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the GREEN Energizer bunny, keeps going, going...North to D2D 2015!

33K views 97 replies 23 participants last post by  onewizard 
#1 · (Edited)
Up early, I was ready to go by 0645 on Friday, the 12th of June. My wife took my pic, I waved and headed out.



Got to the end of the block, said "Oh sh*t!", then did a 180 and rode back to get my back-pack w/ my hydration and rain-gear, said "G'bye" to my wife AGAIN, then re-started.

I had put a "Heads-Up" LED battery monitor on early on the 9th, to monitor battery voltage from my NEW system - new stator, as well as a CompuFire R/R - and I was a LOT nonplussed to see it flashing red a half mile down the road! ..:(.. I figured "Whut-the-hell" - I'll keep heading N, and if the system IS going 'south', it should fail by Vernon, about 30 miles N, easy to get a tow back home....

Clouds started "closing-in" by half-way to Vernon, so over to the shoulder to put on rain gear, skies very threatening.



The rain w/ high winds continued to 100 Mile House, about 223 miles (360 kms) N. FINALLY sunny, rain-gear off, time for a lunch snack.



The plan was to visit a member of this forum, SilverFox09, at his place on a lake W of Prince George for 'burgers-n-beer', so it was nice being able to travel w/out being weather-proof! Got there at 1700, and Steve showed the way into his shop to park for the night. That was 754 kms (468 miles) for the day in 10 hours.



Steve even invited me to stay IN his house (I guess I ONLY spent 13 nights 'on-the-road' in my tent...:clap:), and I soon had a dark, porter type beer in my hand. GREAT view from his deck.





Steve and his wife soon had the BBQ on, burgers cooking, salad out, and we tucked into a PDG supper (...and several more 'brewskis'...:thumb:...), then off to bed.

:thanx:

There WILL be more...!
 

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#2 · (Edited)
D2D day 2 - 13 June Steve's to Stewart, BC

Woke up early, had breakfast and coffee(s) w/ Steve, phoned my wife, put on rain-gear, then started the GREEN HORNET, heading W by 0705. An hour and a half later I was in Burns Lake removing that gear. Gassed-up, back on Hwy 16 (the "Highway of Tears", because of the number of women who've been murdered or gone missing while hitch-hiking along it!).

Soon after I was 'rolling' thru Houston when I noticed the information center had a mounted grizzly, so turned in, grabbing my camera. This is possibly the nicest live-mount of a grizz I have ever seen, but it's too bad that the glass windows are NOT non-reflective....:thumbdown:







Camera hung around my neck I rejoined BC 16, soon seeing mountains,


and some history.



My plan was to get a 'ways up' the Stewart-Cassiar Hwy, BC 37, but the 'hills' and rivers along 16 are pretty nice, too...!



 

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#3 · (Edited)
Heading W the hills just get prettier....







The last time I rode up 37 they were putting up many high-tension power lines, and now I could start seeing the results.



At Meziadin Junction (now w/ a gas station!), I decided to turn W and head down the Glacier Hwy (37A) to Stewart, just because it is SUCH a beautiful road!









In places the glaciers come almost right down to the road....



In Stewart I stayed at the "Rainey Creek" Campground, aptly named, but getting 'long-in'the-tooth', so I don't really recommend it. LOTS of signs warning of bears, and during the night I heard a loud CRACK, which at first I thought was thunder, then decided it was probably a problem bear getting its walking-papers.



Picked up a couple of beers to go w/ my dinner of chili, then turned in.... Today added another 641 kms (397 miles) to the odometer.

:goodidea:
 

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#6 ·
waiting to hear how the "Green Hornet" ended up...........:eek:
 
#7 ·
Eddie,
Great photos. I'm envious about your adventure as well. Perhaps one day.

Two questions for you. Is that you at the picnic table? Nice to be able to put a face to a name. And, is the Energizer Bunny really green? :D:D
 
#10 · (Edited)
...Two questions for you. Is that you at the picnic table? Nice to be able to put a face to a name. And, is the Energizer Bunny really green? :D:D
YES to question #2, but I use a "body-double" for pics of "me"....:rolleyes:

For me... think of a YOUNG Paul Newman, kinda 'crossed' w/ Brad Pitt....

:cool:

Great write up Ed, awesome trip indeed. You are a pleasant looking fellow, these guys said you had fangs and a tail while you were gone.... :devil:

Curious about the bike's performance as well.

