Raining on the Columbia

6/28
Mountains
Ok, Since yesterday about noon, I've been surrounded by mountains.
Well, there was a brief respite coming from Waterton International
Peace Park to Calgary but its been mostly. I think mountains are
gorgeous, pretty, inspiring and confining. Yes, you heard me right.
Confining.
Waterton was gorgeous this morning again. I was up early but not the
first person and there were about 15 cars that left before I did. I
rode straight to Calgary and arrived there about noon.
At a Wendy's for lunch I met a couple (Darrell and Jane) from PA doing
a similar ride to mine. They're heading to AK (a different route) and
then taking a longer route home. When we left Calgary, we all went to
Banfffffffffffffffffff but were separated when we entered the park so
I wish them luck in their travels. Perhaps I'll see them again in
Homer, AK.
The day started sunny but it was clouding over as I approached the
Icefields Parkway. The first sign on the parkway was about no gas for
78 km so I had to turn around and fill up before getting on it. The
Columbia Glacier was about 158 km into the parkway and it started
raining almost as soon as I got on it. By the time I got to Columbia,
I'd seen tremendous scenery, literally tens of waterfalls (melting
glaciers) and at least three glaciers but now it was raining hard. I
recall a photo from Al Gore's Unfortunate Truth showing how the
glacier had shrunk. I could tell that from the historical photos
there had. I got back on the bike and headed toward Jasper. On the
way, I saw a bunch of cars stopped and that only means one thing;
ANIMALS!. It was a half-molted dall sheep coming down the road in the
other lane. It passed us all like we weren't even there.
I got out ahead of most of the cars and about another 15 km down the
road, I was the first to see a black bear on the side of the road. I
stopped, took photos and all stopped behind me. As I was entering
Jasper, there was another holdup for an elk on the side of the road.
Jasper itself is a very touristy town. I talked to a motorcyclist
there and he was staying in a private residence that was rented for
$75/night. He said he talked to another couple that had a motel room
for over $200/night. I decided my tent space wasn't quite as
expensive as previously thought.
Its also amazing that here in Canada, I've got more reliable cell
phone service than in the western US.

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

eh?

Brrrrrrr!
While you're having a heat wave back east, I awoke to 35 degrees this
morning in Harlowton, MT. Since I was in a motel room, it was a fast
pack and go early. I headed toward GreatFalls first. That was 2
hours away and I arrived there by 9 AM. I did a quick tour of the
Lewis&Clark Interpretive Center, called home and then headed to
Glacier. As I was driving north on I-15, I could see the mountains of
Glacier off in the distance. I was still over 100 miles from it
though. I got there about 1 PM and then just did a couple of drives.
The scenery was gorgeous but what interested me was the entrances to
both the east and west side have LOTS of commercial property adjacent
to the main entrance. It was difficult to identify the visitor
centers.
I wasterribly disappointed to discover that the Road to the Sun was
still closed. I had hoped to ride that one.
About 5 PM I made up my mind to head to Canada and Waterton Glaciers
Park in Alberta for the night. The border crossing was very easy and
by 7 PM, I was setting up my camp at Waterton. The entrance fee and
camping are the most I've paid for anything yet but its a nice
campground. I've got views of glaciers, mountains and a lake from my
tentsite. There was a deer that let me walk right up to it for a
photo. There are some type of ground squirrel EVERYWHERE and, the
most prominent feature, are the seeds of the cottonwood that are
floating around enough to make it looks like a good snowstorm.
Tomorrow I head toward Jasper and Banff.

