The heaviest rain I've experienced on the trip so far poured down during the night and the noisy pelting sounds on the tent kept me awake for much of it. Thankfully, the tent kept me warm and dry during the watery onslaught. In the morning, I checked in to cyberspace while I waited for the rain to let up (so my gear wouldn't get wet again while I was packing it.) I was having trouble drying out my jacket and boots after my swim in the glacial river in Denali; I didn't want to leave them out in the open air for somebody to take (and I couldn't because it was raining anyway), so they remained in Conrad where they began to stink. I had just enough time to call T-Mobile about my monthly bill before the clouds broke. T-Mobile is on my hitlist. It would aggravate me to go into details...
While I was packing my gear into the trunk, a boy named Gage rode up on his bike. He was a fun little guy to talk to. He was amazed at the tiny tent I had slept in and he told me all about his dad's house which cost ninety-nine million dollars. (It's really big.) He was impressed that I was about to leave for Jasper, Alberta - 1800 miles away. I said goodbye to the camp proprietors and their kids. They had quickly come to like me - I think because I didn't create any problems for them, unlike some of the other shady characters I met at the campground during the two nights I was there.
So Fairbanks is the end of the road for me! It is time to turn around and head home. I am looking forward to seeing Jasper and Banff National Parks in Alberta (in addition to a few other things along the way) before I meet up with Matthias in Calgary. Together, we will see Calgary, Waterton Lake National Park, Glacier National Park, Billings, Teddy Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota (an encore visit), and the Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota. He booked his return flight out of Minneapolis on August 10th. That means I will be home no later than August 9th, perhaps earlier.
I enjoyed a coffee at McCafferty's in downtown Fairbanks. I mailed a letter at the post office and withdrew some cash to get me down the road. There wasn't much else I was interested in doing in Fairbanks, so I cleared out of town around 2:00 PM. I stopped for a burger and fries and to gas up in North Pole, about 12 miles outside of Fairbanks. Then I headed southeast, back towards Tok on Highway 2. Throughout my journey, I have planned ahead to avoid driving the same road twice. It would be nearly unavoidable on a particular stretch of highway through the Yukon, but to this end, just as I passed through Tok, I pointed Conrad in a northeasterly direction on Highway 5 at Tetlin Junction. I would cross back into Canada at yet another checkpoint. A sign at the junction told me the border closed at 8 PM, Alaska time. I realized I probably wouldn't make it across today as the asphalt turned to gravel and slowed my speed considerably.
During my drive, I saw two moose and watched as a black bear sprinted across the road about 50 yards ahead of the car at one point. I passed through the small, eclectic town of Chicken, Alaska, (population 37) on the way to the border. It appeared to be a town of permanently established recreational vehicles. A nice man in Chicken told me about my (limited) camping options before reaching the border. I didn't pass one other car for the remaining 35 miles to the border. I thought I'd try crossing just in case the customs office was still open, however the gate was down and there was no way across. The road rose in elevation for the last few miles short of the border and began what is referred to as "Top-of-the-World" Highway. Instead of snaking through the valley, the road traversed the ridges of the hills. With the sun setting behind me, the few miles before the border were breathtaking.
I back-tracked from the border 4 miles to the appropriately-named town of Boundry, Alaska. As far as I could tell, the population was 1, now 2; As I pulled in to an area off the highway near a building labeled "Lodge", a gruffy man in a heavy robe came out with his black labrador retriever. I asked him if I could stay. He offered me the one cabin on the property for $40 or a tent site for free. I erected the tent and went to bed.
While I was packing my gear into the trunk, a boy named Gage rode up on his bike. He was a fun little guy to talk to. He was amazed at the tiny tent I had slept in and he told me all about his dad's house which cost ninety-nine million dollars. (It's really big.) He was impressed that I was about to leave for Jasper, Alberta - 1800 miles away. I said goodbye to the camp proprietors and their kids. They had quickly come to like me - I think because I didn't create any problems for them, unlike some of the other shady characters I met at the campground during the two nights I was there.
So Fairbanks is the end of the road for me! It is time to turn around and head home. I am looking forward to seeing Jasper and Banff National Parks in Alberta (in addition to a few other things along the way) before I meet up with Matthias in Calgary. Together, we will see Calgary, Waterton Lake National Park, Glacier National Park, Billings, Teddy Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota (an encore visit), and the Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota. He booked his return flight out of Minneapolis on August 10th. That means I will be home no later than August 9th, perhaps earlier.
I enjoyed a coffee at McCafferty's in downtown Fairbanks. I mailed a letter at the post office and withdrew some cash to get me down the road. There wasn't much else I was interested in doing in Fairbanks, so I cleared out of town around 2:00 PM. I stopped for a burger and fries and to gas up in North Pole, about 12 miles outside of Fairbanks. Then I headed southeast, back towards Tok on Highway 2. Throughout my journey, I have planned ahead to avoid driving the same road twice. It would be nearly unavoidable on a particular stretch of highway through the Yukon, but to this end, just as I passed through Tok, I pointed Conrad in a northeasterly direction on Highway 5 at Tetlin Junction. I would cross back into Canada at yet another checkpoint. A sign at the junction told me the border closed at 8 PM, Alaska time. I realized I probably wouldn't make it across today as the asphalt turned to gravel and slowed my speed considerably.
During my drive, I saw two moose and watched as a black bear sprinted across the road about 50 yards ahead of the car at one point. I passed through the small, eclectic town of Chicken, Alaska, (population 37) on the way to the border. It appeared to be a town of permanently established recreational vehicles. A nice man in Chicken told me about my (limited) camping options before reaching the border. I didn't pass one other car for the remaining 35 miles to the border. I thought I'd try crossing just in case the customs office was still open, however the gate was down and there was no way across. The road rose in elevation for the last few miles short of the border and began what is referred to as "Top-of-the-World" Highway. Instead of snaking through the valley, the road traversed the ridges of the hills. With the sun setting behind me, the few miles before the border were breathtaking.
I back-tracked from the border 4 miles to the appropriately-named town of Boundry, Alaska. As far as I could tell, the population was 1, now 2; As I pulled in to an area off the highway near a building labeled "Lodge", a gruffy man in a heavy robe came out with his black labrador retriever. I asked him if I could stay. He offered me the one cabin on the property for $40 or a tent site for free. I erected the tent and went to bed.
No comments:
Post a Comment