chasingsummerp.002
Chasing Summer p.003
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Day 7 - August 22nd - Hyder to Watson Lake
Oatmeal for breakfast at the campground. With the fog it almost looks like home...
Packing the tents, still really wet
Part of the morning routine: clean the visor from all the bugs. In the North we have to do that at least 4 times a day,
We decide to cross the border and see Hyder this morning.
Hyder is in a strange situation. It’s part of Alaska, so it’s American but they’re only connected by land to Stewart in Canada. So they end up depending on their Canadian neighbors on most things including schools and such.
No one checked us while entering the US - I don’t even think there is a custom/immigration office there.
The town itself has little to offer but the views, especially from the long pier are stunning!
What a great start for the day!
The team is really happy!
Surprisingly (since we left it 1/2 h ago) going back to Canada is quite a serious thing! Not as long as the first time but still.
Views on the way to Stewart...
And on the 37A going back East...
Creeks and cascades everywhere
No pictures of them but I finally saw my first bears of the trip! The first one was a youngster that quickly ran to the bushes while the 2nd encounter was a mother with her 2 cubs who were having fun not far away from the road.
One more road block! That one was great though because the flag pole man was such a character...
The other good thing is that we were stopped close to the Glacier so I could took more pictures.
A last one of that gentle giant
Back on the 37th North. The problem with the constantly changing weather is that you might not be dressed accordingly.
What's for lunch today? Pep'n'Ched? Looks delicious
The weather gets nicer and we can enjoy Hope Lake on the way but not much else on that road.
Finally! After days of travelling in British Columbia we enter in the Yukon.
Watson Lake is not very appealing. The most famous attraction must be the "Forest of Signs" brought by people from all over the word.
We go grab some food at a supermarket and go camping. There will be no biers tonight though since the State liquor shops close early and the other ones are expensive and offer little choice.
We decided to try one of those Yukon State campgrounds. For $12 you have a table, BBQ pit and as much free firewood as you need. Pretty nice! Teryk makes good use of his ax/machete...
... While I prepare the dinner
Day 8 - August 23rd - Watson Lake to Faro
We fill the gas tank to the max as well as my auxiliary 1.25 gallon gas can: today we're going up the Campbell Hwy and there is no gas (or anything else for that matter) before Ross River, 240 miles away.
The Campbell Hwy is a nice dirt road that was in pretty good shape. The first part was not that fun though: mostly straight and with a dense forest on each side of the road blocking most of the vue. Then it got better...
It's hard to show the beauty of those regions because a lot of it comes from the scale; everything is so big! The sky seems bigger, the ever changing clouds, majestuous. All this cannot be shown on pictures (at least not on mines).
That cloud was just a bit too dark for our taste and since it was lunch time we decided to have a break just before to leave the sunny zone.
It worked pretty good! We finished our sandwiches and when we left we just hit a very light rain.
There were also hundreds of lakes! From small ponds to big ones, in every shape or form. It was beautiful.
Seing a town's name on a map doesn't mean much around here: it often is only a gas station and a few houses. Despite its remoteness Fort Ross had several houses, a school and the gas station doubled as grocery/hardware and anything else that people might need.
I took the opportunity to adjust the tension of the chain. It's always a bad sign when you have to do it often. I better get one when I'll reach Fairbanks.
The camping in Faro is one of those nice Yukon State ones. It was absolutely empty but for us. As usual, plenty of firewood was available.
It was really cool to be by ourselves there after a relatively short riding day. But it started to rain and it looked like it would last
. So our favorite Boy Scout gets in action.
He gets/cuts poles and strap them on the table on one side, the motorcycle on the other.
The problem is that our tarp is very small and so we have to sit on the table to be protected
.
At least that protects our gear and it's better than sitting under that rain.
Luckily the rain stops after a while and we can enjoy the sunset on the lake.
A dragonfly is keeping us company
It's time to enjoy our "cow boy dinner": a big can of beans heated on the fire and a couple of tortillas.
Day 9 - August 24th - Faro to Dawson City
7am, I’m sitting in my tent with the sound of the rain above my head. Rain is just part of an Alaskan trip; we had been warned about it. It rained everyday since we left California but luckily it was never a real heavy rain and we could often see a bit of blue sky somewhere in the horizon.
This morning the sky is uniformly gray with no hint on how long the rain may last. It’s never fun to ride in the rain but when you’re already en route and with the right gear it’s not such a big deal. Packing and getting ready in the rain is a different story! So, we’re waiting, trying to evaluate if there is an evolution (good or bad) in the strength of the rain. I take the opportunity to type those notes in the moment, a thing that I cannot do often enough.
Oh, I forgot to mention that last night a really big fox came to visit our campground! He approached and stayed at a dozen yards from us, curious and looking at us. We couldn't believe our eyes and kept staring for half a minute. When we went slowly to grab our cameras he continued his way with no hurry. Magic!
The rain doesn't stop so we decide to get up anyway and pack. Here I am having our usual oatmeal under the rain.
We have to pack everything wet but when we leave the rain is much lighter. The road is still beautiful, especially the Little Salmon Lake, narrow but very long just on the side of the road.
I think that's the Big Salmon river...
Teryk admiring the islands on the river
We then gas up in Carmacks and hit the Klondike Hwy North. The traffic is definitely not a issue in this season!
I'm don't know why there were so many of those wood piles along the road...
One of our attempts to find a dirt road along the way.
We finally arrive in Dawson City!
It's a legendary city from the Gold Rush era. People seem strangely dressed though...
At the visitor center we understand why: there is the Gold Panning World Championship in town! I had no idea such a thing existed but it seems popular with 20 countries represented.
The consequence for us is that most hotels are full but we find something in the annex of the Midnight Sun Hotel. The annex is on the right of this picture.
Here is the annex. The room was not great but still okay.
We take a tour in the city that has a very good feeling. Many buildings are still from the 'old days' and the streets are just dirt with wooden sidewalks. Sure, some have been renovated or even transformed in museum but it's not overly done, unlike many places in California.
There are also plenty of houses not renovated which adds to the charm.
A very nice city indeed, but we were wondering about those party stories we had read in this site. The town is pretty small and seems rather quite. Little did we know!
Starting at the Bombay's pub and meeting some locals who took us to "Antoinette", a very nice small restaurant where we even shared a plate of escargots as appetizers. At the end of the dinner, we were the only ones left in the restaurant and Antoinette (the owner and Chef) who knew the persons we were with offered us a bottle of wine on the porch. It's always fascinating for me to discuss with people who decided to move up here in the Big North. Antoinette and her son (who was helping as a waiter) came from the Caraibs, quite a contrast with the Yukon!
But like others she was really loving her life here including in Winter. That's maybe my biggest surprise: most people love the Summer but are also looking forward to the Winter when things slow down and the snow makes everything quiet and pristine.
Then we went back together to the pub, then visited the Diamond Tooth Gerties but missed the last show. It's a sort of old style bar/casino with dancers show. We learned later that it's a 'non-profit' meaning that all the benefits go to the town. Then we ended up at the Pit a rough bar for locals, then maybe another bar where we played pool