The Devil Made Me Do It

Finding Cingular access has been sparse out here so I didn't get to
post things yesterday.
The wind blew HARD during the evening and I was expecting rain any
minute. We didn't get any but it sure moved the tent all around
during the night.
I'm sure glad I have the cot along with me for sleeping. That makes
sleeping bags much more comfortable.
I woke early (no surprise) and the campground was quiet. I made my
coffee with the Jetboil and then went for a walk toward the Prairie
Dog town. I saw about 7 mule deer in the meadows near the town and
they let me get reasonably close to them by stalking technique. I
didn't walk directly at any of them but at an angle toward the read of
them.
I also tried that technique with the prairie dogs but they sent out
alarm calls too early and don't let me see them.
I returned to camp and tore it down (much easier with less wind) and
got on the road about 8 AM. I stopped in Cheyenne, WY for breakfast
and to call home. I also got some fruit and a tent peg mallet at a
Super Walmart.
I got back on route 90 and headed toward Montana. The roads were
again very long and straight as I returned to open grasslands and
semiarid desert. The pronghorns were numerous here and the agave
plants were also blooming. My first stop in MT was to be the
Battlefield site of the Battle of Little Bighorn. The site is VERY
popular so I did a stamp and go. While leaving, I did a 5 mile loop
ride that showed grave markers and talked about the battle. In
reality, I would have liked to stay longer but because of the crowds,
I couldn't get to anything quickly.
I got back on the bike and headed toward Billings. Here I gave Ruth a
call again as I knew I'd lose cellphone service soon again (and I
did). I told the GPS to get me to Glacier and it now has me on
backroads through open (and empty) MT.
It's amazing to me that I can be traveling along at 63 mph (that's
what I set the cruise control on) and I'm the slowest on the highway
BY FAR. With the roads so straight and since you can see so far, many
cars go in excess of 80 mph out here. I did see a mother skunk and
her 6-7 kits cross the highway just in front of me. It actually made
me think of my cats.
As my stopping time of 6 PM came and went with me traveling, I began
to worry about getting aplace to stay. At 7 PM, I found a motel and
decided to stay there for the first time in my trip and do some
laundry. Tomorrow was my actual laundry day but a day early was fine.
I'm now sitting in the laundromat waiting for the clothes to dry...

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

Relief!

Relief!!
Tearing down camp this morning was very difficult. The wind was
blowing so hard that I couldn't fold anything nor just set things down
without them blowing away. They had a little shed that I carried
everything over to so that I could hide behind it and fold things.
The trip across the plains is very, very dull. I had to constantly
lean the motorcycle to the left so that I could fight the wind and
keep a straight line. I was relieved when a semi would pass because
of the respite in the wind. I met a guy riding a Goldwing at a fillup
and he said the same thing, he was tired of fighting the wind.
I was hoping to make the Badlands about noon and I pulled in at 10:45
AM. I also knew that there was a NPS stamp at the newest National
Historic site in the US at the Minuteman Missile silos but I didn't
realize it was the exact same exit as the Badlands. The Minuteman VC
is new and was having fresh gravel spread out so I parked at the gas
station adjoining it. I went it, got my stamp, and watched the video
about this site. They had a virtual tour of the Delta II launch site
as a video. It was the only view I could have as they didn't allow
access to the missile silo after 11 AM (I don't know why so early) so
I hopped on the bike and headed toward the Badlands.
I had been to the Badlands in 1980 so I knew what to see and expect.
I entered the park and headed toward the vc. I got my stamp and then
proceeded on the loop drive to the town of Wall with the heavily
advertised Drug store. I saw a few mule deer while on the loop. As I
was exiting, I saw a road that looked interesting; Sage Creek Road and
I took it west. It was a gravel road and I could use the practice for
AK roads. A sign up ahead warned of bison being in free range and
sure enough, there was a small herd about 75 yards off the road. I
stayed on the road about 5 miles and then found a sign pointing me to
Wall so I turned and continued on my trip.
In Wall, I saw a sign for the Buffalo Gap Grasslands VC so I went in.
I did get a specialized stamp there and chatted with the ranger in
charge. The vc had a lot of great exhibits about the grasslands and I
wish I could bring my students here to learn about prairies. It was
awesome!!
I got back on the road to try and make Devil's Tower in WY by closing.
As I was leaving South Dakota, I passed the famous Sturgis, where the
annual motorcycle rally is held. They advertise it heavily also and
there are lots of t-shirt places to get souvenirs of it. The rally is
this August but I'll be somewhere in the SW while its going on.
The other great thing about Sturgis is that you're also out of the
prairie and into the Black Hills. That means the roads are more
interesting and have some twists and that the wind is blocked by the
hills.
With my GPS leading the way, I turned off the interstate and headed
north toward Devil's Tower. I thought the vc would close at 6 PM and
I was going to make it with 10 minutes to spare. I saw my first
Pronghorn antelope of the trip in WY on the road toward Devil's Tower.
I soon saw the tower in the distance. It has a distinctive shape and
again, I've been here before. I still had 20 miles to go but I made
it in time. They told me the vc closed at 7 PM here so I had extra
time. Good thing because the vc was VERY busy with two bus tours
there. I got my stamp and went outside to see the tower. While
standing there, a mother mule deer and her twin fawns made their way
through the valley below me. I didn't see spots on the fawns and
don't know if mule deer fawns have spots like whitetail deer fawns do.
I also chatted with a guy from TX who rode his goldwing from TX to CA
to WA and was now looping back toward home. We even considered
sharing a tent space but he needed electricity to charge his cell
phone at his camp and the campground at the park didn't have any
electrical sites. I pulled in here for the night and got all set up.
I did chat with the guy next to me also. He and his wife were from
West Virginia and had been traveling in their RV for three weeks.
Whew! It was a long day and I was ready for bed.

