Key West to Anchorage Bicycle Ride

Finally, the pictures

2007-09-05T23:40:00Z

Sorry for the massive delay. Click on the link below.

NEW PICTURES

The pictures are categorized as
1. state line pics
2. Idaho to Alaska
3. Wisconsin to Wyoming

Enjoy the pictures.

The end

2007-08-21T23:51:00Z

Fact of the matter is, I never thought I would get this far into the blog. But here we are in Anchorage not really sure of how far we have truly ridden. To tell you the truth, I may never know because the trip has been so long, it's hard to put everything together. We'll have a lifetime of memories to ponder over and maybe, someday it will hit me.

To say this was simply a bicycle ride would be wrong in many ways. Bicycle was just a means to meet new people, see new places, get the exercise of our lives, eat what we want, and really find out about ourselves.

First and foremost, I like to thank all of the people who have helped us out along the way. Infact, I like to say we could not have made it without your help. Of course our initial intention was to do it ourselves. From food, shelter, donations, road directions and encouragement, help came is many different forms. In hindsight, my only conclusion is because of your help, we have made to Anchorage. Thank you will never be enough to have made our journey possible.

This continent is big beyond pictures or words. To everyone reading, take the time out of your lives to travel and see the world. Whether it's on a bicycle, car, motorcycle, RV or even on foot, find out about the world in which we live on. Not only will you learn something wonderful, but you'll also understand and learn a lot about yourselves. The more you know and understand our enviroment, the more connected you'll feel with the world.

I been often asked why I chose to do this excursion. The more I think about it, the harder it is to answer. There are several answers but I'll keep it simple. First, it was the physical and mental challenge of doing any ride of this duration. Second, it was to meet new people across US and Canada. Just a little converstion with a stranger can open your eyes and mind to new ways of looking at life. I needed to get out of my "fishbowl" Third and probably strongest reason why I chose to do this was Lewis and Clark. I wanted to feel what they felt like when they treked across this continent. Of course everything we saw has already been discovered but not by me. There is nothing like seeing something with your own eyes. Books, magazines, and TV is not the same. I know that for most people including me that the previously mentioned media will be the only way I get to see some parts of the world, but if I have a chance to see it on my on I am taking the opportunity.

Will I do something like this again. Touring is in my blood but I will scale it down. I plan on week long and weekend journeys. I like to do something grand again but I am going to put that aside for now and concentrate on my career.

I hope we have inspired some of you to pursue what you dream of. It may be as simple as learning to play the guitar or climb Mt. Everest ( that's a really tough one!). Whatever the task, plan well, take baby steps, and never lose focus of what you desire. It can and will happen.

Thank You to everyone who has donated to the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Every penny raised goes to the organization to help people afflicted with cancer and cancer research. Your donations means a lot to the organization and me. I decided to get invloved with this charity because it will effect me someday directly or indirectly. To fight Cancer will require tremendous effort and I wanted to be a part of that.

Special thanks goes out to Susannah, my finace and my family in Las Vegas. Susannah has supported me in many ways to make the trip possible. She has changed my life for the better in every aspect, I don't know what I do without her. Thank you, I love you!! I have to also thank my mom, sister, stepdad, aunt, James and the two pomeranians for supporting me all the way. Thanks for making my dreams come true.

Lastly, Thanks to everyone following the blog. It means a lot to me to have shared this journey with family and friends.

*** I promise to have new pictures up and I will have the website running for another year. Please pass on the word about the site.

**** Also, I am planning to make a DVD slide show. If you would like a free copy, please e-mail me (jinlee1975@hotmail.com) your home mailing address and I'll send one out to you. Give me about a month so I can do it right.

For the last time....

Good night.

Day 134

2007-08-18T00:24:00Z

Sutton, AK to Anchorage, AK
15 miles

Holy Moly, I can't believe we made it. 5 time zones, 16 states, 2 provinces, and 7200 miles all on an overlaoded bicycles. I really can't believe our bikes have held up, especially through Alaska Hwy.

