North To Alaska !

MGRIDER · 07-04-2012, 12:14 AM

We crossed into Canada, and had a fantastic ride on rte 93 from Whitefish, up through the Cootenay national park.
The road goes through the park, and it was the shortest route to where we are trying to get to in Alaska.
within the first few miles, a moose calf, ran along the road. then as we progressed through the park, we saw bears at different places. Black bears, 2 were small, so we stopped so Christine could take pictures, and 2 were fully grown and we didn't stop.
Christine does not have a very powerful zoom, the 24 - 70 is for max detail in low light.

We rode to a town called Jasper in the jasper National Park, and entry was free as it was Canada Day 1st of July.
The town was packed, there were no rooms available.
Also, everywhere we went, people told us not to leave town as it was around 1900 , and there were too many animals crossing the roads, to be safe on a motorcycle.

So, we went to the station, as suggested, but the waiting room was locked, so we spent the night on a wooden framed, parcel cart !

It wasn't too cold, and at 0600 we went to an open petrol station and had coffee and filled up, and got oil for the bike and did tire pressures.
Then we set off for Prince George, well just a few miles out of town, it started to drizzle, then two big Caribou, with huge antlers, still in velvet, ran alongside us, so we stopped, for piccys and to get them out of the way.

Just got back up to the 100 Kmt speed limit, when 2 small deer ran into the road and stopped. well i hit the horn & brakes, and they took off.
Then it started to pour down, so we kept going til we got to Mount Robson, got off the bike and onto a porch with roof, the cafe didn't open until 0700, and we were showing 0730 on our watches, oh well there was a timeline just up the road, so we had to put our watches back one hr, then, the helpful waitress told us, before shutting the door again.
We were obviously not going to be let in, for another half hour, so we stood and waited, as locals pulled up to the petrol pumps and waited, in their cars & trucks, obviously knowing the opening time.
We finally got in and grabbed a coffee, and Christine had some sort o breakfast, I just wanted Coffee, mainly to warm my hands on the cup.
We met an elderly German couple who had ridden around Alaska in a rented Camper Van many years ago, and were now re visiting some of the places they had been to.
Well once our rain gear had dripped dry, we put a thick thermal shirt on, then got into the rain gear, filled up the bike, and carried on, as there wasn't any accommodation there.

We rode for another hour and 30 mins, and got to the town of McBride, It has 3 motels and we got a typical mom & pop one, where you can park outside your door. they had a room being made up, so we took it, and went to the adjacent restaurant, to warm up, for 20 mins.
Well Christine had tea & toast, I had a beer, we were knackered !!
It must have been just gone 0900, when we offloaded the bike and spread all our ZIPLOCK bagged gear around the room, to dry the bags, also washed some clothes and strung the elastic tie downs,around the room to act as washing lines.

Then we went to bed, and slept til just before 1500, and had a walk around town, in the intermittent drizzle. well because Canada Day, fell on a Sunday, most of the shops were shut the Monday, so we had a good meal in the restaurant, I had a Steak, and Christine had Salmon fillet, we swopped a bit of each, and had to agree that both meals were great, we had a couple of beers, while eating, the only other place that sold beer was the liquor Store, and it was shut.
Well we had coffee and a couple of whiskies, and agreed that some of our stuff would need another day to dry, so we told reception we wanted to stay another night.

Normally, the rain does not bother us much, but that is lower down the USA, and its warmer.
Here the weather is a lot colder, even in the sun, so getting soaking gloves, is not funny, I have fur lined cow hide for this trip, and I have just washed them in waterproofing liquid, to see if that helps ( NIK WAX TX ).
Well today is Tuesday, and all the shops should be open, and tomorrow morning, we will set of for a town called Smithers, relatively close to the Alaska border. hopefully the ISOLATED SHOWERS forecast, will not be on our route.
The road we are on now, and will be on, all the way to Smithers, is a part of the Trans Canada Hiway.
We plan to cross into Canada at a town called Stewart on the Canadian side, and Hyder on the Aloaska side.
How long we stay there or how far we progress into Alaska, will depend on time and weather, yes a lot of it is stunning, but you don't stop to take pictures, if you are soaked, and cold.

More on : http://motoguzziriders.com

Badlands-4-2 · 07-04-2012, 02:04 AM

Looks like a great ttrip so far!

RiditAgain · 07-04-2012, 08:25 AM

Enjoying give us more!

MGRIDER · 07-05-2012, 04:27 AM

Hi All
Thanks for the responses, the rain stopped about 94 miles north of Mc Bride,so life is good again.
We are now in Smithers.
We do have a blog http://motoguzziriders.com

that gives some more details.

We are expecting to get to the Stewart/Hyder crossing some time tomorrow, and the forecast is for " Sunshine !"

Fingers Crossed.

