The Cycle Begins.... and the Cycling Begins....

Recently I've found myself comfortable procrastinating about my place here in Alaska and my position in life.  Since our trip to Denali I've achieved very little.  I've written, I've taken photographs of a cabin inside and out for a new friend, and last night I was invited to the cabin of a guy and gal I met in the REI store where John works in Fairbanks!  How lovely.

REI Store

We sat around a campfire eating Jake's delightful moose burgers washing them back with fine Alaskan beer.  Lily one of the girls kindly gave me with an UnderArmour (top brand underlayer) top which she'd picked up at the student free-cycle event during the week.  She was afraid I'd be getting cold on the road and then the low temperatures I may encounter camping at night.  How very sweet.  The people of Fairbanks have been incredibly welcoming.  It's very easy to feel at home here, especially when you're sharing the house of a loving family like the Hiltenbrands.

I've been a little lackadaisical, lacking motivation.... sloth like....I've lost myself in sorting out plans and logistics for the ride, and found myself getting totally bogged down, but this morning things fell in to place.  John got up ready for action.  He has a few days off.  We re-jigged my new cycle route (which may include hitching depending on timescales) to take me through the true wilderness of Alaska rather than the main highways.

Today I've been busy buying the final bits and pieces for the journey.  Important things.... like food.
John was talking to one guy in a store who I over heard saying, 'Well you know what's in my freezer John?  A dog!  My boy's pooch died, and they wanted $200 to cremate it.  I said we'd put her in the freezer until the ground thawed then we'd bury her.'  Sad, amusing and sweet all at once.

Tomorrow John and I head for another river adventure.  We'll kayak a few hours downstream, set up camp for the night, then head a few more miles down river on Thursday.  When we finish we have a 30 mile jaunt back to the car.... Hopefully we'll manage to hitch a ride.... Hopefully this part runs smoothly.
Once we're all sorted I jump on my fully loaded bike (the one Sam Chamberlain so kindly lent me for my tour of Alaska) which will be carrying almost 57lbs of gear, including food.... It'll be a tough ride.

Sam the bicycle man.... Thank you so much.

The road is rough gravel.  There are bears.  And the air will be cool.  The Denali Highway is 125 miles in length.... If I get lucky I'll complete it over 3 days, including two nights of camping near rivers for water.  Exciting!
Once I reach Paxton, then Glenallen if I'm making good time, I'll continue cycling two more days down to Valdez where I'll pick up a 5 hour ferry to Whittier.  From Whitter I either have a 3 to 4 day cycle to Homer with an arrival deadline of 30th May for a guided fishing day or two.  An exchange of services where I'll write and article based on my experience of Alaskan salmon fishing.  If the days are closing in on my ride to Homer I'll hitch, as it's only a three and half hour drive from Whittier where the ferry drops me.
After a couple of weeks exploring and fishing the Homer region I jump aboard a ferry on 14th June at 2am, arriving on the island of Kodiak 9 hours later.  I'll spend 36 hours here before the ferry departs again to Whittier, a 19 hour journey.

Five hours in Whittier then I'm back to Valdez where I'll climb and climb all the way to McCarthy, and old copper mining town out in the sticks.  A few days there, then back to Valdez to grab a ferry..... and from there maybe back to Homer for another fishing gig, or over to Anchorage to process my images and writing before returning to the UK......

First part of cycle from Denali Highway to Valdez.

I'm looking forward to this part of the journey.  Hitting the road again.  Just me and the Alaskan air.
My gear isn't perfect, but when is life perfect?  I'll adapt where I need to adapt.  Things will happen that need to happen.  Everything will work out.