Attack of the Dempster – Day 2

July 17^th, 2026

Inuvik, Northwest Territory

Woke up at 8:00 am.

I looked outside and it was bright and sunny, no sign of rain and while things still looked wet, not as bad as they were night before.

I took a shower and then got partially geared up.

Went out to inspect the bike, and decided to clean some of the caked-on mud off with my small brush I brought.

Took a few minutes and was swarmed my mosquitoes doing it, but got a fair amount of dirt off.  Now the lights are visible again, and bike weighs several pounds less.

I did notice the line for fuel was backed up about a dozen cars, and saw the truck near the pumps.  So good sign the fuel has arrived.  I still have an hour of packing and loading, so should be good by time I get ready to go over there.

Had the bike mostly loaded and was putting the final pieces on when a guy walking by asked me a question about the bike.  Guess his dad has same bike.

We started talking, he was a big biker, though this trip he was in a pickup with friends and they were camping along the way.

After about 30 minutes, I had to cut things short so I could get my last items from the room and check out, it was already 10:30.

Grabbed my last things, dropped the key at the desk and then loaded the bike the rest of the way.

Rode over to the pumps which as I thought were no longer busy and fueled the bike and my spare bag. (I had poured the fuel from yesterday into the bike so I could leave the empty bag on the bike to avoid anyone stealing the gas).

I then pulled off to the side to secure the spare fuel and finish getting things setup on the bike.

Then pulled out of the area and headed north.

Yeah, I have decided that with the good weather, and several people telling me the road improves to the north, I would give it a try.

The road started out in pretty bad shape, but it did quickly smooth out some and I could get some better speed. 

I had to pull over almost immediately to change battery in the camera though.  Forgot about that.

Once on the road things went pretty smoothly for the first hour or so.  Then the road started to get a bit bumpy again, but not near a bad as the other day.  So slower, but still doing decent time.

I made a few stops to take photos.  Stopped at the Arctic Circle sign which was not far from the hotel as well.

The road started to get a bit rough again, and had to slow way down, but it only lasted a short distance.  Then a section where the road was still very wet, and slick slowed me a bit more.

I was starting to get tired and sore again.  The only campground on this section was too close to the hotel to be useful; I needed to ride more than 1 hour.  Decided I would make it to Fort McPherson, which is about half way to Inuvik (where I hoped to make it).

Once there I would have lunch, get fuel again and see what I wanted to do.

I had been told things would get better after I entered the Northwest Territory.  That came and went and the road did get wider, and much nicer, but still had some rough spots in it.

I arrived at the Peel River Ferry crossing and had to wait as the ferry was still on the other side.  Once done there, it started back over toward our side of the river.

Took about 10 minutes before it was time for us to board.

Rode up onto the deck and to the front area, behind another bike that was in line before me.

Ferry crossed in about 5 minutes and then the other bike and myself were the first off.

Got going and then about 10 miles up the road I reached the turn into Fort McPherson.

I rode around the town a bit, not sure what all was here.  I saw the fuel stop which was next to a hotel and thought I might stay there.

I stopped to get fuel and went inside to pay.  I saw they had some hot foods you could buy and few drinks and such as well.  I had not seen anything else in town, so this would have to be my lunch stop as well.

I went out and moved the bike from the pumps and then went inside and bought a coke, some chips and a cheeseburger.

Went out and ate standing next to the bike, while fighting off mosquitoes as usual.

Once done, I was actually feeling much better, not as sore and bit of energy again.  The lack of food prior day might have been part of my issue this morning.

Decided to just keep going as it was only around 3pm, so bit early to be stopping.

Got back on the road, which was still doing okay, few rough spots, but the roads in Northwest Territory were in fact better as I had been told.

I reached the MacKenzie River ferry, and this time it was a bit longer wait.  Then once on the ferry, it took about 20 minutes to cross as the ferry also serves a town that sits on the opposite bank of the smaller river feeding into the MacKenzie.

Once we reached the far shore, I was the first one off and got up and out of the loading area.

Once on the open road I was quickly passed by other cars as the road here was a bit heavy with gravel, so could not go as fast.  It has been like this in sections since the last ferry crossing and even a bit before.

The road eventually smoothed out and I was now able to cruise along at nearly the same speeds I would on pavement.  Few spots I had to slow down, but mostly decent road now.

Stopped a few times as needed and then reached the first of 2 campgrounds I had as options if I did not want to keep going.  However, this one was closed, and since I was doing good, would just keep going.

Passed the other campground as I was still good, and only 30 minutes to reach Inuvik, seemed the better option.

The road did get a bit beat up now though as I was coming up on town.  They are working on the road and had graded it on both sides, which really makes things worse.  You have all the dirt piled in the center at times, and all the loose dirt across the road, and worse are all the golf ball sized rocks just laying around now as well.

Had to slow down quite a bit to keep from being knocked over from hitting a rock, or hitting one hard enough to puncture the tire.

Then, about 5 miles from town, the road was suddenly paved!

Made those last few miles in smooth bliss, other than it was getting overcast and cold again.

Turned into town and then pulled off into a park to check my maps to see where the hotels were.  I knew there were at lest 2 or 3 in this small town.

I had already passed one coming in, but did not look like the place I wanted to stay (though when I saw the name, I had did recognize it from several people talking online about it and saying good things.)

I still opted for one of the two in the center of town as they were closer to food and other shops if need.

Stopped at the first of the two and they had rooms open.

So got a room (again, very end of the hallway, and no closer door this time) and started to unload the bike.

I did notice while I was checking into the room that I had cell signal with data here!   I was able to get online without needing Wi-fi.

While I was unloading, I ended up pausing and having a very pleasant conversation with a young woman who was outside.  She had inquired if I was heading back south, and when I said I was still going north, she started to offer me tips on things to do in Tuk (my final destination) which was where she was from.

