Day 30 Winnipeg to Thunder Bay

Day 30 - Wednesday, July 29/2009
Starting Location: Winnipeg, MB

Ending Location: Thunder Bay, ON
Distance Travelled: 432 miles or 700 km
Distance Travelled to date: 9511 miles or 15737 km

Gas:
Winnipeg, MB $0.964/li 14.005 litres $13.50 total
Kenora, ON $1.029/li 11.86 litres $12.20 total
Dryden, ON $1.024/li 7.32 litres $7.50 total
Thunder Bay, ON $1.022/li 18.98 litres $19.41 total

Drove straight from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay along Hwy1/Hwy11/17. Due to the weather, didn't take one photo today. We're also taking the same route we took when we started the trip.
A lot of construction right inside of Winnipeg and along Hwy1 just outside of Winnipeg. Once in Ontario, a lot of road construction right thru to Thunder Bay. Expect stoppages.
Left Winnipeg in a light drizzle and decide to put rain gear on. Paid off as the skies let loose a few times with very heavy downpours. Was overcast and there were very thick clouds for the entire ride to Thunder Bay. Poured heavily again just outside of Thunder Bay. As it is forecast to rain again tonight and tomorrow, we decided to get a hotel room.
Tomorrow, going to try the half mile zip line that is just outside of Thunder Bay. Hope the rain holds off.

Temperature started at 60F or 14C and got up to about 70F.

Econolodge, Thunder Bay $105 less $15 for CAA

Day 29 Hwy 1 Swift Current to Winnipeg

Day 29 - Tuesday, July 28/2009
Starting Location: Swift Current, AB

Ending Location: Winnipeg, MB
Distance Travelled: 538 miles or 872 km
Distance Travelled to date: 9079 miles or 15037 km


Gas:
Moose Jaw, SK $0.999/li 12.012 litres $12.00 total
Whitewood, SK $0.999/li 14.685 litres $14.67 total
Brandon, MB $0.964/li 10.786 litres $10.40 total

"Where Doran goeth, so goeth the rain"
Got up and it was drizzling. On our way to Winnipeg, so have a long ride. Poured for an hour, but by the time we got to Moose Jaw, the rain stopped and I was able to get out of the rain gear. Ride to Winnipeg along the Hwy 1 was smooth and easy. Landscape didn't change from when we rode the area in the opposite directions 3 weeks ago. A lot of brilliant yellow canola fields.
Very windy on the ride. Temperature started at 53F or 10C and got up to about 70F.
Staying at our cousins John & Colleen Davies in Winnipeg tonight.

Day 28 Cyprus Hills Prairie

Day 28 - Monday, July 27/2009
Starting Location: Drumheller, AB
Ending Location: Swift Current, AB
Distance Travelled: 538 miles or 872 km
Distance Travelled to date: 8541 miles or 14165 km


Swift Current Motel, AB $80 not the best

Gas:
Drumheller, AB $0.949/li 12.123 litres $11.50 total
Medicine Hat, AB $0.934/li 12.837 litres $11.99 total
Havre, Montana $2.539/gal 3.263 gal $8.28 US total
Swift Current, AB $0.99/li 20.37 litres $20.35 total

Left Drumheller with intentions of taking the Red Coat Trail towards Winnipeg. This was the route taken by the Mounties as they moved west.
Went thru Red Deer and took Hwy 1 to Irvine and then to Hwy 41 south towards the CDN/US border.
Hwy 41 was in excellent condition and had some very long straight sections thru the plains where the Indians roamed and where a lot of treaties were signed.
The Cyprus Hills Grasslands went on forever and seemed much larger than the huge canola fields or ranches of other parts of the west. The view was amazing, as it seemed not to end.
Once we got near the US border, we were to turn onto Hwy 13, but there was 60km of very loose, gravel roads ahead. I decided to take the route thru Montana as the roads were very good, flat and could travel at 70mph. You could see a mountain range just past the grassland plains in Montana.
Back in Saskatchewan we found the roads (Hwy 18) were not in very good shape (paved but very rough) and we were not making very good time, so we decided to go back to Hwy 1 and stop in Swift Current. The Red Coat Trail is 1300km long, but we just didn't have the time to follow it. Too bad they did not maintain the roads a bit better so more could follow the historic route.

