I rolled into Whitehorse around 1 in the afternoon. My first stop was Tim Hortons for a large coffee, donut and a coffee. I spent about an hour and a half charging electronics and surfing the net for bearing rebuild information. From here I cruised over to the Library and began to research my future trip to Skagway and check out weather forecasts. Ensconsed in a radar map, I hear footsteps quickly approaching. I look up to see Daniel Jussen, the German cycylist I met on the Dalton and hosted in Fairbanks, running in my direction, a wave of gore-tex and nylon. He gave me a huge handshake and we both laugh at the spontaneous encounter after a week of very different travel. I have covered 2000mi and he, perhaps 700? We agree to meet for coffee and head over to Tim's again. I'm still amped up from my last cup but accept the offer to chat and share stories. In the parking lot, we pull in to a space with a Buell Blast 500cc fully loaded. Inside we meet Mark H., from North Carolina. He is travelling to Tok, AK then..."who knows". We share stories and talk about road conditions heading up the ALCAN. After about 30 min of sharing information and stories, he takes off. The best piece of advice he gave us was to check out Long Lake, only a few miles out of town for some free camping. PERFECT. Daniel and I agree to meet at 8PM at the SS Klondike and go our separate ways. I ride around town then visit the Visitor Center for some maps and information. I'm about to leave when a Kawi Versys pulls up with Quebec plates. Francois introduces himself and explains that he has driven from Montreal in 6 days! What a ride. He is heading to South America but wants to reach Inuvik, the northernmost road in Canada, first. This trip entails riding up the Dempster Highway, an unpaved gravel route of 457mi into the Arctic Circle and tundra. I notice his chain is a bit slack so we adjust it in the parking lot of the visitor center. I extend the offer to camp tonight so we head over to the store for steak, beans, corn and chips to enjoy in the woods. After meeting up with Daniel, we ride along the Yukon River down to Long Lake. The night is clear and we maky a small fire to sit around. 2 beers per person, we relax after a filling meal and share stories of travel, trepidation and leaving everything and nothing behind. I wake the next morning and take a dip in the lake. It is my first "bath" in 7 days and feels amazing. It is quite better to wake one up than coffee. That came later. I updated my journal for a bit then cruised in to town. I stopped at Canadian Tire for an oil change and was leaving when a beautiful R69S pulled in to the parking lot. We began chatting when a Ducati ST3 pulled in. Mike introduced himself and we got to talking. I explained my bearing problem and how I was hoping parts would arrive. He suggested I contact the local bearing supply shop in Porter Creek. I told him I needed a special tool for removal and would likely have to pay the shop for the task. "I have a bearing puller set you can borrow." Surprised by his generosity, he offers to take me up to his garage and we ride over to see the tools. I'm sure one of them will work and he offers up his garage and tools for the work tomorrow. What goes around comes around indeed.
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Mike SaundersIn May 2014 I quit my job to ride a Honda Ruckus over 69'000 mi and counting. Wild camping most nights and cooking most of my own meals, I keep the costs low and the landscape changing. Archives
April 2018
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