Day 1 - Departing Kelowna

Starting km approx 16,870

Jeff and Cipi arrived Tuesday late. We had some beer and pizza that J and I ordered earlier. The drive was brutal on both since they had little sleep prior to departure and then drove from 3am Sunday to Tuesday AM with a 30 minute sleep break and a stop over to look at a natural wonder site. Their last stretch was done in the dark on rural mountain roads with steep cliffs, curved roads and wild life warnings - just the kind of road that one wants to do sleep deprived. The last 123 km are very scenic but were driven at slow speeds and driver change every 30 minutes. It’s amazing what a couple of slices of pizza and a few beers can do to help a transition into their part 1 recovery sleep. Cipi works in construction, so he is up early everyday. Day 1 was no exception. Clearly, both would be exceptionally tired before end of day today. 

Cipi and Mike got up early and took the BMW to the dealer in West Kelowna to get tires changed and oil/filter replaced.

Appointment was for Wednesday based on original travel expectations, but we asked to get appointment changed to Tuesday. Fortunately, dealer Bentley Motors holds a few traveler spots open in the morning and was kind enough to take my bike in. That is the sign of a great dealership and I really appreciate their service commitment. It’s much better than most BMW dealers who offer adventurers on a timeline appointments in 2 weeks. Bike was ready for noon. 

Internet and City apps are awful in the Arctic

Trying to post the blog and the blogger app insists on a log in. Hard to do if there is no internet. Instagram and Apple Music are the same. I think they expect periodic validation that you are who you say you are - great in an urban setting - terrible in remote or rural settings. 

Rogers service is terrible in the North West, but Bell is passable.

I am sitting in the campground and the jack pines are raining cones around us as the wind rustles through the trees.

Pics

A small teaser. 

Midnight in fort McPherson

We Did it !!!!!

We rode the Dempster past the Arctic Circle to Inuvik. At first I wanted to write that we conquered the road, but no one owns the Dempster. The road changed on the way up and back. Sections that were bad on the way up were good on the way down and vice versa. The locals tell us the road changes by the hour. It was sunny in Inuvik when we arrived, raining when we left. When the road gets wet, it gets slippery, when they are grading it, it gets ugly. The area had excessive rain for weeks and we got on days after it reopened but there were still repairing big sections. Rivers overflow and take out 75 feet of road. 

The road has two major mountain ranges and they are like nothing we have ever seen - I think any Arctic mountain ranges have similar characteristics. The photos give an impression of the scenery but you need to see it to get full effect. At the border of Yukon and Northwest Territories, a native family showed us how they pick cloud berries - that only grow at altitude in wet lands. Up here, everything is either raised road, rock or wetland. 98% is wet land.

In Inuvik, a native woman gave us smoke dried fish. An entire filet of fish is cut in a checker pattern and hung to dry. This process shrinks the flesh to small squares that are like jerky in texture and easy to break out. An elder native explained that when you have dried fish, you can travel for ever. They are proud of their traditions. The preservation process keeps a the fish skin in perfect condition so you can see what species the meat came from.

Sorry for not posting more - we are in Dawson City - there is little to none Internet or cell service in the north. Eagle Plains offers 100 meg for $5 since it goes over satellite. Also, we are traveling 12 to 14 hours per day. Here, the sun sets at 10:30 and there is twi-light til midnight. Up north, sunset is 11:30. I will post pictures when there is a bit more time and bandwidth.

My fellow travellers, Jeff and Cipi are ecstatic with the trip, scenery and camping experience. Cipi loves his hammock tent. Ahh yes - the Artic Circle photo - Cipi is actually beaming with pride and accomplishment. That's his "Rambo - damn I'm happy" look. 

Today, Chicken, Tok and Fairbanks Alaska. 

Saturday August 13

Today, I make it to Kelowna and the end of Leg 1. How fast time flies when you are having fun. 