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

Open Sky

Finding Cingular access has been sparse out here so I didn't get to
post things yesterday.
The wind blew HARD during the evening and I was expecting rain any
minute. We didn't get any but it sure moved the tent all around
during the night.
I'm sure glad I have the cot along with me for sleeping. That makes
sleeping bags much more comfortable.
I woke early (no surprise) and the campground was quiet. I made my
coffee with the Jetboil and then went for a walk toward the Prairie
Dog town. I saw about 7 mule deer in the meadows near the town and
they let me get reasonably close to them by stalking technique. I
didn't walk directly at any of them but at an angle toward the read of
them.
I also tried that technique with the prairie dogs but they sent out
alarm calls too early and don't let me see them.
I returned to camp and tore it down (much easier with less wind) and
got on the road about 8 AM. I stopped in Cheyenne, WY for breakfast
and to call home. I also got some fruit and a tent peg mallet at a
Super Walmart.
I got back on route 90 and headed toward Montana. The roads were
again very long and straight as I returned to open grasslands and
semiarid desert. The pronghorns were numerous here and the agave
plants were also blooming. My first stop in MT was to be the
Battlefield site of the Battle of Little Bighorn. The site is VERY
popular so I did a stamp and go. While leaving, I did a 5 mile loop
ride that showed grave markers and talked about the battle. In
reality, I would have liked to stay longer but because of the crowds,
I couldn't get to anything quickly.
I got back on the bike and headed toward Billings. Here I gave Ruth a
call again as I knew I'd lose cellphone service soon again (and I
did). I told the GPS to get me to Glacier and it now has me on
backroads through open (and empty) MT.
It's amazing to me that I can be traveling along at 63 mph (that's
what I set the cruise control on) and I'm the slowest on the highway
BY FAR. With the roads so straight and since you can see so far, many
cars go in excess of 80 mph out here. I did see a mother skunk and
her 6-7 kits cross the highway just in front of me. It actually made
me think of my cats.
As my stopping time of 6 PM came and went with me traveling, I began
to worry about getting aplace to stay. At 7 PM, I found a motel and
decided to stay there for the first time in my trip and do some
laundry. Tomorrow was my actual laundry day but a day early was fine.
I'm now sitting in the laundromat waiting for the clothes to dry...

