Journal Stage 2

Denali National Park

We entered Denali National Park on an overcast day with some scattered showers. The situation was a complete u-turn from what Shawn and I had experienced on the Dalton Highway just a few weeks earlier. There were hundreds of buses, thousand of rvs, and even more people scurrying around the visitor’s center trying to plan their adventures. There is a gravel road into the park which goes 85 miles to Wonder Lake. Only buses are allowed past mile post 15, which is also where the road turns to dirt/gravel. Shawn and I decided to ride out the road to Wonder Lake while Marie and Callie elected to take the bus to Wonder Lake soon after our arrival. Although we had lots of rain, the road was breathtaking and a truly humbling experience. The road meanders across the valleys over three passes never reaching more than 4,000 feet in elevation. The surrounding mountains tower to over 16,000 feet with Denali reaching 20,320 feet! Some sections of the road are only wide enough for one bus to get through and to the left are 1,500 feet drop offs. Although we did not see any other cyclists on the road, we did see grizzly bears, black bears, wolves, dall sheep, caribou, bald eagles, and millions of mosquitoes! The animals are quite accustomed to the buses and wander onto the road frequently to pose for the cameras which are pressed out the bus windows.

Living the Dream

Once Shawn and I had reached mile post 65 on the road out to Denali, we were soaking wet and the rain was continuing to pour on us. We had been told at the visitor’s center that we could hop on a bus at anytime for free and get back to the entrance. The time was five p.m. and the skies were as dark as we had seen since beginning the ride three weeks earlier. Our hopes of seeing Mt. McKinley were looking next to zero and so we decided we would flag down the last bus which would pass by our location in about an hour. Soon after we had reached this decision, we saw Marie riding up a pass through four inches of mud! Callie and herself had ridden on the bus to Wonder Lake the day before and had stayed the night. At three p.m., Callie had gotten back on the bus while Marie headed off for the visitor’s center some 85 miles away through rain and temperatures in the 40s. It was at this point that Shawn and I began to get motivated to continue out to Wonder Lake.

We continued on, trying to stay warm until we ran into the big green bus that was going to be dry and have heat! Finally the bus came around the corner and the driver and some passengers got out to greet us. They were amazed at how far we had come and encouraged us to continue since we had made it this far. The bus driver informed us that it appeared to be clearing down at Wonder Lake and that it is only another 20 miles. One of the passengers stuck his head out of the window and yelled, “why would you get on this bus, you have bikes, you’re living the dream!” Shawn and I looked at each other and wiped the mud from our faces and said, “you’re right, we are heading to Wonder Lake!” The bus honked as we pulled off and within an hour we were in Wonder Lake in cloudy conditions. We were greeted by several other campers and a whole carnival of hungry mosquitoes. Everyone had on bug nets and left no skin exposed. As we cooked dinner, a mountaineer approached the table and told us that the MOUNTAIN looks to be clearing. Over the next hour the clouds slowly lifted and revealed one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. I was at 2,000 feet and just 30 miles away was a giant frozen mass that topped 20,000 feet in elevation. The sun started to dip on the horizon causing the mountain to glow a light red while the fog set into the chilled valley.

Interesting Questions

Along the way I have been asked many interesting questions. I am getting far enough into the trip now that when I tell people I started in Prudhoe Bay I frequently get asked, “ ”why?” and are you crazy?” These questions are easy to answer but some of the others I have been asked are not as easy. Shawn and I were enjoying burritos in a parking lot one afternoon when a man approached us in a Napoleon Dynamite style 80’s van. With his engine and music still humming, he walked towards us and asked with a serious tone, “Do you fellas know where the gold is?” He then went onto to tell us how his day was spoiled since he had received a ticket for driving without insurance a few miles up the road. We talked about Alaska for a while and I told him that I had seen Prospect Creek a few miles back, but that if I knew where “the gold” was that I probably would not be sharing!

Another great question came when the Why I Ride team was enjoying a meal in Denali State Park when a 4-Runner entered the massive parking lot and parked in the middle. The two ladies kept the engine running and did not leave the vehicle for ten minutes to enjoy the view of McKinley on a clear day with temperatures in the high 60’s. Finally, the driver rolled down her window and asked us, “have you seen any wildlife around the parking lot here?” Astonished, I answered with honesty...”No, I have not seen any in this parking lot today.” She thanked me and drove out of the parking lot and made a hard right for Anchorage.

Our First Century

The day after leaving Denali National Park, the Why I Ride team completed our first century (102.5 miles in total)! We could do more centuries but I soon remind myself, what is the hurry? It was a bluebird day and for some reason we just felt like riding...and riding. McKinley was to the right the entire day as we traveled down the Parks Highway. I could not tell where McKinley ended and the clouds started. We had dinner about midnight and decided to keep riding for another few hours since it was still daylight outside. On the horizon, we could see some thunderstorms with flashes of lighting. We kept riding towards the storm hoping to find a campsite before they reached us. Unfortunately, the storm did catch up to us and we rode for ten miles in heavy rains with loud clashes of thunder around us. It made for a miserably wet night, but as Shawn says, “you have to have the wet days to be able to enjoy the perfect days!”

The View from Above

 I have a good friend in Soldotna whom I grew up skiing with. His name is Gerald Paul New and he is a flight instructor/pilot here on the Kenai Peninsula. Fortunately, I was able to get up with him for some lunch a few days ago and he was kind enough to take Marie and I flying in a beautiful Piper PA12 Super Cruiser that his friend Max owns. We flew towards the Kenai Mountains and eventually made our way over the Tustumena Glacier. Along the way we spotted a bear and flew over at a few hundred feet for some close up views! His girlfriend Michelle and her daughter Hanna welcomed us into their home for some scrumptious meals, much needed rest, and some proper laundry!

Kindness on the Road

Although I have only been gone one month now, I have met some amazing people and been rewarded with unprecedented kindness I did nothing to deserve. The Coe family in Fairbanks, Gerald and Michelle in Soldotna; Rob, Mikelle, Tim, and Lindsey in Anchorage; Linda and Everett in Anchorage, and several others have opened up their homes to us and/or went out of their way to make the team much more comfortable and clean than we would be without their help. Strangers soon become friends and sharing stories never gets old. One couple stopped us on our way out to Seward and offered us their cabin. They explained that they had bicycled all over Nova Scotia and that they had several people help them unexpectedly and that they just felt like giving back. They were not going to be home and offered us their keys to the cabin. So thank you to everyone for all of your help!

Roadside Bounty

The recipe for this week needs no cooking! It is a mystery meal and it comes direct from the road. Our particular recipe came on the Parks Highway and was found by Shawn! As we crested a hill, there in the middle of the road was a grocery bag. In the grocery bag was a bounty fit for kings! There was an 18-inch garlic bread with butter, a whole pack of mini tacos, an eight-pack of hamburger buns, a spatula, a disposable camera, and a receipt showing it was recently purchased a few miles up the road! We all pulled over and began to enjoy the garlic bread and mini tacos for an unexpected and early dinner.

More roadside bounty was found a few days ago in a ditch near Seward, Alaska. I was going along about 14 m.p.h. and noticed a license tag in the ditch. I rolled back and found a vintage Alaska tag. It appeared to be a collector’s item and I have been told it is a few decades old. There are no stickers on the tag and the picture below says it all! Please look for me and my new tags as you are out on the roads! SIXTY BELOW is my new handle!