Denali - Alaska
From Seward we headed north to Denali after spending some time trying to exit Anchorage. The road signs are not too hot up here. The original plan was to reach Denali in a days drive but after our usual leisurely breakfast, popping into Anchorage for extra storage bags for the bike it was 15:30 before we hit the road.
We blasted north as quickly as our bones could take the shaking of single cylinder 650 and managed to reach Talkeetna, which is the base town from where all assents of mount McKinley begin.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238850.jpg">
One of the odd buidlings we saw along the way... no longer in use
After hunting around the town and campsites, the only place we could find which had any rooms was a Roadhouse and these only had two beds in a shared bunkroom. The current occupants, two girls, were out on a tour. Boy did they have a shock when they returned to find to hairy bikers in the other bunk bed in the room!
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<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238783.jpg">
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The Bunk House
The next day we continued our progress north and found a great campsite at Carlos Creek. The campsite backed onto a lake with views of the Rockies in the background. What a way to wake up in the morning and see the sunrise.
We decided to use this site as a base for a few days to save on the continual packing and unpacking of the tents. The site gave is good access to the Denali highway and to the Denali National Park.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114371530.jpg">
The camp site at Carlos Creek- we were by the first shelter on the left
Once the tents were set up we ventured into the camp shop to get provisions for the next few days. Looking around the shop took just over 20 milliseconds and we realized that unless we wanted to live on cans of coke for the next few days we would have to leave the site for our shopping. We asked the girl in the shop where the nearest town was and after thinking for a few seconds she said Healy and its about 23 miles away! This was our first realization that we were getting out-back.
So, on with the bike gear again and off to Healy. Healy was easy to find as there is only one road but it was also very small and we had driven through it before we had realized. A quick U turn and back to the only shop in the town for provisions.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240995.jpg">
Mike and the start of the Pyromania....
The first excursion was the Denali Highway. This is a dirt road for @135 miles traveling west to east from Cantwell to Paxson at the other. It is no longer in regular use as it has been replaced by the Alaskan Highway but is renowned for excellent scenery. In true adventurer style we set off to complete our first day on dirt by traveling to one end and back in a day.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238862.jpg">
The Denali Highway.........doesn't get much better than this !
The recommendations for this road were not wrong. The road was continual scenic photo shoot with lakes that produced a perfect mirror of the snow-capped mountains in the background and vast plains of spruce, which reminded you of scenes from Jurassic Park. It wasn't hard to imagine the dinosaurs striding across the plains and feed by the uninhabited lakes.
Around half way on the highway there is the only rest point in its entire length. This is a little cafe that has been there since 1957 which serves a mean blueberry pie and ice cream. Here we met a couple of cyclists, one from Italy and the other from Seward, who were having a break but going in the opposite direction to us.
After a quick refill we were off again playing in the dirt.
As for the bike ride, well it’s the usual thing if the road feels rough; ride faster, if it is still rough ride faster still. By the end of the way out the road felt smooooth! The only ongoing concerns were the piles of gravel on the bends, which required plenty of care.
In the literature, Paxson, is described as a town. In reality it’s a rundown Café, so lunch was moved from the Cafe to sitting by a lake looking over the spruce vistas. Definitely the better option.
The road back was just as much fun and a given the quality of the pie on the way out, a quick second opinion was required. Upon entering the Cafe the cyclists were still there but sitting with Jugs of beer in front of them. After we left, they decided on Plan B and would move on the next day. For us, it was back to gravel and 20 miles in Mike’s bike starts to misfire. Five miles later Mike’s bike stops and will not start.
After a quick look over we cannot see the cause, so I head back to the campsite for the towrope and Mike continues investigating the cause. The camp site is 45 miles away and 30 of which are on the gravel so it took me a good 2.5 hours to return by which time it had started to get dark and the mozzies had their fill of Mike....
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240338.jpg">
The cut-out point of Mike's Dakar.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240357.jpg">
The sunset whilst waiting for John's return with the tow rope.
Mike had no joy with the bike so towing was on the cards. He had prepared the bike for towing and the rope was connected and we planned to use the intercoms to keep in contact. The initial decision was to head off at 30 miles an hour but within a few hundred metres the call was to drop the speed to 20 as the gravel and the short tow cable didn't allow any time to react to the change of terrain and elevation. All seemed to be going well when Mike’s battery gave up the ghost, which sent a 'no battery' signal to the alarm, which assumed the bike was being stolen and the relative piece of the out-back was a thing of the past for a while. Then after about 20 miles the worst thing that could happen happened the rope became slack and wrapped around Mikes front wheel. Mike came off whilst gallantly yelling at me of what had happened but too late, the 200kg anchor of a Dakar brought me to a quick halt and even quicker dismount of the bike. Both of us dusted ourselves down and apart from some minor bruises we were fine. We got ourselves together again, sorted out the towrope and continued gingerly forward. All was going well when from 6 O’clock high a squadron of duck like creatures came tearing past us, landed in the road in the beam of my headlight and started pecking the ground.