Camping in griz country, alone....
no one else to serve up first as the appetizer to distract them for the getaway...
GRIZZ country??? I EAT grizz' for breakfast...! :yeahsmile:

(Lots of kids in Stewart to attract the bears....)

Bike ran REALLY well for 7,652 kms (4,744 miles), but yesterday it took a ride on a flat-deck truck to the Kawi shop in West Kelowna....
 
#8 ·
Great write up Ed, awesome trip indeed. You are a pleasant looking fellow, these guys said you had fangs and a tail while you were gone.... :devil:

Curious about the bike's performance as well.

Camping in griz country, alone....
no one else to serve up first as the appetizer to distract them for the getaway...
 
#12 · (Edited)
14 June - day 3, Stewart to Watson Lake (+ 2 riding buddies...)

Up early, as usual, this time to the sound of rain.... Oh well.

Fired up my stove, water boiling as I shaved and brushed my teeth, then a "cup-of-noodles" and two cups of that flavored coffee from Internat'l Foods, THIS a 'french-vanilla', then time to break camp.

Just drizzling now, so the stuff went away fairly dry, the bike loaded, me in rain pants and my (waterproof...?) Kilimanjaro jacket, out of camp by 0800...



Went to the PetroCanada station for gas, only to read the sign; Sunday hours - 9AM to..., so I headed E on 37A. Rain started coming a bit harder, so I stopped just outside of town to add my rain-jacket, and a be-whiskered fellow on a BMW 1200GS stopped to ask if I was OK as his pal rolled by on an F800GS. I gave him a 'thumbs-up', he headed out, I finished dressing, then headed E too.



The humidity had entrails of fog lurking here-n-there and pretty soon I could see Metziadin Lake to my right, thru the trees



and my fingers were crossed that the NEW gas station I'd seen at the Metziadin Junction would ACTUALLY be open for business....:goodluck:

It was; I filled the GREEN HORNET; added a couple of liters to my spare-gas can; then headed N on the Cassiar (BC 37), tendrils of fog still evident.



but clearing quickly, tho' I stayed 'rain-suited' for awhile. NICE scenery on 37!









:type:
 

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#13 · (Edited)
...STILL headed N on the Cassiar Hwy!

It was starting to dry a bit, so I put the rain-gear back into my pack, headed N, camera at the 'ready'...,



and time for a small history lesson -



and MORE scenery.



This being Dease Lake.





Stopped for a break, and AGAIN the 1200GS guy stopped to see if I needed help. "We're headed the same way - let's hook-up!", I said, and Paul (1200GS) and Pete (800GS) agreed, so we rode in "line-astern" (as it's called in formation flying).







We gassed at Dease Lake, then continued N, Watson Lake the destination. I'd mentioned the campground at the Junction of 37 and the Alcan, AND that we could head into Watson Lake for an ice-cream, and that seemed to 'strike-a-cord' w/ Paul and Pete, so we turned E for about 20 kms (of dust - the Yukon was doing a 'chip-seal' repair for a long way), but the ice-cream made it better, and we re-traced our route thru the dust and set camp at the Junction.

We all looked forward to showers (unfortunately NOT in service any longer), but were mollified by the news that we could do a "basin-wash" in the rest-rooms.

Soon three tents were up, and I had my stove going, heating a can of chili, as we all shared stories. Paul from Colorado (w/ a winter place just N of Phoenix), Pete from near San Francisco, but soon around 2200 we all headed over to wash-up, only to learn that the restrooms were LOCKED!!! :thumbdown:..., so into the tents for sleep, mostly a bit 'soiled'....

Today added 681 kms (422 miles) to the total.
 

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#14 · (Edited)
Day 4 - 15 June, Watson Lk to N of Whitehorse...

Up early, so I walked over to try the restrooms, which WERE open, so I cleaned off some of the Cassiar dust. A truck had parked between our tent site and the washrooms sometime overnight.



Back to the tent, started the stove, shaved and brushed my teeth, then had my usual breakfast, Paul and Pete fast asleep.



Pretty soon they got up and began 'breaking-camp', breakfast planned at a cafe a mile W on the Alcan, so it was planned that I'd get sorted out, then ride to meet them there.

