It was so demoralizing. The Alaska highway is like a funnel, channeling wind with nothing to block it.


Then, since I was pretty grouchy, I got careless with Sam and didn't shift carefully to my small chain ring. Well, Sam doesn't like it when I get impatient with him and in retaliation,he jammed the chain, locking up my pedals. Luckiy, I didn't fall but now I had to fix the chain, making me even grouchier. At this point, the f bomb was mey primary adjective as I struggled with the chain, getting myself covered in chain grease. I finally got the chain released by unscrewing a plate under the front dérailleur.

I stood Sam up and wheeled him a bit to check the chain which was now fine. What I didn't notice was that my iPod headphones had fallen into the front wheel spokes and as I rolled the bike, one of the earbuds got ripped off. Seriously? Here I was, fighting a headwind without having music to help take my mind off of how much the day sucked. So, I spent the rest of the day pedaling against sustained 15-20 mph winds listening to it roaring in my ears. I have to admit, I was near tears several times as I fought my way up steep hils in the damn wind.

Just when I thought things couldn't get worse, I hit a long section of fresh chipseal which was ridiculously rough riding. It really beat me up and my butt got really sore for the first time in over 1000 miles. Uphill in a screaming headwind on rough chipseal. I kept wondering, 'Why am I doing this?'

Things definitely turned around when I finally crawled into Rancheria where I had a great burger for dinner. The owner, Dennis, who remembered me from last year, gave me a room with a bed and a hot shower for $20 which is what I had paid the previous night for a pretty lousy campsite. I met Rob, a motorcyclist from Seattle who was so kind, he gave me his earphones to replace my torn up ones. One of the best parts of bike touring is meeting people who often go out of their way to help me out. Thanks Dennis and Rob! You really made my day!
-- Post From My iPhone

Welcome to the Yukon

I'm in the Yukon!



I guess that the Yukon has road paint.


I had a tough 55 mile day with friggen steep hills and torn up sections of road. There was another section of deep gravel road yesterday too, which had me wondering if I was still on the right road.


I stayed at a lovely campground at Boya Lake right on the lakeshore last night. My neighbors were Cody and Devon, two brothers from Massachusetts. Cody just got a job teaching English in Fairbnks so they were heading there and Devon is a history major at a college back home. It was great hanging out with the guys next to their campfire. Thanks for the beer and good company, guys.

I stopped by the campground caretaker's cabin because Mario and Jodi had invited me over for breakfast, something they do for cyclists who stay at Boya Lake. Thanks a lot, Mario!

I finally left the Cassiar highway and turned left on the Alaska highway.


I stayed just west of the junction and splurged on a yummy steak dinner with lots of veggies.

-- Post From My iPhone

Cassiar Highway Cyclocross

Total mileage: 1300
Flats: 3. The last one was at Dease Lake

Thank you for all the comments on my posts. I hope you are enjoying your virtual bike tour of the north, but of course you are missing out on the truly good stuff like biting bugs, cold, hot, hills, and chipseal. More on that one later. Actually, the bad stuff is outweighed a hundred fold by the fantastic scenery, fascinating people and the sheer joy of pedaling this road.

Welcome home Lynn and Steve! I can't wait to see your pictures. Have a great time in Europe, Theresa! You'll have to tell me all about it. Thanks for taking care of my house, Splinter. No, biking the PCT would be waaaay too extreme, even for me. (They don't let bikes on it, anyway.) Pavement, smooth pavement is a wonderful thing. More on that later.

Currently, I'm sitting in the bathroom at Dease River Crossing Campground. Why? 'Cause it's frigging cold out there! Two days ago it was really hot but a front has moved in bringing clouds and showers. It's not supposed to get too bad, nothing like last year. I finally got used to 90 degree heat and now it's not even 40! At least it's too cold for mosquitoes.

Remember the cool rustic cabin by Tatogga Lake? Well, I decided to stay for another day because it's such a pretty place and the food was really good. I ate, did some route planning, and hung out with Mike and Ron, two guys touring the north by motorcycle. It was great talking to the guys and getting road information. After fellow cyclists, motorcyclists are the best source of info on roads. Ron, I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to see you before you left. I hope the ride down to Kelowna in the tow truck wasn't too bad, your bike is now fixed and you and Mike have met up again and are enjoying the rest of your ride.

I saw a Google Earth car ad camera drive by north of Iskut. I wonder if I'll be on Google Earth now? Cool!

I met Daniel, a cyclist heading south at a rest stop and had a great talk about roads, gear, and riding in general. He's only the third bicyclist I've met so far on the Cassiar after the French couple at Tatogga.

The road after Tatogga starts getting interesting. Does the sign mean mosquitoes ahead? Nope, gravel.


There was a nice gravel and dirt downhill to the Stikine river.


The bridge across the Stikine is metal grate so the trick is to not look down while riding because seeing whitewater under my wheels is a bit disconcerting.


The ride after the Stikine was great. No powerlines or buildings and hardly any traffic. And yet, this sign?



After Dease Lake (where I ran into people I had met on the Port Hardy ferry), there is a longer stretch of gravel, around 20 miles or so. They were grading it and in preparation, they watered it down until it turned to mud.