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

Relief

Relief!!
Tearing down camp this morning was very difficult. The wind was
blowing so hard that I couldn't fold anything nor just set things down
without them blowing away. They had a little shed that I carried
everything over to so that I could hide behind it and fold things.
The trip across the plains is very, very dull. I had to constantly
lean the motorcycle to the left so that I could fight the wind and
keep a straight line. I was relieved when a semi would pass because
of the respite in the wind. I met a guy riding a Goldwing at a fillup
and he said the same thing, he was tired of fighting the wind.
I was hoping to make the Badlands about noon and I pulled in at 10:45
AM. I also knew that there was a NPS stamp at the newest National
Historic site in the US at the Minuteman Missile silos but I didn't
realize it was the exact same exit as the Badlands. The Minuteman VC
is new and was having fresh gravel spread out so I parked at the gas
station adjoining it. I went it, got my stamp, and watched the video
about this site. They had a virtual tour of the Delta II launch site
as a video. It was the only view I could have as they didn't allow
access to the missile silo after 11 AM (I don't know why so early) so
I hopped on the bike and headed toward the Badlands.
I had been to the Badlands in 1980 so I knew what to see and expect.
I entered the park and headed toward the vc. I got my stamp and then
proceeded on the loop drive to the town of Wall with the heavily
advertised Drug store. I saw a few mule deer while on the loop. As I
was exiting, I saw a road that looked interesting; Sage Creek Road and
I took it west. It was a gravel road and I could use the practice for
AK roads. A sign up ahead warned of bison being in free range and
sure enough, there was a small herd about 75 yards off the road. I
stayed on the road about 5 miles and then found a sign pointing me to
Wall so I turned and continued on my trip.
In Wall, I saw a sign for the Buffalo Gap Grasslands VC so I went in.
I did get a specialized stamp there and chatted with the ranger in
charge. The vc had a lot of great exhibits about the grasslands and I
wish I could bring my students here to learn about prairies. It was
awesome!!
I got back on the road to try and make Devil's Tower in WY by closing.
As I was leaving South Dakota, I passed the famous Sturgis, where the
annual motorcycle rally is held. They advertise it heavily also and
there are lots of t-shirt places to get souvenirs of it. The rally is
this August but I'll be somewhere in the SW while its going on.
The other great thing about Sturgis is that you're also out of the
prairie and into the Black Hills. That means the roads are more
interesting and have some twists and that the wind is blocked by the
hills.
With my GPS leading the way, I turned off the interstate and headed
north toward Devil's Tower. I thought the vc would close at 6 PM and
I was going to make it with 10 minutes to spare. I saw my first
Pronghorn antelope of the trip in WY on the road toward Devil's Tower.
I soon saw the tower in the distance. It has a distinctive shape and
again, I've been here before. I still had 20 miles to go but I made
it in time. They told me the vc closed at 7 PM here so I had extra
time. Good thing because the vc was VERY busy with two bus tours
there. I got my stamp and went outside to see the tower. While
standing there, a mother mule deer and her twin fawns made their way
through the valley below me. I didn't see spots on the fawns and
don't know if mule deer fawns have spots like whitetail deer fawns do.
I also chatted with a guy from TX who rode his goldwing from TX to CA
to WA and was now looping back toward home. We even considered
sharing a tent space but he needed electricity to charge his cell
phone at his camp and the campground at the park didn't have any
electrical sites. I pulled in here for the night and got all set up.
I did chat with the guy next to me also. He and his wife were from
West Virginia and had been traveling in their RV for three weeks.
Whew! It was a long day and I was ready for bed.

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

Mariah

Away out west they've got a name,
for wind and rain and fire,
The rain is Tess, the fire is Jo and they call the wind Mariah...

That song ran through my mind lots and lots today as I crossed the
great plains. I began the day in MN in one of their state parks. It
was a very nice campground but was pricey for a tent space ($20). I
learned to put the tent under trees as the flatter spot was out in the
open but the dew came down like rain in the night so everything was
very wet when I awoke.
I did a fast stop at Spirit Lake, IA and then made it to Pipestone
National Monument in MN. Pipestone is sacred ground for a type of
Sioux Indian. The site is named for a type of stone that was used to
make peace pipes.
From there, I went to Niobraba State Park to get a stamp for the
National Wild and Scenic River (Missouri River). I then came back up
to SD and got on I90 for a short run before nightfall.
The comment about the wind was just because of how windy the plains
are. All day long, the wind was coming hard from the south. It was
challenging to keep a line on the interstate and was even harder when
trucks passed.
While I wasn't on the interstate, I saw how the wind affected the
plants and animals of the area. Cattle herd together in lower areas
so the wind goes over the top of them. Birds fly low to avoid the
wind that increases higher and they also are in lower areas more.
Trees have they branches lengthened in the direction the wind blows.
Tomorrow, I'm hoping to make it to the Badlands and perhaps into WY.

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

Mound Builders

I've had a very nice (albeit short) visit with my father and his wife,
Mary Lou. We mostly chatted but we also went to dinner theatre at the
Fireside restaurant last night in Ft. Atkinson and saw "The Odd
Couple". It was funny and was a great meal.
This morning I left about 10 AM Two of MaryLou's daughters came over
and we had a nice chat before I finished loading the bike to leave. I
did get a picture of Dad and MaryLou before I left so that will be
published earlier.

I took rte 18/151 to Dodgeville, WI and then 18 to Prairie Du Chien.
As there were two detours that slowed me way down.

They began building mounds in 1000 BC and then stopped in 1300 BC. At
one time, there were thousands of mounds in the midwest but only a few
have remained intact. Effigy Mounds National Park in IA is one place
to find them. From the ground, they look like little hills but from
the air, they take distinct shapes like bears, eagles, and deer. The
exact purpose of the mounds isn't known but they were likely some type
of gathering sites. There are bodies (remains) in at least some of
them. Actually, these mounds were used as a rationale to steal native
American lands as it was thought that native Americans were too
primitive to have built them and thus believed that the native
Americans must have slaughtered another race of mound builders.

