Cassiar Highway - Yukon
June 30- July 13, 2017 with Paul
Trip 6207/6290+6207= 12497 year
WI, MN, SD, MT, ID, BC, YUKON, ND and BACK
Day: 1 Date: Wednesday 6.28.17
Str Cty: Home Str Mls: 35116
End Cty: home End Mls: 35250
Dly Mls: 126 Tot Mls: 126
Time: hrs min Notes: Mischlers
Got tires, and oil service… adjusted running lite.
Day: 2 Date: 6.30.17
Str Cty: Home Str Mls: 35250
End Cty: Watertown, SD End Mls: 35705
Dly Mls: 461 Tot Mls: 461
Time: 7 hrs 30 min Notes: chilly and windy
Across Minnesota… Left at 8 after 2 1/2 pots of coffee. 10 in LaCrosse and noon at Kasson for gas. (14 to I90 to Rochester)… 14 thru Rochester, Mankato and New Ulum to Sleepy Eye to Redwood 67-68-21… Head wind all day so it was exhausting but gained 500’. The crops in WI and MN looked very good, having plenty of rain. At our first stop at HIx in Watertown at 4:30. Rained on one ten minute period - soaked us. Salads at Applebys.
Day: 3 Date: 7.1.17
Str Cty: Watertown, SD Str Mls: 35705
End Cty: Miles City, MT End Mls: 36196
Dly Mls: 493 Tot Mls: 954
Time: 7 hrs 10 min Notes: across South Dakota to the Yellowstone River. On Hwy 12..the Yellowstone Trail. Gained 1500 ft to Miles City at 3:30. We left Watertown at 7:45 on Hwy 20 to 45 into Ipswich with temperatures in the 60s. We stopped for pictures and moved on to Roscoe for more pictures. The new high school is almost complete. The Presbyterian church has been dissolved. Elfords house looks ok as does their grave. Crops in eastern SD looked usually good. However, once across the Missouri River the crops were stunted particularly corn due to lack of rain and the pastures and once cut alfalfa ground in burnt brown color. The Saffron fields looked bright yellow and okay. Going into MT the terrain changed to desert tumbleweed, hill and cliffs of rock, and only pastures. By noon the temperatures moved thru the 80s, peaking at 92.5 degrees for the last 3 hours. We had a strong head winds all day.. 38 mpg. Paul almost got hit by a doe and her two fawns crossing the road. We saw a few prong horn antelope. Cooled off at the MC motel and ribeye at the Chop House for dinner. Last year when we went the other way on this route everywhere was bright green and there were birds everywhere…not today.
Day: 4 Date: Sunday 7.2.17
Str Cty: Miles City Str Mls: 36196
End Cty: Helena, MT End Mls: 36545
Dly Mls: 351 Tot Mls: 1305
Time: 5 hrs 30 min Notes: across Montana to the Missouri River and the Continental Divide. Started at 7:15 in hi 60 temps on I90 for 46 miles to Hwy 12. 250 miles on nice roads across the Little Belt mountains. The trees started to appear, first the Russian olive and poplar, then the pines as we rose in elevation. The pine forests were thick in places. Temps stayed below 82 until the last 30 miles into Helena when temps soared to 89.5 in beating sun at 4000 feet. We went over 5800 twice and then descended. The primary industry is ranching cattle and irrigated-market alfalfa. The ranches were very sparsely located so they had max acreage with little vegetation and brown unless irrigated; those fields looked very healthy. Stopped after 75 miles in Imgomar…1/4 miles on gravel..a few inhabitants in broken down residences and many abandoned buildings and unassuming animals .. several rabbits hanging out, a family of hen prairie chicken with 5 chicks, and 4 porcupines in the town confines.. several rvs plugged in …everything else was closed. Several non descript rest stops, except White Sulfur Springs. Saw several prairie chickens, a dead elk, and several antelope. Got to HIx in Helena at 2:00 89.5 degrees at 4000 feet. We went for a swam and rested, then rode to the Capitol and on to the Silver Star for favorite blue cheese-calmari salad dinner.