It was really tough and messy riding. An RV came by, didn't slow down, and showered me with mud. Sam the bike and I were just covered. Who would've thought that a bike tour on one of the two major roads leading to Alaska would turn into a bit of a cyclocross event.


I stopped at the next rest area to eat and clean up a bit. I had a nice stay despite the name of the place.


I had been planning a long haul up to Jade City but Sam started acting funny because of all the mud on his gears and brakes so I decided to cut the day short and give him a bath. There was even a scrubbie brush.



I am now at Jade City, drinking tea and chatting with the owners who remembered me from last year.



I had a nice ride this morning especially when I got to the top of a hill and saw this at the side of the road.





One of the people from the campground last night left me ice cold drinks at the top of the hill! How cool is that!

I'm now waiting for some rain to pass and then will ride 22 more miles to Boya Lake Campground. Tomorrow I will make it to the Yukon and the Alaska highway and will turn NW towards Whitehorse.
-- Post From My iPhone

The Daily Grind

It was great getting a ride with Lidi and Darren, though it was disconcerting how quickly and easily the miles roll by when I have an engine doing my work for me.

Too quickly, we were back at Meziadin Junction and I was let out at the side of the road. It was a surprisingly hot day, around 90 degrees, so the ride to Bell II was a long, hot, and hard grind. There were seemingly endless hills that were pointless since I'd get to the top of one, roll down the other side and there would be the next hill and the next and the next. They were steep and long enough to really slow down and my average speed was down around 9 mph. Here is a hill I just climbed.



Then, there were the bugs. Now, I've spent a lot of time in places where the bugs are bad. Southern Oregon on the PCT during snow melt comes to mind where the mosquitoes were just vicious. So, it takes a lot for bugs to well, bug me.

These last two days, I've been dealing with black flies. They are everywhere and like to swarm around my mouth, nose, eyes, and even ears. They don't bite often, but when they do, they take a big chunk out of me and leave a welt that takes days to heal. Unfortunately, they can keep up with me when I'm climbing uphill and take advantage of the fact that I can't swat them to bite me on the butt. Ouch! There were so many of them in the last two days that it was hard to find a spot to stop and eat because I'd get attacked within a few minutes after stopping. Bug spray only slowed them down, it didn't stop them.

After two days of roller coaster hills and black flies, I got into camp last night at lake and was pleasantly surprised that there were only mosquitoes around. I'll take them anyday over those damn flies!

Today was a really short day because of how campgrounds work out. I can't make Dease Lake from Kinaskan Lake in one day so I broke it into two days staying at Tatogga Lake Resort today and hauling up to Dease Lake tomorrow.

The road is getting rougher and has switched from smooth asfalt to rougher chipseal. Chipseal is done by spraying hot oil or tar on the road and then spreading gravel on top. Sometimes they use big rollers to embed the gravel in the oil but sometimes they just let the cars crush it in. In addition to chipseal, they gave up on painting the road. Maybe they ran out of paint?


I stayed here at Tatogga Lake last year too and, like last year, am treating myself to a night in a rustic cabin on the lakeshore along with some great home cooked meals. The owners remembered me from last year and set me up in their nicest lakeshore cabin.



The views are great from the front porch.



Time for dinner. I heard there is beef and barley stew! -- Post From My iPhone

Hyder, Alaska

Hyder, Alaska is about two miles or so down the road from Stewart, BC. Unless you go by boat, the only way to get to Hyder is from Stewart. The border is clearly marked with a cut swath through the forest.



I had a great day off in Hyder, Alaska including two, count 'em, two nights in a bed! I met a Dutch couple, Loes and Kees, and got a ride with them up to the overlook above Salmon Glacier about twenty miles up a steep, dirt road. The fog lifted and we had some great views.



We saw a black bear by the side of the road on the way down and I got some great shots with my nice camera. After the drive, I chowed down at the bus again and then did laundry and vegged in bed.

I took a walk around town and pondered how people make a living. They live in interesting places, some of them. Yes, these are shipping containers and there is someone living in it.



There is a small general store.



There is a rather crazy looking guy who owns a gun and gold nugget shop. He carries a pistol the size of a cannon in a shoulder holster. No, I didn't take his picture! I later heard from the Canadian border guard that a number of guns used in crimes in Toronto were traced back to the gun shop in Hyder and it's one of the reasons why they put in the border station on the road back to Stewart.
Property values are really reasonable!



Some of the locals are rather interesting looking. I think there is some sort of beard contest going on.



There are two bars on town... for 40 people. The Sealaska was rockin' on Friday night. I hung out with the Dutch couple I rode with to the glacier and a New Zealand couple, Darren and Lidi, who are giving me a ride out to Meziadin Junction later this morming.




Three of us, Kees, Darren, and I, decided to get 'Hyderized', which entails drinking a shot of an unspecified liquor.








It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but I'm not about to start doing shots on a regular basis. The drink turned out to be Everclear which is 150 proof. I guess now I know how those evaporating dishes feel when students burn their distilled rum in them for the rum lab. Anyways, I'm now officially Hyderized and even have a card certifying the fact.

This morning I packed up and bid goodbye to Hyder. The place has grown on me and is certainly one of the more unique places I've ever been to.



On the way back to Stewart is the Yacht Club.




Here are some of the yachts in this highly exclusive club.




-- Post From My iPhone