Next Up: Nashville to Deadhorse

The next trip is a classic: through Canada to Alaska and up to the arctic circle. The standard route is to Fairbanks and then up the Dalton Highway to the arctic circle marker. Those who have been say after arriving at the arctic circle you ought to push on to Coldfoot 60 miles farther north (population 12). If you fuel up and stay overnight in Coldfoot you might as well run the additional 240 miles to Deadhorse (population 47) at Prudhoe Bay (http://www.prudhoebay.com/). As far as I can tell this is the end of the road. You cannot travel any farther from Nashville in the US via road. (For example, Barrow Alaska would be farther but you cannot get there by road.) Actually the Dalton Highway was built as a service road for the Alaska Pipeline. It is not paved and the information I have seen does not encourage tourism.

The round trip as shown on this map would be +/-9,000 miles. Our Four Corners trip was +/-11,000 and took +/-30 days. My current thought is to find separate routes out and back to vary the scenery and experience more of both Canada and the US. Since I imagine a lot of this will be non-interstate highway, just +/-30 days would not allow much sightseeing. This trip might require six weeks.

The other big question is bike type. C-Zuki's V-Strom will surely handle the unpaved Dalton Highway. The RT and Burgman are full-on road bikes. We may need to practice a little semi-off-road to see if they (and us) can manage off pavement. Fortunately we have a couple of years at least to plan and get ready.

Epilogue 1

Ferry Boat Humor

What is it with old ferry boat guys humor? Twice as we departed ferries the old guys shared jokes with us as we removed our tie downs and fired up our bikes to ride off the ferry.

Why can't a bicycle stand up by itself?

Answer: Because it is two tired.

Why do cows have bells?

Answer: Because their horns don't work.

final thoughts, comments, and suggestions

Out of the 20 states (TN, AR, OK, KS, NE, SD, ND, MN, WI, MI, OH, PA, NY, MA, RI, CT, NJ, DE, MD, VA) and DC we rode through on this trip, only 9 (TN, NE, MI, NY, MA, NJ, MD, VA) and DC required helmets for all motorcycle riders!


DC has the right idea when it comes to the HOV lane. It's basically a separate 3 lane highway for motorcycles and vehicles with 3 or more people. I was thrilled as we blew by the traffic standing still on 95. I can't imagine living around DC and not either carpooling or driving a motorcycle!

Letters to states:

Dear Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin,

Put up windmills. At least get some use out of your ridiculous winds.

Dear South Dakota,

Try to be more creative with your city names. Gettysburg, Minneapolis, and Stockholm are all famous cities elsewhere.


Dear Michigan,

When abbreviating Grand Rapids, please consider using GRD Rapids instead of GD Rapids.

Dear New York,

Really? 65mph on I-90? It's a toll rode. No one i exiting or entering frequently. You could at least bump up it up to 70 (or maybe even 75 like in SD and ND).


Dear Massachusetts,

You spelled Worcester wrong.

Sincerely,
BMWPop (from Wooster, OH)

Dear Rhode Island,

First, you are not an island.
Second, the streets of Providence need some attention. I would have liked to enjoy the beautiful architecture in Providence, however, I was too busy swerving to avoid the pot holes and cracks!


Dear Delaware,

Please reevaluate your definition of "scenic route." A flat straight road through farms in the middle of no where is not necessarily "scenic." You may want to consult with Virgina on the definition of "scenic."


It was a great trip and I can't believe that we have actually completed all 48 continental states and DC.

Our next trip... ALASKA and the arctic circle.

Headed Home: History Day

+/-300 miles

We stayed in Fredericksburg last night and then headed home via Crozet, Piney River, Amherst and Lynchburg, Virginia.  Each of those Virginia towns has some historic family significance.  But first we began with a scenic ride through Virginia horse country.  Beautifully groomed farms with classic white and brown fences.  Some were also vineyards with tasting rooms advertised.   

In Crozet we visited the home where Burgma's mother was born.  We also saw the historic school house where her mother and mother's brothers attended grammar school.  The old home place is now part of a private farm.  We ignored the no trespassing signs and rode on back were we found the home. It is very well maintained.

On our way out we passed several very large barns and a full size horse race track.  There was a small starting gate and a rider was apparently training a horse to enter the gate.  I suppose the former orchard (its use when owned by Burgma's grandparents) is now a race horse farm and training facility. 