When we left Drumheller, the weather was very hot and clear, A great time for riding. About 8:00pm, temperature started to drop to the low 50's.

Day 27 Another Day in Drumheller

Day 27 - Sunday, July 26/2009
Starting Location: Drumheller, AB

Ending Location: Drumheller, AB
Distance Travelled: no travel day
Distance Travelled to date: 8003 miles or 13293 km


Hoodoo RV Park $31/site less 10% Good Sam, very busy, very hot, all RV facilities, poor wifi connection

Spent the day in Drumheller. Firt time we've really had a bit of a rest from travelling.
Day started off early as a thanderstorm rolled over and we had to button down the hatches in preparation as the sky was very dark. It did rain a bit, but the issue we faced was more of the strong winds that came along with the small amount of rain.
Temperature for the day was a high of 27C so we went back to the Hoodoos and foraged around the hills. Al found a nice piece of petrefied wood. Tomorrow, weare heading home taking the Yellowhed Hwy thru Saskatoon.

Day 26 A Day in Drumheller

Day 26 - Saturday, July 25/2009
Starting Location: Drumheller, AB

Ending Location: Drumheller, AB
Distance Travelled: no travel day
Distance Travelled to date: 8003 miles or 13293 km


Hoodoo RV Park $31/site less 10% Good Sam, very busy, very hot, all RV facilities, poor wifi connection

Spent the day setting up and waiting for Chris & Adrienne to arrive from Clareshome, AB. So hot can't do much but try to stay in the shade. Temperature was hovering at 38C and the area is very dry. When it cool down to about 32C at about 7:00p.m., we went and explored the hoodoos that are about 2km from here. Walked thru the hilly mounds looking for a T-Rex skelton and ended up finding some rocks (lots of rocks). It's an interesting area to explore none the less.

Temperature: The day was very hot, about 38 degrees C, with clear blue skies. cooling down to 32 by 7:00 and a nice 16ish at night. Threat of thunderstorms tomorrow and a high of 29C.

Day 25 Edmonton to Drumheller

Day 25 - Friday, July 24/2009
Starting Location: Edmonton, AB

Ending Location: Drumheller, AB
Distance Travelled: 389 miles or 630 km
Distance Travelled to date: 8003 miles or 13293 km

Gas:
Edmonton, AB $0.864/litre, 16.36 litres $14.14
Alsike, AB $$.864/li 10.415 litres $9.00

Hoodoo RV Park $31/site less 10% Good Sam, very busy, very hot, all RV facilities, poor wifi connection

Drove thru a scenic route along Hwy 22 to Drumheller but it was the flat range land that was not quite as scenic as anticipated (but we've been very spoiled in the past few weeks), The ride could have been cut shorter taking the Hwy 22 freeway into Red Deer. As we approached Drumheller, the large yellow canola fields were beautiful.
Staying at the Hoodoo RV Park close to where the majority of hoodoos can be found. Tomorrow we will explore the area.

Temperature: The day was very nice, high about 32 degrees C, with clear blue skies. While it is very hot to ride in, I can't complain after the other weather experienced on the trip.

Day 25 Edmonton to Drumheller

Day 25 - Friday, July 24/2009
Starting Location: Edmonton, AB

Ending Location: Drumheller, AB
Distance Travelled: 389 miles or 630 km
Distance Travelled to date: 8003 miles or 13293 km

Gas:
Edmonton, AB $0.864/litre, 16.36 litres $14.14
Alsike, AB $$.864/li 10.415 litres $9.00

Hoodoo RV Park $31/site less 10% Good Sam, very busy, very hot, all RV facilities, poor wifi connection

Drove thru a scenic route along Hwy 22 to Drumheller but it was the flat range land that was not quite as scenic as anticipated (but we've been very spoiled in the past few weeks), The ride could have been cut shorter taking the Hwy 22 freeway into Red Deer. As we approached Drumheller, the large yellow canola fields were beautiful.
Staying at the Hoodoo RV Park close to where the majority of hoodoos can be found. Tomorrow we will explore the area.

