Erich’s Journal -- Leg 02 – Yukon & Northern
British Columbia – The US Border near Beaver Creek, Yukon Territory, Canada to
Prince George, British Columbia, Canada
-- June 28 to July 20, 2001 – 22 Days.
We crossed the border into
New things we have been experiencing are the change to Canadian Dollars and the switch to Kilometers. A Canadian Dollar is worth 60 cents American. The kilometer is equal to about 6.2 miles (or 5/8 as I sometimes use to convert) Who would have thought that I would be using some math skills on this trip?
I had a flat today that almost made me lose control. I was going down hill when it happened. My bike started to swerve. An RV was passing me at the time. I did not know what was going on. When I stopped, the bike fell over. At first, I thought my bad wheel had fallen apart. It was only after the bike was lying down I realized it was flat. Some sort of puncture, but unknown to what it was. (See photos 0144, 0145, 0146, 0147)
The past few days were the most
beautiful since we were in the
We’ve discovered that most of the lakes / streams in the area have lake trout, rainbow trout (that are planted). There are also whitefish, pike, grayling… Reminds me a lot of the Aniak area. Also noticed we are at about the same latitude as Aniak.
Marc and Brian saw a good size grizzly as we came into camp tonight. Apparently, he has been hanging out at the campground.
(See photos 0148, 0149, 0150, 0151, 0152, 0154, 0155, 0156, 0157, 0158, 0159, 0160, 0161, 0162, 0163, 0164)
There has been more rain than
earlier in the trip. It seems that we
run into rain about three times a day.
Therefore, we experience both hot and cool riding days. The sun has been intense. The few days I have forgotten the sun block
has really taken a toll on my skin. I
also burned my knee when some boiling coffee water poured on to it at camp,
which I’ve been treating with the first aid kit. I will definitely have to buy some more
lotion in
We have experienced both our
best campground and our worst so far on the trip. The Cottonwood Campground and RV Park right
on
The 79 mile ride today went rather
well. Our first break was in the native
We then traveled through some
beautiful woods and light rainshowers all the way to
It’s been 8 days since our rest in
This first 18 days have been trying. Whereas in my younger days I would have gotten into shape quickly on a trip like this, now at age 36, I am feeling the aches and pains of being incredibly out of shape and cycling 75 miles per day. Today was the second bed I’ve been in on this trip and it was difficult getting out of it.
Riverdale Cycles boxed up Marc’s bike and tuned up Brian’s bike and my bike. Brian replaced both of his tires. I picked up my new wheel.
Marc took off in the
afternoon. Brian and I pretty
much just hung out the rest of our time in
Anyway… Gotta go now.
I’ll write some more down the road as we will probably check internet
again in
We have been on the road now two days since our rest day in
The terrain has been the same now for some time. It’s been sometimes warm, sometimes cool, sometimes sunny, sometimes rainy. Eventually it will be hot and populous and we will be longing for these cool rides where we would be able to pitch a tent anywhere off the road.
We departed
The ride on the day of our
We then camped in a
Today, however, was an incredible biking day. We rode early, took many breaks, and felt great most of the day. I don’t know if my muscles finally realized that I was biking again, but it was definitely a change from the day before. We were still biking against the wind but the mood was right. (See photos 0189, 0190, 0191, 0192)
I wonder sometimes about the changes that my body is going through since the start of this trip. We have been burning an incredible amount of calories and consuming a great deal of food to compensate. After looking in the mirror recently, I think I have probably dropped about 10 -15 lbs since the start of the trip. Also many of my eating habits and cravings have changed. For example, during my work months, I could not get through the morning without my several cups of coffee. On this bike trip, I could take it or leave it. I don’t seem to have the craving for it I usually have.
I also notice that I get full quicker. In fact when I over eat, I do not feel well. I am finding that I am eating more frequently, but not as much. I don’t know what this is all about, but I suppose I will talking to Claire Musgrove (the Aniak HS / MS P.E. and Health teacher). I do find it very interesting.