After 20-25 minutes we said farewells and I finished unloading the bike.

I looked up the restaurants in town, and a few were closed, or would close in just moments, but two were open a few more hours at least.  The one was just a pizza shop, other did little bit of everything, and it was a bit closer, so I chose it.

Decided to just wear my bike gear since it was nice and warm and would block the cold wind better, no point in changing into other clothes for this.

Went outside and secured and covered the bike since I was not going to ride it down for food.

Place was about 5-6 blocks away.

Once there I ordered a spicy chicken sandwich with fries and a drink and ate there at the place.

On the way back I stopped at a small convenience store to buy something to drink and then came back toward the hotel.

While I was walking, I caught up with some lady that had been slowly walking in front of me, and the closer I got the more I realized she must be drunk.  Could not walk in a straight line.

And as I feared, she tried talk to me and kept trying to keep up with me.

I could smell the alcohol a bit, but her slurred talk and continued inability to walk confirmed it.

Missed half what she said and just gave dull answers to the rest, but she kept trying to stay with me and constantly bumping into me as she swayed.

Then she started asking me if I wanted to spend time with her….if you catch my meaning.

I pretty much just said no and ignored the questions, and then she slipped in the dirt and fell down and I used that as my chance to get away and kept walking. (This is when having a very fast walking pace comes in handy).

Turned into the hotel lot and got inside.   Never did see if she had gotten up or not.

Once in the room I took a warm shower and then sorted things a bit so I could find stuff, then got the blog from last night done and this one.

Now I will upload everything and copy footage over before going to bed.

Shorter ride tomorrow, so no rush to leave.  If things go well, then we will reach the Arctic Ocean tomorrow!

Catch ya down the road.

Todays Route:

Dempster Highway Attack – Day 1

July 16^th, 2026

Eagle Plains, Yukon Territory

Woke normal time and got ready.  Packed what I could, but then walked over to see if the local bank (CIBC) was open.

They were not, so went over to the market and bought some water as I was nearly out.

Back in the room I filled my pack and bottle and used the rest to take medicines.

I packed the food and other drinks in the bag and started to load the bike.

Took a bit of time, but was not in a rush.

While I was packing the bike, I missed the call back from my bank.  So called them back, and spent 30+ minutes on the phone with someone who clearly had no idea what they were doing.  They had to verify my identity like 5 times, and never could answer my question why the ATM withdrawal was not being allowed. 

Only thing they could come up with was that since I was out of the country and there was no travel alert for Yukon (because they did not include it in the list of Canada provinces, guess it doesn’t exist?), the transaction was being denied.

They were going to forward to the card services people, and I would have an answer in 24 hours, upon which I told them that was useless to me as I was leaving in less than an hour.

Told them to email me if they found anything or fixed the damn system, but I would just see if the bank would exchange US cash for Canadian cash.

Once the bike was loaded up, I checked out of the hotel, then rode the block down to the bank.

Had to stand in line a bit, fully geared up and sweating profusely.  A guy came out to see if he could help, but since I needed cash, he was not able to do anything.

Finally got my turn and after a bit of paper work and signatures was able to convert $300 in US cash to just over $400 in Canadian.  Seems the exchange rate has either moved back against me, or this bank was less giving as the last time I took out $400 Canadian, it was only $280 dollars.

Either way, I had enough local currency to cover me if I bumped into a place that did not accept cards or did not have internet, both issues I had read can occur up in these northern parts.

Back on the bike and over to the fuel station.

Fueled up the bike and filled my spare bag as well.

Then parked to the side to adjust a few things and we were ready to go.

Rode down the street and passed the museum again.  As I passed the building with the trains in it, I noticed it was open, so I did a quick U-turn and parked the bike to go inside and get a better look.

Spent only about 5-6 minutes inside, took a few photos, and then back out to get on the road.

It was around 11:00am now, so needed to get going.

Hit the highway a few blocks down and made my way down the road.  Simple highway, few nice views, but mostly just trees.

Finally reached the Dempster highway turn off.

I stopped to do several things.  Needed to put on my other layer and change gloves as it was colder than I had hoped.

Also wanted to put the socks back on the front forks to help keep the dirt down.

I organized a few things to better secure them and then used the port-a-potty on the site….and immediately wished I had not.   Never seen a portable outhouse full to the brim!

I then pulled up to the fuel pumps at this un-maned corner station and topped off my tank.  Was not much, but never pass fuel in these parts when you can get it.

Crossed the highway to do the photos with the Dempster highway sign, and then headed north.

The road was not too bad, and was making good time for about an hour or so. 

Scenery was great and quickly reached the high point for the road at just over 4000 feet.

Road started to get a bit rougher, but still manageable, just slowing me down a bit, but not too badly, and slower just makes my fuel economy go higher.

I stopped at the Tombstone Park Visitor center, mainly to use the restroom, but did go walk around the building a bit.  Mostly interactive displays on the geology and animal life of the park, aimed more for younger people, but still cool.  Views from the area were quite nice as well.

Bit down the road I stopped again for views up the valley toward Tombstone Mountain, but the clouds were not going to be nice and show it today.

Bit farther and we started to climb again.

It had been sprinkling now and then the whole ride, but not enough to really get the roads wet.  Till now.

Not sure if it had just been raining hard before I got there, or the low clouds had just saturated everything as well, but road turned to wet, slick, muddy mess. 

And the trucks going up and down were just tearing it up even worse.

I finally had to slow down to 2^nd gear, sometimes even 1^st and crawling along at 10-15 mph to avoid spilling the bike.  Even had to walk my feet along a few times it was so slick.