Temperature: The day was very nice, high about 32 degrees C, with clear blue skies. While it is very hot to ride in, I can't complain after the other weather experienced on the trip.

Day 24 West Edmonton Mall

Day 24 - Thursday, July 23/2009
Starting Location: Whitecourt, AB
Ending Location: Edmonton, AB
Distance Travelled: 106 miles or 172 km
Distance Travelled to date: 7614 miles or 12663 km

Gas:
None today. Gas in Edmonton is at $84.5/litre. Nice to be in Alberta!

Glowing Embers RV Park $35/night less 15% CAA or Good Pal member. Nice park, but very noisy as it is along the highway and you here everything.
clean, resturant, landry, games room, wifi

Drove into Edmonton from Whitecourt, only 175km. Landscape is flat, agricultural lands that are separated by trees. Not much to see that's worth writing about.
Went to the West Edmonton Mall. Quite the place, with ice rink, huge water park with a 106 ft. bungee jump, waterslides galore and wave pool. There was also an Imax theatre, shooting range, amusement area, submarine ride in lake, mini golf course, over 100 restaurants and tons of different stores (a lot of them are found in any larger mall).

Highway 22 into Edmonton had some construction as they were repaving.

Temperature: The day was very nice, high about 31 degrees C, with clear blue skies. Haven't seen that for a while. Rest of the week is to be hot and clear.

Day 23 - Dawson Creek Alaska Hwy "Mile 0"

Day 23 - Wednesday, July 22/2009
Starting Location: Fort St. Johns, BC

Ending Location: Whitecourt, AB
Distance Travelled: 489 miles or 793 km
Distance Travelled to date: 7508 miles or 12491 km

Gas:
Dawson Creek, BC $1.059/li 12.046 litres $12.76 total
Valleyview, AB $0.949/li 13.60 litres $12.81 total
Swan Hills, AB $0.959/li 17.98 litres $17.25 total

Nova Motels, Whitecourt $140/night less $35 CAA member. Super clean, modern, wifi, air, dishes, fridge, microwave, fireplace

From Fort St. John, the landsscape was very flat. Not much to wow about as far as scenery. Went to Dawson City, the starting point or Mile 0 of the Alaska Highway.
Wanted to get to Edmonton, but the route was along a 4 lane highway, so I decided to try a more scenic route, along Highway 2 to Hwy33/32, but the prairie is the prairie. What is amazing is the rapeseed or canola fields that are bright yellow and go on for acres & acres. That's the best of the scenery.
Al contact a friend, Rory Hoogsteen, another former Saultite, and he suggested the Carson Pegasus Provincial Park. By the time we got close, I was on empty and it was 9:55 at night when I came across a gasbar that closes at 10:00. Thank gawd, I made it.
Drove the next 60km to the park site, seeing a lot of deer and moose along the roadway. We had thought it started to rain abit, but it was just the number of mosquitos that were hitting the windshield. The carrier on the truck looked like a felt material, but it was the layers of bugs...my poor bike!
It was too dark to set up, so we drove another 15km to Whitecourt and stayed at the Nova Hotel. It was amazingly clean and modern...Highly recommended. Tomorrow we will go to the West Ednmonton Mall and then go to Drumheller for a few nights.


Temperature: The day was very nice, about 26 degrees C, with clear blue skies. Haven't seen that for a while. Rest of the week is to be hot and clear.

The Alaska Highway/Highway 43 of Alberta was in perfect condition. Only concern is the gusty winds that can whip across the road.