The horn at full blast and every sinew in my body freaking out at the potential carnage that lay ahead the birds took off, only to fly on 20 meters and try again. At this point I kinda realized it wasn't going to be my day but after one more take off and landing they left us alone and my heart returned back into my chest.
Fortunately the rest of the journey back to the campground went OK but it was 2:30 in the morning by the time we got back
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114239335.jpg">
The morning after.....frayed tow-rope, broken indicator and spotlamp plus...
The next day the investigations in the cause of the ignition failure on Mike's bike began and by a process of swapping out components from my bike, we eventually found the cause to be a melted side stand switch which was creating a false earth.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114371502.jpg">
Switching of components........arrgghh...about 3-4 hours of changing and checking
This switch was circumvented and the bike sprang to life. Once this was complete we looked into what had happened to the bikes in the tumble. Mine was fine but Mike had a broken indicator, spot lamp lens and bent handlebars. We had a spare indicator so that wasn't a problem, the lens could be left, but a new set of handlebars had to be ordered. The nearest dealership was in Fairbanks and a call to George at Worlds End BMW was made, but the old language issue kicked in again (too fast), so we weren't able to order these up in advance (all is explained in more detail in the Fairbanks section). The whole process took a couple of days including replacing the faulty parts, but once complete, we organized ourselves to go on the Wildlife tour in Denali National Park.
Denali National park covers a few million acres but to protect it from destruction by tourist’s motor vehicles the park has banned all transport apart from organized bus tours and a scheduled bus system. The difference between the two is the scheduled bus drivers don't have to give you a guided tour but if they are asked they will and the other difference is about $40.
We decided to take the Wonder Lake tour, which takes around 11 hours and chose the scheduled bus option (difficult one that!). We decided to go for the 08:00 bus but when we arrived at the Park we were told it was fully booked but we could go on standby. We chose standby and we were fortunate to get on without any hassles at all.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240374.jpg">
As typical tourists we expected to an abundance of all the wildlife within 50 foot of the bus (even if they have to nail them there!). In reality the sighting were few and always a long way away so could only be clearly seen with binoculars (Although Mike's theory was, the Dhal sheep, pointed out high on the mountain, were rocks that had been painted white and the wolves rocks that had been pained grey but I’m not that cynical at all). Although the sightings were few, on the way back we where able to see a female grizzly bear and her cub that came right upto the bus. This sighting saved the day from being rather disappointing. Unlike the missed shot of the whale, Mike started to make amends with some good shot's of the bears.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240409.jpg">
Mama Bear looking for berries.......
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240978.jpg">
Junior looking for Mama..........
The next day we packed up and headed for Fairbanks
From Seward we headed north to Denali after spending some time trying to exit Anchorage. The road signs are not too hot up here. The original plan was to reach Denali in a days drive but after our usual leisurely breakfast, popping into Anchorage for extra storage bags for the bike it was 15:30 before we hit the road.
We blasted north as quickly as our bones could take the shaking of single cylinder 650 and managed to reach Talkeetna, which is the base town from where all assents of mount McKinley begin.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238850.jpg">
One of the odd buidlings we saw along the way... no longer in use
After hunting around the town and campsites, the only place we could find which had any rooms was a Roadhouse and these only had two beds in a shared bunkroom. The current occupants, two girls, were out on a tour. Boy did they have a shock when they returned to find to hairy bikers in the other bunk bed in the room!
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238802.jpg">
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238783.jpg">
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238764.jpg">
The Bunk House
The next day we continued our progress north and found a great campsite at Carlos Creek. The campsite backed onto a lake with views of the Rockies in the background. What a way to wake up in the morning and see the sunrise.
We decided to use this site as a base for a few days to save on the continual packing and unpacking of the tents. The site gave is good access to the Denali highway and to the Denali National Park.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114371530.jpg">
The camp site at Carlos Creek- we were by the first shelter on the left
Once the tents were set up we ventured into the camp shop to get provisions for the next few days. Looking around the shop took just over 20 milliseconds and we realized that unless we wanted to live on cans of coke for the next few days we would have to leave the site for our shopping. We asked the girl in the shop where the nearest town was and after thinking for a few seconds she said Healy and its about 23 miles away! This was our first realization that we were getting out-back.
So, on with the bike gear again and off to Healy. Healy was easy to find as there is only one road but it was also very small and we had driven through it before we had realized. A quick U turn and back to the only shop in the town for provisions.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240995.jpg">
Mike and the start of the Pyromania....
The first excursion was the Denali Highway. This is a dirt road for @135 miles traveling west to east from Cantwell to Paxson at the other. It is no longer in regular use as it has been replaced by the Alaskan Highway but is renowned for excellent scenery. In true adventurer style we set off to complete our first day on dirt by traveling to one end and back in a day.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114238862.jpg">
The Denali Highway.........doesn't get much better than this !
The recommendations for this road were not wrong. The road was continual scenic photo shoot with lakes that produced a perfect mirror of the snow-capped mountains in the background and vast plains of spruce, which reminded you of scenes from Jurassic Park. It wasn't hard to imagine the dinosaurs striding across the plains and feed by the uninhabited lakes.