PDQ I had everything down, packed, then tied onto the GREEN HORNET, and I headed W to find the guys. Imagine my surprise to pull up, but NO sign of the two Beemers. I TRIED to get gas, but the pump kept giving me trouble, so I removed my card, then drove back E and filled at the service station where we'd camped. I brought up the fact that we'd gone to wash-up and found everything locked the night before. He said he thought that he'd told us it got locked at 2000hrs, but I replied that IF he had, not one of us heard it. He then offered to refund half the cost of our sites, which I took. Gassed up I was headed W, camera around my neck.





In an hour or so I came up to the service center at the Continental Divide, and, lo-and-behold - TWO familiar looking BMWs parked there. I went inside, joined the guys then gave them their refunds which QUITE surprised them. Seems they couldn't get food at the cafe near camp, so decided to just keep riding till they found one open, and here we all were!

Next major stop would be Teslin, where a lo-o-ong metal bridge goes across the Wolf River where it joins Teslin Lake, and a large number of adventure riders always seem to be stopped at the gas station at the W end of the bridge....



As you can see - it was 'rain-gear' time again. We got gas and a coffee, chatting about the various rides and riders there, especially two guys on GS1200s, but wearing half-helmets and H-D tee shirts along w/ KLIM outfits. Seems they'd decided to go N, bought Beemers and KLIM, but kept some of the H-D gear. Looked rather bizarre...!:rolleyes:

I mentioned that we could go via Carcross (which neither had thought about, or planned), so they followed me onto YT 8 at Jakes Corner headed due W,





and we soon arrived at Carcross (shortened from CARibou CROSSing) at the end of Bennett Lake, where the gold-rush people arrived enroute to Dawson back in 1898.



Besides the historic general store, the downtown now has some native souvenir shops w/ traditional murals on them. That's Pete on the right, Paul left.



We then headed N, thru Whitehorse after stopping for some supplies, exiting onto the Klondike Hwy, YT 2, for a few 'clicks', then W for 10 more, to the Takhini Hot Springs Campground. NICE facility, and the hot springs REALLY remove aches and pains. Pete and I shared some beers, he had his first taste of poutine, then it was time for us all to SOAK! Then back to the tents for sleep...!

:thumb:

Today had added 498 kms (309 miles) to the total.
 

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#15 · (Edited)
16 June - touring Whitehorse, fitting tires....

After breakfast was done, we rode into town to 'check-out' several museums prior to Pete's 1400 appointment at the Yamaha dealer to install the pair of Shinko E-705s he'd been carrying since leaving SFO. Incidentally - the set on his F800GS had OVER 10,000 miles of use, and his third or fourth set. Despite my misgivings when I'd run them back in 2009 on a KLR, they've obviously fixed the problems, and I believe they'll be my NEXT set!

Here's a gratuitous "hero" pic....



Hanging in that Yamaha shop is a model of a 'motorcycle' built by art students at one of the Selkirk Colleges. It's pretty much life-size, and VERY neat!



Our first stop after confirming the tire appointment, was at the "Beringia Museum", about the times when mastodons roamed the area. Here's a display outside...



while these are on the inside. This, a skull from a 2,000 pound (!) short-faced bear



while this is a mastodon skeleton...



this an American lion (about 30% larger than the present day African ones)...



while this is the skeleton of a prehistoric bison....



There is also a display of Haida Indian art.





Next door is the "Yukon Transportation Museum", fronted by a DC-3 on a 'pole'



while inside there are displays about the "Canol pipeline" from Norman Wells, started at the same time as the Alcan, but then abandoned when the Alcan was finished.





and outside, this HUGE truck used in building the Alaska Hwy.



We stopped for lunch before proceeding for tires, and again Pete tried something new when he had poutine (again!, but THIS time made w/ cheese curds), and a piece of saskatoon berry pie. A fellow (Tom) from New Brunswick arrived, also getting tires installed. He's a H-D rider who'd bought a 'wee-Strom' to ride from NB to the Dempster, and ended up at the same campground in Dawson as I did.



Once done, we headed N to the hot spring campground....



Today added a miniscule 98 kms (61 miles) tho' Pete rode MORE than that - he'd helped Tom w/ his bike, then NOT finished tightening his front caliper bolts properly, one having vibrated out, so he rode back into Whitehorse for a (generic) replacement.

:rolleyes:
 

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#18 · (Edited)
17th June - Takhini Hot Springs to Dawson City!