A few of the animals we saw

A few of the animals we saw

Day 22 - Muncho Lake Provincial Park

Day 22 - Tuesday, July 21/2009
Starting Location: Laird Hot Springs, BC

Ending Location: Fort St. Johns, BC
Distance Travelled: 441 miles or 714 km
Distance Travelled to date: 7019 miles or 11699 km

Gas:
Muncho Lake, BC $1.599/li 16.675 litres $25.06 total
Fort Nelson, BC $1.199/li 13.68 litres $16.40 total
Wonowon, BC $1.249/li 14.027 litres $17.52 total

St Johns Rotary RV Park $20 less 10% Pal Sam

We left for Dawson City today as it will be quite a distance. As it rained the night before, we saw no signs of forest fires, except for the amount of wildlife along side the road. We're not sure if it was typical or due to the fire.
As we drove Highway 97 or the Alaska Highway, we once again came across grazing buffalo as well as numerous black bear, mountain goats, deer & caribou.
While driving the route, we went thru Muncho Lake National Park and as are all the Provincial Parks in the west, the mountain scenery is simply breathtaking. Hard to ride the bike and get all the scenery in. Want to take a lot of photos, but can't stop at every gorgeous spot or we would never leave.
Highway 97/Alaska Hwy was is great shape for riding. There are few gas stops, so make sure you have enough. At the Muncho Lake Resort, we paid $1.599/litre for gas. No alternative. The lady said they really don't make much on the gas as they must transport it to them...We paid a helluva lot less in more remote places (ie. Chicken or Stewart, AK)

The scenery and roads were great for riding, well paved, curvy and thru moutains. In one section, we went down a 7% incline for 3.1km, followed by another steep decline...awesome scenes along the way as you went thru the range.

However, once we got to Toad River, they were doing a 10km section of resealing. Man was it dusty!. They had to use pilot cars to get the traffic thru as the dust was so thick. As I was riding, a transport went by and I literally could not see my front tire because of the dust. It's a bit tricky as the gravel is loose and you're trying to avoid thick gravel so the bike does not slide from under you and you can't even see the road. Most of the time, I gave a lot of room between myself and the pilot car so some of the dust from the car moved away abit. It saved on food as I was full I when finished this section.
There were a few other dusty areas that were shorter. Other than the resurfacing sections, the road was very good. We did hit a 20 minute delay after getting out of Stone Mountain Provincial Park.

Once out of the Provincial Parks, the mountains disappeared and the land became flatter from Fort Nelson to Fort St.Johns.

Temperature: The day in Whitehorse started off very nice, a little overcast, in the low 60's and worked it's way up to the mid 70's by the end of the day. We did hit a bad, 10 minute rain storm just outside of Fort Nelson, but the sun was shining and there was blue sky all around except for where we were travelling. As we go south, we can notice we are getting a night sky again.

The Alaska Highway/Highway 97 from Laird Hot Springs is absolutely perfect for riding, except if you want to pull over to view a scene or wildlife, the transport drivers don't give a rat's a_ about you and go full throddle past you even if there is a buffalo directly along side. or another camper...They bull their way thru...Someone will get killed by these guys.
They had a lot of resurfacing of the roads in the Provincial Parks and that can slow you down...did I mention the dust in those construction areas?
After the Provincial Parks, again the roads are perfect for riding except they only have loose, gravel shoulders...not ideal for stopping with a bike.

Day 21 - Whitehorse, YK to Laird River Hot Springs, BC

Day 21 - Monday, July 20/2009
Starting Location: Takhini Hot Springs, YK

Ending Location: Laird Hot Springs, BC
Distance Travelled: 443 miles or 718 km
Distance Travelled to date: 6578 miles or 10985 km


Gas:
Whitehorse, YK $1.009/li 13.280 litres $13.40 total
Teslin,YK $1.099/li 10.37 litres $11.40 total
Watson Lake, BC $1.189/li 14.727 litres $17.51 total