I've had a very nice (albeit short) visit with my father and his wife,
Mary Lou. We mostly chatted but we also went to dinner theatre at the
Fireside restaurant last night in Ft. Atkinson and saw "The Odd
Couple". It was funny and was a great meal.
This morning I left about 10 AM Two of MaryLou's daughters came over
and we had a nice chat before I finished loading the bike to leave. I
did get a picture of Dad and MaryLou before I left so that will be
published earlier.

I took rte 18/151 to Dodgeville, WI and then 18 to Prairie Du Chien.
As there were two detours that slowed me way down.

The goal today was to get the NP stamp for Effigy Mounds in IA and for
Pipestone in western MN.
After that stop, I simply headed toward western MN. I'd hoped to get
to Pipestone today but didn't make it in time to get to the vc so I'll
go there tomorrow.

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

The Plague

The second I took my helmet off, I heard them. At first, I thought it
was just the ringing in my ears, but it was louder than I've ever
heard before. It was a strange buzzing coming from all around me. I
couldn't even tell if it was coming from any single direction as it
appeared to envelope me. It was then that I recalled hearing that
this was the year that the cicadas were to hatch. These
grasshopper-like insects are on a 17 year cycle and this summer was
the 17th year. I looked toward the nearby trees and that's when I saw
them. Ahhhh, its just the insects.
The Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center was the site of my second NPS
stamp of the day. This one was to commemorate the I&M Canal which was
the site of some explorer's canoe portage. I didn't have time to
explore though as I wanted to get to southern WI and my Dad's house as
quickly as I could.
Apparently though, they weren't as eager to see me leave. I left the
schoolhouse and I knew that I needed gas before going to WI. I found
a place just before getting on I-294 northbound. While getting gas, I
discovered a hitchhiker on the bottom of my pants. Cicadas, like
grasshoppers, have little hooks on their feet and this one wanted to
take a ride! Ok, I thought, lets give him one!
Because it was hot, I had vents open on my aerostich. Shortly after
getting onto the interstate, felt something INSIDE my left arm sleeve.
I had to ride to a safe place to pull over but then I stopped and
found that I'd also scooped a cicada into my jacket sleeve! I had
enough of them, I pulled the one out of my sleeve and kicked the
hitchhiker off and continued north to my Dad's.
I arrived at my Dad's house at about 5:30 PM. Its been a rough two
days (700 miles the first day and 425 the second) so it will be nice
to have a day off tomorrow and just visit my Dad.
Its likely that I won't post anything tomorrow as its a day with my
father, but who knows???

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

This is one of my cats, Giacomo.

The Journey Begins

6/20 I didn't sleep very well with the anticipation of leaving very
early. I knew that if I got on the road at 4:00 AM that I'd be able
to ride to Ohio (about 700 miles) so I was up at 3:15 to get going. I
finished the couple of things to load the bike, had a cup of coffee
and a bowl of cereal, and woke everyone to say goodbye. Ruth came out
and took a "so long" photo.

The first trajedy occurred as soon as I got on the MassPike. I had a
map of AK that didn't quite fit into the map pouch of my tank bank so
there was a gap at the bottom of it. I also had the picture of Ruth,
Alena and Kira in there. Well, the wind caught it and the picture
went flying. Ruth, can you bring me another one when you fly to AK???

Interstate motorcycling is boring at the best. I have a cruise
control on the motorcycle that some friends and I installed last year
and that works wonderfully! I set the cruise at 66 mph and just hold
on.

I ran into a little spitting rain west of Springfield and it even got
heavy for a few moments but my Aerostich suit did awesome!

The sun came out when I was about at Rochester, NY and it stayed out
mostly for the rest of the way.

In Seneca Falls, NY is a National Parks stamp that I wanted to get to
add for my National Parks Tour (NPT). It's the Women's Rights
HIstoric site. Ruth and I were there to see the site a few years ago
so this was a stamp and go but the two ladies running the visitor
center wanted to chat (I was the only visitor) so I told them about my
trip for about 10 minutes.

I rode back to I-90 and headed west again. In Buffalo, I stopped at a
toll plaza to pay the t(r)oll and forgot to rezip the sleeve on my
jacket. About two minutes later, the second trajedy of the day
struck. I saw something fly past my nose and then realized it was
about $7 that was in that jacket sleeve for tolls.
I did get one more NP stamp at the Garfield National Historic Site in
Ohio. I did walk through the exhibit quickly (they were getting ready
to close but they said they'd wait for me) and then I got back on the
bike and headed west. I was starting to drag about 5:00 PM so I got
off and found a campground to spend the night at.
I've not set up and tent and camped for quite awhile so I was
apprehensive about how long it would take. Fortunately, I was able to
get it all done in about 20 minutes or so.
I think I've got about 8 hours of riding tomorrow to get to my Dad's
in southern WI. I've not seen him in over a year so it will be good
to be there again.