When we saw the sign for Welcome to Anchorage, I had mixed emotions. I suppose it was a dull sensation. I knew we could make it here but to actually have done it seems so awkward. I look back on how long and hard the ride has been and it's a miracle we're here. I think it will take a while for it to soak in or it may never soak in.

North American continent is huge, take our word for it.   We have seen some of the most interesting places, met some of the nicest people, and consumed a lot of food we shouldn't have.   Although the weather hasn't been our best friend, overall it has been pretty good. Infact, we have had spring all year long. Some area has been hot but not like what Atlanta is feeling right now.

As far as our health, we can easily say we're in the best shape of our lives. Glenn is a lean mean machine now.   Six Gap will be a walk in the park.

This ride has been a character building experience for both of us. We were tested with physcal and mental tasks everyday.   Truly far beyond what we thought we were capable of.

Ray at The Bike Shop has helped us out tremendously. He has given us a place to stay until our friends arrive and helped us out with boxing our bicycles.

Special thank goes out to Trip Campbell with Genacol. He has helped us out in more ways than one from Key Largo. He also gave me the contact to Ray as well. Thank you very much.

I have one more blog to write as well so please stay tuned.

WE MADE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good night.

Day 133

2007-08-16T22:51:00Z

Sutton, AK to Eagle River, AK
45 miles

We're in spitting distance to Anchorage.  Mixed emotions is the best
way to describe how we feel.  Excited to finish this unbelievable journey
but sad because, well the journey is over.  Discovering new places and
meeting new people was the highlight of the trip.  

We ticked away miles and I suppose the adrenaline is working overtime
because I didn't feel any of the usual aches and pains.  All I tried to
do in my mind today was comprehend how far we have actually ridden.  I
had an extremely difficult time doing so.  There will be no words to
describe the full extent of the journey.  I can only write so much on the
blog, you guys would get bored anyway, it just scratches the surface
of the trip.  It will be a lifetime of memories.

We are really excited about our good friends Andi, Marta, Carl, Sandra
and my fiance, Susannah flying up here to meet us.  We will be in
staying in Girdwood which is just south of Anchorage.  To Kristina and Adam
from Waynesville, NC e-mail me at (keytoanchorage@pocketmail.com) if
you're up here between Aug 18th to 25th. To friends flying up here, if
you can look out the window from the plane when you fly over Canada.  If
your lucky, you'll get to see some of the icefields as well as the
glaciers.  You guys will also understand what we mean by sparse. 

Only 13 miles to the destination.  I know, I can't believe it either.  

Good night.

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 132

2007-08-15T22:44:00Z

71 miles west of Glennallen, AK to Sutton, AK
54 miles

Woke up from my tent and the first thing I see is a glacier.  Touring
life can be incredibly rewarding.

Winds were picking up today as a cold front was moving in.  That means
rain and cold rain at that.  We made it a mission to stay underneath a
shelter tonight whether it be an awning or a roof over our heads. 

Our destination for the day was Sutton.  More specifically, the Sutton
Baptist Church.  After talking to Pastor Dan, he has accommodated a
place for us for the night.  Overby's, church members, stepped in and
offered us their RV for the night.  It was so nice to not pitch the tent for
the night.  Thinking about it, we have camped out every night since
July 3rd.  We needed a break.  Thanks Charlie and Laurel.
We were even offered much needed showers, pizza, and rhubarb crunch for
dessert. Yummy

Can you believe it, we're only 60 miles from Anchorage!

Good night.

Day 131

2007-08-15T01:35:00Z

16 miles west of Glennallen, AK to 71 miles west of Glennallen, AK (Hwy1)
55 miles

Glaciers are filling the scenery along the ice fields.  So big are the
glaciers, I can easily see the flow 10 miles away.  Mountains behind the
glaciers are completely covered by snow.  Unreal!