Laird Hot Springs RV $22/ night

We started off by going into Whitehorse to see the city. The downtown centre was bustling with a lot of people walking, talking and shopping. We visited a few shops for souvenirs and walked along the new waterfront walkway that follows the Yukon River. The old train station and the Klondike, the wheel steamboat that plied the river and is now a historical monument, can be found. We ate at the interesting Klondike Rib & Salmon grill house, one of the oldest buldings in the city and had caribou and muskox burgers. They tasted great!
We left Whitehorse along the Alaska Highway South on our way to Laird Hot Springs, east and south of Watson Lake. As a result, we were covering some of the road we took on our way to Skagway. Travelling in a different direction did add some interesting views. Once past Watson Lake, we travelled thru some nice forested areas. As we went south, we entered the Peace River Basin and things became very interesting. As we travelled, I noticed that all the trees were the same size and height. You can tell that the area is new growth from forest fires of the past. The new trees seemed to go back as far as you can see, indicating the huge size of the fire. As we went along the highway, we saw a buffalo grazing along the roadway, unperturbed by our presence. Further on, we came across another buffalo walking calmly along the side of the highway. We could have touched it as it was so close. Later, Donna saw a black wolf, we saw a moose cross the road and then the saddest thing...there was a dead fox laying on the side of the road and sitting up on the guardrail, keeping company for its dead mate, was another small fox. It did not want to leave it's mate. Hope the same fate does not happen to it as it was right on an unprotected part of the highway where transports just fly by. Later, we came acorss 2 herds of buffalo, grazing on the side of the road. There were many newborn calves in the herds.
Also, a bit distressing, was the signs of a forest fire ahead. We could see the burnt trees, see the smoke and smell the burnt forest right along the roadway as we drove. Remembering the hundreds if not thousands of acres of destroyed forests we saw while in the Tok & Chicken area made the impact of a forest fire right here more ominous. We got to Laird Hot Springs late, not knowing if the road ahead will be closed because the fire is still active in the area.

Temperature: The day in Whitehorse started off very cool, in the low 50's and worked it's way up to the mid 60's. 66 is the average for the month. I saw a report that next we, when we are gone, that the temperature will be about 29 degrees celcius.

The Alaska Highway from Whitehorse to Watson Lake to Laird Hot Springs is absolutely perfect for riding. No construction, very little traffic and gorgeous scenery...just watch out for the animals and the fires.

Day 20 Stewart Crossing to Tahini Hot Springs

Day 20 - Sunday, July 19/2009
Starting Location: Stewart Crossing, YK
Ending Location: Takhini Hot Springs, YK
Distance Travelled: 238 miles or 386 km
Distance Travelled to date: 6135 miles or 10267 km

After a night of mosquitos and howling wolves, we packed up as fast as we could before being eaten alive and headed for Whitehorse. The roads were great, with only a few very short broken sections. A lot of RV traffic. Landscape was very flat to start off, with signs of forest fires. As we got closer to Whitehorse, the hills got larger and rivers flowed in the valleys below. Weather was very nice, but a little cool (65 degrees) and the clouds started to form. As we got to Takhini Hot Springs, the weather was nicer. We had a shower and went into the natural hotspring pool. Tomorrow, we are off the Whitehorse and then to Nairn for another hotspring location.

Gas:
Carmacks, YK $1.139/li 10.378 litres $11.82 total

Takhini Hot Springs, $25 plus $7 to use hot spring pool

The weather started off nice and started to cloud over. Temperature was in mid 60's

Road from Stewart Crossing to Takhini Hot Springs was excellent except for a few very small dusty, loose gravel section

Day 19 Chicken to Dawson City

Day 19 - Saturday, July 18/2009
Starting Location: Chicken, AK

Ending Location: Stewart Crossing, AK
Distance Travelled: 231 miles or 374 km
Distance Travelled to date: 5897 miles or 9881 km

After a very cool night, the coldest of the trip, we spent the morning panning and realized that we were definetly not going to strike it rich. We decided to head for Dawson City. The roads were supposed to be brutal...and they were. Gravel and potholes and washboard gravel for 36 miles. We took it slow. After ten miles, came across a young couple that had a flat and we tried to fix it with the tire repair kit I bought and air compressor. The hole was too big to stop the leak, but we repaired it enough to get them back to Chicken where they could get a repair done.
After the 35 miles, we came to the Canadian/US border at an altitude of 4200 ft. Border guard said if we came by yesterday, we could have seen thousands of caribou come over the hills. As we crossed the border, it started to hail and then rain very hard, but the roads were much better. We were now on the Top of the World Highway. It was well paved to start, but became loose gravel for long sections. It was a bit nerve-racking as it was previously known as Ridge Road as it follows the tops of very high mountains...4000 ft high and you can't see the edge as it is very steep and drops right off to a very deep valley...but it's gorgeous. The weather played havoc as did the roads. We wanted to get to Dawson City to visit, but the travel took so long most things were closed when we got there. All accomodations were booked as there is a very big music festival going on and there were tons of young adults partying. We ate, walked around a bit and then decided to head towards Whitehorse. Got past the 10,000 km point of our trip. Stopped in Stewart Crossing at about 11:00 and stayed at a RV park. The mosquitos were horrendous as they kept getting into the tent making it a very uncomforatable night of sleeping. 3 times, we could hear wolf packs howling in the night. Quite the day. At least we will have a good headstart for Whitehorse tomorrow.