The weather started out nice as I ate breakfast, and WE broke camp, then we were loaded-up, headed N by about 0900,



but THAT soon deteriorated, and back into rain-gear....:rolleyes:



We 'did' the obligatory stop at Braeburn Lodge where I shared a plate-sized $10 cinnamon-roll w/ Paul (who'd ALSO ordered ham'n'eggs, much to his chagrin - it was FAR too much!) - GREAT treat!



Headed N again, we soon were back into rain suits, thunderstorms in all quadrants, and we pulled in for gas at Carmacks, just as the skies OPENED w/ brilliant flashes c/w thundering-cracks from the storm over us. NO pics, as my camera was being kept out of the POURING rain!...:goodidea:



Within a couple of miles, as we rode UP and out of the river valley, the skies cleared. "Five Finger Rapids" there, were a treacherous obstacle for the 'Klondikers', and the only safe way thru was the right finger, closest to the camera.





As the Klondike Hwy took us further N we were into and out of showers, generally OK weather, but the road...?





For some reason the Yukon road crews will 'fix' a section of road by tearing-up the WHOLE damned thing (often for MILES...:(...), then have each direction wait till a pilot truck comes from the OTHER direction (leading another group of vehicles...), then leads THAT line-up to their end. To keep the dust down, they have water trucks going up-and-down SOAKING the road, so it becomes mud! :thumbdown:

The ONLY good thing...? In the Yukon and NWT, motorcycles ride up to the FRONT of the line, so they don't have a line-of-vehicles to pass later....:exactly:

Then, to top THAT off, in several sections near the Dawson end they also poured OIL onto it, making it EXTREMELY slick....:censored:... It's up-on-the-pegs to ride thru this....:eek:

Later, while talking about it, the others stated that I must be incorrect - the gov't would NEVER do THAT - so I mentioned the SMELL of oil coming off my headers from all that junk being baked-on, and as they noticed the smell, agreed w/ me.

Some years back the gas station at the bottom of the Dempster (40 kms E of Dawson) burned down, so you needed to fill-up in Dawson, and make sure you had enough to 'make' Eagle Plains, 372 kms FURTHER (412 kms TOTAL), but now there's a "card-lock" station there, open 24 hrs/ day, where you go thru a bit of a 'process' registering your credit card, but then can fill-up fairly easily. (FWIW - there's ALSO gas available NOW at Fort McPherson, NWT 186 kms S of Inuvik...:thumb:)

The WORST section, mud and oil, started just W of the Dempster, but will probably be completed by now!

Paul and Pete were staying in a cabin at the host hotel (Triple J Hotel), while I planned to TRY to get a spot at the 'Gold Rush Campground' where I'd stayed in '13. I rode in, checked w/ the office. They gave me a spot, but said I'd have to change the next day to another, and I settled in.



Here's the whole campground, and as you can see - clouds were 'rolling-in' again.... :rolleyes: That slide, ancient, is known as the "Moose Pelt".



Tent up, gear stowed, I walked down to the Triple J, and sat down to a beer and the one-and-a-half-pound chicken wing special, to feel a tap on my shoulder - Pete and Paul were there too, so we had beers and chatted for several hours, then back to turn in.

Today was about 8 hours, covering 524 kms (325 miles), and D2D starts on the 18th!
 

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#19 · (Edited)
18 & 19 June - tramping around Dawson City!

Woke up early, as usual, and took this pic of the Gold Rush Campground BEFORE it filled w/ 'adventure' riders.



I went for a long walk, enjoying the contrast between 'modern' homes, and some that are NOT so modern....



Came back to my tent to find a note on the windshield from the owners, that I could stay in the same site rather than have to move - YIPPEE!

I stopped at the Yukon Information building on Main Street, picked up three coupons for various tours, then walked over to the S.S.Keno, a decommissioned paddle wheeler, w/ a great view of the Yukon River, and the ferry coming across.



After a one hour tour (including a video of the Keno's last trip, down the Yukon from Whitehorse to its present spot beside the river)



I walked back to the campground to meet again, Jeremy, notorious from D2D 2013 (he got the "Hard Luck Award", because he'd come into a corner on the Robert Campbell Hwy between Watson Lake and Carmacks, a "trifle" HOT, then sailed off the road and into a swamp, the bike landing upside down but still running... the ONLY damage being a chip broken out of the cover over his F800GS's speedo!



Nice to meet up again!

Then I joined another walking-tour, this one featuring various 'landmarks', this one a bar



and this one the rear of the local undertaker.