Anticipation of arriving at our destination is killing me.  I just have
to remind myself that we still have a substantial ride left.  I am
trying to soak in the amazing landscape as much as possible.  This is an
incredible way to finish our bicycling journey.

Luck was on our side today for lunch. We made it to a restaurant just as
they were finishing up serving lunch to a tour group.  When we walked
in the cook who was the only one working and was too busy to serve us.
She was shutting down in 5 minutes.  I suppose she felt a little bad
for letting us go hungry so she said to help yourself to the sandwich
and soup bar as much as you want at no charge.  Naturally, we loaded up
and had a delicious lunch on the deck overlooking a creek.  She had a bad
back so we helped her bus the tables. Both parties walked away happy. 

Timing is everything in life

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 130

2007-08-14T02:55:00Z

31 miles north of Glennallen, AK to 16 miles west of Glennallen, AK(Hwy1)
47 miles

Closer we get, the more energy we're feeling.  The hills don't bother
us, the bland food actually tastes ok, and aches and numbness don't seem
to exist.  We're on a high.

Nicola and Sophie have have split from us.  Valdez is their next
destination and a ferry will take them to Anchorage.  It was wonderful to
have shared just a few days together.  In a couple of years, they are
hoping for a around the world trip.  Wish them all the best in their
endeavor.

What a splurge we had today.  Since it was our last lunch together, we
split a quart of ice cream amongst the four of us.  We also said good
bye with a round of local Alaskan beer.  Ride all day and you can eat as
much and practically anything you want.

We're savoring every moment because we know the ride will be over in a
blink of an eye.  Hard to imagine we're less than 170 miles from
Anchorage.  It's not over yet.  We're still living one mile at a time.

Good night.

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 129

2007-08-12T22:46:00Z

54 miles south of Tok, AK to 31 miles north of (Glennallen, AK Hwy 1)
55 miles

When bicycle touring, sometimes things go bad.  We had our moments but
a tourist we met this morning tops everything I've experienced.

I don't know his name but he is from Japan.  He is making  a big loop
throughout Alaska and Canada. We met him on the hwy this morning as we
pulled out on to the road from camp.  He came up to us and asked for
mechanical help.  His rear axle was overtightened and he had broken a
spoke.  It took no time to fix him up temporarily until he could get to a bike
shop.  The bad event was when he was in Anchorage area, he was hit over
the head by someone and his backpack was stolen.  Couple of days later,
law enforcement arrested the thief and he was able to get his bag back.
It wasn't too long later that he got the same bag stolen again.  
Unfortunately, he was unable to recover it this time.  He had to buy all
new equipment.  Give the guy a break.
He was in good spirits though. Good luck to him.

Our ride consisted of riding around Mt. Sanford.  We have the view of
the mountain but from the backside.  
Nicolas pointed out a great campsite along a small creek.  Very choice
spot.  We cut some rhubarb from a convenient store today. They had some
growing so we asked if could have some for desert tonight.  Nicolas
used his mom's recipe and it was delicious.  He simply poured a cup of
sugar and cooked it over fire. This is camping at it's finest.

Congratulations to Texas 4000 for completing their trip.  They finished
on the 10th of August.

Good night.
Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 128

2007-08-11T22:45:00Z

Tok, AK to 54 miles south of Tok on Hwy 1, AK
54 miles

Weathers wonderful, roads are smooth and flat and we have less than 275
miles to Anchorage.  That's a good day.

Nicolas and Sophie will ride with us until they turn off to go to
Valdez.  Jungle headed away from us towards Dawson City.  We'll miss him, he
was a very funny not your typical Canadian. 

We loaded up with 5 days worth of food so we're a little heavy.  It's
weight I certainly don't mind carrying.  

Today, I found these killer headphones along side the road today.
They're like the earmuff style headphone.  I didn't know my I-Pod sounded
so good.  It blocks out all noise including cars.  That may not be a
good thing.