Gas:
Dawson City, YK $1.317/li 17.768 litres $23.40 total
Stewart Crossing, YK $1.3230/li 10.179 litres $12.52 total

Stewart Crossing RV Park, $10

The weather started off cool, as we got up and was nice when we left at noon. Becasme overcast and rain threatened. Started to rain with slight hail, as soon as we got to the CDN/US border. Poured for a while. Got to Dawson City in the rain, but it was warm. Streets were really muddy, but being a frontier town, we thought they kept it this was for the ambience. Left for Stewart Crossing and the weather was comfortable.

Road from Chicken was very rought but doable. Gravel, pot holes, washboard gravel, but if you kept it slow and steady, things would be okay. Some spots very, very dusty. Top of the World Highway started of as excellent paved road, but there were long loose gravel sections that had washboard gravel. Road out of Dawson City was excellent with small broken sections of hard-packed or loose gravel. Again, just need to take your time.

Day 18 Valdez, AK to Chicken, AK

Day 18 - Friday, July 17/2009
Starting Location: Valdez, AK

Ending Location: Chicken, AK that's right-Chicken
Distance Travelled: 346 miles or 561 km
Distance Travelled to date: 5666 miles or 9507 km

Started off from Valdez and the weather was a cool 54 degrees and very overcast. Clouds were hanging low so could not take any photos. This has been a bit of a disappointment as the area is so beautiful and is an area of continuous snow-capped mountains, mountains with lush vegetation and deep, lush valleys. It has been overcast and hazy the whole time and I could not capture the beauty. As we were leaving, the clouds started to break and blue skies were coming thru...Go figure!
Drove to Tok for lunch and then to Chicken to do some gold panning.

The area must have been dessmated by forest fires a few years ago becasue as far as you can see, the area is burned out. Purple strife is coming out of the previous forests, covering the fields in shades of pink. Got to Chicken and stopped at a RV campground that has a site for panning. A few retirees who live year round on RVs showed us the technique for panning. You do get gold, but microscopic dots of gold. I quess we can't expect to pay for our trip by panning.
We will pan a little tomorrow before starting off to Dawson City. We want to travel on the "top of the World Highway". Dawson City is supposed to have a music festival going on so we may see what's happening. Few photos today as we just drove and backtracked over the roads we used to get to Valdez.
Have really noticed the difference in the light at njight over the past few nights...or should I say days. Go to bed after 11:00 and it's still daylight and when I awake during the night, seems like the lights are still on. Full light by 5:00 a.m. The sun does down slightly, but it's like dusk all night.

Gas:
Glennallen, AK $3.409/gal 5.459 gal $18.61 total US
Tok, AK $3.329/gal 3.006 gal $10.01 total US

Chicken Gold Camp, Chicken, AK $10/night plus $10/person to pan for gold.

The weather started off cool, about 54 degrees, but by the time we arrived in Tok, the temperature shot up to about 75 degrees, making the day comfortable. A few hints of thunder, but no rain is forecast.

Highway 4 to Valdex is paved and was in very good condition. Hwy 1, the Alaska Highway is paved and was in excellent condition from Tok to Glennallen. From Tok to Chicken, the road started off paved, but started to change between pavement and a tarred gravel surface. A few loose gravel sections. Within 5 miles of Chicken, the road is loose gravel. Not to thick, but a lot of small potholes to chatter your teeth.