Day 11 - Fort Nelson, BC to Watson Lake, YT. Wild Weather and Wildlife !

Day 11– Sunday, May 31, 2009
Start: Fort Nelson, British Columbia, Canada
End: Watson Lake, Yukon Territory, Canada
Trip Miles Today: 333
Total Trip Miles: 4065

Today was a day that actually seemed like two entirely different days. Part I started with a 7:30 departure out of Fort Nelson under threatening, but dry skies. Those conditions held for about 40 miles before the misting and then steady drizzle started. This, plus the temperature hovering in the low 40s (F), was ominous as the first 100 miles from Fort Nelson is mostly an uphill ride to the pass at Summit Lake, the highest pass on the Alaska Highway at well over 5000 feet. As I climber the temperature fell and the rain increased. Then I arrived at the snow band where the temp went to freezing and the rain turned to a mix of snow/sleet/freezing rain. To make matters even more “adventurous” there was, in the midst of all this, even a construction zone which basically was a rutted muddy path for close to a mile. Plenty of opportunity to fall but somehow adrenalin kept me upright throughout. In better conditions this is one of the more scenic parts of the Alaska Highway. For me, today, there was little time to look at anything but that didn’t matter because visibility was a serious problem with visor and glasses fogging anyway. The good news is that immediately following the Summit Pass the road starts downhill again and the temperatures almost immediately got better. By the time I approached Toad River, and a much needed break after 120 miles of hell, it was actually back up to 50 degrees and the sky was clearing. This was the start of Part II of today’s ride which was a very pleasant Sunday afternoon ride. This part was warm, unencumbered by weather issues, and full of great scenery and especially wildlife sightings. I’ve already addressed the bear sightings (6 in all today) in my earlier “special edition” post. Also readily sighted today were a fair share of Bison and Stone Sheep, a sheep variant indigenous to this area and similar to Bighorn but slightly smaller and darker in color.)

The bike ran well throughout the day with no complaints. Absent the big headwinds of earlier in the week, and traveling at a more sedate speed (60 mph most of the time today) gas mileage can average close to 60 mpg and this leaves me feeling more comfortable about 200 + legs as needed, for example, if someone wanted to go to Coldfoot and the Arctic Circle.

No Arctic Circle tomorrow, however. It’s off to Whitehorse, about 300 miles distant and in anticipated excellent weather all day. Yahoo! Thanks for stopping by. More soon.

Day 11- SPECIAL EDITION - It turns out that bears are real after all!

We all go through life operating on some very basic axioms and assumptions. One of my personal paradigms is (was?) that bears are imaginary. (If you have not read it already, you may want to read my May 9 entry entitled "That Bear Thing" for background.) As much as anything I based my belief on the fact that I had never seen a bear in the wild in lo these.......uh, a whole lot of years. Until now. Let it be recorded that today, May 31, 2009, this paradigm was permanently shattered when, at about 8:00 AM PDT I saw an actual bear with my own eyes! Imagine my surprise! I truly thought that seeing a bear was about as likely as seeing a unicorn. Later in the day that sighting was followed by 5 more, so I have to guess it wasn't a hallucination. To all my friends who have, for years, pointed out the fallacy in my belief I apologize. I humbly confess to the entire world, BEARS ARE REAL!!!

The very best part about seeing a bear is that my friend Anthony Bucci of RevZilla Motorsports has posted a "bounty" for documented bear sightings on my trip. He made a commitment to donate $10 per documented bear sighting to The Austin Hatcher Foundation
Let's see, 6 bears today and I'm not even in Alaska yet. Get that checkbook out buddy!

A regular Day 11 entry will follow later this evening. I just wanted to get this big news out there!

Day 10 - From Dawson Creek, BC to Ft. Nelson, BC via the World Famous Alaska Highway!

Day 10– Saturday, May 30, 2009
Start: Dawson Creek, British Columbia, Canada
End: Fort Nelson, British Columbia, Canada
Trip Miles Today: 278
Total Trip Miles: 3732

Got up early once again, but at least this time it was intentional. I wanted to go back to downtown Dawson Creek and get some more pictures of the Mile “0” stuff without traffic of rush hour like last evening.

At 6:00am Saturday, I'd have to say that Dawson Creek is pretty quiet! I managed to get the pictures I wanted under a perfect blue sky and that great early morning light.

Just before 7 AM it was off to Fort Nelson, BC – about 280 miles distant.