Day: 5 Date: Monday 7.3.17
Str Cty: Helena Str Mls: 36545
End Cty: Sandpoint, ID End Mls: 36850
Dly Mls: 300 Tot Mls: 1605
Time: 4 hrs 45 min Notes: up into Idaho down Clark Fork River to Lake Pend Orielle and Sandpoint HIx. On the road at 7:45 in 60 degree temperatures. We crested the Continental Divide at MacDonald Pass at 6325’. 48 miles to I90 to Missoula and north 50 miles to state road 200- Road to the Buffalos - along the Clark Fork River which empties into the Lake Pend Orielle. Temperatures climbed to the low 80s in the afternoon and were very comfortable. The trees are primarily pine with a few pine and the route shows little agriculture. Gained an hour and had a short ride so we got to HIx at 12:30 for a long rest. Took our bikes for a shower to get the bugs off…planned our route for tomorrow from Marnie's log of last year. We washed our bikes with a hose from the motel. We had dinner at Lou's next door- 60/40 hamburger/bacon combination. Listening to news.
Day: 6 Date: Tuesday 7.4.17
Str Cty: Sandpoint, ID Str Mls: 36850
End Cty: Kamloops, BC End Mls: 37239
Dly Mls: 403 Tot Mls: 2008
Time: 8 hrs in 11 hours Notes: into Canada thru the Kootenany over to the Columbia River and beyond to Kamloops. First we drove 2—95-1-3 into Canada at 60 miles. Then we went into the peaky mountain lake country and 110 miles to the ferry. The ferry was closing the gate as we drove up…they wouldn't let us on… we had to wait 1.5 hrs - pissed. We rode north thru in the narrow valleys with steep forested sides with beautiful blooming flowers along roads. We arrived at the second ferry for the Columbia River and waited one hour..pissed again cuz it was just pulling out. Rode the next mountain road to Revelstoke at 250 and got gas. Then the temp went to the 90s on CA1 -…trans Canada highway - with heavy traffic. Heat and concentration took a toll from the scenery, except we noticed the mountains were more western with less height and trees. At Kamloops HIx. Marnie was partying… went to DQ for hot dogs and blizzards. We rode thru the town of Kamloops and it is very odd and disorganized but a commercial center on the Thompson River with the TR university. We crossed the source of the Columbia River. Good roads all day!
Day: 7 Date: Wednesday 7.5.17
Str Cty: Kamloops Str Mls: 37239
End Cty: Fraser Lake End Mls: 37671
Dly Mls: 447 Tot Mls: 2455
Time: 7 hrs 15 min Notes: went beyond Prince George cuz we were early. Left 8 after a good nites sleep. Went on north 1 and 97 north. We finally stopped at the 8th Tim Hortons we've seen and got a donut at 100 miles. We rode along Fraser River and spotted a huge eagle as it took off close to Paul. Paul has been required to drink. We made PG at 2:00 and stopped at the Harley dealer who helped me repair my bike 17 years ago and who I visited 10 years ago. We moved on to Fraser Lake to shorten tomorrow's ride to Stewart, BC. The terrain went from hill desert to fir forests with many rivers and Temperatures never rose above the mid 80s but felt hotter in 3 one-lane construction stops. We took a room from Indian owner (India) that is terrible but in the right place. Dinner at local Mexican restaurant. Bad nite….
Day: 8 Date: Thursday 7.6.17
Str Cty: Fraser Lake Str Mls: 37671
End Cty: Bell II End Mls: 38032
Dly Mls: 363 Tot Mls: 2818
Time: 7 hrs Notes: up to Bell II on the Cassiar
Frustrated by our decisions on where to stay last nite and woke at 5 to escape. We decided to stay at Bell for two nites rather than taking another chance on a poor choice. We shall return to Stewart tomorrow. The temperature on the road was 41. After 45 miles we stopped in Burns Lake for ugly breakfast at A&W, but the coffee was great. We made the 200 miles to the bottom of 37/Cassiar by noon when the temperatures broke the 70s. On the way we came across the carcass of a cow moose with an adolescent fox exploring it. We stopped down the road and the fox came to us, not veering off until 20 feet away. His tail was black unlike his brown body and it was 2/3 the length of his body. On the Cassiar we rode the 150 miles north at 50 miles per hour looking for moose, bear and deer. We saw the deer and only the fecal remnants of the bear along the road. The berms were a blanket of wild daisies interspersed with yellow flowers, and Queen Ann’s Lace with Indian Paintbrushes. We stopped at an Indian village which had many totem poles. On up the road we frequently saw bear poop on the edge. We stopped at the junction of Stewart and the Cassiar to take sustenance. We are in a suite in a chalet. And the place has a free laundry so doing clothes. Had terrible ribs and small salad made from roadside veggies.
