All plans seem to move with their on will

We started out a little later then we thought 12:00  but no problem 

Just before lift off

First night lodging Eagle Claw Campground

Eagle Claw Motorcycle Campground

Trappers Cabin, our outfit

Wall tent inside and out

Ambulance Inside and Out

Champion Packer

Getting ready to leave

Pit Fire area, get together place

Horse Shoe Pits

Lunch on the road

Very old PRIMUS #71 but it fits in the coffee pot very compact and duel fuel  works off gas

Our First Selfe

We crossed the border the weather was great the sun was shining.

From Tok to Destruction Bay the distance is 225 mi  or 5hr 30min @ 40 mph.

Our trip lasted a little longer, the temperature was 40deg F, 4deg C, road construction for about 150 mi. Rough road, driving rain coming sideways.

Our trip took about 7.5 hrs,We were never so glad to see the hotel,  and we got the last room, thank you Gerbings heated wear. We both have heated jackets.

The plan is to get to Haines today

But first have to have get everything charged up

Great Facilities in Canada way above U.S.

On the way back we'll stay here

Looks like rain ahead

Sharon selfie

Rain did come

From here on they are just shots on the trip. We're getting ready to get on ferry and I wanted to post this.

Sorry for the jumbled up pictures hope you enjoy anyway

I'm going to get better

Haines Junction Great Place to Eat

Tough weather ahead

Rain and Headwind

You have to admire them, this is all with a head wind

Bike Race between Haines Junction YT and Haines Alaska 150 mi

The countdown has begun! The plan is to leave in the morning about 9:00 AM

Got the Raven out of the shop around 2:00 PM, took it for a shakedown ride.

Had valves adjusted, changed oil in motor, transmission oil, rear end oil, changed and flushed out the brake system front and rear.

The shakedown ride went well, adjusting the valves made a big difference in the bike performance.

We have everything pretty much together for the trip as we were just on a camping trip a couple of weeks ago. It is going to be just adjusting and adding  what we're going to  need.

Now we'll see how close I can stay on schedule. haha

ETD ( estimated time of departure) 4 Days

Took the Raven in for a pre trip checkout and service last week. Sharon followed because I was going to leave the outfit at the shop and pick it up later.

I left the house and got about a couple miles away and the bike started slowing down, I downshifted to a lower gear and gave it a little more gas and the bike just stopped and the engine died. I had no idea what was going on.

Luckily I was able to just about to get off the road, turned on my emergency flashers, and put the bike in neutral to push it further off the road, but couldn't budge it.

Sharon drove around behind me and asked me what was wrong and what she could do. While we were talking the bike started rolling down the hill. The brakes had released!! I told Sharon to follow me with her emergency flashers and we were off to the Abby (the shop I take my bike to) 
I limped the bike about 12 miles to the shop and explained what happened to Mike the owner/mechanic. 

On my own I went ahead and checked a couple of BMW forums, and then checked BMW Service specifications. Which states the the brake fluid should be completely changed over every two years. Most of the people that I asked mentioned 2 years but never had it done.

My bike is a 2009 1200 GS that I had bought new, and it is 5 yrs old. Mike told me that the fluid was clear but it was gelatinous and it plugged port that is located in the master cylinder, it's about the size of a small needle hole, that allows the fluid to to return to the disk brakes. So you squeeze the front brake two, maybe three times and there is no way for the fluid to bleed off so the pressure is kept on the disks and brake rotors and the motorcycle stops, in my case killed the engine, and I wasn't able to move the bike until the pressure bled off. Mike drained both systems front and rear and flushed the system. I'm glad it didn't happen while I was on the road.

Our friend Julie came up for a short visit from New Mexico we hadn't seen her in sixteen years

We picked them up on the June 12, 2014 at 6:00 in the morning in Whittier

Drove thru  the tunnel  here is a link 

Picking up Julie and Pam in Whittier Link

The weather was wet and cloudy went to Seward, Hope (pie and coffee)

 and finally to Talkeetna

They left Sunday after a great bar-b-q with our Alaska family

Link 1

Bar-B-Q for Julie and her friend

Link 2

Bar-B-Q

Talkeetna Roadhouse with a Big Doggie

By the Susitna River in Talkeetna

Saturday we also had some visitors that are in the process of an around the world tour that started out in Australia 

Vesna, Sharon, Klemen

Vesna, Pam, Julie, Klemen

Vesna and Klemen are new friends of ours through Bostjan

Trip Planning Phase Two

Since our time to depart is getting a little closer I decided to put something together that makes some sense to me.  I told you a friend of ours that we used to work with at Marshal Fields in Chicago, and shared our life in Jeffery City Wyoming, is coming up from New Mexico to pay us a visit. 

Julie and her traveling companion are riding up the Alaska State Ferry System via the inland passage from Bellingham Washington to Whittier Alaska were we will meet them at 6:00 AM in the morning on Thursday June 12, they will spend four very busy days with us and will leave on the morning of Monday the 16Th

As for starting our trip

We are planning to leave on the bike/sidecar on Thursday the 19th and getting to the boat in Haines Alaska by 6:00 PM on the 23rd of June.

Stage 1 Wasilla to Tok Alaska, with the plan of camping the same place we stayed last year  

Our Cabin from last year

Day Two

Day Two Continued

We're probably going to stop  a little outside of Haines Junction

Last year a fellow was building a campground that had Tepees' we'll probably spend the evening here

Mo's Yukon Adventure

Are next stop is going to be in Haines Alaska. Where we are going to meet up with our intrepid arctic rider friend Bostjan who is temporally living in Whitehorse YT. He is originally from Slovenia and is in the middle of his around the world tour. We're going to visit with him for a bit and then he is planning on going home (Slovenia) to visit he has been gone for eight years no. When he comes back his plans to continue his adventure

Bostjan when he rode up to Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope of Alaska in March

We're leaving Haines Alaska on the 23 of June and arriving in Bellingham Washington on the 27 of June.

Our tentative tour of the Pacific Coast Highway

Last year, during our trip to Prince of Wales Island we met this great couple that were touring Alaska with a Jeep and a tent. Kathy and Bruce Johnston

We talked as often as we could this past year talking about what we were going to do for our summer. I had mentioned I wanted to ride the PCH. Kathy said we'll meet you guys in Bellingham when you get off the ferry. They are over in Belgium right now, but we're looking forward to meeting up with them on the 27th of this month 

Camping on Prince of Wales Island