Some neat stories come out at these tours! From there I walked over to the "Triple J" where I had some beers w/ Paul and Pete, then back to the campground, now FULL of ADV bikes, including another Versys, this an '08 from Alaska right next to mine.

The 'party' continued till 0200, so I was VERY TIRED in the morning, but quite a view..., this red V being one I'd seen in 2013.



EVEN an ADV Harley wearing dual-sport rubber amongst the rest!



I walked downtown the two blocks to the Triple J where a tent was up, welcoming us,



bikes lining the courtyard



including a 125 Honda that a fellow had ridden up from Argentina (!!!), (AND if you look REALLY close, you just might see a green '09 Versys 'behind' his seat....)





plus a BMW 1200GS that had NOT fared well on the Top of the World Hwy from Chicken. The rider, a woman, had only suffered bruises, :goodluck:..., and she got the 2015 "Hard Luck Award" at the dinner.



Also a '74 Yamaha RT360 was there



getting ready to leave on the "Poker Run".

:cool:
 

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#22 ·
Woke up early, as usual, and took this pic of the Gold Rush Campground BEFORE it filled w/ 'adventure' riders.



I went for a long walk, enjoying the contrast between 'modern' homes, and some that are NOT so modern....



Came back to my tent to find a note on the windshield from the owners, that I could stay in the same site rather than have to move - YIPPEE!

I stopped at the Yukon Information building on Main Street,



picked up three coupons for various tours, then walked over to the S.S.Keno, a decommissioned paddle wheeler, w/ a great view of the Yukon River, and the ferry coming across.



After a one hour tour (including a video of the Keno's last trip, down the Yukon from Whitehorse to its present spot beside the river)



I walked back to the campground to meet again, Jeremy, notorious from D2D 2013 (he got the "Hard Luck Award", because he'd come into a corner on the Robert Campbell Hwy between Watson Lake and Carmacks, a "trifle" HOT, then sailed off the road and into a swamp, the bike landing upside down but still running... the ONLY damage being a chip broken out of the cover over his F800GS's speedo!





Nice to meet up again!

Then I joined another walking-tour, this one featuring various 'landmarks', this one a bar



and this one the rear of the local undertaker.



Some neat stories come out at these tours! From there I walked over to the "Triple J" where I had some beers w/ Paul and Pete, then back to the campground, now FULL of ADV bikes, including another Versys, this an '08 from Alaska right next to mine.

The 'party' continued till 0200, so I was VERY TIRED in the morning, but quite a view...,





EVEN an ADV Harley wearing dual-sport rubber amongst the rest!



I walked downtown the two blocks to the Triple J where a tent was up, welcoming us,



bikes lining the courtyard



including a 125 Honda that a fellow had ridden up from Argentina (!!!),





plus a BMW 1200GS that had NOT fared well on the Top of the World Hwy from Chicken. The rider, a woman, had only suffered bruises, :goodluck:..., and she got the 2015 "Hard Luck Award" at the dinner.



Also a '74 Yamaha RT360 was there



getting ready to leave on the "Poker Run".

:cool:
Hey Eddie! I don't recall seeing your Versys there, but it is easy to get lost in that sea of bikes! Just a small correction for you, the Yamaha RT is actually a '72 model, ridden by my racing buddy Tim. My wife and I rode our WR250s with Tim all the way from Anchorage, then back. That's the back half of my WR with the gas can, parked just in front of the RT. We all had a ball, by the way! Next year I'll be on my '15 Versys in white!
 
#20 · (Edited)
more 19th June D2D stuff!

I went for a walk up 8th Avenue which features cabins used by Jack London, Pierre Berton (a Canadian writer, born there, who's written many books about the Yukon!), ending at the Robert Service cabin (wrote the "Cremation of Sam McGee" among others), where I waited for a tour, the guide giving some of Service's lesser known stories, as well as anecdotes.





Here's the interior of his cabin -







and the rear door,





as well as some of the front.





D2D features a VG steak supper at 1800 hosted by the local volunteer fire department, and at $30 a ticket - fully supported! here's a shot of Dick, THE organizer, picking MY table to be first in line!



Here's a view of the cooks



and some steaks!



After dinner, and door-prizes, the games begin! That's a Kawi W800 w/ the yellow tank



and shots of SOME of the bikes.





By 2230 I was starting to fall asleep watching the 'games', so I said goodbye to Dick, the organizer, and rode back to the campground - we were planning to head up the Dempster the next morning - and put ear-plugs in and went to sleep.

