Canada
2013 | ||
Day 10 June 24 | ||
I'm up early this morning as usual and the streets of Stewart are deserted. | ||
I figure since I have no ferries to catch, I'll just get Frost loaded and ready to go and get breakfast here since they open a 7 AM. I usually don't get away before 6 anyway, so this will work out fine. Especially given my past history on this trip of not being able to find a decent breakfast once I get on the road. | ||
I'm a breakfast sort of feller and if I can get a good one, I can run on it all day til supper. The restaurant opens a little before seven, so I wander in and get me another great breakfast. Viri is waiting tables this morning also, so she gets stuck with me again. | ||
Pretty soon there are very few fragments that remain - not enough to feed a hungry bird. | ||
I settle up, go upstairs to clear out my room, then hit the road. It's with much sadness that I realize I will probably never be back here again. There are just so many other places to see that I haven't seen yet and so little time. | ||
It's a beautiful run out of Stewart and once again I have it all to myself. | ||
When I pass back over the temporary bridge, it is not hard to understand why the original one washed away in the first place. | ||
The shadows are long as the sun has not quite cleared the mountain tops. | ||
I pass by Bear Glacier and get a parting shot. | ||
Soon I'm at the junction of 37A and 37 and on my way to finish up the Cassiar Highway one more time. | ||
It just stretches on and on through the heavy forested land and mountain ridges. | ||
Occasionally I catch a glimpse of the snow capped mountains above the trees. | ||
This part of the Cassiar is actually in pretty good shape, so it doesn't take me long to reach the end at Kitwanga. I stop for fuel and to take the last of three STs at this sign - the southern terminus of the Cassiar. | ||
I hang a left and I am on Trans Canada 16 which will take me all the way to Prince George. This is a pretty major highway, so fuel should not be much of an issue today. | ||
I admire an old church building as I head back to 'normal' civilization. | ||
After riding for days out amongst the trees and the bears, I ride through these cities with mixed emotions. | ||
Progress is fine, but now I am assaulted frequently by billboards, something I have not missed over the past few days. | ||
There's some lovely horses grazing off to my right and I wonder how they fare through the rough winter winds that come off the mountains. | ||
Too soon, I am back unfortunately to civilization where I have to deal with things much more dangerous than an occasional grizzly bear. | ||
Soon, Frost is thirsty and so am I so I pull into a 7 Eleven to meet both our needs. The lady behind the counter asks me - "Where are you from?" When I tell her I've ridden up from Nashville, Tennessee to Alaska and now am headed to Sooke, BC, she looks at me like a calf staring at a new gate. And when I tell her this is only my tenth day on the road, she is really amazed. But I'm used to such reactions by now and thank her for asking. I wish her a pleasant day and get back after it. |
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TC 16 is pretty much long and straight, but it's mighty fine for covering the distance that I need to cover today. | ||
And every now and then you come upon a lovely lake like this one that provides a perfect reflection. | ||
And you never know what's going to be just over the next hill. | ||
Sometimes it's a beautiful lake that makes you want to park the bike and go swimming for a while. | ||
I'm making great time so I am burning through a tank of fuel pretty quickly. If I have my head right, I've got one more gas stop after this one to fill up for the evening. | ||
I tend to the fuel and get quickly back on the road. | ||
Further down, I see a massive lumber yard. Now that stack of wood would last me for a winter or two if I had it back at the Holler. | ||
But too soon, one of those construction zones appears. It seems to my mind that I am sitting here for hours, but I know it is only minutes. | ||
And just when I think I am in the clear, here comes another one. | ||
It looks like for all the world I am fixin to get wet, ready or not. | ||
But I just keep heading for the blue and finally come out from under the gathering storm clouds. | ||
It's only a little over seventy miles down highway 97 from Prince George to Quesnel. | ||
I figure I'll fill up at the first place I find and it is an interesting place. Not only is it a gas station but it is also a Yamaha motorcycle shop. The owner is there and we chat a bit about bikes. I tell him - "I used to have a 78 XS1100 Special years ago before I got my first ST1100." He nods his head as he's been at the business for a while and remembers that particular bike. But I'm close to the motel and ready to get out of my monkey suit, so I wish him well and head on down the hill. |
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The motel is pretty much just as I remembered it from back in 2004. But the area has really grown up around it since then. | ||
The lady behind the counter gets me a nice room where I can park Frost right outside the window. She also gives me a great tip for a place to get some super. | ||
It requires a bit of a walk, but I need to do that anyway. So it's a great combination for me. | ||
The food is excellent and so is the service - just what I like after a long day in the saddle. | ||
And so I don't ruin my record, I hold forth until the field of battle is cleared. | ||
I'm hoping to get out early enough to catch an earlier ferry than the one I reserved. So I hit the sack soon and wander off to the place that most wise folks seek after a long day. | ||