07-04-2012, 12:14 AM	#1
MGRIDER Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Canary Islands Posts: 257	North To Alaska ! We crossed into Canada, and had a fantastic ride on rte 93 from Whitefish, up through the Cootenay national park. The road goes through the park, and it was the shortest route to where we are trying to get to in Alaska. within the first few miles, a moose calf, ran along the road. then as we progressed through the park, we saw bears at different places. Black bears, 2 were small, so we stopped so Christine could take pictures, and 2 were fully grown and we didn't stop. Christine does not have a very powerful zoom, the 24 - 70 is for max detail in low light. We rode to a town called Jasper in the jasper National Park, and entry was free as it was Canada Day 1st of July. The town was packed, there were no rooms available. Also, everywhere we went, people told us not to leave town as it was around 1900 , and there were too many animals crossing the roads, to be safe on a motorcycle. So, we went to the station, as suggested, but the waiting room was locked, so we spent the night on a wooden framed, parcel cart ! It wasn't too cold, and at 0600 we went to an open petrol station and had coffee and filled up, and got oil for the bike and did tire pressures. Then we set off for Prince George, well just a few miles out of town, it started to drizzle, then two big Caribou, with huge antlers, still in velvet, ran alongside us, so we stopped, for piccys and to get them out of the way. Just got back up to the 100 Kmt speed limit, when 2 small deer ran into the road and stopped. well i hit the horn & brakes, and they took off. Then it started to pour down, so we kept going til we got to Mount Robson, got off the bike and onto a porch with roof, the cafe didn't open until 0700, and we were showing 0730 on our watches, oh well there was a timeline just up the road, so we had to put our watches back one hr, then, the helpful waitress told us, before shutting the door again. We were obviously not going to be let in, for another half hour, so we stood and waited, as locals pulled up to the petrol pumps and waited, in their cars & trucks, obviously knowing the opening time. We finally got in and grabbed a coffee, and Christine had some sort o breakfast, I just wanted Coffee, mainly to warm my hands on the cup. We met an elderly German couple who had ridden around Alaska in a rented Camper Van many years ago, and were now re visiting some of the places they had been to. Well once our rain gear had dripped dry, we put a thick thermal shirt on, then got into the rain gear, filled up the bike, and carried on, as there wasn't any accommodation there. We rode for another hour and 30 mins, and got to the town of McBride, It has 3 motels and we got a typical mom & pop one, where you can park outside your door. they had a room being made up, so we took it, and went to the adjacent restaurant, to warm up, for 20 mins. Well Christine had tea & toast, I had a beer, we were knackered !! It must have been just gone 0900, when we offloaded the bike and spread all our ZIPLOCK bagged gear around the room, to dry the bags, also washed some clothes and strung the elastic tie downs,around the room to act as washing lines. Then we went to bed, and slept til just before 1500, and had a walk around town, in the intermittent drizzle. well because Canada Day, fell on a Sunday, most of the shops were shut the Monday, so we had a good meal in the restaurant, I had a Steak, and Christine had Salmon fillet, we swopped a bit of each, and had to agree that both meals were great, we had a couple of beers, while eating, the only other place that sold beer was the liquor Store, and it was shut. Well we had coffee and a couple of whiskies, and agreed that some of our stuff would need another day to dry, so we told reception we wanted to stay another night. Normally, the rain does not bother us much, but that is lower down the USA, and its warmer. Here the weather is a lot colder, even in the sun, so getting soaking gloves, is not funny, I have fur lined cow hide for this trip, and I have just washed them in waterproofing liquid, to see if that helps ( NIK WAX TX ). Well today is Tuesday, and all the shops should be open, and tomorrow morning, we will set of for a town called Smithers, relatively close to the Alaska border. hopefully the ISOLATED SHOWERS forecast, will not be on our route. The road we are on now, and will be on, all the way to Smithers, is a part of the Trans Canada Hiway. We plan to cross into Canada at a town called Stewart on the Canadian side, and Hyder on the Aloaska side. How long we stay there or how far we progress into Alaska, will depend on time and weather, yes a lot of it is stunning, but you don't stop to take pictures, if you are soaked, and cold. More on : http://motoguzziriders.com Last edited by MGRIDER; 07-04-2012 at 12:17 AM..

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07-04-2012, 02:04 AM	#2
Badlands-4-2 Super Moderator Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: The Badlands of North Dakota Posts: 9,673	Looks like a great ttrip so far!

07-04-2012, 08:25 AM	#3
RiditAgain Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 1,361	Enjoying give us more!

07-05-2012, 04:27 AM	#4
MGRIDER Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Canary Islands Posts: 257	Hi All Thanks for the responses, the rain stopped about 94 miles north of Mc Bride,so life is good again. We are now in Smithers. We do have a blog http://motoguzziriders.com that gives some more details. We are expecting to get to the Stewart/Hyder crossing some time tomorrow, and the forecast is for " Sunshine !" Fingers Crossed.