I stopped near the top of the hills for the viewpoint of the Ogilvie mountains and talked a bit with a guy who was setting up his camper to stay the night on the top.  If it had not been raining, I might have put up my tent as well.

It finally started to dry up some, but then the road just turned to crap.  Washboard surface, but uneven, would run part way, go away, come back, only cross half the road or run at angles.  Then add in all the buried rocks, pot holes in groups of 20-30 with no clean route through or around, and other cracks still filled with water, and the road edges were just soupy mud in most spots, or right on the edge or a 10-foot drop into the trees.

And the it got wet again.

Finally crawled into Eagle Plains about 9:30pm.   I started the road at noon.  230 miles (369km) distance.

I went to the hotel and went inside and the front desk was closed!  I did see a sign about talking to kitchen staff, but about then a guy came up and asked me if I knew about the gas?

Turns out the fuel station next door, the only gas in the area, and the other then I would need, was out of fuel!

As we were talking, a guy came out of the door by the desk and turns out he was the hotel person.

I asked if they had rooms, and they did, so he opened up the front desk to get me checked in, and the other guy asked about the gas.  It was supposed to arrive in the morning.  So, guess we will see. (This is probably the 3^rd or 4^th time this season this place has run out of fuel based on the forums I follow.)

I asked about food, but restaurant was closed, so wouldn’t be eating tonight except for the pepperoni sticks and left over potato chips I had in my bag.

I found my room and then found a door closer (I always seem to get the rooms as far away from the door as possible when I book into a hotel vs motel.)

Unloaded the bike and decided it was so dirty and muddy I would just leave the cover off, perhaps the light rain that was still coming would wash a bit of it off.

Once inside I just tossed everything on the floor, wasn’t going to be changing clothes or working on anything tonight.

I washed off my rain pants as they were caked with mud, then took a shower myself as I really needed a hot shower on my sore body.

I then got on the Wi-fi and did a few things and ate my measly meal (this was actually only food I had all day).

I then organized a few things and recorded a few videos.

Really not sure I will continue this route tomorrow.  If it is still raining, then I may see if I can book a second night and just stay another day, see if it lets up.  Or turn back south and suffer another long day on the road, perhaps stop at the last campsite an hour from the highway and camp.

Not sure what I want to do.  Feeling a bit down right now between the weather, the horrible roads and the bikes inability to keep up speed on the rough terrain.  Thinking either bike is just not suited for these roads, or the fork seals leaked out enough to make things not work as well as they should.

Besides all the bouncing and inability to stay connected to the ground, the vibrations are being sent up through the grips and my hands and wrists are taking a beating.  I am in agony with my wrists. (which is why I am typing this the following night actually!)

Now I am going to bed!

Catch ya down the road, just maybe not this road.

Todays Route:

Day off in Dawson City.

July 15^th, 2026

Dawson City, Yukon Territory

Slept in a bit today, but not too late.

Got up, got ready and left to go do a few things.

First, I wanted to visit the tourist office to check on what they had on the Dempster.

Walked over the 2 blocks to it, and wandered around a bit checking out the displays.

Then I talked with one of the staff who had some data on the highway, and the next few days weather predictions.

I then walked over to the paddle steamer Keno which was preserved after its retirement in the 1950s.  It now sits up on the shore next to the river and can be toured, though was closed currently.

I then went back to the room to get my other camera and then decided to walk over to the local history museum and the old train hangar next door.

Museum had some nice gardens next door with some old WWI German guns that were brought back and put on display.

The museum itself was in the old city administration building.  A nice set of displays, but not as interesting as I had hoped.

Went next door to the train place, but they were closed.  But could see inside the windows enough to at least see the old locomotives that served the mines in the area back in the day.

Then I walked a few more block over to the Jack London Museum.

Jack London had traveled in the Yukon region in his early life before he was known for writing.  Many of his works were based on his experiences travelling and mining for gold up here.

While the mine was several miles up the canyons and they lived in a cabin nearby, they did come into Dawson City for official business and to get supplies.

The small connection and the fact that it was a local man who in the mid-1960s finally tracked down the cabin from old clues and stories left behind.  They had it dated using the wood and also matched up the wood cut from it by some trappers in the 1930s that had Jack London’s name written on it. 

That board was finally tracked down to the widow of one of those trappers and eventually brought to the cabin where it perfectly matched the spot.  Hand writing experts had also verified that the writing was most probably original as well.

Through some odd partnership, the cabin as eventually retrieved and moved out of the remote area and into Dawson City, but only part of it.

With the partnership, the cabin was cut in half (top and bottom) and the bottom was left here, and the top recreated, and the top when to Oakland California (where London had spent time) and the bottom recreated for display at the Jack London waterfront plaza.

The cabin sits here in Dawson and a building was built to house photos and other history on him and the recovery of the cabin.

Board with Jack London name (Replica, original is in California)

After this, I walked back via the residential roads.  Some really nice old homes built up here.

Saw my first kitty cat in town, who just stared at me for a bit, but did not come over.

Then walked back into town.

Stopped again at the bank, same issue.

Called the Card Services number, and got voicemail!!

Left a message, went over to the other market to buy some stuff, then back to the room.

I then called the regular call center number, talked to them and after 15 minutes of trying, they were also unable to reach anyone in that department!  So, they send an urgent email.

Never did hear back.  I am thinking my time at this bank may be coming to an end, been having lots of issues with them lately.

I then stopped at the local Jamaican restaurant as I was hungry, but the Greek place I wanted to eat at did not open till 5pm.  It was only 3, so figured I would have something light to get me by.

I tried to order a beef pattie (A Jamaican dish), but they were out!

So had tacos with jerk seasoned chicken instead.  Very good food.

I then walked back to hotel and bummed around for awhile working on various things.