I am definitely in better shape. I don’t ache anymore. I remember when I was climbing on the haul road (The Dalton Highway), sometimes my pulse rate would max out (200 beats per minute). I knew then it was time to stop. Now I noticed after climbing hills, my pulse rate doesn’t get much above 140 or 150. I must be getting in shape.
Today we met another biker who was dining in Teslin. He was traveling considerably lighter than we
were. On the front of his bike it said
“Biking for
I have
I mention Doug not only because he was someone that we met along our journey, but also that he mentioned that he has changed physically as well. He has been biking for years (He’s 53) and has added years to his life due to his cycling. The brain cell decay that he mentioned about Huntington’s disease has slowed due to his cycling.
This reminds of the cyclist Lance Armstrong who had been diagnosed as having testicular cancer. He overcame his cancer and eventually won the Tour de France last year. Maybe there is something about intense physical exercise and wellness.
Something to think about.
We passed over the longest bridge on the
Now I sit at the Dawson Peak RV Resort restaurant, sipping at a cold beer after eating a wonderful meal. I recommend this place for cyclists. They gave us a discount and free showers. We had wonderful conversation with the owner Dave (who gave us a great deal of advice for traveling in South America). This was a very warm and hospitable atmosphere. (See photos 0197 and 0198)
Friday, July 06, 2001 – Day 22 – Campground -- Continental Divide RV Park, near Swift Creek, Yukon Territory, Canada – cycled 72 miles / 116 km
Physically, I felt great today. The 72 miles went relatively OK today, considering we started with strong headwinds. Also the cold rain came down steady most of the day. I had my rainsuit on the whole time to combat the cold rain and wind. But as our fortune would have it, it cleared up long enough for us to set up camp, prepare for the evening, and get inside for the night before the rains started again. We are being smiled upon.
A family from Oregon pulled us over to talk during the ride today. A lady, Tina Skiles, from Portland and her husband, son, and daughter talked to us for close to a half hour today. They are bicyclists also. They had actually biked through various parts of the world on a tandem (bicycle built for two). They offered us a place to stay in Oregon if we need it. We may take them up on the offer. (See photo 0199)
Leaned quite a bit of history of the Alaska Highway while on route. (See photos 0200 & 0201)
By 2:00 or so, the headwinds stopped and the rain came
strait down. It was then we were able to
make up some lost time. We left the
Yukon for a while as the highway dipped in to British Columbia for about 40
miles. (See photo 0202 & 0203)We then came north back in to the
What I mean by Continental Divide is that on the west side of the divide all of the waterways we encountered flowed eventually in to the Yukon River which flows into the Pacific Ocean (Bering Sea). On the east side, the waterways flow in to the Macenzie River which flows into the Arctic Ocean. What I find so spectacular is that we had crossed the Continental Divide when we crossed the Brooks Range on our fourth day of riding. That was 1150 miles ago. All of the rivers we crossed since eventually make its way in to the Yukon. (See photos 0204 & 0205)
Saturday, July 07, 2001 – Day 23 – Campground -- Cassiar Highway Junction, Yukon Territory, Canada – cycled 74 miles / 119 km
Sunday, July 08, 2001 – Day 24 – Campground -- Jade City RV Park, near Cassiar, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 78 miles / 126 km
The past few days have given us mixed emotions along our route. Yesterday was a day that went very quickly. We had a late start due to the heavy rains we had the night before which continued in to the morning. When you are in your sleeping bag and can hear the rain come down on your tent, getting up does not come easily. I finally made my move at 9:30 a.m. By the time we dried the tents, packed everything and gotten out of the café, it was noon before we got going.
The ride was phenomenal. We cruised in the rain with the wind and primarily down hill. We were at the Cassiar Hwy Junction by 6:00 p.m – over 70 miles in a very short time.
We dined at a truck stop (both dinner and the following day’s breakfast) next to the campground that we stayed in. The next morning we broke camp in the sun shine. It was actually the first night since Fairbanks that it didn’t rain on us during the night, so it was a pleasant feeling to pack up a completely dry tent.