:goodidea:

I failed to mention that one of our site sponsors - TWISTED THROTTLE - supplied about a zillion SUPER t-shirts so that everyone got one.

:thanx:
 

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#24 · (Edited)
20 June - UP the Dempster Hwy, again...!

I was awake by 0515 after a PRETTY GOOD sleep - thanks, ear-plugs! - and got busy shaving, making grub, then tearing my camp down, but not very many others were up w/ me....:rolleyes:



The GREEN HORNET loaded, I rode over to the Triple J to the cabin Paul and Pete were in, chatted while they got ready, and discovered that when Paul had picked up his TWISTED THROTTLE T-shirt, he got a L - TOO small for him - so he gave it to Pete. I 'mulled' that over then went for a short walk and "finagled" an XL to present to Paul sometime in the future....

Then we walked over to the "Jack London Lounge" where they had breakfast, and me - a coffee, then we saddled-up, gassed-up, then E on the Yukon Hwy (again thru all that road-construction muck I mentioned earlier) to YT 5 / NWT 8 - the 'dreaded' Dempster Highway, one of the prettiest rides I've ever done, tho' it CAN be 'deadly' when other-than dry. We were to have another BMW 1200GS rider, Doug, join us - he's up from FL!



Several times I've heard "Tombstone" mentioned, and when I queried it, saying I'd not ever heard of it, been told that I MUST be mistaken - it's been there FOREVER...! I put it down to 'old age'....

Then we saw this sign,



continued riding on THIS



till we arrived at the Tombstone Visitor Centre (went inside and read that it'd been built in '09 AFTER I rode the Dempster...:rolleyes:... LAST time). Doug, the 'new' guy, is on the left.



and I'm in the middle.



N of Tombstone it just keeps getting prettier....:thumb:

















the clouds even "lifting" now-and-then,



altho' we could start seeing rain-showers in the distance (I'd sworn I would NOT ride the Dempster UNLESS it was dry.... Can't 'go-back', but I wonder...?)



Then around a corner it would be THIS...

 

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#25 · (Edited)
20 June - on to Eagle Plains, then Rock River Campground

Then around the NEXT corner - THIS!





:censored:

...and around the NEXT corner - it got nice again.



There's a rock formation along this range that has a "Jabba-the-Hut" representation in stone, so I got a 'close-up' pic of it.



IF you don't see it... squint...:goodluck:. More scenery followed





still rain clouds hangin' around...



There's a stone formation I saw back in '09 that looks like a mastodon elephant, VERY hard to find, so I suggested to Yukon tourism to set up signs or something to direct folks, so now there's 'pull-out' w/ signs showing it.

Here it is, JUST visible on that ridge...



and here's a close-up.



:thumb:
 

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#26 · (Edited)
MORE 20th June on the Dempster...!

After seeing the elephant, we continued N,





but STILL seeing showers in different quadrants





then we pulled into Eagle Plains, and - GAS for me! I took 16.77L for 402 kms, which is 24 km/L, 67.6 mpgImperial (54 mpgUS) - not too bad!







while the BMW riders went in for a supper, then gas, then to join me at the Rock River Campground, 75 kms N.





ONLY 37 kms N is the Arctic Circle, so a stop for the 'obligatory' pic,



then more "pretty" till the campground.







Today added another 483 kms (300 miles) to the total.

Got my tent up, everything set, then the others rode in, deciding to 'camp' in the building there rather than get "bugged" by the skeeters. I chatted w/ a camper who is a government employee from Inuvik, and shared a few beers he offered, then talked w/ the group, then OFF to bed - MANY other bikes in the camp by then.

:yeahsmile:
 

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#27 · (Edited)
21 June - Rock River to Rock River, via Inuvik and...!

As usual I was up early, had breakfast, broke camp, ready to head N by 0700, and - the other three were JUST waking up! - This the building those "pussies" put their tents up inside of, avoiding skeeters....



I walked around, noticing lots of adventure riders (including Jerome again!), took a couple of pics





then went back and told the guys that I would head N, and see them on the road. We agreed to meet back at the same campground that evening, so I waved, hit the 'magic' button, and pulled out.

:yeahsmile:
 

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#28 · (Edited)
MORE 21 June....

