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| View from Blueberry Pass |
Once we motored our way out of the coastal mountains, the
weather was sunny and it got really warm. This was a welcome change in the
weather from what I had experienced for nearly the entire trip.
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| Mt Drum, One of the Giants of the Wrangle Mountains |
Our objective for the day was Tok Alaska. But first we
were treated to the beauty of the Wrangle/St Elias Mountains. Stunningly
beautiful. We arrived at Glennallen and took the TOk Highway over to, where
else, Tok, Alaska. Yun and I parted ways and agreed to meet in Tok at the Eagle
Claw Campground. This was a loose agenda as I told him I may do a side trip.
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| Mt Zanetti (left) & Mt Wrangle (the long slope on the right) |
I must say that the road conditions were not ideal. I
encountered horrendous frost heaves and had to slow down to avoid losing
control of the bike. A Subaru apparently didn’t like my reduced pace and decided
to pass in a huff, a few miles later they were on the side of the road with
broken front plastics that must have broken when they came off one of the
whoops. I gave a friendly wave and continued on my journey.
This highway offered some great views into the Wrangle St
Elias park. Mt Sanford, a mega peak for sure, 16,237 feet in elevation, it
rises over 12,000 feet from the base to the summit making a truly spectacular
view from my vantage.
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| Mt Sanford from the Tok Highway |
I was wanting to scout out the Nasbesna Road. I stopped
in at the Slana Ranger Station to check on road conditions. I was told that I could
only make it another 25 miles or so before I came across really wet road conditions
(swelling creeks). Because of all the rain and now the warm conditions, the
road had creeks that swelled and it was recommended that I not take my big bike
out there as they can be uncross able. Awe, bad timing for me. It was OK though
as I was starting to not feel well. The long days on the bike, I believe were
beginning to take a toll on me.
Outside of Tok, near Menasta Lakes, I saw a cow moose
grazing on the side of the road. She seemed to be oblivious to my presence and
I got some great pictures and video.
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| Nellie the moose |
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| Moose and biek were at peace |
I arrived in Tok and proceeded to the Thompson’s Eagle
Claw Campground where met up with Yun and several foreign visitors. Eagle Claw
is an awesome campground and not a place to be missed, especially if you are
traveling by motorcycle. It is run by Brain and Vanessa, both of which are
riders themselves.
They are off grid, but they offer primitive hot steam
baths, cook shelters and some unique camping accommodations found nowhere else.
Aside from the standard tent sites, they offer tents with cots, teepees, an old
ambulance that sleeps two, a bus and a parachute setup as a rain umbrella. In addition,
they have a large shed with motorcycle tools to do repairs and such. They are always happy to help. I can’t think
of a more pleasant campground in all my travels north. IF you ever travel north, please check them
out. You won’t be disappointed. http://www.thompsonseaglesclaw.com/index.html
Now, back to the visitors, aside from Yun, there was his
friend, a Frenchman, a couple from Austria and another gent from the Czech Republic.
And boy could they drink. We had a wild night in front of a large campfire and everyone had a great time. I
slept very well that night.
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| Wild night at THompson's Eagle Claw |
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| These guys could drink |
The next day, I headed toward Whitehorse. It seems that I
caught a bug and I was slowly falling into a flu like state that would haunt me
for the rest of my ride home.
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