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Prudhoe Bay 2005!
Well, we certainly found a rag-tag crew for this year! (or, they found us!!) Dee rode his own KLR up from Washington state and met up with us in Fairbanks. Jeremy flew in from "across the pond" (London) to join us in Anchorage. Fred and Bill and their wives Bobbie and Nina met us in Fairbanks to start their ride. Nina and Bobbie,though not riders, had a fabulous trip, riding comfortably in the van the entire way. Thomas flew in from Colorado and Paul came in from Canadia (somehow the border guards dropped the ball, and let him through!).
The weather was excellent. The four wheel bowling was epic. We toured a working gold mine, partied with the locals at Central for solstice, discovered abandoned gold-mining roads, met hundreds of Caribou, swam in the Arctic Ocean, and laughed alot the whole week!!
Jeremy's 2005 Prudhoe Bay Tour Pics
Now, here are the pics:
Paul, fresh in from Canada, arrived a few days early to learn English and to ride solo to our rendezvous point in Fairbanks.
Here's Jeremy. He is just in
from London and hoping to catch a ride north to Fairbanks for the start
of the trip....Since he would be traveling with the guides, we made him
swear an oath of silence considering all of the guide secrets he may overhear
during our
6-hour van ride.
We loaded the trailer and headed to Fairbanks to start our Prudhoe Bay Tour. Rob, our mechanized sherpa, fuels the bikes before we head out. Contrary to popular belief, gas prices do NOT go down the closer you are to the source!
Our new "guide in training" gleefully fills our coolers full of liquid and solid goodies. To maintain a high level of morale in the tour, we at Alaska Rider Tours often bribe the riders with cold beer and snacks. (Industry Secret) The last thing we need is a motorcycle mutiny! Jeremy was definitely on our side, blind with the empty promises of becoming a bono-fide guide at ART.
We pass by the remarkable. It is the largest igloo in the world! Equal to the Great Wall of China in size, it is the only other man-made object that can be seen from space.
The gang gets together! The
riders are excited. ( left to right) Paul, Fred, Dee, Jeremy, Bill and
Thomas pose for our first official
photo shoot.
Fred diligently reads the instructions
for climbing on the
Alaska Pipeline.
The Cannuck helps support our economy.
Alaska Gold Mine in operation.
Jack shows us how gold mining is done.
On the inner right side of
the pan you can see the
enchanting glimmer of gold flakes.
Here is me "pimping Jeremy's boot". Duct tape seemed to work much better than the original buckles of his brand-new boot.
There is so much to explore along the mining roads off the Steese Highway. Each tour, we find a new one!
The loyal guard dogs of Chatanika Lodge, on the Steese Highway.
An old dredge sits abandoned off the Steese Highway.
Nina directs traffic as Bobbie captures the moment. These two had a ball, sitting comfortably in the back of the van in their "nest"!
Money stapled to the ceiling at Chatanika Lodge. Although a federal offense, it is an Alaskan Tradition!
Jeremy's 2005 Prudhoe Bay Tour Pics
Here are the boys out having fun on an old wagon road from the
gold rush days.
The only way to trespass, we
found, was to pay our
passage with beer....
Though officially closed, we
were able to bribe our way to
Circle Hotpsprings.
Downtown Circle City with the
mighty Yukon River in
the background.
The informal sign indicates where a bear was shot and killed in the main hallway of the Yukon Crossing Hotel. It apparently moved in the previous winter, making a bed out of all the t-shirts in the gift shop, and destroying the kitchen. As he did not book ahead, he was promptly shot. It pays to reserve rooms in advance! The blood stain was still in the carpet....did I mention that Alaska is still wild?
" Calling Dr. Allardyce, Dr. Weil, we have an emergency at the Arctic Ocean!"
The Arctic Circle.
A forest fire burns unchecked as we approach Coldfoot. At first, you would think that there would be a police roadblock. But No! Instead, traffic rides through without a second thought. No fire trucks in sight. The surprise was the road crew, seemingly oblivious to the fire on both sides of them, working on the road.
Thomas stops, incredulous of a raging fire right off the road.
Thomas takes a picture of a tree going up in flames before him.
