June 30, 2022 - New Hazelton, BC - 330 miles

We rode most of today southbound on the Stuart-Cassier Highway (Highway 37).  The weather started out in the mid 50s so we broke out the electric heated gear until it reached the mid 70s. There was no rain or winds to speak of. Highway 37 is remote with its condition ranging from unmarked, narrow and no shoulder, to beautiful 2-laned, marked, wide, no potholes and a paved shoulder. We made good time and pulled into New Hazelton around 3:30pm.

New Hazelton is a nice town. It is at the the confluence of the Bulkley and Skeena rivers with beautiful views of snow capped Mt. Thomlinson. There are a lot of parks in the town and a small hospital. It would be a nice place to escape the Florida summer for a month or so if it wasn't almost 5,000 miles away.

Tomorrow we continue south-bound to Quesnel, BC about 345 miles.

Scenic highway sign for Highway 37

We met Armando and his wife Paula this morning in the parking lot of our hotel in Dease Lake. They were with a group of riders who live in Houston and are originally from Portugal. He offered to guide or give us advice on riding in Portugal. You never know.

Our home away from home in New Hazelton, BC

One-lane bridge over the Skeena River

View from the road in New Hazelton 

There are a lot of bugs in Canada and they like the GS

June 29, 2022 - Dease Lake, British Columbia - 160 miles

Sooz and I had a light day today so we slept in and had a nice leisurely breakfast before we hit the road. Highlight of the day was seeing a black bear peeking out from brush on the side of the road and then turning away from the road and heading back in the woods when I beeped my horn. The bike has a loud air horn so I don't blame him.

From Watson Lake we took the Stuart-Cassier Highway (route 37) south. It is a paved road but is rural with no shoulders or stripes. We were taking our time enjoying the remote scenery and got passed by a fish and game bear trapper truck and trailer with an empty bear cage.

We have a nice room in Dease Lake with pretty good wifi so I'm catching up on some photos below.  Tomorrow is a long day of 330 miles to New Hazeldon, BC.

143 miles with no gas on the Stuart-Cassier Highway - Route 37

Remote Route 37

We stopped at the Jade Shop to check it out and have a picnic bite to eat. They have had 7 seasons of a reality show on the Discovery Channel 

They send their jade to China to have it carved and sent back.

Several photos below from our visit to the Alaska Museum in Juneau a couple of days ago.

I thought it was a motorcycle riding suit but it's a whaling suit made by the Inuit 

I really liked the mask collection 

Whaling harpoon guns

Photo of the Princess May

Baby snow suit 

June 28, 2022 - Watson Lake, Yukon Territory - 340 miles

It took us 2 attempts to get into Canada. The first attempt resulted in us being rejected because we had not filled out the Canadian app properly. We didn't realize we have to fill it out every time we enter Canada so we had to turn around and ride about 15 miles back towards Skagway until we had cell service and could fill out the form on my cell phone. The second attempt worked fine.

Today was mostly a day of riding through Canadian wilderness in the mid 70s temp and mostly sunny skies, a little rain and some wind. It was also our last day in Alaska. 

Tomorrow we ride to Dease Lake, British Columbia. 

Taken during our picnic lunch break at a rest area. 

Me exiting a convenience store/gas station in rural Yukon.

We had dinner at the cafe in the Watson Lake Community Center which also includes a small museum, swimming pool, weight room and, as you can see, a curling rink and bowling alley.

June 27, 2022 - Skagway, AK

Today has been a day of rest and laundry. Susie couldn't take it any longer and demanded we do laundry. I thought I was doing pretty well by having done laundry about 3 weeks ago, the first and only time on the trip. She did not agree so we are at the Skagway laundry/gas station/convenience store.

Today in Skagway the town is having a celebration to recognize a cruise line for giving the town financial support during Covid to keep the businesses open. Streets are closed for pedestrians and food carts setup.

Tomorrow we start our serious march south. We ride over 300 miles to Watson Lake, Yukon Territory.

Royal Cruise Day in Skagway 

Skagway street festival 

Taken yesterday during our cruise to Juneau, a fishing boat pulling in salmon 

Seals guarding a buoy

June 26, 2022 - Skagway, AK - 200 miles

Video of Skagway seals

https://youtu.be/BTIvQf5tdFk 

We made it to a small cabin in Skagway yesterday after the usual sun, wind, calm, rain and beautiful ride. We also managed to drop 4 individual riding gloves while riding, 2 of which will never be seen by us again. We have never done that before, so it was the lost glove day.

We have no wifi and limited cell service. I'll try to post one picture from yesterday. 

Today we are taking a whale watching cruise which includes a visit to the state Capitol Juneau which can only be reached by boat or plane.

Skagway seals

On the road to Skagway 

More seals

Cruising to see whales and Juneau 

Our boat captain aka Bob Newhart

The hump of a humpback whale

Massive tour ship at port in Juneau 

Juneau, much more touristy than we expected 

Our Skagway cabin

June 24, 2022 - Haines Junction, Yukon Territory, Canada - 300 miles

Last night we had a nice room at a B&B in Tok, AK. Today we rode 300 miles to Haines Junction, Yukon. We had a fairly uneventful crossing into Canada. I got a scolding from the Canadian border guard for pulling up to the booth before they gave me permission. The female guard was wearing a bullet proof vest, carrying a weapon and wasn't playing around. Canada likes travelers to use a Canadian app that confirms vaccinations and registers the border crossing. I had downloaded and filled out the app which helped. The time zone changed to one hour later upon entering Canada.

The ride was long, roads were a mix of mostly pavement with some dirt and gravel surfaces. Weather was pleasant hovering in the low 60s most of the day.

It's really difficult to describe the vast wilderness we have passed through - hundreds and hundreds of miles of thick forests, bogs, streams, lakes, open grassland and huge skies. We have seen a couple of moose the last 3 days but no other wildlife but a scared rabbit, eagles and other birds. 

We came over a rise in the 2-laned road with a panorama of tens of miles surrounded by snow-capped mountains and a several mile view of the undulating road with no traffic. 

Sooz and I both found ourselves just whispering "Wow" to each other on the intercom. And it never seemed to stop. 

We looked into forests as we passed by and couldn't see in more than 10 feet because it was so thick and dark. 

We passed by wetlands and marshes with natural unmanicured deep green grass surrounding undisturbed pools of water. It's amazing, humbling and awesome. 

We feel very lucky to experience it at all, and especially on a motorcycle. On the bike we smell the spruce and pine trees, feel the temperature drop as we approach a rainstorm and hang on when hit with a strong wind gust. 

Wifi is nonexistent here and cell service is slow. I'm going to try to upload a few pictures Susie took from the back of the motorcycle as we were riding. They capture a little of what we saw today. All of the pictures were taken on the Alaska Highway on our way to Haines Junction. 

Sooz found a nice bakery in Haines Junction 

Chicken pot pie for dinner

June 23, 2022 - Tok, AK - 323 miles

Today was another big day. I took an Uber to the motorcycle shop before 10am to pick up the bike with 2 new tires. It was expensive just like everything else in Alaska but it's great to not have to worry about the bike's shoes. I rode the GS back to the hotel, picked up Sooz and our bags and headed south. 

It really makes no sense to check the weather before we ride in Alaska. We use a couple of different weather and radar apps and they all said to expect mid 70s with no rain. Within a couple of hours it was raining, windy and in the mid 50s. We did okay after putting on rain gear but it just takes time from riding.

The roads were good overall with some dirt, construction, dips and bumps mixed in. We had sockeye salmon in Tok for dinner and got to our B&B around 8pm. Long day but everything went pretty well. I stayed in Tok on my way to Anchorage to meet Sooz about 2 weeks ago.

Tomorrow we ride 280 miles to Haines Junction in Yukon Territory, Canada. We will be bouncing back and forth between Canada and the US as we head south. 

Only one picture today of mountains in Alaska I think considered part of the Alaska Range. It was hazy most of the day.

June 22, 2022 - Anchorage- 302 miles

Yes, we're back in Anchorage. Long story short, the rear tire wore out much sooner than expected and there was not enough tread to continue on our route. We made the decision to cut short our stay in Valdez by one day and drive the 302 miles back to Anchorage and get a new tire. I decided to get both tires replaced. I dropped the bike off at the shop at 4pm and they called 2 hours later and said I could pick it up at 10am tomorror when they open. That's really good news.

The weather today was gorgeous. Sun and warmed to almost 80 degrees. Sooz took several pictures of the scenery leaving Valdez.

Tomorrow we will pick up the bike and ride 300 miles to Tok and get back on schedule.

The culprit rear tire worn past the wear bars.