Day: 9 Date: Friday 7.7.17
Str Cty: Bell II - Stewart Str Mls: 38032
End Cty: Stewart - Bell II End Mls: 38229
Dly Mls: 202 Tot Mls: 3020
Time: 4 hrs 15 min Notes: up at 6:30 by accident. Ten years ago when I rode the Cassiar and at Bell II I was the only motorcycle to be seen was mine.. last nite there had to be more than a dozen bikes here and many on the road. We rode to Stewart early to avoid the rain and got back at 2:30 to the sounds of thunder in temperatures seldom above 70. Bell II is the second bridge on the Bell River we have been riding beside. We rode straight to Stewart and thru to Hyder. Hyder is an abandoned disaster. We passed the harbor log setup area for Chinese ship loading. Stewart has icy redeeming qualities and offered a nice Brunch at the toaster museum. On the way in we saw a two tone Woodchuck. On the way home we saw a small bear and stopped, but as we tried to take a picture a car started by and chased into the woods. We were surrounded by high mountains of the Skeena Mountain range with snow and some glaciers on the way to Stewart. Bell II is a heliski resort-area in the winter going by helicopter to the tops of the mountains with 5 skiers at a time. They pay $10000 for room, board, and skiing 10000 vertical feet in a week- Last Frontier. Late afternoon sandwich while we watched the rain. There were many high and hanging glaciers. We had dinner salad and hit the bed early for an early escape. Since Bell II has free laundry, every price of clothing has been freshly washed. Our plan is to go to Watson Lake on the Alaskan highway and head for Dawson Creek and the the Icefield road to Banff. There we shall make a decision..to Boise or across northern North Dakota. The helicopters at Bell II were taking supplies to powerline workers or in the mountains.
Day: 10 Date: Saturday 7.8.17
Str Cty: Bell II Str Mls: 38229
End Cty: Fort Nelson End Mls: 38853
Dly Mls: 634 Tot Mls: 3654
Time: 11 hrs Notes: rain … beautiful
Up at 6, breakfast at 7 and on the road at 7:20. Moved slowly thru the mountains and got gas at Dease Lake (25 mile long lake) with a stop at Jade City going over 4200 feet at one point. About 40 miles before the Yukon border the terrain flattened and we entered a 25 mile long area of burn within the last several years. The burn was so big as to not be fightable. As we turned on to The Alaska Highway going east it began to rain. We stopped to see the Signs Park - substantial increase in signs from all over and posted than 2 previous trips. We forgot about gas and found it with less than 80 miles to go in the middle of nowhere.. luckily we found gas! At one point in the Rockies the mountains were sheer rock with small valleys and with very few trees, prone to avalanches or severe runoff when the snow is melting. We encountered 10 Bears and a sow with 3 cubs, 2 deer, at least 50 bison, 2 prong horn antelope, 4 female caribou and one with a calf, and a Mountain Goat. We eventually went back to the mountains, the Rocky Mountains this time and we went over the divide at above 4220 feet. Morning temperatures were below 55 degrees until Watson Lake, then on to mid 60 later in the afternoon with a short peak of 71 degrees. It sprinkled on us 4 different times in the last 100 miles before our arrival at the Super 8 in Fort Nelson. Pizza at the Boston Pizza restaurant next door.
Day: 11 Date: Sunday 7.9.17
Str Cty: Fort Nelson, BC Str Mls: 38853
End Cty: Grande Cache, AB End Mls: 39329
Dly Mls: 480 Tot Mls: 4134
Time: 7 hrs 30min Notes: in Grande Cache
Up at 5:30 and left at 7:00 in 60 degree temperatures. Temp did not go above 62.5 until noon. A cow Moose crossed the road in front of us and her calf followed…typical of their shyness we did not get a concentrated view. We went thru Dawson Creek about noon. Sleepy riding on the road so several stops for liquid and peeing. There was no agriculture until Grande Prairie and the first farms were beautiful. And at GP the oil and gas industry, coal mines-power stations, timber and heavy industry started. We were bushed by the time we got to Grande Cache and opted to bed down at the Alpine Motel. We had a great steak and salad followed by Cinnabon with ice cream at a local steak place. Smoke from the fires in BC could been seen but not smelled.