We pulled over along a side of the road and decided to camp.  What we
didn't realize at that moment was we had a straight shot view of Mt.
Sanford which stands at 16,230 feet.  When we initially set up camp, the
top was covered up by the clouds.  In a period of about 3 hours, the
clouds slowly disappeared to reveal the whole mountain.  Over time, the
mountain was getting higher and higher.  I couldn't believe my eyes.
Since we're standing at 2200ft, looking up at over 16,000ft is unreal.
The mountain is mostly covered in snow and it's miles and miles wide.  We
been getting pretty lucky with campsites.  It should be, we're pro's
at his touring thing now!

In fact, we're so good, we had sloppy joes for dinner tonight!  Hey, it
beats pasta and definitely beats peanut butter.

Good night.


Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 127

2007-08-11T22:43:00Z

7 miles south of Northway Junction, AK to Tok, AK
56 miles

Town of Tok is the northern most point on this trip for us.  We know
this because the sun never seems to completely set.

We met two other cyclist from Belgium today.  Actually, they have been
tailing us for month.  They started in Vancouver and their destination
is Anchorage.  Nicolas and Sophie are their names and they have decided
to tag along to Tok.  The group now totals 5 riders.  It's a little
weird but great to have such a big pack to ride with.

We made a mad dash for Tok General Store where they were selling us
their pastries for nearly 1\2 price.  We're talking homemade muffins,
cherry and blueberry pies, bearclaws, and other sugar goodies.  All 5 of us
left there a with big ol' sugar buzz.

We topped to night off with a 12 pack of Hamm's beer and 6 pack of Bud.
After detoxing from alcohol in Canada, this was well deserved.  Good
job Glenn.   Can't complain much about today.  

Good night.

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 126

2007-08-09T22:44:00Z

Beaver Creek, YT to 7 miles south of North Way Junction, AK
55 miles

Alaska!!  It only took 6800 miles to get here.  We been thinking about
this day for a long time.  The Last Frontier is a fitting motto to
describe our journey to Alaska and eventually to Anchorage.  What an
amazing and exhausting ride it has been.  

The weather is quite brisk, sort of like a good day in the fall season
of Georgia.  Locals tell us August is the transition month from summer
to fall.  The leaves will change quick and winter hits pretty hard by
end of October.  Winter means a low of -45F and a high of -20F.  I
thought Madison, WI was cold.  The temp here is down right ridiculous.

We met a tourist/artist yesterday.  His name is Jungle and he is making
a big loop from Whitehorse to Dawson City and back.  He will be
attending an arts festival in Dawson City.  Since our route and his route
merge for a next couple of days, he decided to ride with us.  Get this, he
is pretty good at drawing faces so he goes into local bars, draws for
them and walks away with tabs usually paid for.  What a gig.

Tok Junction is our next stop.  From there we will take Glenn Hwy to
Anchorage.  We have approximately 390 miles to our final destination.  We
cross our fingers for good weather and of course tailwind

Good night. 
 
Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 125

2007-08-09T02:39:00Z

Beaver Creek, YT(rain delay rest day)

Obviously, the front did not move all the way through.  We decided to
hold out one more day.  Looking at the weather report, it should be
clear for rest of the week.

I been reading the comments and thanks for all of the encouragement and
support.  I read one comment and the person asked about our camp gear.
Below are the basics.

We obtained all of our camp gear at REI. 
Tent:  I am using REI brad tent.  The name of it is the quarter dome.
Glenn is using an MSR brand tent.  Both have held up quite well.  Small,
light weight, free standing, and ease of set up are features to look
for.

Stove:  I use the MSR Whisperlite.  It's easy, virtually maintenance
free and packs small.  No problems.