Around half way on the highway there is the only rest point in its entire length. This is a little cafe that has been there since 1957 which serves a mean blueberry pie and ice cream. Here we met a couple of cyclists, one from Italy and the other from Seward, who were having a break but going in the opposite direction to us.
After a quick refill we were off again playing in the dirt.
As for the bike ride, well it’s the usual thing if the road feels rough; ride faster, if it is still rough ride faster still. By the end of the way out the road felt smooooth! The only ongoing concerns were the piles of gravel on the bends, which required plenty of care.
In the literature, Paxson, is described as a town. In reality it’s a rundown Café, so lunch was moved from the Cafe to sitting by a lake looking over the spruce vistas. Definitely the better option.
The road back was just as much fun and a given the quality of the pie on the way out, a quick second opinion was required. Upon entering the Cafe the cyclists were still there but sitting with Jugs of beer in front of them. After we left, they decided on Plan B and would move on the next day. For us, it was back to gravel and 20 miles in Mike’s bike starts to misfire. Five miles later Mike’s bike stops and will not start.
After a quick look over we cannot see the cause, so I head back to the campsite for the towrope and Mike continues investigating the cause. The camp site is 45 miles away and 30 of which are on the gravel so it took me a good 2.5 hours to return by which time it had started to get dark and the mozzies had their fill of Mike....
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240338.jpg">
The cut-out point of Mike's Dakar.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240357.jpg">
The sunset whilst waiting for John's return with the tow rope.
Mike had no joy with the bike so towing was on the cards. He had prepared the bike for towing and the rope was connected and we planned to use the intercoms to keep in contact. The initial decision was to head off at 30 miles an hour but within a few hundred metres the call was to drop the speed to 20 as the gravel and the short tow cable didn't allow any time to react to the change of terrain and elevation. All seemed to be going well when Mike’s battery gave up the ghost, which sent a 'no battery' signal to the alarm, which assumed the bike was being stolen and the relative piece of the out-back was a thing of the past for a while. Then after about 20 miles the worst thing that could happen happened the rope became slack and wrapped around Mikes front wheel. Mike came off whilst gallantly yelling at me of what had happened but too late, the 200kg anchor of a Dakar brought me to a quick halt and even quicker dismount of the bike. Both of us dusted ourselves down and apart from some minor bruises we were fine. We got ourselves together again, sorted out the towrope and continued gingerly forward. All was going well when from 6 O’clock high a squadron of duck like creatures came tearing past us, landed in the road in the beam of my headlight and started pecking the ground.
The horn at full blast and every sinew in my body freaking out at the potential carnage that lay ahead the birds took off, only to fly on 20 meters and try again. At this point I kinda realized it wasn't going to be my day but after one more take off and landing they left us alone and my heart returned back into my chest.
Fortunately the rest of the journey back to the campground went OK but it was 2:30 in the morning by the time we got back
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114239335.jpg">
The morning after.....frayed tow-rope, broken indicator and spotlamp plus...
The next day the investigations in the cause of the ignition failure on Mike's bike began and by a process of swapping out components from my bike, we eventually found the cause to be a melted side stand switch which was creating a false earth.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114371502.jpg">
Switching of components........arrgghh...about 3-4 hours of changing and checking
This switch was circumvented and the bike sprang to life. Once this was complete we looked into what had happened to the bikes in the tumble. Mine was fine but Mike had a broken indicator, spot lamp lens and bent handlebars. We had a spare indicator so that wasn't a problem, the lens could be left, but a new set of handlebars had to be ordered. The nearest dealership was in Fairbanks and a call to George at Worlds End BMW was made, but the old language issue kicked in again (too fast), so we weren't able to order these up in advance (all is explained in more detail in the Fairbanks section). The whole process took a couple of days including replacing the faulty parts, but once complete, we organized ourselves to go on the Wildlife tour in Denali National Park.
Denali National park covers a few million acres but to protect it from destruction by tourist’s motor vehicles the park has banned all transport apart from organized bus tours and a scheduled bus system. The difference between the two is the scheduled bus drivers don't have to give you a guided tour but if they are asked they will and the other difference is about $40.
We decided to take the Wonder Lake tour, which takes around 11 hours and chose the scheduled bus option (difficult one that!). We decided to go for the 08:00 bus but when we arrived at the Park we were told it was fully booked but we could go on standby. We chose standby and we were fortunate to get on without any hassles at all.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240374.jpg">
As typical tourists we expected to an abundance of all the wildlife within 50 foot of the bus (even if they have to nail them there!). In reality the sighting were few and always a long way away so could only be clearly seen with binoculars (Although Mike's theory was, the Dhal sheep, pointed out high on the mountain, were rocks that had been painted white and the wolves rocks that had been pained grey but I’m not that cynical at all). Although the sightings were few, on the way back we where able to see a female grizzly bear and her cub that came right upto the bus. This sighting saved the day from being rather disappointing. Unlike the missed shot of the whale, Mike started to make amends with some good shot's of the bears.
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240409.jpg">
Mama Bear looking for berries.......
<IMG SRC="http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL784/4062504/8448420/114240978.jpg">
Junior looking for Mama..........
The next day we packed up and headed for Fairbanks
