Alaska 2012
 
 

Day 10

July 14

 
   
 
 
 

There's a really nice wide walking path that runs parallel to the highway - almost wide enough for a car. I figure it's probably used a lot by four wheelers and snow mobiles during the winter. The distance to Fast Eddy's is about a mile, so a walk up for breakfast and back will be about right. There's lady walking in front of me and she is going at a pretty good clip. I normally walk at a little better than three miles an hour, but she is really cooking. When she makes her turnaround, I smile and say

"Boy, you set a really good pace".

She smiles back and answers "Yes, it keeps the blood flowing at my age."

Soon I'm at Fast Eddy's and make my way through the work trucks and inside. I depart a little from my usual and get an omelet and gravy and biscuits. I was raised on sweet milk gravy since we usually had an old milk cow, a little meat grease and some flour. The omelet is very tasty and the gravy's not bad, but the biscuits have been laying around somewhere. From now on when I see gravy and biscuits on the menu, I'll ask how fresh are the biscuits! Having fed the beast, I settle up and walk back to the motel. Alain has his stuff ready to roll and it doesn't take me long to get mine ready. Today's route is another complicated one - Get on the ALCAN which is now A2 and keep going until we get to Fairbanks. The ALCAN officially ends in Delta Junction, but A2 goes on to Fairbanks.

 
  
 Once we're on the road, we pass by another area that has faced the ravages of a forest fire.  
  
 You would think that the farther north you got, the more snow you would see on the mountains, but that does not seem to be the case. I guess it's a function of altitude and weather conditions for the particular area.  
  
 For the most part we have the road all to ourselves and it's a time of quiet contemplation. But then ...  
  
 here come's a Bullwinkle strolling across the road. He's in no hurry so we might as well not be either. 
  
 A little further along, we see more of the same tribe of the 'Moosites'. The funniest part of it is of all the moose warning signs we've seen, we've not seen one on this stretch of road. I guess the moose can read and have it figured out how to confuse the humans.  
  
 

When we get to Delta Junction, we decide to see whether we want to take the southern route to Denali and then Fairbanks, or go straight to Fairbanks and then Denali. We've got time today and that would save us time tomorrow. It looks like a toss-up, so I give Fred a chance to decide. He says going through Fairbanks is quicker, but I also remember he is a Frustrating Rebellious Electronic Device, so we break out a pieces of ancient papyrii to verify. I have to apologize to him for he is correct in his instructions. So we head for Fairbanks, figuring we'll check in, unload the bikes, then head for Denali.

I've been to Fairbanks before and it is just another large city. But it did have quite a few lodging options and the route worked so here we are. As we come into the edge of town, we pass by the Eielson Air Force Base.

 
  
 Then we have a bit of a surprise. I know Fred is prone to mischief, but I had no idea he had guided us this far off our route. The next you know, we'll be seeing ...  
  
 Santa Claus's house!  
  
 Since Alain and I have probably not been too good, we decide not to get off at Santa Claus Lane and take the chance. 
  
 

We arrive at the Super 8 just about right to check in. As I listen to the lady behind the desk, I know 'she ain't from around here' so I ask her. She says -

"I'm from Lebanon Corners Kentucky near Shelbyville."

"What in the world is a Kentucky girl doing way up here?" I ask.

"Well, it's a long story but when I got off the plane, it was fifty below. I'd much rather have the hundred degrees back home than that any day!"

I can't disagree with her at all on that one.

 
  
 We get the bikes unloaded, then light out for Denali. It will be about two hundred miles round trip but we have plenty of daylight since it doesn't hardly get dark this time of year. The road leading into Denali is a nice run alongside a river.  
  
 It looks to be full of glacial silt and moving pretty quick, so I don't know if I would want to go swimming in it or not.  
  
 

We stop at the visitor's city for the park and it is pretty busy. There's only about 15 miles of paved road so we figure we'll ride to the end of it and decide what to do from there. The surrounding area is luscious green that leads up to barren mountain sides.

 
  
 Near the end of the pavement is the Mountain Vista Trailhead. It's a nice facility and affords a view of Denali. I am always amazed at the tussle over whether to call it Mount McKinley or Denali. It's been going on for years and so far the 'Mount McKinley' side has always won, though the national park is called Denali. 
  
 It's hard to see the 'old man' as they call Denali, but he occasionally breaks through the heavy cloud cover. 
  
 But you can only look at a mountain so long, so we mount up and head back out of the park.  
  
 The scenery is not too spectacular in this part of the park, but the frequency of patrolling park rangers is.  
  
 As the sky grows darker, I figure we will encounter some liquid sunshine before we make it back to Fairbanks.  
  
 The road is periodically broken by areas of gravel that are pretty rough. But if you hit them at a good clip, you can sail right across without too much drama. 
  
 The patches of blue give me some hope of a dry arrival but not much.  
  
 I can only imagine what this scene must look like in the middle of the winter. I'll bet that it is a lot more white and a lot less blue and green.  
  
 Once we're out of the park, we make pretty good time back towards Fairbanks.  
  
 But the rain catches us and we pull into this scenic pull off so I can put on my rain gear.  
  
 We figure down in the valley where Fairbanks sits is going to be pretty wet.  
  
 And we are right. But the rain stops for a while, and we are treated to a rare sight - a double rainbow.  
  
 There's a Denny's just down the street, so it gets picked for supper. It's claim to fame is it is the 'Northernmost Denny's In The World'.  
   
 

After the meal, I'm glad the place has at least one claim to fame. Since it's the only close option for breakfast and I don't want to try the sweet roll routine again, at least I have breakfast sorted. And besides, you have to work real hard at messing up hen fruit and pig meat. We get back to the room and we catch up on our emails and such. Then Alain asks me -

"Would you like some of that fudge I got in Hyder?"

My reply is quick - "Am I breathing?" and we both laugh.

With the fudge quickly polished off, I crash quicker than an airplane with only one wing.