Coldfoot, Alaska. We always bring extra gas. You NEVER know when the fuel truck will show up!
Nina takes a picture of the
riders climbing Atigun Pass
through the Brooks Range.
Dall Sheep graze off the side of the road at Atigun Pass.
A Caribou grazes off the side
of the "Haul Road" north
of the Brooks Range.
The fearless guide, cold, begs for a chance to ride in the van. The snow covered Franklin Bluffs in the distance demonstrate the staying power of winter in the north country. It is the end of June.
Stardate: June 24th The Canadian runs shamelessly from the Alaskan guide, fearful of another rough cold-water tackle.
The Prudhoe Bay gang all fly out, and the only two victims to stay on for the "Deadhorse Down" portion of the trip are Dee and his loyal companion Jeremy (a.k.a. Pooky). Cold, happy, these two GIT's (Guide In Training) were monumental in our efforts to perform maintenance on the beat-up fleet of KLRs. Dee helped clean our very dirty air filters while Pooky, the networking champion he is, arranged for us to clean the bikes at the ONLY powerwasher in Prudhoe! GO GITS!!
Deadhorse Down
The next stage of the trip, Deadhorse Down, included a rough-and-ready crew of Paul and Natalie, Chris and Nancy, Barry Matteson and Tobin Lampson. Chris and Nancy run Trailboss Tours down in Baja. Paul and Natalie rode two-up the whole way back to Anchorage!! Barry is the owner of the Anchorage House of Harley, and always dreamed of making the trip from Prudhoe Bay. Tobin covered the trip for Dualsport News. The article is due to be out in February of 2006.
Here's Barry before his big polar bear plunge!
Here are the hard chargers left to right: Barry, Paul, Natalie, Nancy, Chris, Jeremy and Dee. The windchill is around 30 degrees, it is overcast and gloomy. It feels like we on the moon. Within two hours of riding, it is 80 degrees, and we are eating lunch in T-Shirts!
Paul and Nancy gear up to head south. Jeremy (background) turns the throttle.
Barry heads out!
Natelie, Paul (riding two-up) Chris and Nancy check out the signs outside of Prudhoe Bay.
Jeremy's 2005 Prudhoe Bay Tour Pics
Ancient Musk Oxen, fooling around near the river.
Two thumbs up from the support crew. Rob is in the drivers seat and Kenny (our proud new addition) sits shotgun. Ken is from Japan, and rode his bicycle up to Prudhoe Bay from Fairbanks. Weary of riding through the fires again, he asked if he could catch a ride with us. We loaded his bike on the trailer, gave him an Alaska Rider Tours hat, and he cheerfully cleaned helmets and schlepped luggage for 3 full days until we dropped him off in Fairbanks. He became our official mascot of the trip!
Go GITs!!
Paul and Natalie at the Arctic Circle.
We met these two Brits on their
way north. They had flown their motorcycles to the East Coast from England,
and were taking
"a bit of a Holiday".
Tobin crosses a stream near Manley.
Natalie and Nancy enjoy the soothing hotsprings at Manley.
Paul and Ken. You can actually
pick the grapes off the
vines as you bathe!
Dee and Jeremy
Phil cleans Jeremy.
Chris says farewell to Kenny
before heading south to the
Denali Highway.
A wave goodbye to Kenny.
Santa is checking his list as we pass through North Pole, Alaska.
Entering Isabel Pass, Richardson Highway, Alaska Range.
Nancy and Chris take a break at Isabel Pass in the Alaska Range. It was a terrific day to be riding through the mountains!
Another stunning view of the Alaska Range and Isabel Glacier.
The group explores some side roads off the Denali Highway.
Paul and Natalie rode two-up through places many riders had troubles riding solo....they made it look easy and fun!!
Dee takes a break in the tundra. Such a tough day: riding through Alaska on a motorcycle !
A moose swims across a lake on the Denali Highway.
The Prudhoe Bay/Deadhorse Down Tours were fun and everybody had a great time! If you are interested in riding along, please check out our Tour Shedule for next year!
Jeremy's 2005 Prudhoe Bay Tour Pics
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