Saturday 19 May 2012

June 13th-16th, 2010


We woke up at a reasonable time this morning and made our way to Fairbanks.  Slept early yesterday; hopefully this will get our sleeping habits back on track.  A huge weight had lifted from our shoulders when we got back on pavement; a sigh of relief.  We did it.  We rode the Dalton, we made it to Prudoe Bay, and we came out alive.  I’m not known to be a huge risk taker, but sometimes you just gotta say $@#* it and make your move.  I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to do this.  I’m sure Amanda is too.


We got a hold of JasonLester and family in Fairbanks to let them know we’re on our way.  They have a cabin just south of North Pole.  I believe they’re from Ohio. 



We talked shop, watched airplanes, and ate moose summer sausage.  It was really good.  This is the trailer we stayed in.



After sleeping in the bush for the past couple of days, the simple pleasure of sleeping in a bed will never be taken for granted. 



We had a nice hearty breakfast the next morning and thanked JasonLester and family before getting back on the road.  Not knowing when we’re going to come across another Wal-Mart, we decided to head back to Fairbanks to do an oil change for my bike.  We went to the library afterwards to do the usual affair of updating ride reports, scoping out potential camping areas, and keeping in touch with friends and family.  To celebrate our triumphant victory over The Dalton Highway, I ordered KLR decals for our steeds as a token of appreciation for taking us there and back safely.  We ended up camping at Harding Lake State Recreation Area.


We started the day bright and early the next morning in order to keep our expenditures low if you know what I mean.  We rode to Delta Junction where the Alaska Highway officially ends.



The mosquitoes here aren’t too bad; I think it’s because we’re here a bit early.  I’m sure it will get much worse a few weeks from now.



We stopped at the library and had lunch on this peculiar picnic table



We continued riding south along the Richardson Highway when all of a sudden it got extremely windy.  We decided not to push it.  Our only timeline now is to attend the Dust 2 Dawson Motorcycle Gathering on the 24th of this month, which gives us plenty of time.  Too much time actually; we need to find something to do in the meantime.



The next morning, we stopped to have lunch at a lodge located at the intersection of the Denali Highway & Richardson Highway in a village called Paxson.  There, we met another father and son team, both on KLRs, who had just come back from the Dempster Highway and is on their way to tackle the Dalton.  The Dempster Highway is 736 km of non-stop gravel.  It starts 40 km east of Dawson City, Yukon; crosses the Arctic Circle, and ends in a town called Inuvik, North West Territories.  Like Deadhorse, Inuvik is the northernmost point you can get to by road in Canada. Some say the Dempster is more challenging than the Dalton because there are no patches of paved road whatsoever.  I hate to say it, but I think I have an idea on how to kill time before heading to Dust 2 Dawson…


At AlcanRider’s persistent request, we decided to head down to Valdez to check it out.  We killed some time at the library back in Glennallen.  We recently saw the movie version on the iPod. 



Killed some more time at a local auction that is also aired on local radio



Camped in a gravel pit just south of Glennallen


416 km



We rode the Dalton.

We made it to Prudoe Bay.

We came out alive. 

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