Walked back over to the Greek place and had dinner, but ordered a bit too much, so stuff right now.

Back at the hotel I then edited a video and got it uploaded, and now trying to get these blog entries caught up.

I have also packed a bit, but will finish in the morning.

Not in a hurry tomorrow, will get up usual time, get ready and then go to store to buy water, then stop at bank and see if they will exchange US currency (unless my bank calls me back with a solution before then).

Otherwise, will have to hope the credit card will work everywhere up north.  I have heard some places do not take them, and other times they cannot take them due to outages, so a bit concerned here.  Great time for my bank to do have something stupid going on and have such poor service.

I will then load the bike, check out and go get fuel at the only station in town.

That should be enough to get me to the first stop tomorrow, though I will carry the extra fuel as well, and there appears to be an unmanned credit card only stop right at the start of the northbound road, so if that is there, I will top off there again, which should give me enough for sure.

Then we will start heading north.  Going to be a bit uneasy though, it has rained a good amount here in town tonight, so if that same rain hit the Dempster, it could make things interesting, possibly enough that might have to abandon the trip and turn around.

Will need to monitor it as I go, see how things are and make a decision, once I reach a certain distance, I will be committed at least to the next fuel stop.

Catch ya down the road.

Top of the World – Back in Canada

July 14^th, 2026

Dawson City, Yukon Territory

Woke normal time and got ready.

Loaded the bike and checked over the room, then rode around to the front of the place.

It was open, so went inside to check out and spent a bit of time talking with the owners.  

More Arizona connections!  Older guy had grown up in Tucson.  Younger guy spent time in Chandler.  And while we were talking, and RV pulled up, and when they came inside, turns out that family was also from Tucson and had seen my AZ plates on the bike.

Once done talking, I got on the bike and headed east.

The road turns to gravel now and for the first few miles, it was a bit tricky.  Very steep hills, tight corners, and road surface was bit rough, and gravel was random in spots.

Then I came upon a section they were actively grading, which tends to make things worse for a while.  Lots of loose dirt, larger rocks pulled up and laying around.  It can smooth out some sections, either grading them down, or filling the holes with dirt, but still rough.

Finally past that the road started to level out some, and gravel became less, so was able to get speed up some.  Still wash boarded badly, but that 32 MPH trick still worked to keep me from being vibrated to death. 

Speaking of vibrations, while I was stopped to take some photos, I noticed another casualty of the rough roads (either the Dalton or recent road).  My headlight bulb was out.  There are 3 bulbs in the housing, a daytime light (dim), the main headlight (on all the time) and the high beam (manual activation only, cannot be left on). 

The main light, which would be very important if I was in the dark, and which I had just replaced about 8 months ago, was out again.  Assuming the vibration?  I will try to look up inside when I get somewhere I can do that, perhaps the wiring just came loose?

Since we do not get dark up here, I can probably get away with it for now, but will need to try getting it fixed when I get down south again where darkness will come upon me.

I reached the junction for the Top of the World highway, and turned off onto it.

Road was again decent, and then suddenly turned into the most wonderfully smooth asphalt!  The last 8 miles to the border were like this.

I stopped along here at the Top of The World roadhouse.  Just a small collection of buildings, but a gift shop and small bit of food and drink.

Lady came up from behind the area, was cleaning the RV.  But was able to buy a Coke and something to snack on.

Had good conversation and then went out and got back on the road.

Pulled up to the Canada border post, the guys came out (2 this time) and while one asked me the usual odd questions, the other reviewed my passport, recorded bike plate and looked over things, I guess.

When done, that guy who seemed a bit more human (other had zero personality and was borderline rude), told me to stop in at the visitor center in Dawson City to get the latest info on the Dempster Highway (I had mentioned that was my first plans in Canada).

I then rolled into Canada and started the last 50 miles to reach Dawson City.

Road was again gravel, but mostly thin gravel on a hard packed base.  Kept decent speed up, though had to be careful with the winds.  There were not many trees up here and when you hit the open spaces the winds would hammer you and push you around.

Finally came down a bit into the trees and things were better.

We then reached the steeper downhill sections that brough you down to the edge of the Yukon River.

Here was the ferry loading zone.

Pulled up into the lane for smaller vehicles.  I could see the ferry on the other side was still unloading, so figured I had a few minutes.

I had noticed a few miles back that the cell service has resumed, so I activated the international data roaming again and was able to get online.

I checked and found a few options for hotels, none of them cheap, so finally booked on and felt a bit more relieved.

Ferry arrived soon after.

The person directing traffic onto the ferry was standing about 100 feet away with a small sign, was difficult to know who she was pointing at.  I started to follow the two cars that she seems to have called forth, but then she got really animated and I finally could see she wanted me to stop.

Then she had a large truck pull into the middle of the ferry, then called me and some bikes farther back in the queue to come up.

We all filled in on the sides of the truck, and then some cars in behind.  The 2 large camper RVs waiting would have to wait till the next ferry.

Pulled out and cross the river in about 3 minutes.

Once on the other side, we all pulled off the ferry and up the hill into town.

I turned off the main highway and went a block over to find the hotel.

Parked in front on the dirt road and went inside. 

Checked in and then found out they really did not have parking like indicated online.

The main parking was just on the streets, but there was a parking lot a block behind that was theirs.

I then found out I was in the annex building across the road as well.

Went out to the bike, saw the building and also noticed it was flatter on that side, and another bike was already in front, so I was able to pull in behind it and park right in front of the doors.

Still had to carry the gear onto the boardwalk, up the stairs, into the entrance foyer, into the main hall, up the stairs and into the room.

So, several trips later I was done and started to cover the bike up.

