July 20th, DAY 2 UCC
Left Coldfoot early to miss the rain forecast for that afternoon. So far I have had a dry ride.
The familiar pipeline leading the way, but notice the leaves bending to the wind.
Don't see any traffic coming my way. When you do it looks like this. When you have more than one vehicle coming your way, it means there is road construction ahead with a flagger to control the one way traffic.
The big dust clouds are the big trucks.
Notice how they slowed down for me.
What the Haul Road rest area looks like...
Crossed the Arctic Circle once more.
At the Yukon River bridge, caught a different point of view of the crossing.
The road can be rough with whoops and potholes, pavement breaks and more, but a saying my wife suggested would be important for this ride. It is in my face every mile of the way. It's not a race, it's an endurance test.
And, finally am off the Dalton Highway.
That ends Day 2 UCC
Crisis in Fairbanks.
When I arrived at the hotel that night, when I went to pay, my credit card was not in my wallet.... Oh cr*p.
You know how your mind races when something like that happens... finally traced it back to when last used, in COLDFOOT.
250 mies back up the Haul Road. One has to give your credit card to the cashier before they turn on the gas pump. I also told her I needed a room for the night. When I returned after filling all my fuel containers, she handed me a gas receipt and a key for the room. Then proceeded to tell me how to find the room and where to park. She failed to give me back my card and I did not notice.
Now what to do. Tried calling Coldfoot. No service at this time. OK, to be safe, will cancel the card. Called the 800 number. I get a machine answering the call, IN SPANISH. It kept asking for my Social Security Number... no way am I giving that number to a machine, much less one that only talks in Spanish and will not connect me to a live operator. Hung up.
Maybe I can go to a local bank branch and cancel it. Checked, no branch office for Bank of America in Fairbanks.
Tried calling Coldfoot again. Still no service.
Called the wife in Houston, explained the situation. Maybe she can cancel it. Nope, she is not on that account. We have her card, my card, and our card. Each with a different bank to keep things straight.
Okay, I have some cash and a back up credit card, so could keep traveling. But the idea that a credit card is out there, in who's hands, is worrisome.
Nope, no Bank of America office in Anchorage either.
It's been several hours now. Do I ride back up to Coldfoot? That's taking two days from the UCC ride.
At 8:45 pm I call Coldfoot one more time, and get an answer. "Yes, we have your credit card here."
Me: "Can you send it to me here in Fairbanks?"
"Not sure how fast the Post Office can do that." Remember the photo of three days a week service?
Me: "How do you send your stuff to your home office in Fairbanks?"
"Oh," then she turns and talks with someone there.
"Ok. a pilot here is flying to Fairbanks tonight and can take it. What is your phone number?"
After agreeing to that, I hang up relieved. Then I think, I just agreed to them giving my credit card to a stranger who says he will fly it to Fairbanks and drop it off somewhere.
What can go wrong?
Am awaken at 12:46 am with a called from someone who says they have my credit card, but they are closing in ten minutes. They give me an address where to go when they open at 7 am.
At 7:10 am I have my credit card safely back in my wallet. All at no cost. Who do I thank? Never met the pilot.
Been riding the Haul Road in dry weather for four day, and now this, thank you Lord.
July 21, Maintenance Day, laundry and rest.
Have been riding six days straight, time for maintenance. Had scheduled an old change at DELTA Powersports, the Honda dealer. Arrived early and they got right on it. Had me out by noon.
While there, a sorry-looking BMW GSA rolls ( sort of) in. More like limps in.
What's that on his front wheel?
Seems he wrapped duct tape around it to hold the tire to the wheel. Why??? It's not holding air.
His story is that he hit a deep pothole on the Haul Road and flared both sides of the rim out! That must have been quite a hit. Says he was able to keep the bike up.
The dealership has no new wheels or used ones for the GSA.
Now, how to get it back to the Anchorage rental agency?
Too bad we can't be there to hear how he explains it to the Rental agency to get out of having to pay for the damages.
As the older tradesman told this apprentice.
Haste makes waste.
Be hard to go slow on them big beemers though.
What an adventure! 🤩
I'd need a film/support crew, caterer for the crew, LUX 5th wheel with chef/maid/butler service, and a huge Discovery channel budget to even begin to consider this. Oh yeah, a stunt double to actually do the riding, while I enjoy the scenery from the limo.
Like Marlin Perkins; "I'll stay up here in the helicopter while Jim wrestles with the lion." Only in this case; "I'll sip on a cup of coffee behind my laptop while Jan wrestles Alaska! 🍻
Hold my keyboard and watch this! 🙃
That is a lot more in a day than projected!
Illegitemi non carborundum est!
This is an incredible story! Thanks for taking us along!!
UCC-Day 10 - 7/28/25 - Innisfail, AB to Great Falls, MT
Jerry
I fly (and ride) to free my mind from the tyranny of petty things. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Time for an update...
