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Alaska 2008 Ride Report
Intro *
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Day 18
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Day 19
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Day 21
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Day 22
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Day 23
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Day 24
Intro: North to Alaska
After many years of thinking about it, and one or two false starts, this is the year!!
The basic plan is to head out west from Oklahoma, through the Texas panhandle and into New Mexico, up through Colorado, Wyoming and Montana. Spend a day or so in Glacier NP, and then up towards Banff, the Icefields Parkway and Jasper. Then to Dawson Creek and the start of the Al-Can. Up to Whitehorse where I'll leave the Al-Can and head up to Dawson and the Top of the World Highway, which eventually re-joins the Al-Can near Tok. From there to Fairbanks.
At Fairbanks I'll have a decision to make about going to Deadhorse and Prudhoe Bay. If I've made good time to Fairbanks, and the weather looks good I may give it a shot. It's about 3 days round trip though, so it does affect what else I'll have time for. If the weather's not bad but time is a little short, I may just go up to the Arctic Circle.
After that, down to Anchorage and into the Kenai peninsula. At this point there's a lot of options, and I'm just going to play it by ear. I'm usually guilty of overplanning trips - this one, I want to try and keep things loose. We'll see how well I do at that. :)
Return is up Hwy 4 back to the the Al-Can, then past Whitehorse to the Cassier highway. Only real goal when back in the states is to hit Lolo Pass, then make tracks for home.
I'm reeealllly hoping the weather is good for the Glacier-Banff-Jasper section. I was up there in '99 and never saw anything because of the cold, rain and very low cloud cover. If it's bad again on the way up I'll reverse the route at that point and give myself another crack at it coming back.
Trip Prep
Main thing is getting the bike ready. Wait, let's back up a bit. Main thing is to have a bike well suited for the trip. In October '06 I bought a 650 V-Strom to replace the Kawasaki Concours we'd used for touring. The bike has been absolutely stellar, no complaints at all. Light and nimble, but with enough power for 2-up riding, and really comfortable. Tremendous aftermarket support too.
When I first got the V-Strom, I added luggage (Hepco-Baker bags on SW Moto racks, Givi trunk), a Corbin seat, CeeBailey windscreen and (of course!! :) ) Sonic Springs. For this trip, I've added the Pat Walsh crash bar/skid plate combo with some highway pegs mounted, Acerbis handguards with wind deflectors, heated grips and a centerstand. Starting off with a set of Avon Distanzas, probably replace the tires in Anchorage. So far I've been very happy with all the add-ons.
Going to be camping a fair amount, hopefully 60-70% of the time, so some new gear was in order to replace the 35 year old backpacking stuff I had. REI Chrysalis Lite tent, North Face "Cats Meow" bag, with a 20 degree rating and a Therma-Rest self-inflating pad. Testing the setup camping at Hallett before a trackday showed that it may not be warm enough. Only got down to 40 degree that night but I was COLD. I think the biggest problem was the pad - not thick enough - so I've added a Big Agnes air mattress and will just use both. Worst comes to worst, I'll buy a warmer bag on the road and ship the other one home.
Riding gear is my regular cool weather setup. Jacket is a First Gear that they don't make anymore - it used to be just above the Kilimanjaro in their lineup. Don't remember the name. Very waterproof and with the liner in very warm. Olympia mesh pants with an insulated, waterproof liner. They're warm enough, but unfortunately I haven't had a chance to test them in the rain, so I'm taking my rainsuit pants just in case. Sidi boots, don't remember the name on them either, they were a closeout from New Enough. Taking 4 pairs of gloves. A light mesh pair for the hot weather at either end of the trip, plain leather set, a lightly insulated and waterproof pair, and for the really cold days TourMaster Winter Elites. I hate cold hands. :) And maybe the most important thing, a Widder heated vest.
Intro *
Day 1
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Day 2
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Day 3
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Day 4
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Day 5
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Day 6
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Day 7
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Day 8
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Day 9
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Day 10
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Day 11
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Day 12
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Day 13
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Day 14
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Day 15
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Day 16
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Day 17
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Day 18
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Day 19
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Day 20
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Day 21
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Day 22
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Day 23
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Day 24
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