During that time, the owner of the other bike came out and we talked a bit.  Turns out they had been a group of 3 and things had not been going well.  One of the group members had a death in the family and had to depart sooner. 

This guy and his friend had managed to complete the Dempster, but at a huge cost.

The friend’s bike had broken the frame around the engine, and his bike had blown a fork seal and made a mess of his brake disc and caliper.

He was planning to get his bike fixed down the highway in Whitehorse, but friends’ bike was still a huge unknown.

He asked if I was going to hit the town that night, guess there are quite a few bars and people make the rounds and try to hit the one with the Toe drink challenge. (You have to drink a small glass of whiskey with the mummified toe from ages ago in it and let it touch your lips to get a certificate and belong to the Toe club!) 

I said I might be out tonight, at least would go find food somewhere.

Finished putting the bike away and then went up to change and figure out what I was going to do tonight.

Decided to try a Greek place down the street and also stop at the market to buy some stuff for the room.

Greek place was closed for a private party, but did manage to get my drinks.

Also stopped at the bank to use ATM, as I need to get more Canadian cash. 

But something is preventing my use, keeps telling me my bank declined the transaction.

I will have to deal with it tomorrow since I am staying 2 nights to rest and work on stuff.

Went back to the room, then found that the saloon in the hotel has food, so walked over to that one.  Turns out this is the Toe place as well.

Sat at the bar, tried to order the Nachos, but they were out of them??  Odd thing to be out of since most of the ingredients were used in same foods they were still serving.

Had a chicken sandwich instead and listened to all the people being called up to kiss the toe.  I am thinking I will pass on this, mainly as I do not drink, and not sure I want to alter that just for this odd ritual.

Once done eating, I went back to the room and worked on a few things, but was very tired, so decided to turn in early.

See you tomorrow.

Todays Route:

Heading to the Top of the World

July 13^th, 2026

Chicken, Alaska

Woke normal time this morning. 

Showered, geared up some, had breakfast, and then loaded the bike.

Once ready, we checked out of the room, put on the final gear and set the GPS and got on the road.

Right away I ignored the GPS as I wanted to go take the northern route vs the southern route out of town.  Would add about 3 miles is all, and I had passed a cool field of yellow flowers several times and kept forgetting to stop and photograph it, so wanted to do that before leaving.

This would then allow me to use the same Circle K to fuel up since they seemed to be the cheapest fuel in the area, and it will only go up in price as I head away from the city.

Road up and stopped at the field.  Took a few photos, but did not think to check the signs for the history of the place, but not really that concerned, was just cool looking.

Back on the road we found the faster highway and headed for the fuel station.

Stopped to fuel up and then used the restroom.

Got onto the highway again and headed south.  This road will then branch off and take me south east, back toward Tok, Alaska, near where I originally entered Alaska.

The road was pretty dull to be honest.  First few miles were just more city, and then crossed the Air Force base, though nothing to see there.

Then just more straight roads, few hills, couple of curves and occasional river views.

Stopped a few times for various reasons before reaching the town of Delta Junction.

This was where the highway heading south connects and where I would have come up if I had decided to take the Denali Highway route, but I chose to not take the extra time and milage.  Oddly I did read online a report from someone who just completed it and the road has been mostly chip sealed, so only about 30 miles of gravel left, so might not have been as slow a day as I thought.

Stopped in Delta Junction to use restroom, and was hungry.  They had a Three Bears store there, which I have stopped at often in Alaska.  Convenience store, grocery, fuel, hot food usually, and sometimes full sporting goods as well.

Went in to use restroom, bought a few things to eat and then stood at the bike to eat.

I had seen a large aircraft flying overhead as I came into town, and now it kept circling over the area.  Large gray military plane.  Guessing another base nearby and someone is flying some kind of training.

Back on the road I reached the highway junction and headed east on the road that will bring me back to Tok.

Again, not much to see along here, few nice views, but a lot of the same as well.

Reached Tok and stopped at the Three Bears there to fuel up the tank.  Also went inside to buy some drinks and snacks since I was not sure there would be anything to buy at my destination.

Left Tok and backtracked on the same highway I came into Alaska on for about 10 miles, then turned north on the Elliot Highway, which heads up to Chicken and Eagle Alaska, as well as links up with the Top of the World Highway which takes you back into Canada.

This road was smaller, and had some rough spots in it.  Several gravel sections as well, but mostly paved up to Chicken.

Saw lots of vehicles heading south, but only had 1 car pass me and some bicyclists heading same direction as me.

Some great views along the way, but did not stop much, mainly as there was not any good place to stop.

Finally pulled into Chicken, which is really just two RV parks, a small row of buildings and some old buildings and junk left from the mining days.  I think about 10 people live here and not sure any of them stay year-round.  (The road is closed in winter).

Found the Goldpanner RV park, right next to the Chicken Creek.

Pulled up and the place was closed!  But I spied a note stuck on the door and when I walked up it had my name on it.

Directions for getting into the room I had booked.  While I should have camped (much cheaper), I was a bit sore still and wanted a more comfortable sleep, so paid the crazy price for a room, though it was a nice room.

Parked outside the room and unloaded the bike.

Once done I checked the area for anything and there were 2 possible food places that appeared to still be open.

Road the bike back to the road, then back over to the other road which lead to the other RV park (and the airport).

Explored the area first as they had more chicken art work around, and one of the old gold mining dredges was left here and had been restored a bit for tourist visits, though it was closed now.

I then stopped at the “Main Street” which was 3 small buildings, some old abandoned fuel pumps and an area of picnic tables.

The buildings had a mercantile (gift shop), saloon, and café (which was closed).  The saloon had listed a few food items, but when I went inside after exploring the gift shop, the place was just a small bar, dirt floor, ceiling hanging full of hats, bras and underwear, some music playing and lots of people standing around drinking.