Sleeping bags:  I use Kelty brand and it is synthetic.  I would
recommend a down bag because it packs smaller.
Glenn uses a Sierra Design.  Unless going to Siberia or touring in the
dead of winter, not recommended, 25F to 35F will be adequate.  Also
bring a silk liner.  Remember, when it saids 35F on the bag, it means you
will survive at 35F.  You may not necessarily be comfortable.  To choose
the right temp bag, estimate the lowest you think you'll hit and
sudtract 5F.  Then a liner as a back up which adds 10F.

Sleeping pad:  Thermarest is the brand name.  I highly recommend the
pad as it provides comfort, thermal protection and as experienced, water
barrier.

Pots:  GSI brand has held up nicely.  Be careful not to us metal
utensils as it can scratch away the non stick coat.

Bicycle:  I ride a Rocky Mountain brand, Sherpa.  Glenn ride's REI
brand line Novara, Randonee.  Both bikes have held up quite well.  Minor
wheek problems have occurred but nothing to strand us.

Pannier Bage:  These are the bags which attach to the bicycle.  Glenn
and I are extremely happy with Ortlieb bags.  They are water proof and
have taken the abuse of Canadian roads.  Highly recommended.

Water Filter:  Although not used in the lower 48, it has been quite
useful in Canada.  MSR makes a model which uses a hand pump.  I do not
know name of the model but is about $70.  I assume it works because we're
still here not sick.

We are not sponsored by REI.  We chose to shop there because it is one
stop shop for us and they sell high quality gear. 

What I recommended are opinions only. With that said, they have all
held up very well and made our trip possible.

Good night.
Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 124

2007-08-09T02:36:00Z


20 miles south of Beaver Creek, YT to Beaver Creek, YT
20 miles

Cold weather front has moved in and with it, a nasty rain storm.  When
I pitched my tent last night, I had the footprint of the tent(sheet
which protects the bottom of my tent) slightly exposed.  Had I known it
would rain so hard, I would have been more careful to not have it exposed.
 

Rain came and the footprint collected water and ran it underneath the
tent. When I woke up, I found myself drenched underneath my sleeping
mat. I had to get out of in the rain, pack up and set up a tarp to take
cover.  We held the rain until about 5pm when we got a small break.  We
packed up and headed for Beaver Creek. There I used a dryer to give
myself a warm place to sleep.

What a miserable experience.  When a cold front moves through Yukon, it
means the fall season is around the corner.  Wind gusts are up to
25mph and the low temp for tonight will be 37F.  

We're hoping the cold front moves on through but if it stays tomorrow,
we have no choice but to stay as being this cold, rainy, and windy can
be brutal.

Plus, we have free coffee and internet across the street.  We also have
free camping at the town's outdoor museum.  Sweet!

Good night.

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 123

2007-08-09T02:33:00Z

Wilderness Village, YT to 20 miles south of Beaver Creek, YT
64 miles

We believe this will be our last night in Canada as we are only 40
miles from the border.  This is assuming everything goes well tomorrow.

I certainly don't want to exaggerate what happens out here but today's
event could've been bad.  

So we're cruising along at a pretty good pace.  We had tailwind for the
most part today.  I was ahead of Glenn by a few hundred yards.  Around
a bend, I see a black bear eating along the road.  The bear was pretty
close to the shoulder so I decided to ride on the other side.  As I
passed him, he looked up at me and turned towards me.  He took a couple
of steps closer and I went further down the road to give some room
between the bear and myself.  I flagged Glenn done to warn him.  The bear
stood his ground and didn't want to move.  At that moment, a RV pulled up
and stopped where we were.  The bear looked around and decided to run
away.  I didn't think much of it until I realized that I had last
night's garbage tied to my bike.  The bag contained chili cans.  I believe
that's what the bear smelled and made him move towards me.  I throw all
my trash into bear proof garbage cans but sometimes we'll have to ride
30 or 40 miles before we see one.  Little scary to think what might 
have happened  had the RV not been there.  The bear was half the
size of my Civic!