I get up at 5:45 and start packing but reflection has revealed the morning routine bottle neck is the eat/dump shower routine since I can’t pack the eye drops until after the shower and the toiletries back until drops are done. I generate a temporary solution to that problem and all the bags are packed quickly. Steve is no where to be seen (turns out he had already dumped his old oil at a gas station disposal site. He drops by as I am almost finished loading the bags and we head out for coffee and I have a Tim’s egg sausage meal. Another lengthy conversation on business, politics and motorcycling and we end up with a later start. I load the last bags and sweep the room and he’s had his shower/dump and is putting on his helmet while I’m strapping down my sandals. Darn, I can’t go fast. 

We fill with gas and I am relieved that even with the mountain runs, the lack of wind allows the computer to announce we can now go 530km on the full tank. The morning is cool and Steve stops to put on a sweater. I have a panic attack because find my phone app reports my iPad is back in Cranbrook. I turn around but then remember putting it in the top case. I pull over and check - sure enough, it’s where it should be - darn technology.

Coffee stop is at Tims in Creston and accompanied by another long chat. It’s getting hot and Steve’s sweater comes off. The charted route stays west on Highway 3 but 3A offers an exceptionally scenic loop. If I had more time/ energy that would be the choice, but today Kelowna fast is the target. 

The next stop is just past the top of Nancey Green park. Steve needs to reduce heat so he switches to tank top. Lots of bikes on this stretch and we hear one bike blasting his horn, turn around and there are three deer crossing the road. Wild life encounter number 2. We chat for half an hour and now I’m antsy to get on the road. His ride ends at Grand Forks so we say our good byes. The ride in this area is excellent and the view of the cliff road Christina lake is what makes trips like this worth while. 

The last stretch of road is Highway 33, a 123km stretch of remote mountain highway at altitude. There very few vehicles, few straight sections and steep mountains on each side. I’m eager to end the ride and say hello to Jonathan but this is a fitting way to end the ride. The final sections is Big White ski resort which has a steep descent and lots of curves. Half way down, behind a blind bend, a brain surgeon decided to park his pickup and trailer so that the trailer crossed the middle of the right hand lane - no cones or warnings above the curve. The car in front of me swerves and I react to it’s brake lights. Fortunately, there was no opposing traffic. A bike going hot through those corners would have clipped the trailer. 

Julie texted Jonathan’s address and we unloaded the bike. Nice to see him again. He has a great location with a pool but no transportation and he’s way out of town. We go for pizza that is in the condominium grounds, walk about parts of the golf course - Quail Run. It’s a good course with a $150 greens fee. 

I’m tired so off to bed early. Tomorrow, seriously look at reducing gear for the Inuvik run. I weigh the gear and have 180lbs of stuff. While that’s well within the weight rating for the bike, the top heavy weight will not be good on the dirt roads. 

Got a text from Jeff - he and CiPi are on the road. They have two long days of driving ahead of them, arriving on Tuesday. My tire appointment is at 9am Wednesday and I hope to be on the road by early afternoon.

Friday August 12

It takes almost an hour to pack all the bags and fasten them to the bike. That’s not good. I need to reduce weight and stuff for the second leg. The bike is top heavy and that will make the dirt roads more dangerous. Fill the tank and the bike becomes wobbly. Today, the computer says it will only take me 430km. I suspected that the wind may have reduced the mileage but would never have expected by that much. Today will tell since the wind is gone. 

I stop at the Medicine Hat TeePee and take a photo for Colin, who hails from Medicine Hat and tongue in cheek reminds us how important the worlds large tee pee is as a tourist beacon. You can see from the photo that today was not one of the more busy days. 

The highways run through the middle of small towns so I get behind a pickup truck that know where the speed traps are and a able to make up some time. We get to a town, slow down, hit the one stop light and then back up to speed. On one of these stops, I can see a motorcycle off in the distance and after a few towns, catch up to him … It’s Steve. He’s an early riser, got on the road early and got ahead of me. There is a lesson there. He has one back to pack and off he goes. More hours on the road = more distance. 

We stop for gas and a smoke (Steve) in Coalhurst and pull over to take pics of the bikes. A brief get to know you conversation extends into 45 minutes, 2 coffees and 5 cigarettes. This pattern would follow until we part ways in Grand Forks BC. 

