Yes, I made it, but wasn't able to post last night. We've also found that wireless service is a bit sketchy. Hopefully, Dale at least received the voice mail message that I left when I arrived.
The trip yesterday was better than expected. Everything was on time, which seems to be an accomplishment given all the rain the midwest has had and continues to have the way it sounds. I wound up with a great seat at the bulkhead Minneapolis to Anchorage. Consequently, I slept almost four hours of the 6 hour flight.
Of course, yesterday was the summer solstice. 19+ hours of daylight in Alaska yesterday! Amazing daylight 4 a.m. to 11:45 p.m.! After midnight, it gets darker but never dark.
I have to say the trip sort of wiped me out yesterday, so really didn't get to enjoy the sights in Anchorage as I had hoped. I walked around a bit after I arrived, but as soon as I ate lunch I was ready for a nap after getting up at 4 a.m. cdt.
The time difference is three hours behind Iowa. The west coast time zone has always given me trouble, and this one will be no different. Couple that with the, almost, endless daylight, I expect to be pretty tired by the end of the week and should be able to sleep on the flight back home. By the way, in case you're wondering, Alaska looses a whopping 40 seconds of daylight today. Yes, they do discuss these things here!
We met the tour at 7 a.m. this morning. We loaded and ate breakfast, then left to drive approximately 2 hours from Anchorage. There are 13 riders on the tour and 2 staff. It's a bit different operation than what I've ridden with before, something also observed by other riders here that have had the America by Bicycle cross country experience.
Alaska is big country, not too much unlike Wyoming but in some respects even more so. Here are some things I've noticed over the last two days:
1. Trees are not very big nor close to the road. What I've learned is that the permanent frost line is only inches below the surface of the ground and soil is very poor, consequently vegetation cannot grow very well.
2. There are no dead animals on the road. What I've learned is that Alaska doesn't have skunk or racoon, which is the most prevalent evidence in Iowa; and that most animal deaths (rabbits, squirrels, fox and moose) occur in the winter time because of the snow.
3. There don't seem to be many dogs in Alaska. In 70+ miles today, I only heard one dog and saw none.
4. There is nothing out here, which is why, I suppose, the trip is all inclusive. Even in Wyoming, there are a scattering of small, local diners and convenience stores that serve sandwiches. We saw two convenience stores today. We made no turns all day, and saw no intersections.
5. Campgrounds open on May 20. Is the snow gone?
6. Roads are actually fairly good. We road on wide shoulder all day, which has more weather damage than the road but it also is in fairly good condition all things considered.
7. There are ALOT of motor homes and RV's here. On the cross country trip I commented on all of the motorcycles in South Dakota. Recreational vehicles in Alaska far outnumber the motorcycles and probably are close to equal to the number of trucks and cars.
8. People here have airplanes like we have cars. I guess this goes back to the opening comment that this is big country. People use air transportation to travel and commute. What, you live on a lake? No, problem. There are more airplanes with pontoons than with wheels.
The scenery is beautiful. We had huge snowcapped mountains in sight the second half of the day. I have some good photos.
We're off to Tok tomorrow, another 70+. We finished today at 6:25. Very late by comparison to other trips. We probably didn't start riding until close to noon. There'll be a similar format tomorrow to take us out 20 miles before we begin to ride.
Will try to post again tomorrow. See you in Tok
~ Lisa
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