Big Chain Ring, Fireweed, and Gawking Tourists

The trip out of Haines Junction was really easy riding for once. I even used my big chain ring quite a bit, something I rarely get to do because the riding is usually too hard. The road was fairly flat after climbing a small pass and there was no headwind, for once. It was still pretty smokey so I couldn't see much of the mountains I was riding by.

I found an amazing campsite right on the shores of huge 150 square mile Lake Kluane and slept great with the sound of the lake lapping the shore. Any other place and this lake would have condos and hotels surrounding it. Here, there are two tiny villages and one RV park along it's shores and that's it.

I had another great day yesterday, hauling out 60 miles in under five hours from Burwash Landing, home of the biggest gold pan the world.





Sam wanted to try out life with a hood ornament but after a bit of thought, we decided maybe it wasn't such a good idea because of the excess weight.






I was in camp by 2:30, had a nice, lazy lunch, and set up my tent. It started sprinkling so I climbed in the tent and took a nice nap. It rained all night but I stayed cozy and dry.

This morning it was cold but had stopped raining and, Yeeha!, the smoke had completely cleared and I could see all the mountains the tallest of which had a sprinkling of snow on them! As I headed north, the sky cleared and I had a nice warm day with lots of sun.

The vegetation has certainly changed in the last few days and is now boreal forest growing on permafrost. The dominant tree is black spruce but it doesn't grow very tall and is often tipped every which way making for a strange looking forest. Because the trees are small, I can easily see for miles in all directions.






The territorial flower of the Yukon is the fireweed, the same plant we have back home.






The locals told me that they track the progression of summer by the blooming of the fireweed. It starts flowering at the bottom and slowly works it's way up to the tip. When the tip is done flowering and seeds have formed on the stalk, fall is here. Based on this system, there is still a bit of summer left.

I've noticed that the attitude of drivers going by me has changed a bit in the last few days, especially RV drivers. I'm used to them waving and I either wave back or nod my head if they do but lately they've been gawking at me like I'm some sort of exotic wild animal. They just stare at me, bug eyed, with their mouths literally hanging open as they go by. Sometimes they take photos and one guy even took video of me while driving!

Today some of them were downright rude. I had stopped for lunch at a rest stop and since they don't have picnic tables in the Yukon rest stops, (they do in BC) I spread my plastic tablecloth on the pavement and sat on the ground and ate. Well, these Germans took a picture of me eating on the ground like I was some sort of feeding animal! They never even said hello or anything. I couldn't belive it!

The road has had lots of frost heaves, small roller coaster bumps and dips, on it because it is built on permafrost and as the permafrost melts, the road above it becomes destabilized and ends up looking like some giant crumpled it. It's not a problem for a bike but the RVs have a rough time of it. They bob up and down like boats in a heavy swell. It's pretty funny to watch. If they go too fast, they can even catch some air. I saw a 40 footer almost turn into the General Lee! I was wondering where all the skid marks on the road came from.





I finally figured out that they are trailer landing marks kinda like the skid marks at the end of runways.

I certainly have a love-hate relationship with RVs... mostly hate, especially with the monsters that are the size of a city bus with four or more slide outs pulling an SUV. Yesterday, I saw one pulling a Hummer! Their model names are pretty funny: Wilderness, Montana, Monaco,Tuscany, Hitchhiker. Yup, your RV is about the size of a principality. I think they should start naming RVs after battleships, aircraft carriers, or, better yet, oil tankers. I've watched some of them pay over $350 for gas. Even the small ones don't get more than 10-12 mpg while the big ones towing a car are around 4-5 mpg.

Of course, all my arrogant snobbishness hides a secret RV envey mostly towards the end of long days. The thought of a warm, dry place with comfy couches, beds, and a fridge full of food sounds really nice when compared to a picnic table, a tiny tent, and yet another pasta meal for dinner.

I just crossed the border into Alaska again.











The road up to the border was especially bad with horrible washboard. I ended up riding down the middle of the road to avoid the worst bits. It's hard to believe that this is the only road leading to Alaska. There is surprisingly little traffic on it. I was told that traffic is down about 50% in the last five years.



I got shaken up badly and managed to lose a water bottle somewhere and didn't notice until miles later. Now, I'll have to find a replacement somewhere.

A strong headwind kicked in around the border and i decided to cut the day short because of the ominous rain clouds that were heading towards me. I set up camp just in time and dove inside as the rin started. Later, there was a gorgeous sunset over the lake by my campsite.



-- Post From My iPhone