"On the Road Again" to Anchorage

July 13,2010
55 degrees this morning..left our little cabin by 8:30..rain gear on as it was sprinkling.. Thank goodness we'd had a bright and sunny perfect day yesterday on our trip into Denali as today was not going to be so. It rained all day on our ride into Anchorage. Our big excitement of the day was an animal sighting..but not one you would want. A huge moose jumped up out of the roadway in front of Gene.. He braked & didn't have time to warn me but I braked when I saw him brake and she passed in front of me. Thank God she didn't stop on the roadway.. I didn't see her until she was right in front of me. With the rain, I could really only watch Gene and the roadway. It was a scary situation but we were blessed.

We spent the afternoon at the Harley Davidson dealer getting the oil changed in our bikes.. we were both over 2500. I was so muddy and wet and dirty I wasn't sure that they would let me in. However, when I saw the large lighted sign "Free Biker Trash Coffee" I knew it was meant for me. While waiting, we had a couple of interesting conversations. One was with a couple of longshoremen (or woman).. They have to work at least 1 day per month to keep their union standing. She usually works 3-4 days per month..making $500 /day..They are on an extended trip..probably mid 40's.
The other gentleman had ridden the Hoka Hey Challenge on his Road King Police Bike. He,too, was very interesting..telling us some of his travels. The Hoka Hey means "its a good day to ride (or die) depending on which Indian dialect is being used. A lot of it is filmed. I'll have to check it out online when I get a chance.

We're trying to decide whether to ride down the Kenai (and back up) or ride to Valdez (and back up)Too many decisions.. Think I'll sleep on it and see what the weather looks like tomorrow.

Observations:
1) There ususlly is no road kill on the road as the wild animals and birds get it eaten in a hurry.
2) Most of the "other kind" of bikes are ridden by one person, usually younger males.
Of the larger bikes; they are often ridden two up and often pulling trailers (like Gene says about me..with a woman..you've got to have a trailer)...I don't see many bikes being ridden like me and Gene with the man on his bike and the woman on hers.
Most of the Gold Wings are ridden by couples.
3) Most of the people we see and meet are very nice people. In fact, the world is full of good folks. We are having an opportunity to see that. Too bad we usually only hear about the bad ones :(
4)For the most part, the Alaskan highway is very good, well maintained. However, there are some long gravel,wet dirt,rocked miles while they work construction, Overall, I am very impressed with the roads in Alaska.

Until next time........