Off in the distance we can see the foot hills and storm cells to the left and right. I’m getting excited because we were hitting the mountains (did I tell you I love riding in mountains). I should stop to take pics, but now we are two riders and no communicators. Traffic is heavy with tourists in Crows Nest Pass. I was thinking mountain pass like one of the Colorado passes. Those came later,  but this was a very busy mountain town with buildings everywhere and not much of a mountain top. We drove through this amazing jumble of rocks and boulders in a suburb of Crows Nest called Frank. Looking up the mountain to the left, it was obvious that all that debris came of the mountain recently. Some of the boulders were as big as cars and trucks and the debris field was cleared to build the highway. Later, I research the famous Frank rock slide and realized I had seen a documentary about the event. The pictures do not compare to real life. 

Traffic started to die down a bit after Crows Nest and the roads had ample passing zones to get around the campers, dawdlers and heavily laden trucks. After days of straight line riding, I had to get used to sweepers. The top heavy luggage printed spirited riding. For uphill passing, Dynamic mode helps deliver extra power quickly.

We get some proper mountain passes and all of the terrain associated with a region like this up the hill, down the hill, through the valley, over the river, up the hill …. After Colorado, this is no longer new and I find myself comparing BC to Colorado. I wish I had done this first, then I could compare Colorado to BC. The reality is, Colorado is more spectacular. Canadians are a practical bunch. Roads are built efficiently and cheaply so they follow rail road tracks and cross the lowest passes. In Colorado, roads are built over the steepest passes - just because. Gold built the road, government pork belly funded a road. Look at the million dollar highway - a lot of money for marginal economic value. BC travel is Canadian travel. Colorado is for the best roads in the mountains. 

We end up for a rest stop in Cranbook. There is a group of Harley riders off to a bike party up the road, riding custom bikes suitable for a ride to Starbucks but not mountain roads. One bike was a hard tail with a metal bike seat. The only rear suspension was the two little springs on the seat. The tank was so small, it could ride 75km, so a plastic gas can ruined the lines on the welded chain “luggage rack”. The handle bars were a 2 foot pipe at shoulder level and the foot pegs put the rider in the same position as a gynecologist’s chair. 

It’s been hot, we could go for a few more hours but Steve wants to change the oil on his bike so we stay since there is a Canadian tire in just down the street. Steve replaced his Metzler tires in Brandon - the BMW dealer ignored him and the Kawasaki dealer made a spot for him. The oil is changed in the parking lot with an aluminum turkey pan and rubber hose. He’s an iron butt rider so this is a regular event on a ride. He offers me an honorable out for using the BMW dealer for an oil change since the bike is still in warranty, and he did use a dealer to change the tire. 

Dinner is at Frank's, an excellent Ukrainian restaurant that serves monster portions of schnitzel. Food is good but we can’t finish it. 

Thursday Aug 11

Today is a full day of prairie riding. It didn’t rain again even through the forecasts promised it, so I pay no attention to predictions of rain in the Calgary area.

The Trans Canada highway takes a longer route with a north dogleg, so I decide to take the more rural highway 2. It’s only 100 kph and two lanes, but there is almost no traffic. Yes, the land is flat and the farms are massive, but when you look at the big picture, the textures and patterns of the different crops, farm buildings and frequent large shallow ponds, create a fascinating tapestry. The photographer in me wanted to stop, but I was on a mission and time was of the essence. Besides, the best photos needed moody lighting so early morning or evening were best, with a thunderstorm thrown in for good measure. If you look at Google maps zoomed in, you will note that this area has thousands of ponds, all shallow and some quite large. I guess they hold the rain water in the flat lands, that would normally fill a big lake in Ontario. 

For large parts of the trip, oil wells dotted the fields. No doubt, these farmers had a guaranteed source of income, regardless of crops. It reminded me of Texas before fracking. 

