Friday was a fine day... Me and the Raider made the run from Kamloops to Prince George chasing a couple fellas named Mike and Brock... on a pair of Southern California Harleys.
Was a fun ride working our way up through the strings of traffic... crankin' the throttle when a big enough hole appeared to use...
I dropped off in Quesnel to meet Kerry, a commentor/reader of the blog... we took a quick lunch at the A&W in town and then headed north to his home in Prince George B.C.... Now that ride was a smile maker as well. Nice curves to lean around, beautiful country to lean through... and a fine bike to to it on... Sweet!
The only detraction from the day was the smoke... from Kamloops and almost to Quesnel the air was pretty thick with the evidence of three or four fires burning all around the area. Which eliminated any worthwhile photography...
I realized I'd been seeing that evidence of the fires as far south as Glacier...and just mistook it for haze from humiditiy... uh... guess not!
After knockin' back a couple of cool ones Kerry, and his lady Terry... set me up to Chinese for supper and offered their guest room... which I greatfully accepted... was the first night that red headed Yamaha Raider ever spent in a garage... that I'm aware of...
Poor Ol' Kerry didn't know what he was gettin' himself into though... we sat up till nigh on to midnight, yakkin' an' fixin' all the ills of this Ol'world...
Saturday morning, after a cup... or two... of good black coffee, while workin' over a few more of our "agitaions" with this ol' world...
I bid good bye to my fine Host, and put my Two Wheeled Sweetheart back on the Open Road... Bound ever Northward and the start of the actual Alaskan Highway at Mile "0" in Dawson Creek B.C.
Just up the road from Dawson Creek I made camp at the British Columbia Parks, Charlie Creek campground... a pretty lil' spot, don't you think?
Late in that day... I discovered a problem any travelers up this way, or most anywhere for that matter, need to keep an eye on... The Card readers in many of the fuel pumps are set to put a hold on an exceptional chunk of cash... until the transaction clears... I've discovered that can run from $75 to even $200!!!
The problem is, when you're riding a bike that you're refueling every 100 miles or so... that's a lot of $75 and more "HOLDS" ... not to mention the even larger ones, and it locks up your card pretty damn quick!... so... if You're riding this way... or pretty much any long ride I'd guess... and not using cash for fuel... you better keep an eye on how those "Holds" are being handled... could cause you some grief.
I'll be using cash for several days... until I can get those "HOLDS" cleared... what a pain!
I've been averaging a mite over 300 miles a day... need to push through more tomorrow... It's still a loooong way to Alaska...
Pretty country though... it just goes on and on... ranch after farm after mile on mile of uninhabited timber... some call that boring... I call it enough space to let a man's Soul... Breathe.
One thing I've found... it's a lonely ride, if you're not comfortable inside your own head, alone, for hours at a time.
I've started to wonderin' if the repairs I'd been planning on doin'... inside my own brain pan, as I cover these many miles, are gonna take as long as the ride? :o) ... It's been truly enjoyable the few times I've tyed on with other riders for a few miles... could be... the "repairs" I was wanting to do... are already having some good effect! :o) let's keep our fingers crossed... but don't go holdin' your breath...
Tomorrow... Sunday... Watson Lake would be a fine target... and would be the longest day of the ride, if
I made it that far...
I'm finding that the days and miles of this long Solo ride, seem to be falling into a routine; where my spirit slides from the Joy of riding a fine motorcycle through the absolutely maginificent country we're blessed to live in... through periods of meditation, memories, and sometimes unavoidable melancholy and sadness... to return, at the end of the day... once my camp is set up, to a feeling something akin to serenity...
... All seasoned with a significant amount of plain' Ol' endurance... I've not been pushing hard, as some are... I just don't usually see the purpose... unless of course... they've got even less time than I do! But, I'm still twisting the throttle for several hours every day... with my knees in the wind! Not bad for an Ol' stove up Cowboy Biker.
Grab Your Handles and Ride!
Brian
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