Left and figured I would try my luck with the bigger place down by the RV park.

This place, the Outpost, was another large gift shop, and had a small seating area and outdoor patio for dining.  The menu was limited, and I only had about 45 minutes left before the kitchen closed, so went ahead and ordered a sandwich and a coke.

Small sandwich, which appeared made from basic stuff, nothing fancy, and it and the small bowl of soup was $24!  Crazy.  But it was actually very good soup and the sandwich really did hit the spot.

I then bought a sticker for the bike, and rode back over to my place.

Parked up the bike across from the room and secured and covered it.

While doing that, some guy pulled up on a German plated bike asking if I knew where the campground was as he has just paid for a camping spot at the kiosk.

I assumed it was back behind where all the RV slots were (which were all empty oddly).

I went in to grab my phone and using the wireless found it was actually across the creek, and had to find a smaller road and only bikes could go back.  Had a small suspension bridge that went over creek to get back to the main building.

I went out to see if he was still looking, but he was already setup in one of the RV spots.  I did show him what I found, but we both agreed that he would just stay put, not like they were busy or anything.

Went back inside to grab camera and then did some photos for me and some stuff for the cat rescue. (I have an image of the rescue mascot, taking photos and videos in interesting places to post for them).

I then worked on converting videos rest of the night since I could not get the wireless to work anymore, so unable to research places to stay in my next stop tomorrow.  Will just have to wing it.

Finally went to bed as I was exhausted.

Catch ya down the road.

Todays Route:

Bike repairs and laundry day.

July 12^th, 2026

Fairbanks, Alaska

Woke today at 8am, and immediately went back to sleep.  I was just not feeling it.

Woke later around 10am and decided I had better get up as I did have things to do today.

Showered and took care of the morning stuff, and then put on the riding pants and the new shirt I had bought the other day.

Grabbed the chain guard, tools, and new bolts and went outside to fix this issue.

I first made sure the bolts would go into the holes, but the back bolt (the one that fell out) would not thread.

Guessed it was full of grime, so used a bit of steel wool from my tool kit and clean out the threads, and now it works.

Got both in and was about to tighten them when I realized I had forgotten the Loctite!

Pulled them out and then applied Loctite to the first one and had it mostly in when I noticed another issue.

The hex head of the bolt was barely larger than the hole in the guard, so as I tightened it, it would just push into the hole a bit and after enough vibration would likely just let the guard fall off.  The head of the old bolt was twice as large.

I dug out the spare bolt kit I had brought and found two washers that were the right size for the bolt, and much larger diameter.

I had already pulled the bolt back out, so pulled off the rubber O-rings and put on the washers, then replaced the rings, and then applied Loctite to each as I installed them.

Made sure it was all aligned correctly and tightened the bolts really good using the socket.  So much easier than the Philips screwdriver the old bolt used.

I then oiled the chain as it was dried out from time, dust, and the washing yesterday.

Next, I pulled the shock socks off to inspect the fork seals, they looked good, but decided to clean them one more time.

Pulled up the dust caps and ran the cleaner around the seal, got a small bit of grime on one side, but other was still clean.

Put it all back, and decided to leave the socks off until we reach a good dusty road or some bad weather.  I had read you should not run them all the time, only when conditions required.

Put the chain adjustment guide on and the chain is just slightly loose, but not enough I am going to mess with it today, will see how bad it is after the next big dirt road we will start later this week.

Put everything away, and went inside the room to store it and clean up.

Next was laundry.

Gathered up all the dirty stuff I wanted to wash, only things I would not get clean was the socks and underwear I had on, will sink wash them later today and hope they dry in time.

I wore just my light shoes, no reason to take the boots for the short trip. (I wanted to let them dry a bit, had cleaned them earlier with the brush and it was still wet from its own cleaning, so boots were bit wet on outside).

Loaded up the bike and then grabbed helmet and gloves and riding jacket and left the hotel.

We went back to the same laundry place across town.  Its really expensive, but very nice place with lots of nice decent machines. (unlike the run-down dump on the side of town closer to me I had tried last time I stayed here).

I arrived at the place and took everything inside.

I still had my card from last time with the 20 cents still on it, so figured I would buy just enough to use that 20 cents and zero out the card.

Found the smallest machines and checked the price for a wash ($8).  Would need to do this twice.  One time for all the clothes, then I would change into my normal pants so I could wash the riding gear at that time.

Dryers were $6 still for the middle sized units.  They only have 2 smaller dryers, so of course they were always full since they were only $4. 

I then checked and laundry soap (stuff I brought was gone) was $2.50 a piece, and would need 2 of them.

Added it up and went over to add the money to my card.

Well, guess what, they do not let you add less than $1 increments.  Nice little profit setup they have for people not familiar with the process.  Many of the wash cycles are not whole dollar amounts, so even locals will eventually have left over funds on the card that cannot be used.  While they might use them in time, for all the people like myself (probably half the customer base), many will leave with something less than a dollar on the card.  After a bit of time, I guess those amounts will get forfeited if you never use them.

So, I will lose that 20 cents.

I went over and bought the soap, or so I thought, when I got to machine, I realized it was just stain remover!  Oh well, not going to spend more money, so just used it, should still clean some.

Ran the first wash cycle, and then noticed my balance seemed off.  Ran the numbers and realized I had added $2 more than I needed.  Now I am going to lose that too??

I checked the vending machines and they had cans of soda for $2, so just bought one of them.  Did not really need it, but at least got something for my money, and that price is actually not bad for this area, many charge even more.

I then bought the 2^nd soap, making sure it was correct stuff this time.

Once load was done, I put them in dryer and ran that cycle.

Wash and dryer cycles run about 25 minutes each.