Summing up a typical day in Canada:
Coffee: $1.50
Breakfast: $7.00
Peanut butter sandwich: $0.50
Coke/donuts: $5.00 (It's Canada, eh)
Spaghetti Dinner: $2.50
Sunset in middle of nowhere, Yukon:
             absolutely priceless!

Good night.

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 122

2007-08-09T02:32:00Z

Silver City, YT to Wilderness Village, YT
62 miles

No complaints today.  Tailwinds were in abundance all day out of Kluane
lake area.  Cruising at nearly 22 mph felt like I was on a motorcycle.

Wilderness Village is actually shut down.  Since we don't need much in
service, locals nearby have allowed us to camp for the night.  Rumor is
and this is only a rumor, a lady who lives in this "town" loves
cyclist and gives out pastries.  We thought about that all day as we headed
here. Unfortunately she is nowhere to be found.  We're hopeful she'll
show up tomorrow morning with some goodies.

As we near the end of our trip, I like to thank all who have followed
us on our journey.   I tried my best to make it as interesting as
possible but sometimes, nothing eventful happens.  Nonetheless, I hope
everyone enjoyed most of it.  Although not a good writer, I feel like I've
been improving.  We have roughly 12 more days so please follow us to the
end.

Distance to Alaska border: 102 miles
Distance to Anchorage: 523 miles
Miles ridden: 6650 miles
Times zones covered: 4
Calories burned: 732,000 (6000/day)

Good night.

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 121

2007-08-04T21:45:00Z

18 miles east of Haines Junction, YT to Silver City, YT
56 miles

Glenn broke a wheel spoke today.  Considering the weight of his bike
and having ridden over 6000 miles since the rebuild in Lady Lake, FL it's
pretty darn good.  We spent about an hour replacing the spoke.  We
needed a break anyway.

We're entering some of the biggest mountains of North America.  It's
all a part of Kluane National Park and Preserve, the world's largest
contiguous preserve.  This park has Canada's tallest peak, Mt Logan which
stands around 19,800 ft.  I've never seen mountains so big.  Of course
the road riding is exceptional.  It's wonderful to have the final weeks
end with such spectacular views. 

We are here at Kluane Base Camp.  They have a shower and a kitchen.
Two things I have taken for granted but now, the are an absolute luxury.
Necessary, no not really, but if I have the opportunity, I am taking it.

Good night.
Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 120

2007-08-04T21:41:00Z

Whitehorse, YT to 18 miles east of Haines Junction, YT
82 miles

We are getting good at living off the land.  40 miles west of
Whitehorse, we met a nice lady that told us about some raspberry bushes over the
mound to our right.  Sure enough, there it was.  It was roughly about a
1/2 an acre of just raspberries.  We sat and picked for about an hour.
Wild raspberries while small packs a lot of sweetness, lot more so
than farm raised. Then we walked down to a stream 200 yards down and drank
straight from the stream.  This wasn't a mountain trickle either.  It
was a sizable creek.  The water was was exceptionally cold and thirst
quenching.  

Later down the road, I found a MRE pack of toffee with walnuts.  The
package was unopened so I felt safe about eating.  Around 75 miles into
the day's ride, I found the ultimate in mother nature's gift, 4 unopened
cans of Budweiser.  It must've fell off someone's truck.  This was
truly living off the land.

We tried for Haines Junction today which would have put us at a 100
miles but headwinds picked up towards the end and put the brakes on our
progress.  Since we're in Yukon, finding a campsite is easy as looking to
your right.  We found a little patch, hung up our food from the bears
and called it a night.

We have 2 weeks left on our trip.  Light at end of the tunnel is bright
and shining.  It's hard to believe we have come so far.  It really
hasn't sunk in yet.  We won't let our guards down quite yet as we still
have about 640 miles to the finish line.

Good night.