--
============
Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach

This is me leaving at approximatley 4:00 am on Wednesday, June 20.

STARTING ODOMETER READING: 16813 MILES

Tomorrow is the day I’m leaving. I’m in the process of packing. The following items HAVE to fit into my motorcycle saddlebags;

• 1 bear bag
• 1 camp cot
• 1 fleece vest
• 1 jet boil: for coffee
• 1 netted body sponge
• 1 pillow
• 1 portable chair
• 1 sleeping bag
• 1 tent
• 1 wind shirt
• 10 2 oz. Dunkin Doughnuts Coffee
• 2 micro fiber towels
• 2 MRE (Meals Ready to Eat)
• 3 changes of clothes
• 30% Deet insect repellant
• Binoculars
• Camel back
• Camera and tri-pod
• Electric jacket and gloves
• First Aid bag
• Machete
• Magnifying glass
• Rain gloves
• Toiletries
• Touring gloves
• Travel alarm clock

Tomorrow’s plan is to drive from my house to route 90 onto, the MASS Turnpike, into Ohio. That would be approximately 600 miles. This is what I call an ambitious first day!!!!!! I have two National Park stops on the way; Women’s Rights Memorial in New York and the President Garfield Site in Ohio.

The Bike

I purchased a new motorcycle in January of 2006 that I thought would
be a good bike for the trip; a leftover 2005 Suzuki DL650 (wheeStrom).
Lots of factors went into that decision but that isn't the focus of
this. There have been lots of modifications to the bike to make it
roadworthy for Alaska.
The DL650 has had the following modifications to make it better for
riding in AK;
Rox risers
Grip heaters
Grip puppies
MRA Vario windscreen
MadStad windshield bracket
Stebel horn
BlueSeas fuse block
2 powerlet outlets
Audiovox cruise control
Datel voltmeter
Happy Trails panniers and rack
Givi E42 (?) topcase
Garmin 2610 GPS and hardwire for it
Fenda extenda
Hyperlites brake light flasher
Diamondstar Headlight modulator

The time draws near....

For those of you following my journey, my estimated time of departure is Wednesday, June 20th. This may be delayed for one day to the 21st depending upon how fast I can pack when I return from grading AP Biology exams in Louisville, KY. If you just want to read about my trip, skip ahead to those days now....

THE PLAN: I'm going to ride my motorcycle (Suzuki DL650) from my home in Hudson, Massachusetts to Alaska. My wife is flying to Alaska to meet me in Anchorage and we're renting a motorcycle (Kawasaki KLR650) for her from Alaska Rider Tours. She and I are making a loop ride from Anchorage up to Denali where we'll do a flightseeing tour (landing on Ruth Glacier) and then continue up to Fairbanks. If the weather cooperates, we'll continue to above the arctic circle to Coldfoot. We're then riding back to Fairbanks and to Valdez (site of the infamous oil spill) and raking a ferry (with the motorcycles) across Prince William Sound. We land in the port of Whittier on the Kenai Peninsula and will ride over to Homer. We're taking a flight here across to Katmai National Park and seeing grizzly bears eating salmon as they jump up a waterfall.

THE TIMING; Basically, all summer. I leave on June 20 (or 21st) and pick up Ruth in Anchorage on July 5th. Because I'm taking the lllllloooooonnnnnnnggggggg way home, I'll return about August 21st or so.

CERTIFICATIONS/RALLIES; Well, there are a few of these that I'm shooting for along the way. I think tops on my list is the Ironbutt Association's Master Traveler Gold certificate which requires me to visit at least 50 National Parks within 25 different states including AK, CA, FL and ME.

Secondly, I'm going to combine this with an Ultimate Cross Country ride. This is another Ironbutt certificate in which you ride from Prudhoe Bay, AK to Key West, FL within 28 days.

Another certification is the Southern California Motorcycle Association's 4-Corners tour. This involves exactly what the name implies, traveling to the 4 corners of the US; Blaine, WA, San Ysidro, CA, Key West, FL and Madawaska, ME within 21 days.

Finally, I'm also going to take some photos along the way for the American Motorcyclist Association's GrandTours which are year long scavenger hunts on the motorcycle.