When dryer was done, I pulled out the clothes, sorted and folded everything. 

First thing I noticed was my winter gloves did not dry well.  The inserts of course were all messed up, so going to have fun getting the fingers lined up again.  One of the gloves had the small tab on end of drawstring pop off, though I found both pieces and it was not broken, so was able to put it back, mostly, still not like the other glove.

That glove was still soaking wet inside.  Somehow it had run the entire dryer cycle without drying at all.

I put it aside so I could go change.  Took the pants into the restroom and got out of the riding pants.

Put the riding gear into washer and started it.

Then worked on the glove.

First, I pulled then liners inside out and out of the glove, that way they would dry better than all crumpled up.

For the soaking wet one, I wrung it out over the trash, then grabbed several paper towels and pressed the glove between those layers.  Then set them on edge of table to let dry.

Once washer was done, I pulled out the gear and checked it over.  The pants are still stained pretty bad; this road grime is brutal up here.

Gear cannot be run in dryer, so will have to let them air dry in the hotel, so the fun part will be getting the wet gear back.

I cannot wear it since still very damp, and cool enough outside already.

I will take a back road home to avoid the higher speeds since I will not have any gear but the helmet and gloves on.

I was able to arrange the bag straps in such a way to hold jacket and pants on the back of the bike (rest of stuff goes in the panniers).

Rode back to hotel without issue and hung the gear up in the closet area.

Put the rest of the clothes away where they get stored except the stuff I needed for tomorrow.  I did change into clean underwear, will just use them in the morning.  They joy of long-distance bike travel, cannot be too picky about how clean things are.

Took the other pair and the socks I had on into the bathroom and washed them in the sink and hung them over shower rod to hopefully dry overnight.  Will see if that happens.

Took the wet gloves and put them in the window on the narrow sill and hopefully the sun which will shine in that window for next several hours will help dry them.

I then washed the helmet off as it was still dirty and put a few things on chargers to get them back up to full.

I then rode over to Taco Bell to have a late lunch/early dinner.  Ordered a larger meal than normal to account for it being the only meal I will have today.

Stopped next door at the grocer to pick up a candy bar for a snack later and some more tea to drink tonight.

Back at the room I secured and covered the bike and sat down to work on the computer.

The first task was to get my financials done. 

I balance my accounts, verify all the credit card charges are accurate, make sure hotel security deposits are returned (more on this later), and update my tracking for cashflow and spending. 

Tonight I found that the hotel in Soldotna I left on the 3^rd still had not returned the $200 deposit they took.  Called them up and the lady checked and found that no, they had not processed that return yet.  She promised me she would notify the manager right away and notate it in the books.  She saw the note it was to be returned as no damage was found, but for some reason it was never processed.  Hopefully the manager will take care of it in the morning.

I matched up my receipts and emails to the credit card history online and it all matched up.

Then updated the cashflow and spending records.

Next, I updated the daily spending on Food, Fuel and Lodging I am creating, and another master list with all spending on it.  This record should allow me to show a final cost for the trip and break it out into several categories.

I then paid off the credit card.  (Low limit card, so I need to keep it paid to keep using it.)

Then I was able to toss all the receipts and make my wallet much thinner!

Then we worked on a few images I needed, and uploaded all 4 blog entries that I wrote while out of internet range.

Now just need to finish this one and post it.

Rest of the night I will work on getting video footage converted.  Always need to go through the 360 footage and pick the framing I want to use and export that so it can be edited into the final work.

Tomorrow I will be back on the road, already made my hotel reservation for my destination.  I was thinking of camping (10 times cheaper), but next week may be nothing but camping, so figured one more hotel night would be helpful to finish any charging, online work, and get a good sleep and shower before I end up in campground that may not allow any of that.

Catch ya down the road.

Last day on the Dalton, back to civilization

July 11^th, 2026

Fairbanks, Alaska

Woke at 6:30 am again, bladder again.  Maybe I do not need the alarm on the phone anymore.

After walking to café and back I sat in the tent for a bit and then started packing things up and tearing down the sleeping gear.

Changed into riding gear and then carried stuff to the bike and uncovered.

I tore down the tent and finally had all the gear over at the bike.

This was of course after eating breakfast and with several stops to talk with other campers, so took longer than usual.  Also stopped to buy a t-shirt at the gift shop.

I then loaded the bike up and once done said my goodbyes to the others I had been talking with over the last day or more.  One guy was still heading north, other couple was going same way I was, likely see each other on the road later, I am sure.

Final visit to the restroom and got on the bike and rode over to the highway, across and into the visitor center lot.

They were not open yet though, so used the trash bins to toss some trash I had in my pocket (napkins and old tape from where I re-did the repair job on the pannier, other tape was already peeling off).

I then rode back to the road and realized that I had not driven the ¼ mile of road between the two driveways into the Coldfoot stop.  I used the closest drive each time, so this small section of road was never driven on. 

As we cannot have that, I turned north, rode up to the other driveway, did a U-Turn and came back.  Now I can say I rode the entire route.

Heading south the road quickly turned back to gravel, but this was the stuff you could keep good speed on. 

Day wore on and traffic was light, but road also had its rough sections.  Odd how the north lanes are not as bad as the south, or vice versa in the same section of road.

Did come upon the rougher sections again, and had to slow down some.

Made a few stops for restroom breaks, or to fix something coming loose or resolve an odd issue with maps or the cameras.

I finally reached the Yukon River fuel station, but as I had more than enough fuel, I decided to skip the top off of the tank, mainly as there were already 6 bikes waiting, and this is the place you have to drop off your card, get the key attached to paddle and then photo the price and go back inside to pay.

I did go inside though and bought a Coke and a sticker to put on my new top case when I finally get to install it. (Its sitting back home having arrived about 10 days after I left).