Day: 12 Date: Monday 7.10.17
Str Cty: Grande Cache Str Mls: 39329
End Cty: Lethbridge, AB End Mls: 39856
Dly Mls: 531 Tot Mls: 4665
Time: 9 hrs Notes: slept late..up at 7:30
We went to the A&W (a breakfast place in Canada) for breakfast and the guy who was nice to us last eve at dinner was there with his cronies giving us the devil..so we invited them to Missouri. Rode nice hilly, curving roads 100 miles to Jasper. Paul saw 3 caribou and I saw an Elk. Then we entered the Park at no cost due to the Canada Birthday. Up til then we were in low 60s temps. It rose a bit on Hwy 43 in the park before it began raining and with each period of rain the temp dropped 18 degrees to 61. We went over 7000’ and 6400’ in the glacial areas and with each rise the temperature lowered. We stopped at Lake Louise for gas and to see the hotel and lake and then rolled on. 16 miles out to LL it rained like hell so we pulled under an animal overpass. When it started to hail cars stopped in the cover and blocked both lanes of traffic. We got them moving again by yelling at them. We took off when it was only rain. As we passed Banff it started hailing again and was very painful on the hands. We were rained on at least 10 times between Banff-Calgary-Lethbridge. We were able to reservations at the Lethbridge HI and rolled in about 7:30. Dinner at the hotel and we learned that in Canada you can only get a hamburger well done (no medium rare)
Day: 13 Date: Tuesday 7.11.17
Str Cty: Lethbridge Str Mls: 39856
End Cty: Williston, ND End Mls: 40369
Dly Mls: 517 Tot Mls: 5182
Time: 7 hrs 30 min Notes: boom town..
Left at 7 to get gas and tire air. 60 miles to the border and 100 miles to Hwy 2 east at Shelby. Dry conditions and all the fields are brown except for winter and spring wheat and irrigation. The fields are so flat with unbelievable fallow fields, and the rest is wheat. The wheat is very short for the level of maturity. The number of elevators and grain bins is amazing..one place had 32 bins lined up. Early temps were in the low 60s, on Hwy it went to 70s and the last 2 hours were over 86 degrees and insufferable. I made the reservation at Williston HIx accidentally for last nite and they did not have room when we got there. They referred us over to the Ramada Inn for 113$. We are hoping for a refund from last nites expense. Williston is the Bakken boomtown and is much improved since I came thru 2 years ago. Most of the temporary housing is closed and unused or for sale and many new apartment buildings for rent or purchase. New roads are being built and the town looks renewed even outside the city boundaries with many franchises. We rode in view of the trees along the Missouri River for over 100 miles… we were just 25 miles from the junction of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers, where Lewis and Clark reunited.
Day: 14 Date: Wednesday 7.12.17
Str Cty: Williston Str Mls: 40369
End Cty: Bemidji, MN End Mls: 40815
Dly Mls: 442 Tot Mls: 5625
Time: 6 hrs 30 min Notes: miserable cold and rain.
Up at 6 and on the road at 7:30 to beat the heat….no heat. 61 degrees when we left and when we got in..went to 68 for 1/2 hr in Grand Forks. Misted all day but never total drenching rain. Hwy 2 is 4 lane thru ND and MN and a good road. ND was green and healthy looking. The fields were huge, 1000 acres of wheat and safflower plants. It looks like the Bakkan is in a bust cycle now - the temporary housing complexes are uninhabited or for sale and huge tankers are parked in several huge lots . The tanker fields are handled by Embridge, the pipeline people (DAPL). I lost the left lens of my glasses.
Day: 15 Date: Thursday 7.13.17
Str Cty: Bemidji Str Mls: 40815
End Cty: Home End Mls: 41323
Dly Mls: 512 Tot Mls: 6137 gps riding/6267 bike gps
Time: 8 hrs Notes: total distance odd= 6197
Ave speed = 58..61moving mph / mpg = 44 / left at 7:30 in the overcast mist and rode like madmen on Hwy 2 in 61 degree weather to Duluth-Superior for our first stop. We got gas and headed down Hwy 53 to 29 to Abottsford and on to Marshfield for gas and lunch break as the temperatures finally rose to 70 degrees. After the 130 miles to Madison it was in the mid 80s and I got home at 4:30. Good riding but a miserable day…
Day: 16 Date: Wednesday 7.19.17
Str Cty: Home-service Str Mls: 41323
End Cty: Service-home End Mls: 41449
Dly Mls: 126 Tot Mls: 6323
Notes: 42000 service again.