First of the day, just after crossing the Peace River was in Fort St. John for gas. This came only about 40 miles down the road, so about 240 remained to Ft Nelson. Up here one has to keep good track of gas stops and distances as gas stations can be very far apart! At this point I’m still treating the bike as a 200 miles max. vehicle (though I can go further if I really need to and get into a serious gas save mode.)

As the pictures indicate, it was a pretty morning but cold (low 40s) and very windy/gusty! In fact it was so windy at times that I had serious questions about my abiliy to stay in my own highway lane. Also, at one point I stopped to take a picture and had doubts about keeping the bike upright even while I was standing over it!

The first 100 miles or so of this route is just rolling foothills. However after a time can, once again, begin to see snow capped peaks to the west and the hills/valleys become steeper.

Commercial activity in this area continues to be dominated by forestry and gas/oil production.

This portion of the Alaska Highway in mostly very good condition. Most importantly there were no construction diversions save a very short stretch near Fort St. John
Traffic is not so heavy but there are lots of trucks and campers on highway. And, no doubt due to the wind, one camper off the highway, and upside down! Fortunately no injuries.

Sometime shortly after leaving Fort St. John I saw my first moose (actually 2) . I noticed 2 big cows at left side of highway about ¼ mile away. As got closer they crossed the highway from left to right about 150 yards in front of me and immediately disappeared into the tree line. A moose is a pretty big animal and somewhat ungainly (ie ugly). I had no more moose sightings today but I anticipate more further down the road.

I stopped for gas a second time in Pink Mountain – that gave me enough to get to todays destination, Fort Nelson. Pink Mountain was my first stop at the prototypical Alaska Highway gas station. It had a dirt parking lot, sold no brand anyone ever heard of, had regular only, and took cash only. By this time it was still dry, still windy , but sky out in front changing, and not for good.

As I rode I was actually very comfortable with heated gear but annoyed a bit by something irritating me in left abdomen-just a little scratchy feeling. At the time I thought it was some plastic ty wraps that I had used to secure the connector to my heated vest. After being annoyed long enough, I decided to stop to fix the problem and to have a snack before I got into the (obviously coming soon) rain. The snack (a banana pilfered from hotel lobby this am) was timely but the scratchy “thing” was more ominous – the first mechanical failure of the trip. The scratch was from a broken wire in the heated vest connector that was sticking me in stomach. Also, it turns out that the heated vest controller module, which lives in my jacket pocket was partially melted. Obviously this was some sort of failure involving a dead short. I'm Lucky I didn’t run the battery dead on bike. Perhaps the strangest part of the story is that the vest was still working. However, I decided to shut it off and put it away for diagnosis later. Of course, with the heated vest now gone it almost immediately began to rain and, at the same time,got considerably cooler. The temperature was now back to the same low 40s that it had been when I started the day 6 hours earlier. Without the heated vest these temperatures are tough! Tomorrow I will probably have to probably really layer up, stop more often, and just generally man up.

I arrived at Ft. Nelson shortly after 2. I found it a bit more developed than when here last in 1995. Unlike 1995, when I stayed in a shack of a motel with a black and white tv (and no telephone) I am staying in a very nice new Super 8 with internet, satellite TV and all!

I'm off to Watson Lake, in the Yukon Territory, tomorrow. It's about 330 miles distant, directly through the Canadian Rockies via a very scenic route. I anticipate that it will be raining when I leave but during the morning hours I should pass through the frontal activity that is bringing this rain. Once on the other side it is expected to warm up considerably and be excellent weather for several days. Looking forward to riding in the warm once again!! Thanks for checking in today!

You can see more pictures from today and from the entire trip by going to http://jackb1.smugmug.com/

The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

Day 9 - Bighorn Highway from Jasper to Grand Prairie the on Westward to Dawson Creek and the start of the Alaska Highway.

Day 9 – Friday, May 29, 2009
Start: Jasper, Alberta, Canada
End: Dawson Creek, British Columbia, Canada
Trip Miles Today: 326
Total Trip Miles: 3454

Today was another early riser. I woke up at 5:00 am, probably because the sun was already coming in the window. I’m getting pretty far North now and the daylight hours are dramatically lengthening. The sun now rises before 5 and sets after 10 PM.

I had breakfast at the hotel restaurant then did my quick pack and was on my way at 7:30. It may have been the coldest day yet. The TV said it was 37 deg. F though the thermometer on the bike showed the same 40 as yesterday. No worries. Put on all my kit, cranked up the heated vest and grips and off we went!