From the day I left Fairbanks on Tuesday, July 22, Day 4 of the UCC, the rains have followed me for next four days straight, morning till dark. So little picture taking happened. The temperature have been in the 30's and 40's. On a good day the high would get to 50.By the fourth day, all of my riding gear was soaked, inside and out, nothing drying overnight. Not only was I wet all the time, was gutted, chilled to the bone. Not healthy. So stopped in Fort St. John for an extra days just to dry out and warm up.
Here are pics from those days...
The river along the road to the US-Canadian border. Never saw Denali on this trip. Its inside those clouds in the distance.
A female flagger in Alaska, all very friendly
The Pilot vehicle we were waiting of, stoped and the driver got out. Seems she had a flat tire. So we waited for another truck to come and repair the flat. The line of vehicles waiting, grew, and grew, and grew.
I do love the Alaska practice that motorcyclists go to the front of the waiting line, every time.
Once we got rolling, , we stopped. The equipment was blocking both lanes of travel.
A better view...
Then another flagger further down the road, this one cuter and more friendly. I met her going north a week earlier. Had another nice chat.
Made it late to Beaver Creek on the Canadian side of the border.
Looked out the next morning, still rain, still cold. Time to get rolling.
I find the fireweed flowers that grow up here after a forest fire, to be very beautiful.
A typical Alaskan brush country sight...
That day a quick stop at the Signpost Forest in Watson Lake. With this weather, walking among the signs was not appealing. So yes was there. I came, I saw, I rode on...
Though I washed Red Dog twice in Fairbanks, the rain is rinsing it good.
Next cold wet morning riding, stopped to get a coffee. Had a nice conversation with an older couple who own this spot. No one came in during the 30 minutes we talked. When I asked why so many of the little business I had seen on previous trips up here were closed?
They said the traffic count on the Alcan has steadily dropped by at least 50% over the last years. COVID, of course really hit them hard, was up after that with a lot of new RV traffic, but that too has slowed down.
Around the Muncho Lake area, the Provincial Park has been breeding it bison herd for decades. Ten years ago there was one main herd. Now there I saw three different herds. All munching along the roadway.
Here a young bull, not the lead bull.
On down a ways, this guy shows who is in control.
He was surround by a large herd, watching the vehicles whizzing by while many young calves were running and chasing each other on both sides of the roadway. I think he decided people were driving too fast when "his" offspring were nearby so he decided to slow everything down by walking out into the roadway and just stand there. It worked. All vehicles stopped.After a bit I slowly crept by him, ready to floor it if needed. He glared, but did not move.
His herd...
For those who have ridden the Alcan highway, may remember Toad River crossing and the little rustic cabin there that had good food and coffee. It has been replaced with a new building and a dozen cabins facing the lake.
Is in a remote spot on the highway, no wifi, no cell phone service either. Very quiet.
Next morning when I went to leave, my parking brake was locked up. The Goldwing DCT has a parking brake since you cannot park it in gear. Laying on wet gravel in the rain, was able to release it. Have not used the brake since as getting under the bike to release the brake every time I stop and turn off the engine is not a solution. So I went old school to rig up a parking brake using the front brakes.
Visited a sporting goods and bought this exercise/jogging wrist strap. It works and will keep me safe until I get it up on a lift and do a proper repair. Might just be that calcium Chloride they put on the Haul Road.
They make a two piece plastic handlebar brake lock, but it's on my workbench back home.
Next day, another wet cold ride, what I thought were low clouds were that plus smoke from a distant fire.
On the other side of that ridge, I was brake checked!
She was watching my approach and suddenly leaped toward the pavement with her calf rfollwoing closely. I could see one or both of those animals were going to landing inside my sidecar.
Only to stop at the pavements edge, as I was slamming on the brakes as hard as I could. Then she turned and they trotted further up the road and crossied in from of me.
Safely across, they proceeded to disappear into the brush. This was my only close encounter with wildlife this trip. One is enough.
Ok, that wraps up those days. Hopefully I'll get into some dry weather.
In all the ride is going on schedule, though am re-routing, adding many more miles to the trip to avoid going through that dome of extremely hot weather in the mid-west.
Today I crossed into Montana, only to hit more rain in Great Falls. So what's new...
Just so you know, fire weed is known to many locals as "Roadsideiums".
UCC-Day 11 - 7/29/25 - Great Falls, MT to Casper, WY
Jerry
I fly (and ride) to free my mind from the tyranny of petty things. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
For some perspective, here is where Jan has ridden so far (Google direct, may not follow his route exactly).
And here is how far he has to go (again, this is Google direct, not necessarily his route). Just for some big picture context.
Today is Day 11 of his "Ultimate Coast to Coast" Ironbutt ride so he has 19 days to go. He is in good shape, barring any issues.
Jerry
I fly (and ride) to free my mind from the tyranny of petty things. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