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 119

2007-08-04T21:38:00Z

Whitehorse, YT (another day off)

I know, we're slacking.  So we went to the beer tour which started at
11:30.  By the time we were done, half the day was gone.  I just felt
lazy so I convinced Glenn to take a day off which wasn't too difficult.  

We went back to the campsite and spent the day with new friends we met.
AJ is cycling from Alaska to North Carolina, his home state.  He has
been in Whitehorse for 8 days now because of a freak accident.  8 Days
ago during the middle of night, he wanted to get out of  his tent.  On
his way out, he tripped and fell into a metal fire ring which still had
hot coals on it.  Somehow he knocked himself out and roasted his upper
part of his right arm.  He came to quickly but the damage was done. 

He went to the doctor and told AJ he may need skin graffing and was put
on antibiotics.  Since then, the healing has accelerated beyond his
expectation and should be on the road by this Saturday.  He is riding for
multiple charities and he has a website as well. (whyIride.org)

AJ also hooked up with two other riders, Marie and Eric.  Marie is from
Czechoslovakia and she is on a 8 month bicycle tour in Canada and US.
She is a fantastic cook.  She went hiking for a few hours and came
back and came back handkerchief full of mushrooms. Of course she used all
of it to make a great dinner.  Eric is a graduate of UCLA embarking on a
trip from Prudoe Bay to southern tip of South America.  It puts our
distance to shame.  Wish him the best of luck and safe travels.

Two rest days and three new friends.  This calls for four + one beers.
  Oh wait, can't afford it.  At least five Cokes.

P.S.  A case of Budweiser was $37.50!

Good night.
Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 118

2007-08-01T23:21:00Z

Whitehorse, YT (Rest Day)

Our stomachs were craving everything and anything other than what we
were carrying.  We had Chinese, pizza, ice cream and we even managed to
hit up Mexican joint.  Where are the chips and salsa, eh?  Canadians
definitely do it differently up here.

One mistake I won't make again, bringing wool cycling socks.  Because I
have to wear them over and over again, it's naturally going to stink.
Wool takes this stench to a whole new level.  I consider myself a
pigpen but I couldn't bear putting them on my feet.  The other socks were
soaked from rain.  The smell could be noticed while I was standing with
my shoes on!  New socks were purchased today.

Glenn has been on a complete detox program in Canada.  He hasn't had
more than 6 beers, that's 6 cans, because the price is outrageous.  That
is the commitment he has made to complete this mission.  What a
soldier.  Ladies, he is a changed man, at least in Canada.

Tomorrow, we'll start the day with a tour of the Yukon Brewing Company
here in town. It should be a fairly short ride as we'll get a late
start.
We're not uncorking champagne yet but the excitement to enter Alaska is
building.  Champagne may be too expensive, Sprite should suffice. 

Good night.


Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...

Day 117

2007-08-01T23:19:00Z

Jake's Corner, YT to Whitehorse, YT
51 miles

Food, food, food, it's all we ever think about.  As we were getting
closer to Whitehorse, billboards advertising restaurants were littered all
along the side of the road.  Signs often say all you can eat buffet
only 15 miles away.  I had to pedal two hours thinking about it.  We had
severe headwind too.

It was a weird sight to see such a large civilization out here.  We
haven't seen anything like this for nearly 850 miles. Very nice to know we
didn't have to eat out of a gas station again, at least for the next
couple of days.

We have a list of things to do as this will be the last big town before
our final destination.  

Whitehorse is the capitol of Yukon Territory.  It is named after
whitewater rapids which looked like a white horse's tail.  The town sits along
the Yukon River.  The international airport sits on a plateau opposite
the river.  With mountains surrounding the entire area, it's a very
picturesque town.

We are camping just south of town.  It's only 15 minute walk into
center of town.  Campsite is filled with tenters from around the world as
well as other touring cyclists.

We'll enjoy the accommodations for the next couple of days before
trekking on our final leg.

Good night. 

Jin, Glenn, Josh
1 mile at a time...