I feel that the Dempster Hwy is some of the prettiest scenery I've ever ridden thru





and soon arrived at the border w/ the NWT



but, because the river at the campground had an orange color, I decided to refill my hydration pack further on, from snow melt. I found a likely place, put the GREEN HORNET onto its stand at the edge of the road, then walked in a quarter mile. While there I heard a semi coming so took this pic (which will illustrate a point a bit further on).



As you can see - the dust seems to run almost as an extension of its roof-line, more later, and this is how it looks for a long time.



I soon arrived at the stop for the Peel River ferry,



and an hour or so later, the McKenzie River ferry, LAST one before Inuvik,



and the truck I shot w/ the dust-trail.



The road N from there follows the McKenzie River into Inuvik...



where I took THIS pic



and this one at the "Igloo Church".



Took awhile, but I finally found THE gas station, filled-up, then headed S, GLAD to get back onto the Dempster because the paved roads in Inuvik are rougher than the Dempster, probably due to frost heaves - enough to make you sea-sick....



Things were about to go SERIOUSLY SOUTH...!

:badidea:

:censored:
 

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#29 · (Edited)
21 June... things start going SOUTH...!

About 45 minutes after leaving Inuvik, I saw three familiar looking bikes at the side of the road having a snack - Paul, Pete and Doug, so I slowed, pulled a 180 and went back to chat. They were (OF COURSE) still headed N, so we agreed that we'd meet back at the River Rock Campground, and that I'd TRY to keep folks out of that building so they could all be away from the bugs...!

I headed S again, now around 20 kms N of the McKenzie River ferry.



The roads over 'permafrost' are about 5 or 6 feet above it, gravel on top of some sort of insulator, maybe 40' wide. The center 18 to 20 feet is pretty hard-packed, while it gets softer the closer you get to the verge... NOT a good place to ride a motorcycle, as it'll pull you to the edge! The edge of the 'ditch' is about a 45 degree angle, down to bushes, short trees just back of there, maybe 10 feet or so high.

There was a left-curve coming up for me maybe 200 feet ahead, I was doing about 90 km/hr (55 mph), when SUDDENLY a semi w/ trailer came into view, driving on the center, his dust trail hidden below the tops of the trees, so I had NO warning he was coming (or I would have been stopped on the side of the road, waiting till it passed).

Here's a reminder of what it's like....



I IMMEDIATELY got off the throttle, stood on the foot-pegs, moved right, slowing as he was "ON" me, the dust reducing visibility to "ZERO-ZERO", thumbed my high-beams ON in case someone was right behind him, still 'easing' right. DON'T forget - I was in a left-curve w/ NO visibility, trying to avoid the soft-shoulder!

I felt the bike jerk right - I was onto the shoulder, the dust dissipating - and I could see I was TOO far right - not headed the full amount for the left-curve, the bike oscillating like a 'sine' wave, each time right a bit further than the last, as it got softer, pulling me over despite my reducing speed.

Now I was going into that 45 degree shoulder, pulling me down, up a bit, down more....

I remember thinking "This is gonna HURT!" then "F*CKITY, F*CKITY, F*CKITY!!!" then I remember thinking "DON'T go into the shrubs 'cause NOBODY will ever find you!", so I did SOMETHING - FULL rear brakes, low-siding onto the left side, gravel flying, then BANG! - and my left-side pannier ripped off the bike, and I came to a stop....

I pushed myself out from under amazed that NOTHING hurt (I didn't get EVEN a scratch or bruise...!:goodluck:...!) to see a pickup and two bikes stopped, running towards me. I picked up my camera, taking a few pics



(check out how much the pannier is bent).



In about five minutes from the 'crash', the GREEN HORNET was back onto the road, and my benefactors left, headed for Inuvik, me at the side of the road w/ a "problem"....:censored:

Another bike stopped, and this fellow helped me come up w/ a way to strap my damaged pannier onto my (damaged) rack, then attach my tent bag where a passenger would sit, so I could continue S.



(You can see how much the pannier is 'buckled' in this one.)

I mounted up, waved goodbye, then started S again, finding out that I was stuck w/ ONLY two speeds, either 3 and 4, or 4 and 5, as my shifter would only move a little, and the rear-brake was inoperative, vibrating like hell and making NASTY noises. On the ferry, one of the crew lent me a crescent wrench to TRY to tighten my rear brake-line bolt, as I now saw that there was brake-fluid leakage....

:huh:

PROBABLY, more tomorrow.....