While I was drinking my Coke outside, the coupe from the Coldfoot camp rolled in.  They had left a bit after me, and finally caught up.

Spent a bit of time talking with them and another group that was heading north and asking about the road.

I also talked a bit with a guy who was not having a very good day.  The ignition coil on his BMW bike had failed (or at least that was what he and BMW support had decided).  He was not even sure if there is a BMW shop in Fairbanks which is still 3 hours south, and if he would be able to get someone to haul bike down, or he would have to hitch a ride down, then come back up.

Those are the kind of break downs that create horror stories of waiting and dealing with the remote nature of these kinds of trips.  Not a part one would think to bring along either.

Then about that time I look down at my bike and notice my chain guard is hanging off to the side.  Upon closer inspection, one of the bolts had vibrated itself out and is now part of the road somewhere.

I tried all my spare bolts (a kit for Japanese bikes), but none of them would fit.

I used 3 small zip ties to connect it, hoping that would hold till I got to town in 3 hours.

I finally got back on the bike, and then rode across the street to use the toilet at the visitor center as the café was quite busy at the moment with two small tour vans that had pulled in.

Back on the highway I headed south and not too far down the road came upon road construction.   Took some time, but finally got through that and the final miles of the Dalton Highway.

Of course, once off the Dalton, you still have about 60 miles to go to reach Fairbanks.

But at least most of that route is paved.

Well, it was paved.

In the 3 days between my riding up and now coming back, they had ripped apart several miles of the road to resurface and made a mess of things.

Another one-way construction zone and we had to wait 20 minutes to even start going down it.  Caught up with the other bikers at that point too, though I did not ride up to the front to talk with them as I knew they would go faster than I would once we left anyway.

I also noticed while waiting that my chain guard was hanging off again, all 3 zip ties having broken off.  The roads here are just hell on equipment.

Once through that very long work zone, I caught stuck behind a truck for a while.  He was going really well, but then the hills started, and still lots of loose dirt and gravel from work that had been done in last few days.

I finally decided to just pass him when we were on a larger hill, and did not need to conserve the fuel anymore, would just make it.

Thankfully once I got past him, the roads stayed up and down hills and tight corners, so I could zoom through those and he would never catch up with me.

I finally reached the edge of town and stopped at the Circle K to fuel up as I had about 20 miles of fuel left at that point.

I went inside to use the restroom and wash my hands, and of course no paper towels, and air dryer is broken!

Back outside I had thought I might try to fix the bike, but parking lot was jammed with cars coming and going, seemed to suddenly be a very, very popular place.

I road across the street to the Wal-Mart, which has a huge lot and found a spot with a small amount of shade from a tree.

I found a pin in my spare parts that was slightly larger than the hole, so shouldn’t pull through, and I could bend the pin around the end to at least hold things one.  It was bumping the chain at times, but still better than nothing.

I then checked online to find a hotel for the night, and found nothing cheaper than the $200 a night place I stayed last time, so booked 2 nights there so I could have time tomorrow to do laundry and clean gear.

I rode over to the hotel, which only takes about 15 minutes, and got checked in.

Unloaded the bike, and cleaned my face and hands a bit, then once bike was empty, I did some online updates, and then took the tools out and removed the rear foot peg so I could get the other bolt out of the chain guard and just remove it.

Guard was just caked with mud and grime.

Put it in the shower and cleaned it off so I could attach it again tomorrow.

I then reassembled the bike, took the good bolt with me and rode a block down the road to the Ace hardware store.

I found the metric bolt pretty quick and even found a type that can go on with a socket instead of a screwdriver, so easier to install now, do not need to remove rear foot peg.

I will replace both bolts so its same type.  The old bolt had a small section of metal that fit into the hole of the guard, so we found some small O-rings that should compress into the spot and keep the plastic from rattling or shifting after I bolt them down.

I then picked up some Loctite as well to secure them.

Once done, I rode up the road to the car wash I used last time and just blasted all the bike parts below the seat.  The dirt was caked on nearly an inch think in places and could not even see some parts of the bike. 

Took about 8 minutes to clean everything off of the heavy grime.  Still a ton of dirt, but just surface stuff and a few spots I missed or where grime dripped down from higher parts and dried on.

After the wash I took a short detour to ride about 5 minutes to air the bike out and then stopped at Arby’s for dinner.  Had not eaten in nearly 13 hours.

I then went across the road to the grocery store to pick up more water to refill my supply and a bottle of tea to drink.

Once back at the hotel, I unloaded that stuff, covered and secured the bike and took a long overdue shower.

After moving today’s footage off the cameras, I typed this blog up and will upload it all later as I am very tired and going to go to bed here soon.

Tomorrow I will upload the last few blogs, update some more photos perhaps on Facebook, go do laundry and clean all the cloths and the riding gear (pants are filthy).

Will also put the chain guard back on and oil the chain.  I will also check the chain with my handy chain adjustment tool and tighten in if needed, which it probably does. Assuming I can figure out how to do that, never actually done it before.

Then will try to work on videos tomorrow and plot out the next few days riding.

I was thinking of going back south and riding the Denali Highway, but its 135 miles of gravel, 2 hours south of here, and would take me nearly the whole day to ride and get back to the highway I need to be on to leave Alaska.  And there are not many places to stay along the route, and some quick research during dinner showed most of the campgrounds were booked up, so unless the there are some empty spots in the first come sites the hold back, I would be stuck in the middle of nowhere or having to ride all the way out and even there the hotel options are very limited.

So will just have to skip what I have been told is one of the best roads in Alaska and come back someday for it.

I will just leave Fairbanks and head toward the border, but likely stay the night in a small town before I cross.

Catch ya down the road.

Todays Route: