Smokey Mountain Blues

Mileage: 1898
Critter count: 2 wolves
Quote prize: Carolyn

Nope, I haven't gone south to North Carolina and the Smokey Mountains, however, there is smoke here, a lot of it. There is a big fire by Teslin in southern Yukon and the smoke has carried over here. Where is that wind when we need it? It's really unfortunate since the ride from Haines to Haines Junction went right by some spectacular huge mountains. I could make out their outline in the haze just enough so I knew what I was missing. Here is one of my better photos.


The first thirty miles out of Haines was a magical combination of flat road, smooth asphalt, and no head wind, something I haven't seen since around Oregon or southern Washington. All the hard riding has paid off though. I was cruising at between 14 and 15 mph on a fully loaded bike and found it easy riding.

The second day out of Haines was a long climb to Chilkat Pass. It was hot, buggy, and smokey. The smoke and almost complete lack of traffic made for a pretty creepy ride. I saw two wolves! The first one was on a hill side. I thought it was a mountain goat at first but then I realised that it was running like a dog. The second one stood in the road and watched as I pedaled closer but took off before I could get a picture.

As soon as the sun sets, it gets pretty cold- around 40 degrees so my nice warm sleeping bag is a real treat to snuggle in to. It's tough getting up in the mornings with 60-70 miles to ride especially since I can't really see anything.

I'm currently in Haines Junction. They have a sculpture that looks like a giant frosted muffin with people and animals stuck in it instead of blueberries.



Speaking of berries, I had a slice of Saskatoon pie a few days ago. Saskatoons are berries that grow on trees and taste pretty good in pie. I always thought that Saskatoon was just a city I'm Saskatchewan but I guess the town is named after the berry.

I'm heading for Tok today, which is five days ride from here. I'll make the decision as to where I go from there whe I get in. The fire situation in the Yukon is really bad and I'm guessing the same is true for Alaska. I talked to some motorcyclists yesterday and they said that the smoke in northern Yukon is really thick and they could barely see twenty feet. There is a bit of rain coming that'll probably help a bit. I'm still hopeful that I can ride until the end of the month somewhere but I don't see the point to continuing if the conditions stay as they have been the last few days.
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