I began to see wildlife almost immediately. First elk, then some bighorn sheep standing in the middle of the road! A truck coming the other way scared them off before I could snap a pic. I saw more animals in the first hour than I saw the entire balance of the day.

It was an hour ride from Jasper to Hinton, where I stopped for gas before entering Alberta Hwy 40 - The Bighorn Highway, the “Scenic Route to Alaska.” If this is the “scenic route, then the “not-scenic route” (which goes through Edmonton) must be really dreary. I suppose that I was spoiled by yesterday’s vistas on the Icefields Parkway, so probably nothing today could have possibly compared favorably. It was nice enough but pretty plain. Mostly rolling foothills with snow capped peaks almost always visible to the West. It seemed there was more traffic than yesterday too. Much of it was industrial in nature. This part of Alberta is dominated by the logging and oil/natural gas industries. Lots of working trucks with familiar corporate names like Weyerhauser, Halliburton and Amerada. All seem to be in a big hurry! I also saw lots of signs for animals – Elk, bighorn sheep, caribou but actually saw very few animals after the initial burst of activity coming out of Jasper.

I arrived in Grande Cache and both gassed up and stopped for another cup of coffee. Grand Cache does not look like much on the map but is actually a fairly thriving little metropolis. I was concerned that I might not be able to buy gas there and would be forced to run a 200 mile segment without a fill up – turns out my concerns were for naught as there was plenty of gas to be had. I continued Northward up toward Grand Prairie which marks the Northern Terminus of the so-called Bighorn Highway. As the highway wanders Northward, the pavement gets better but the scenery gets worse. Mountains, then to foothills, then back to Prairie. This was my riding day.

I arrived in Grand Prairie about 1:00. There I got gas and took a longer break to tend to first eating, then to a couple of bike maintenance items. While I stopped here I put the bike up on the center stand to both lube the chain while it was hot and to check the oil level. Using the center stand requires that I remove the luggage bags. There is just no way I’m gonna get that thing up on the center stand with that much stuff loaded on the rear. Both items tended to, I was on my way again, this time Westward some 80 miles to Dawson Creek, BC and the beginning of the Alaska Highway.

While passing through Grand Prairie I saw a number of road signs pointing to the nearby town of Peace River. This should be familiar to those of you up on popular culture. Peace River is the hometown of Jillian, the current season hottie and star(let?) of ABC-TV’s reality show “The Bachelorette.” Don’t even ask me how I know this stuff!

I finally entered British Columbia and arrived at Dawson Creek shortly after 3:00. The next obvious potential stop point was a LONG way down the road so I decided to stop here overnight (as was always my plan.) Hopefully it will be a quiet night. The weather doesn’t look quite so promising for the next 36 hours or so. If forecasts are to be believed I will get out of here in the morning in the dry but will, soon enough, be in rain showers for the balance of tomorrow and into at least the early part of Sunday. Hey, I can cope with that – as long as it doesn’t get too cold! Hopefully more tomorrow, assuming I can find an internet server in Fort Nelson, BC. Thanks for reading.

If you want to see more pictures from my Alaska Motorcycle Adventure, posted daily, just go to http://jackb1.smugmug.com/

If you go to the RevZilla Motorsports blogsite at blog.revzilla.com you can see more pictures and find more info on my ride.

The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

Day 8 - Icefields Parkway through the heart of the Canadian Rockies from Banff to Jasper. 130 miles of spectacular scenic beauty!

Day 8 – Thursday May 28, 2009
Start: Banff, Alberta, Canada
End: Jasper, Alberta, Canada
Trip Miles Today: 179
Total Trip Miles: 3128

Today started in 40 degree(f)temperatures but under sunny skies (again!) Rolling out of Banff at 8:00 am I was struck by both the beauty and remoteness of this area. The 30+ miles over to Lake Louise passed quickly and painlessly (heated grips and a heated vest make all the difference!) There I stopped for a fuel top-off and met, for a second time, my fellow motorcycle traveler - Roger from Anchorage. Roger had, ironically enough, purchased a used BMW R1200GS motorcycle from a seller near Allentown, PA, not 100 miles from my home a couple of weeks ago. I had spoken to him very briefly yesterday afternoon at Blackfoot Motorsports in Calgary and then we went our separate ways. The chance encounter this morning happened when he saw me ride into the service station as he was looking for a place to have breakfast following his overnight stay in Lake Louise. Roger seems to love his new R12GS and I certainly wish him well with it - he told me that he needs to be at work Monday morning in Anchorage, some 2300 miles distant. He clearly needs to do some serious mile pounding over the next 4 days. I, on the other hand, can take a more leisurely approach to the balance of my Northbound trip. Clearly that leisurely approach was perfect for the 130 odd miles I rode today - the length of the Icefields Parkway. The Icefields Parkway connects the cities of Banff and Jasper and passes entirely through Canadian National Parks and the heart of the Canadian Rockies. There is really little between the two cities save some of the most compellingly beautiful scenery anywhere. The Alps have nothing on this place! I shot more photos today than the entire 7 days previous to this and yet photos do not do it justice. Certainly the perfect weather (ok - a little nippy - in the 40's most of the day) and the lack of huge volumes of holiday traffic made the trip even more pleasant, but this is a spectacular paradise in any case. If you ever have the chance to ride/drive this route then by all means do it! The roadway is entirely paved and most parts are in excellent condition despite the harsh winters. I say winter as if it is something that ended some time ago. According to some locals to whom I spoke only ended a week or two ago! There are wildlife signs posted all over the place but, in fact, I saw precious few animals. The total count was 1 elk, several deer, the odd squirrel, and several bighorn sheep. No bears. No unicorns. (Reference my May 9 post!) I actually arrived in the town of Jasper shortly after 1:00 pm. After this magnificent day I had to tend to a more mundane task – doing laundry at the laundromat. I have, after all, been on the road for a week now and I had needs. Following the great laundry escapade it was about 3:00 pm and I decided to call it a day early and remain overnight here in Jasper. Home for the evening is the Best Western Jasper Inn. I am glad I stopped early as I had some time to wander a bit in Jasper this evening, just as I did in Banff yesterday. While both are clearly major tourist destinations the two towns come off quite a bit differently, in my opinion. Banff reminded me more of one of the European Alpine towns...think Zermatt with cars. Jasper has a bit more of a cowboy feel to it. Maybe Steamboat? If the two towns were cars then Banff would be an Audi and Jasper would be more like a pickup truck. Anyway that's my story for today.

Tomorrow I plan for an early start as I want to get near Dawson Creek, BC and the famous "Mile 0" of Alaska highway. My route will have me take the Bighorn Hwy thru Grande Cache and on up through Grand Prairie. Another day of scenery but reportedly not as spectacular as today. That's the whole scoop. Thanks for joining me on my trip. Hopefully more tomorrow but with this qualifier....As I get up on the Alaska Highway and into some of the more remote parts of BC and the Yukon Territory there are few guarantees of internet access. I'll do what I can , and I will continue to feed twitter updates by cell phone to at least let you know (more or less) where I am.

If you want to see more pictures from my Alaska Motorcycle Adventure, posted daily, just go to http://jackb1.smugmug.com/

If you go to the RevZilla Motorsports blogsite at blog.revzilla.com you can see more pictures and find more info on my ride.

The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

Day 7 - Into Canada. The scenery begins to get dramatically better! Haven't seen any bears yet but I have seen prairie dogs and dinsoaurs!

Day 7 – Wednesday May 27, 2009
Start: Shelby, MT
End: Banff, Alberta, Canada
Trip Miles Today: 323
Total Trip Miles: 2949

After days of viewing the eternal sameness of North Dakota and Montana, things began to pick up a bit today. The morning's ride started out with two new features. Rather than head West, this morning I started out Northbound, up I-15 out of Montana and toward the Canadian border only some 35 miles distant from Shelby. Secondly, it was warm right from the start - over 60 degrees right out of the blocks! By 9 AM, the border crossing painlessly behind me (Hey! The let me into Canada again!)I was making my way rapidly North toward Calgary. As I mentioned yesterday, my current modus operandi is to make time for more stops, more interesting side trips, and more photos. That plan was put into play almost immediately after my entry into Alberta. The Alberta Tourist Welcome Station became a "must stop" the minute I laid eyes on the giant Tyrannosaurus Rex in the parking lot! The heck with free maps and discount coupons for touristy stops, let me see that Dinosaur! Alberta (and to be completely fair, Montana too) are justly proud of the fossils and relics that have come from the ground in this area. I couldn't resist the photo op! Then on northward. My other interesting stop was in the tiny town of Claresholm, Alberta. Enticed by a "rest stop" sign, I found myself deposited in a rest stop centered in this small burg. An 1800's railroad way station, Claresholm became an important location at the edge of the prairie and they have, today, a wonderfully kept little museum in the former train station. I spent nearly an hour there with the chatty docent, Bob from Quebec. I learned all I could ever want to know about the place and checked out all the displays. Further, Bob more than earned the nice little donation I made to the museum by producing a bottle of plexiglass cleaner/polish to clean my totally "bugged" helmet visor. Then it was on to the city of Calgary, second largest in all of Alberta. In Calgary I made a brief stop at Blackfoot Motorsports, the local BMW (and several other brands)motorcycle mega store. Showing good discipline, I limited myself to the purchase of one bungee elastic cargo net. When I left Blackfoot it was only 3 PM and I felt compelled to keep moving a bit further. As the weather continued to be perfect I decided to actually go further than planned so I continued on to Banff where I stopped for the night. This positions me perfectly to make a leisurely ride tomorrow of the 170 miles up to Jasper via the Icefields Parkway and through what is reputed to be one of the most incredibly beautiful drives anywhere. While shopping for dinner tonight I came across another of my very favorite Canadian "things". Ketchup flavored Potato Chips! I have never seen these in the states but seemingly always find them in Northern Canada. Dinosaurs, Tim Horton Donuts, and Ketchup flavored Potato Chips. There's your little dose of culture for today! Thanks for browsing!

If you want to see lots more pictures from my ride, unsorted, unedited, and without captions, then click here.


A couple of other web sites have picked up the story of my ride. Check 'em out.
First go to http://technicallyphilly.com and scroll down till you see the May 25 article - you'll find it! Then check out a story from last week in an online business pub called Keystone Edge. To read it, Click here

If you go to the RevZilla Motorsports blogsite at blog.revzilla.com you can see more pictures and find more info on my ride.


The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

Day 6 - Into Montana

Day 6 – Tuesday May 26, 2009
Start: Dickinson, ND
End: Shelby, MT
Trip Miles Today: 501
Total Trip Miles: 2626

Unlike yesterday, a day best forgotten, the weather gods promised an excellent outlook for today. And boy did they deliver! I hit the road early, at 6:30 am. The miracle of crossing time zones from East to West, is that one doesn't have time to adapt overnight so you just naturally wake up REALLY early! The flip side is that I expect to pay it all back on the return trip in a few weeks. But for now let's just leave it at this...I'm finding it VERY easy to rise and shine bad early! So, one again I was Westbound on I-94 headed for the Montana State Line. In one of my more misguided moves so far, I did not fuel up the bike last evening so I started the day with less than half a tank. Actually it was way less than 1/2 as yesterday's fuel mileage was abysmal, primarily due to the stiff headwinds. Anyway, I started looking for a service station about 1/2 hour into my trip but all I saw were highway exits posted "No Services". First of all, understand that in Western North Dakota there aren't that many exits and to see them all posted "No Services" began to leave me with a somewhat sickening feeling deep in my stomach. The "low fuel" light had come on when, finally, this most beautiful of Conoco station appeared out of the mists. Gassed and coffied up it was on to Montana. I finally left I-94 near Glendive, MT to begin Northward toward a small town called Wolf Point, where I again turned West on US Route 2. These roads may look like secondary roads when you see them on a map but tey are all trunk routes. They are wide, well paved, and REALLY STRAIGHT. Speed limits are posted at 70 - this for a road in Pennsylvania that would be posted at 40 or 45 mph. The roads are so empty that you can make freeway type time from city to city. Through the mid-afternoon I went 250 miles in just about 4 hours...including 2 fuel stops. Those roads made it easy to get 3/4 of the way across Montana in a single day. Montana is a fascinating place with spectacular scenery, interesting people, and a real Old West feel to everything. Also, every town has a casino or 5...Including ones that double as gas stations! Today was the final 500 mile day that I anticipate until my return trip. This is all sort of a grand plan...to make big miles for the first 5 or 6 days, to get through the more nondescript portion of the journey, and position myself so that once I arrived in Canada I could fall back to 250-300 mile days while having more time for stops, photo ops and such. As I sit here in my motel in Shelby, MT I look forward to such a short day tomorrow. I'm only 50 miles from the Canadian border and just another 200 miles to Calgary. It looks like the weather is holding and if so then it will be up to Calgary tomorrow followed by Banff, Lake Louise, and Jasper Thursday. Hope my luck holds! More soon. Thanks for dropping in!

A couple of other web sites have picked up the story of my ride. Check 'em out.
First go to http://technicallyphilly.com and scroll down till you see the May 25 article - you'll find it! Then check out a story from last week in an online business pub called Keystone Edge. To read it, Click here

If you go to the RevZilla Motorsports blogsite at blog.revzilla.com you can see more pictures and find more info on my ride.


The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

Day 5 - The one where nothing much happened, there wasn't much to see, and it finally rained!

Day 5 – Monday May 25, 2009
Start: St. Cloud, MN
End: Dickinson, ND
Trip Miles Today: 453
Total Trip Miles: 2125


I always knew that it had to rain. Nobody could expect to make a journey such as this one and think that every day would be bright and sunny. However, the trip so far had been blessed with mostly magnificent weather. Until today. It’s not like I didn’t have any advance warning. Last evening the Weather Channel’s forecast map was showing basically my entire planned route as being covered in their varied pastel shades of green. Much to my surprise, I awoke to a leaden and threatening sky, especially to the West – where I was headed, but it was actually dry for my 7:30 am departure from St. Cloud, MN. In fact for the entire first hour, and through my first fuel stop it remained dry. But oh that scary looking Western sky! About 90 minutes into the day, and approaching the Minnesota/North Dakota state line it happened. In a few short miles the temperature dropped over 10 degrees (to an invigorating 55 degrees F), the wind picked up, and the precip began pounding down. Fortunately I had the foresight ( I cleverly surmised that multiple lightning bolts directly in front of me might be meaningful) to stop and change into my full rain gear minutes earlier so I was as prepared as I could be. The heavy rain didn’t actually last all that long but I rode another hour in the wet. Then, miracle of miracles, it dried up for a while and the temp went back up near 70 (where, as anyone knows, it really does belong). This pleased and encouraged me enough that I started shedding my rain gear. Silly me! The shedding of the rain gear only served to provoke the Gods into and even stranger series of weather events. Approaching Bismarck, ND it began to get much colder and the wind began to pick up again, this time about 25-30 mph steady winds (with higher gusts) out of the North and directly across my path. Oh yes, did I mention the fog? It got very foggy for about an hour or more and that lovely feature was also accompanied by a light but steady drizzle that lasted for 100 miles. By the time I arrived at my overnight destination, Dickinson, ND, I had been riding in temps just over 50 degrees for two hours and much of that time in rain and/or drizzle and/or fog. And always the wind! Not my idea of a perfect little Memorial Day ride!

You may have noticed I didn’t mention anything about my route. That’s because it was the simplest and least imaginative yet. At St. Cloud, MN, get on I -94 West. At Dickinson, ND get off I-94. The entire 453 mile ride today was on Interstate 94. I will say one thing however. The states out here in the desolate prairie certainly do take a more civilized view of the need to cover ground quickly. In North Dakota the speed limit is 75. That’s a number we East Coasters can only dream of. Furthermore, I can tell you with a great deal of certainty that at least some North Dakota State Police officers will apparently show no concern over a motorist doing about 85.

I-94 through Western Minnesota and North Dakota is not exactly the most photogenic or tourist destination packed of places. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention to you that I did make a stop in New Salem, ND to see “Sue, the World’s Largest Holstein Cow.” She’s a big one all right, and was the highlight of an otherwise tedious day. Look at that picture. Isn’t she a beauty? Those shrubs below her - they're full grown trees!

Tomorrow I hope to get to Western Montana, then Wednesday I’ll turn North with Calgary, Alberta my goal for Wednesday. The weather report for tomorrow is suggesting it might be a bit “cool” in the morning but warmer and sunny by mid-day. We’ll see how that goes!

If you go to the RevZilla Motorsports blogsite at blog.revzilla.com you can see more pictures and find more info on my ride.


The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

Haven't made the Hatcher Pass yet, but I have been to Austin (Minnesota that is!). Wisconsin backroads, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Spam highlight day 4.

Day 4 - Sunday May 24, 2009
Start: Edgerton, WI
End: St. Cloud, MN
Trip Miles Today: 454
Total Trip Miles: 1672

A primary focus of this ride is to create awareness for the Austin Hatcher Foundation. That's why I've named it "Hatcher Foundation to the Hatcher Pass." Now I can also say that it's the "Austin (Minnesota) to Hatcher (Pass near Anchorage, AK) Ride" based on having visited Austin, MN late this afternoon. But wait, lets go back to the beginning, early this morning, as Day 4 was the most interesting day yet. The very earliest part of the morning didn't seem all that promising at the time. My plan was to leave my overnight digs at Edgerton, WI early and spend the entire morning riding the secondary roads of Wisconsin. Based on a friend's recommendation my loosely defined route was to be Northwest in the general direction of of the Mississippi valley and Lacrosse , WI. That was all well and good and it's exactly what I did. The only part I didn't plan on was cold, fog , and drizzle. But that's exactly what I awoke to and rode in from about 7:00 AM till 9:30. I was pretty depressed to watch the thermometer on the bike's dash dip into the low 50's and was actually cold enough to put on my heated vest on after riding chilled for about an hour. First stop of the day was at the Frank Lloyd Wright Visitor center in Spring Green, WI. Spring Green is where Wright built his well known home Taliesin and it, as well as his other local projects, are addressed in the excellent visitor center. Tours of Taliesin, both the house and the property are also available but the tours take several hours so I had to pass. Moving on from Spring Green, I continued North and West eventually coming across Wisconsin Rte 171 which goes West from the Town of Richland Center to the banks of the Mississippi. By the time I had gotten on 171, the sky had cleared to a perfect blue like we see in postcards, the temperature had risen to the high 60s and the riding conditions were as perfect as the choice of road! I noticeed plenty of other bikers in the area too. I turned North upon reaching the Mississippi and followed "The Great River Road" (Route 35) some 40 miles North to Lacrosse where, sometime shortly after noon, I got back on Interstate 90 (ugh!) now headed West into Minnesota. Some 90 minutes later I arrived at Austin, Minnesota. Now for those of you who don't know, Austin is the corporate home of Hormel Foods and, in particular, their signature product - Spam! No trip to this part of Minnesota is complete without a visit to the Spam museum! Seriously! It's actually a very nicely done little museum. All a bit tongue-in-cheek you know, but well executed nonetheless. This visit precipitated some necessary photographs as one never knows when one will get to come back to such a significant location. I was outta the Spam museum just about 3:00 and had it in my mind to ride until about 6 pm and see where it left me. Where it left me was overnighting in St. Cloud, MN some 50 miles Northwest on Minneapolis, and 170 miles from Fargo, ND. I failed to make it to North Dakota today but sure will tomorrow. Tonight I need to spend some time working out a route up to and through Calgary, and which will leave me in Dawson Creek, BC on Friday evening at Mile "0" of the Alaska Highway. More tomorrow, thanks for visiting.

If you go to the RevZilla Motorsports blogsite at blog.revzilla.com you can see more pictures and find more info on my ride.



The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

On Wisconsin! I find myself in the prairie.

Day 3 - Saturday May 23, 2009
Start: Novi, MI
End: Edgerton, WI
Trip Miles Today: 427
Total Trip Miles: 1218

Now we're really getting into the swing of things. 427 miles today but, while most were on logged on the superhighways, I finally had the chance to ditch the super slab and spend a bit of time on the delicious secondary roads in rural Wisconsin. Let's start at the beginning though. Once again I was up early, this time 5:00 AM. I arrived at my favorite Michigan Starbucks shortly after 6 and was able to log online to update all the travel info from Friday for both this blog and the other forums where I have trip threads running. I actually didn't hit the road till nearly 7:30 but when I did it with a vengeance. I logged 200 miles in the first 3 hours, including a fuel stop so I was covering ground rather quickly. Routing was via I-94 Westbound through Michigan, then after entering Indiana I jumped on the Indiana Toll Road (I-90) and basically stayed on I-90 through Gary,Indiana, across the Chicago Skyway, and then through Chigago via the Dan Ryan Expressway (still I-90). I was in Wisconsin by 1:30 local time and finally had the chance to do something other than cruise the Interstate. At Beloit, WI I jumped off the highway and headed West to a small town I know called Brodhead, WI. I know Brodhead as a pilot and have visited the airport there a number of times. The Brodhead Airport, a grass field, is known nationally as a hotbed of Antique Aircraft restoration and flying. While there wasn't much flying going during my brief visit(it was windy) there was a cadre of folks busy in their hangars tending to the rewarding work of restoring/maintaining these classics. Check out the picture of my bike in front of a hangar with 1950s Piper Cub resting quietly within! After Brodhead I visited with yet another motorcyclist/flying enthusiast friend who lives nearby.The Brodhead side trip allowed me to spend quality time on Wisconsin's excellent, interesting, and nearly empty secondary road system. Based on my friend's "local knowledge" and recommendations, the plan for tomorrow is to spend the entire morning on the secondary roads. I'll be heading North by West in the general direction of Lacrosse WI, and then plan to cross the Mississippi River into Minnesota by mid-day. Hopefully I can get pretty close to North Dakota by Sunday evening.The weather continues to cooperate. Today started with 50 degrees at sunrise in Michigan and ended with mid 70's in Wisconsin, and mostly sunny the entire time. If the Weather Channel is to be believed, I will have another delightful day tomorrow but am at risk to (finally) get wet Monday or Tuesday. I'm ready!!