My sub conscious notes that all the regular gas stations are missing from this road. In place are co-op card lock stations. The computer says I have 202km of fuel but I check the GPS for the next gas station - 186km away, a Petro Canada and Esso. That’s a bit tight, but the option is to turn around. Good thing the GSA has a big tank. Gas is in Redvers, just past the Saskatchewan border. The PetroCan only sells regular gas, so I head on to the Esso. What???? Regular only. I startled the lady stocking shelves in the store to ask if she knew where I could get premium gas. She didn’t know, maybe Carlyle or Regina. The answer was Carlyle - 43km away. I guess the rural world is small in that part of the world, or none of the vehicles in Redvers consume premium gas. I don’t fill the tank - but since there is no certainty where the next premium gas can be found, the octane levels will be lower for a while. Wonder how the bike will run since premium is scarce in the far north. The bike actually runs well, power is off a bit, but since there are no cars - I don’t need to worry about passing. Weyburn is large enough to have all of the major gas brands, so I fill up with premium. With a full tank, the computer reports that the bike has a range of 470km instead of the normal 530km range. Did the regular fuel do that? We’ll find out later. 

One of the neat aspects of prairie travel, is that you can see the rain from miles away. The route took us north west on 39 to rejoin the trans Canada at Medicine Hat. Now there are storms all around and some on my route. When data is available on the cell phone, the GPS reports rain on my route with options to reroute (nice feature). I’m going to get wet. The road is wet in sections where prior storms passed. A brief stop in Wilcox adds the rain suit and goretex gloves. The iPhone goes into the waterproof tank bag and just as I get back on the bike, the advance drops start hitting and the squall line is half a km away. This will test how waterproof the helmet and new rain jacket are - they passed the test. 

It’s strange, in and out of rain and then hot. By the time we reach Medicine Hat, I’m cooking but the storms on the horizon force status quo. The winds, which were constant before are downright ugly now. The huge bundle of bags and top case act like a sail and the bike needs to be leaned over aggressively to maintain a straight line and the gusts, well, they just help keep me awake. The terrain has changed to rolling hills - similar to Nebraska. There is no equivalent in Ontario. When the road rises to the top of a large hill, the full blast of the wind hits the bike. 

The only photo I took of a storm is in Moore Lake while getting gas at a cheesy Esso/convenience store. There was a line containing multiple storms passing by every 15 minutes. The storms were small, in some cases less than a km wide but they were shakers, in between sun shine. 

I met an guy on a BMW 1200GT, a road bike. This model was the first release of what was later to become the 1300GT - a fast and comfortable sport touring bike. We chatted - he is semi retired living in London and traveling to BC to visit a friend for a few days, then return. His passion is motorcycle touring and he does iron butts. We wait out a storm and decide to ride together for a while. He did 1,100km yesterday so he’s cutting off at Swift Current, but I want to make it to Medicine Hat so we part ways under sunny (and hot with a rain jacket on) skies with a honk and a wave. 

Off in the distance, the sky is black as night - that’s the storm Steve wanted to avoid. Time for equipment waterproof test number 2. I put the bike into rain mode to soften power delivery when passing and tune up the ABS for wet roads. The temps drop rapidly from 30C to 16C and the rain hits hard. Everyone slows down - a good thing because the spray from tires combines with the rain to severely reduced visibility. I am glad of the decision to put the new tire on the back. The old one would have been hydroplaning with this much water on the road. After a wile the rain stops and I can see that the next few waves of rain are off to the south. This may not be so bad after all because blue skies are starting to show in the direction of Medicine Hat. 

I have memories of Medicine Hat from my early work days as an auditor, driving into town over the gully, setting up in the hotel at 9PM and doing CGA assignment until 2am and then grabbing a few zzz’s before starting the audit at 9. 

Dinner is at Perkins - I go for a soup and southern chicken avocado salad. The salad will feed two people but the Avocado slices look like there were frozen a year ago and thawed just for me - I would call it a chicken salad. 

I wash the bugs off the bike, bags and helmet. It’s unbelievable how many insects thrive in that area. I couldn't imaging riding a naked bike (no wind screen) and not having a full face helmet. The few times I rode visor up, the bug strikes stung like a son of a gun and a wasp stinger works as well splattered as alive. 

According to the original plan, I was supposed to be in Creston BC this evening. I guess I’ll need to adjust the parameters for the next leg …