A Continuing Conversation

Friend. So how was it from Destruction Bay to Whitehorse.

Peace Rider: You know Ì'm blessed to be doing this but this stretch of highway was the roughest yet weather wise. At the end of the day past D Bay my legs were jello, 20 kt headwinds for about 10 miles south, grades were gentle but pumping all the way. After that the wind gradually subsided as I turned the corner and crossed Slims R. by Sheep Mountain.

To paraphrase Red Green, I discovered the handy bikers secret hideaway in a headwind - culverts, dry this time of year, a four footer for one snack break and a six footer for another.

After the first, Trudy, a native woman from Burwash Landing stopped to asked if I was okay. She had seen me on the road earlier.

And you know when I was entering Whitehorse days later a red car pulls in front of me and stops. It was Trudy again. She was glad to see I had made it and I her. I had taken an alternate, short cut route into town at the suggestion of John Harding whom I had met at Goodies Gas and Laundromat on the outskirts of town. Reinforces for me once again there are no coincidences in life.

I had stuck up a conversation with John while he waited for his laundry to get done and I made phone calls.

Lived on a mining claim out of Whitehorse and had another near Dawson. Had lived in a tent through forty below and knew how to get by. One of those people you meet and just like and connect with.

Oh, yeah besides culverts, found a Canadian dollar in the gravel just past Soldiers Summit where US Army Engineers and workers met at the end of eight months of construction of the AK Highway during WWII. New road wider and faster but has lost something of the charm. Passed up a fine looking set of needle nose pliers. Road treasures.

F You had any snow yet?

PR Boy, did I. A front moved through during the night after I made camp south of Kluane Lake the same day out of D Bay. The weather had been clear as a bell, temps still above freezing but not much. By Christmas Creek a few miles down the road from camp it was snowing lightly and sticking.

Seven flocks of tundra swans in vee formation pasted overhead as I was walking my load up the hill. Ducks were also on the lam southbound. Oh, for a set of wings.

Several thousand duck were ashore or rafted up on the south end of Kluane Lake when I passed and stopped for water the day before. They were sheltered, out of the wind as was I, finally. Part of this lot southbound.

F How much snow did you have?

PR Well, it tapered off by afternoon but there was two to three inches of loose snow on the shoulders and hard packed on the main road from passing traffic. Ended up changing to studded tires in a snow storm out of the wind by a lake, north side of road.

Should have changed sooner. Touring tires slick as grease under these conditions.

F How far did you get that day?

PR Turned out after Christmas Creek the terrain gently falls away to Haines Junction, something you don`t pay much attention to in a car. So I was a bit surprised to be on the outskirts of Haines Junction by quitting time.

F Aren`t bears still out and about this time of year?

PR I thought they`d be getting sleepy, ready to den up by now but not so. Temps still mild.

Just before making camp after leaving D Bay a local dump truck driver stops down the road from me and backs up to tell me he had just seen a brown bear in the tree line up ahead. Bears do their thing and keep on ambling looking for food. I wasn`t on this one`s menu and never saw it but looked and kept on cranking down the road before camping.

The kindness of strangers has been a reoccurring theme and joy of this ride. Having Peace Rider, Burn Fat Not Oil definitely attracts attention as it was meant to.

F I thought you were thinking about taking the ferry from Haines?

PR Yeah, I had thought about it. Probably easier in the long run. But I have friends in Whitehorse and in Ft. Nelson that I wanted to see. Road conditions were manageable and snow was beginning to melt off the road so I turned left instead of right at the Junction.

Heard swans in the distance from camp, a few duck flew by as well. I headed out of town after making calls and buying groceries.

A few miles out of Haines J., Glen Hurlburt pulls up in front of me and stops his dual wheel diesel powered truck. Another cycler, has a local wood cutting business it turns out. Handed me $20.00 for the cause. Surprises on the road.

Further on Norbert and his partner stop in front of me and give me candy and an apple. Welcome relief from my boring fare.

On this trip I eat to live not live to eat, a fat rich diet. Cari F`s king salmon strips keep me going during a day's ride. They didn`t quite make it to their spawning grounds this far south but their essence gives me energy to make the same journey.

F Anything else happen of note?

PR Inevitably I crossed paths with someone who took exception to what I was doing.

Stopped at the Takahini rest stop for a break. An older man and wife, retired Alaskans heading to Parker, AZ, snowbirds. He wore a ball cap with a Southern Air transport logo on the front. Asked him about it, had jarred a distant memory from my military days. It is the airline of the CIA. War is good for business and good for the CIA. He said they are running a fleet of 747's into Afghanistan. His son works for SA.

Told him what I was doing. He actually got quite angry over that and some observations I made about the war. Went on a rant. Walked away and said I was all wet! A good opportunity to be fully present and practice non-violent communication skills. I'm working on it. Likely not the first dissenting voice I'll hear, part of the journey. Wished him a nice trip.

F How in the world did you end up at the Oblate Center in Whitehorse. Huh?

PR Therein is a tale but will make it brief. Many years earlier on other northern adventures by boat or kayak in the Yukon I had met Father Pierre Veyrat at Ross River. He was a French Oblate priest who had come to the Yukon as a young man and ran the Catholic mission there for 40 years. We shared a love of the outdoors and building river boats. We exchanged Christmas cards over the years and I visited him off and on over the years.

At 86, he is retired and moved to the Oblate retirement center in Whitehorse about a year and a half ago. On an earlier summer trip to Skagway this year I had stopped to see him. I did so now on a bike and found a welcome refuge and place to rest before heading on down the road.

I`ve got to git. But before I do wanted to mention I connected with Ken Madsen and family here. I had flown them into the Arctic Refuge when I still had a flying business. They are avid cyclers and made a long cycling trip last year to promote bird conservation.

Malcom their son had recently biked to Ottowa on a similar ride for the planet type of trip to stress the need for the Canadian government to address CO2 emissions. We're on the same wavelength.

F Anything else?

PR Yes, I especially wanted to thank all of you who are supporting my ride with your prayers and concern for my welfare. It helps and is deeply appreciated. I remain healthy and getting toughed up in the right places - where backside meets saddle.

And a big thank you to my good friends Ed and Jackie Debevec for their support and Ed`s expertise in setting up the blog for this ride.

Gracias a todos!