:rolleyes:
 

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#31 ·
This is unfortunate. Glad your still with us. That's pretty cool when a guy is in the middle of nowhere, yet people appear to check on you and give you a hand, priceless when one is shaken up a bit and has not done the "inventory" to see what might be broken, sprained or bleedin...

Curious on the forensic inspection of the bike later on. Share the teachable moments if you would (like bring lots of bungees, long misc. bolts with wingnuts and large washers, etc. ).
 
#32 ·
This is unfortunate. Glad your still with us. That's pretty cool when a guy is in the middle of nowhere, yet people appear to check on you and give you a hand, priceless when one is shaken up a bit and has not done the "inventory" to see what might be broken, sprained or bleedin....
Yes - I was LUCKY! And that was why I was very concerned to NOT go into the bushes at the bottom of the ditch, where I could be hidden from view, injured or disabled. Here in BC a rider went down and OFF the road, was injured and pinned under his bike. He was in the process of dying (several days later, no water, etc) when two mountain bikers decided to ride down a trail and saw him. Apparently they thought he was dead, then saw his foot move, and called for help (there'd been a search going for several days by then).

LUCKY man!

:thumb: - :thumb:
 
#33 · (Edited)
21 June - the "never-ending-story"...

By the time I got off the McKenzie ferry, I had a plan to ride into Fort McPherson to report the crash to the RCMP, and fill-up w/ gas, because WHATEVER gear was my highest now, gave me about 80 to 90 kph at about 5,000 rpm, so my gas mileage was going to be a SERIOUS concern (Eagle Plains to the NEXT gas S - 379 kms (235 miles)) on my NEXT 'leg', but today should NOT be a problem as it's ONLY 183 kms from Ft McPherson to the pumps at Eagle Plains....

When I got to the RCMP station I was unpleasantly surprised to see a sign on the door showing hours as "Monday to Friday" and today was Sunday(!!!), followed by a phone number for other times (I had NOT brought a cell-phone due the extremely limited coverage up there...!). I tried the door-bell w/ no success, than rode to the gas station to fill up, as my 1 gallon gas can had broken in the crash, so I'd only have whatever I could force into the tank.

:thumbdown:

Soon I was across the Peel ferry, the kms counting down till I could get to Rock River Campground to try some repairs, and see the others. AGAIN, as in the days past, I could see storms forming in various quadrants.



I stopped to take a pic as I re-entered the Yukon (that is a mosquito just left of the Yukon sign - they grow 'em BIG up there!),



but I was MORE focused on getting my tent set-up and then starting 'repairs'.

I removed the pannier from the rack, then grabbed the hammer I brought along for pounding my tent-pegs into the rocks back in Dawson - I use those hardened 'Ardox' nails that 'twist' in as they're pounded - and started to "wail-away" at the BIG fold in the top rail, as well as ALL FOUR of the holes that the 'mounting-pucks' had been attached thru, as they NOW pointed in any direction EXCEPT straight. Then I pounded on the bends in the lid, slowly getting it to where I could "sort-of" mount it onto the bike. To get a better look at the rear brake I began removing the right pannier, immediately seeing that it TOO, was SERIOUSLY TWEAKED! Somehow an awful lot of force had transferred across the frame and into it.



You can really see the mis-alignment of the rack AND the license-plate bracket!...,



and the 'seepage' at the rear brake caliper.



Figuring I should work on the shifting problem, I began to remove the left-side SW-Motech crash-bar. A fellow came up, started asking what I was doing, so as I was explaining I noticed that the crash-bar was NOT contacting the shift mechanism, but rather a rock was jammed in there. I took a tool, gently tapped against the rock, then a bit harder. It fell out!

Looked like I was 'back-in-business'...! I warmed my chili for dinner, ate it, then went for a walk by the river.




The yellowish stains on the rocks are the reason that I hadn't filled my hydration pack here in the morning. You'll see MORE of them in tomorrow's pics....

I kept waiting for Pete, Paul and Doug to show, but it wasn't happening. Then a young fellow from Victoria rolled up on a KLR, asked if he could join me in my site, so I said "Sure!"

When his tent was up we chatted about riding, bikes, the Dempster - he planned to keep going N the next day, and thought he'd seen my three missing friends down at Tombstone..., so I was a bit annoyed that they had bypassed me.

Soon it was time to turn-in, today having added 585 kms (363 miles) to my trip total, but MAYBE having a sort-of 'serviceable' Versys again.

:goodluck:
 

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