We started off along the Cassiar Highway this morning. We had our reservations because so many people we had bumped in to had been comparing it to the haul road. We had planned to slow down the pace some due to our anticipation. The road was narrower with few or no markings. There were lots of little steep climbs in places. It definitely slowed our pace some. We saw more wildlife – a small deer, a fox. There was less traffic. We basically followed a valley along the Dease River. Although the first half of the day we really could not see much except trees on each side of the road, the second half we turned up a steep valley and climbed in to the Cassiar Mountains. (See photos 0212, 0213, 0214, 0215, 0216, 0217)
We passed through the native village of Good Hope Lake, BC (pop 100) and then through the ghost town of Centerville. The area has lots of gold mining history. In 1876 the largest gold nugget was found in a mine near Centerville. It weighed 72 ounces. We reached the top of the pass at the turnoff to the town of Cassiar, which we will miss. We stayed at a place called Jade City. Jade is a stone used to make jewelry among other things. The jade rocks are all over the place here. There is also lots of snow in the mountains here. Tomorrow we will bike down the other side of the pass back down to the Dease River as we reach the town of Dease Lake tomorrow night. (See photo 0218)
Monday, July 09, 2001 – Day 25 – Hotel – Dease Lake, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 71 miles / 114 km
Tuesday, July 10, 2001 – Day 26 – Campground -- Red Goat Lodge, Iskut, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 53 miles / 86 km
Tonight we are camping on a beautiful lake just south of the
village of Iskut, BC. The day was one of
the coldest so far. We’ve experienced
freezing rain and cold pacific ocean winds that wind through the coastal
glaciers. We have definitely moved away
from the hot muggy interior like we experienced in Fairbanks, Tok, Beaver
Creek, etc. The terrain, however, is
much more picturesque. We’ve run across
some moose today but have not seen much else for wildlife. Our journey took us over a 4100 foot pass
today (Gnat Pass Summit), which is also a continental divide. (See photo 0225)
Then we descended for almost 20 miles and crossed the
Our campground had a three legged huskie roaming the grounds. There were also llamas here as well. (See photos 0231, 0232, 0233, 0234)
Our late start was due to our hotel stay in Dease Lake the night before. Brian and I decided early on that a hotel room would be necessary from time to time. As Brian pointed out, we’ve been rained on almost every night since we left Fairbanks, so we thought, tonight (Monday) was the night for that break. We take advantage of the room by staying in as late as we can before we have to check out. So we didn’t get on the road today until noon. Then we hit the hail storm as we climbed the pass.
The next few days should be somewhat remote. We packed a few days of groceries that we picked up at the grocery store in Iskut. There will be relatively few services until we reach the junction with Hwy 16 (Price Rupert to Price George). We have found that many establishments along the Cassiar, may or may not be open, so we have discovered we need to have a few days of groceries with us.
Wednesday, July 11, 2001 – Day 27 – Primitive Camping – Thomas Creek Bridge on the Cassiar Highway, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 56 miles / 90 km
(See photos 0236, 0237, 0238 & 0239)
Thursday, July 12, 2001 – Day 28 – Primitive Camping -- Ritchie Creek Bridge on the Cassiar Hwy, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 68 miles / 110 km
We’ve camped the past few nights, primitively, due to the lack of civilization along the Cassiar Highway. Although we have passed a few campgrounds, it had either been too early to quit or we couldn’t make it in a day. This has been fine with me, since we do save a little money that way and the terrain is awesome. Tonight we camp by Ritchie Creek just off of the highway. We are concerned about the bears, however. Today we spotted a cub near where we were going to set up camp. We moved on though. Apparently we are in the largest “berry” bush area in the B.C. Frequently we’ve run across bear scat, so we have been taking the necessary precautions to keep our food and scented items as far away from our tents as we can. Today we’ve hung our food from the bridge over the creek. (See photos 0243, 0244 & 0245)
Today we ran across a cyclist that was heading north. His name was Doug from Seattle. He had been traveling for about 5 weeks without a daily objective. It was good to see other “bicycle tourists” who had similar gear so that we could compare what we had to what others had. It is comforting to know that many things were common. (See photos 0240 & 0241)
We’ve been cooler than usual lately. In fact we haven’t experienced cold rainy weather like this since above the Brooks Range. Last night it dipped in to the high 30’s which is about the temp limit on my bag. The weather seems to be more coastal than interior. The rain gear is worn almost the whole day now for warmth as well as rain and wind protection. (See photo 0242)
Today we stopped off at the Bob Quinn Lake Bed & Breakfast today for some coffee as a break. The very friendly woman who visited with us did not charge us for the coffee. The place mainly catered to highway maintenance workers, so it really was not a restaurant atmosphere. It was a portable which also served as her home. It made us realize that this highway was just as remote as the Dalton highway without near the traffic and services as the Alaska Highway.
Tomorrow we are considering taking a detour to Hyder Alaska which is about 40 miles off of the Cassier. Across the border on the Canadian side is Stewart. We thought it would be kind of fun to try to get “Hyderized” which we have heard so much about from the Canadians that we have bumped in to.
Friday, July 13, 2001 – Day 29 – Hotel – Hyder, Alaska, USA – cycled 71 miles / 115 km
Today we took the 40 mile detour through Stewart B.C. and
entered Alaska at the town of Hyder.
Quite the interesting tourist town.
It boasts itself to be “the friendliest ghosttown in Alaska.” We biked over two passes and 70 miles to get
from our primitive campground at Ritchie Creek to Hyder. It had been very cold and rainy all day. We passed by a beautiful blue glacier called
Bear Glacier (as well as real bears too! See photo 0246 & 0251).
This glacier did not appear to be retreating as so many are. (See photos 0254, 0255, 0256 & 0257 The glacier then formed a lake
which fed in to the Bear River that eventually flowed to the Pacific into the
On the way we ran into a cyclist named Shangold from Tawain, who spoke English well enough to understand the basics of our conversation. (His nickname is Elmer Fudd). (See photos 0249 and 0250)
The relationship between Hyder and Stewart is rather unique. Stewart has a population of 1000 where Hyder is about 80. Even though Hyder is in Alaska they seem to have more in common with Canada than the U.S. It observes Pacific time and not Alaska Time. They use Canadian Currency rather than U.S. Currency. They even use the B.C. area code rather than the Alaska Area Code. Until recently Hyder school children (less than a dozen) attended school in Canada, but now they have a teacher. (See photos 0258, 0259, 0260, 0261, 0262, 0263, 0264 & 0265)
Hyder is cut off by the rest of Alaska except by boat or float plane. The ferry no longer provides service because there was not enough business for the once a week stop. It is completely surrounded by “Misty Fjords National Monument” and “Tongas National Forest”
The main tourist attraction right now is watching the grizzly bears at a viewing platform just outside of town. The salmon runs are occurring right now so the bear activity is quite high. In fact in the past few days while biking, we’ve counted more than 10 bears along the road side.
We enjoyed our stay there. We bought cheap accommodations at the Seaside Inn and basically spent the evening in the restauraunt-bar below. After walking around it was really the only place with any evening activities in town. It was there we got “Hyderized”, which was basically a shot of 151. After our bicycle conditioning, it was definitely enough to put me to bed.
Saturday, July 14, 2001 – Day 30 – Campground -- Meziadin Lake Junction on the Cassiar Hwy, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 42 miles / 66 km
As I sit in the sun now typing this journal entry I truly appreciate the warmth of the sun. This is the first evening in a very long time that we have been able to sit outside without it raining or damp and buggy. Currently we are at the Meziadin Lake Campground just south of the Stewart Access Road (37A) Junction along the Cassiar Highway (37). (See photo 0270 & 0271)
On the way out of Alaska, we stopped at the border town of Stewart for breakfast. (See photo 0266) We ran in to a group of cyclists coming out of Hyder as we were heading in. This was a tour group sponsored by the Adventure Cycling Association. They had left Missoula Montana and plan to end in Anchorage. They were about halfway done with there journey. It rained most of the day. (see photo 0267, 0268 & 0269)
We are now looking forward to a day off in the B.C. town of Smithers, which is three cycling days from here. It is there we plan to update the website.
Sunday, July 15, 2001 – Day 31 – Campground --
The lady behind the counter at the Meziadin General Store said that she had lived in the area for 36 years. She remembers only 2 summers that it has been as wet as this one. The amount of rain that we have encountered in recent days has been much. I can only speculate, however, that we would gladly have it back when compared to the 100 degree weather that we will probably be facing in the lower 48.
Our route has taken us so far as follows…
1. 400 miles or along the Dalton Highway (The Haul Road) from Prudhoe Bay, AK to Livengood, AK.
2. 100 miles or so along the Elliot (Route 3)
from Livengood, AK to
3. 100 miles or so along the Richardson Highway (Route 4) from Fairbanks, AK to Delta Junction, AK.
4. 800 miles or so along the Alaska Highway (Route 2 & 1) from Delta Junction, AK to the Cassiar Highway Junction (just before Watson Lake, YT.
5. 500 miles or so along the Cassiar Highway (Route 37) from the AK Hwy Junction to Kitwanga, BC. (including an 80 mile side trip to Hyder Alaska along the Stewart-Hyder Hwy Route 37A from Meziadin Lake)
Currently we are in an R.V. park in Kitwanga. We’ve spent 15 nights in Alaska, 9 days in Yukon Territory, and so far 7 nights in British Columbia. Today, we’ve done the most miles of our journey – 96 miles. It’s amazing what you can accomplish with the right conditions – wind to your back and a relatively flat road. We actually didn’t get on the road until 11:45 a.m. and only had 10 miles under our belt by 1:00 p.m. Who would have thunk? By the time we reach Smithers, BC tomorrow, we will have completed 2000 miles in 32 days.
Monday, July 16, 2001 – Day 32 – Hotel – Smithers, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 73 miles / 117 km.
Uneventful day. I guess I am rather disappointed that we didn’t see any totem poles in Kitwanga, but with the day’s long ride yesterday and anxiousness to get to Smithers today, it didn’t seem important at the time.
We stopped in the town of Morice Town to get something to drink. It was here we watched Canadian Natives fishing for Salmon (gaffing) with a long pole. (See photos 0272, 0273, 0274, 0275, 0276 & 0277). The “First Peoples Nation” fished for Chinook Salmon.
Now we are in Smithers, British Columbia, where we will get our bikes tuned up, get laundry done, and of course an internet update. (See photos 0278, 0279 & 0280)
Tuesday, July 17, 2001 Day 33 – Hotel – Smithers, British Columbia, Canada – Rest Day.
After jumping on the Yellowhead Highway yesterday (Route 16), we realized that our rural riding days are soon over for a while. The traffic is thick and the services are plenty. We made it to Smithers. Day off today as going to get the bikes tuned up and rest. A break was overdue.
Wednesday, July 18, 2001 – Day 34 -- Campground – Topley, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 58 miles / 94 km
We left Smithers on a sunny day yesterday after a short visit to the library to use the internet and a big lunch at a restaurant named Mr. Mikes. (all you can eat). Since we started late, we didn’t do as many miles as we could have.
We stayed in Topley, BC in a private campground. Next door was a restaurant that was owned and operated by a German man. He was most excited about our travels, for he had traveled extensively throughout South America as a young man. (See photos 0281 & 0282)
The only other person in the campgrounds was a cyclist named Aron, who had been traveling North from Seattle and heading toward Anchorage. We had a good visit after dinner and over breakfast the next morning. Earlier in the day we had run across a Swiss cyclist who was cycling from Tucson Arizona to Anchorage Alaska. We have been gaining much insight from these other cyclists. We also feel more comfortable with our gear, our pace, and our bikes.
Thursday, July 19, 2001 – Day 35 -- Campground -- Piper Glen RV Park, Fort Fraser, British Columbia, Canada – cycled 84 miles / 135 km
The past two days of riding have been pretty uneventful. The road has increased traffic, less wilderness. The routine is slowly becoming a natural way of life.
We passed by some Swiss travelers on Recumbent Bicycles. Franzi & Mathias Muller, toured throughout Canada and Alaska. (See photos 0283 & 0284)
Today we cycled through some rain again and as usual, shortly after we got the tents set up, the heavy stuff had really started to come down. So now I sit in the tent typing in the dim light…
We successfully completed 35 days of this journey, 32 of which were spent cycling. 2147 miles done.