If you go to the RevZilla Motorsports blogsite at blog.revzilla.com you can see more pictures and find more info on my ride.



The 2009 Ride to Alaska for The Austin Hatcher Foundation is supported by
RevZilla Motorsports at RevZilla.com and by Hermy's Cycles in Port Clinton, PA

Down day in Michigan to Visit with Friends

Day 2 - Friday May 22, 2009
Start: Novi, MI
End: Novi, MI
Trip Miles Today: 146
Total Trip Miles: 792

Little to say about yesterday except it was wonderful to visit with friends in Michigan all day long. Rode a fair number of miles. Now the serious business of getting to Anchorage begins in earnest. I'll be riding literally hundreds of miles each day for the new two weeks straight. My butt hurts just thinking about it! Off to Wisconsin RIGHT NOW !!!

By the way, I think I mentioned that my ride got some coverage on the CBS TV outlet in Philadelphia on Wednesday night. The CBS3 people were kind enough to post some of the content on their website. - you can click here to see a some of the interview and learn more about The Austin Hatcher Foundation.

Day One - 500 Miler!

Day 1 – Thursday May 21, 2009

Start: Malvern, PA

End: Novi, MI

Trip Miles Today: 555

Total Trip Miles: 645.8

The 5:00 wakeup came pretty early but no matter - I was already wide awake in anticipation. A quick shower, final packing details and suddenly it was time to take off! My wife, Lisa Barrow, and my good friend Don Verdiani were both on hand to ride out and serve as my escort. Lisa rode her BMW F650 GS (red-of course!) and Don joined on his BMW K75 (that I used to own) so it was an all Beemer departure. Lisa and Don hung on only long enough to see me to the PA turnpike entry then turned back as I headed out.

I was on the PA tpk about 7 and 10 hours later I was at a friend's home in Novi Michigan. It's really hard to put together an interesting adventure story around a 500+ mile ride on toll roads! Highlights included a lot of construction (and associated delays ) in the Western part of the state and really quick gas stops!

By 5:00 I was settled into the home of a friend who had generously offered a place to stay for 2 nights. By 7: I was at a very nice dinner at an outdoor cafe with 6 old friends (for clarification - they are friends that I have had for a very long time, not that they are "old".) Friday will be spent, similarly, visiting with folks in Michigan who have made donations to The Austin Hatcher Foundation. I'l head out of here next on Saturday, this time bound for Wisconsin.

So, in summary, what can I say about a "first day" that was a 500+ miler with no dramas whatsoever, in perfect riding weather? All my equipment and gear including the bike performed flawlessly. Looks like the F650GS is getting about 55 mpg at a steady 75 mph, even with those big bags hanging off the side - hardly an optimum aero package.

Anyway, that's it from here.

More soon. Thanks for your interest!

Jack

Day 0 - New Jersey & back!

Wednesday May 20 - Day 0
Start : Ocean City , NJ
End: Malvern, PA
Trip Miles Today: 93
Total Trip Miles: 93

Sometimes it's necessary to go backward a bit in order to make progress forward. That's how today was. A quick 90 mile Eastward jaunt to the Atlantic coast in New Jersey was the first order of business early this morning. While the trip was without drama I can say that I look forward to not riding Eastward and staring at the sunrise both tomorrow and for the next couple of weeks. I don't think my retinas are actually fried but I did wonder about the possibility. The Ocean City visit was a short one followed by a quick turn back Westward bound now for Philadelphia and the headquarters of RevZilla Motorsports. I can't say that there were really many exciting photo ops while blasting back across central New Jersey on the Atlantic City Expressway. At RevZilla several friends joined me while RevZilla Partner Anthony Bucci presented me with a generous donation to The Austin Hatcher Foundation. KYW TV, the CBS outlet for Philadelphia was present to capture both the check presentation and my "official" ride away which they aired on the 6:00 news this evening. By 3 PM I was back home here in Malvern, PA finishing up with the final packing and preparations. Tomorrow I'm off on the 600 mile leg to Detroit, MI at 6:00am. For a second day it's once again going to be all limited access highway so if you're looking for the pics of exotic locations, unusual animals, and different ways of life I think you should plan on having to wait a few days. Nonetheless, I've got to get through the less exciting parts of the trip to get to the "good stuff" More tomorrow. Thanks for coming along on the ride!
Jack