 
Piney River was the ancestral home of "Mama", Burgma's great grandmother who lived from 1863 to 1963.  The narrow road out of Crozet on the way to Piney River was tree shaded and twisty: a real treat but barely two lanes.  The bridges were single lane.  At one point traffic coming toward us was stopped because a tractor trailer appeared too tall to fit under a railroad overpass.  It did not look like there was room to turn around either.  We did not stop to see how the dilemma was resolved.  On our side of the road was a large turtle just as big but less lucky than the one we saw at Denton.  This big boy had been crushed be a vehicle.  At another point the road widened but imitated the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Actually it one-upped the Blue Ridge.  There was an uphill corkscrew curve that was pitched so steeply I wondered for moment if I would be able to negotiate it upright.  Soon we crossed over the Blue Ridge Trail.  A sign directed hikers to dedicated parking areas.

Mama's home is little changed from its post WWII remodeling which included the addition of plumbing and electricity.  The small cemetery where she is buried on the property is overgrown but protected from the livestock by an electric fence that surrounds the low rusted iron fence.  The inscription on her stone was not fully legible because of the tall grass and we did not want to breach the electric fence, unsure if it was live.  (We had come here maybe 15 or 20 years earlier and the cemetery then had been guarded by a menacing looking bull.  This time we did not actually see any livestock, but the chicken coop Burgma remembered from her childhood still stands on the other side of the house.)

Next we motored over to Amherst and the grave site of Burgma's father.  We did not know the name or location of the cemetery so we stopped in at the Historical Society and museum.  The woman there was very helpful and located the cemetery and the section were his marker is located.  Armed with directions we walked through town and enjoyed a tasty lunch before riding over to the cemetery.  Once there I recognized it and the general area where his marker was located.  Burgma and I came here before, probably in the late 70s.  She recently found an Internet site where one may post gravestone photos and pictures of the cemeteries as well.  We took a picture of his marker and the cemetery entrance for posting later.

 
 Our last historical stop was Lynchburg where Burgma's maternal grandmother and grandfather and another great grandmother and great grandfather of hers are buried.  This cemetery was the scene of a civil war battle and one of the generals who fought here was also buried here many years later.

 
 Tonight at dinner we reviewed genealogy and resolved to look up more ancestral information in the comprehensive books compiled by Burgma's uncle.  Meanwhile we are now winding down on our way home looking forward to soaking our tired muscles and sleeping in our comfortable and familiar beds.

Done - 8 States & 1 District

281 Miles

     We were up early to make sure we caught the ferry from Cape May NJ to Lewes DE.  Our trip down the Garden State Parkway was marvelous.  Not as much traffic as we anticipated (even around Atlantic City) so we made good time to Cape May.  As we rode along, the honeysuckle smell that was prevalent yesterday gave way to more smells of the beach.  The soil turned sandier and the views of the large houses along the water's edge increased.  We pulled up to the ferry entrance, showed our tickets purchased online the night before and produced our picture IDs. We were told that there was room on the earlier ferry and we were just in time.  We quickly proceeded to the front of the line and boarded the 'Cape Henelopen' behind 4 other large Harleys. We backed out bikes up against the side of the ferry and the crew threw chucks under our front wheels. A large tour bus pulled up and three columns of cars quickly filed in.  No one else tied down their bikes, but BMRPop and C-Zookie took the extra precautions.  Not finding a way to tie the Burgman down, I trusted that the waters would be calm.
     It was a smooth ferry crossing to Lewes.  We enjoyed visiting with a couple who, as they each held a miniature poodle,  encouraged us to visit Alaska, especially Denali and Valdez. We shared travel stories and they asked about our gear and how we traveled. We saw many dolphins out in front of the ferry and behind the ferry, the seagulls followed looking for fish in the churned waters.  We were sitting on the bikes ready to disembark as the ferry docked.  We were among the first vehicles off the ferry, but quickly pulled over to the side to disrobe into cooler clothes and gloves.  Next, we were on the hunt for CRAB.  It seemed forever through the flat farmlands of southern Delaware and Eastern shore, Maryland before we rolled into Denton for a bite to eat.  After parking in front of the rather busy courthouse, we enjoyed lunch at the Irish Public House...mmmm....crab cake sandwiches and lots of iced tea. After a leisurely lunch we headed for Annapolis. On our way out of town, we saw a huge turtle crawling along the side of the road, guided by well-meaning citizens. We made excellent time towards Annapolis, and enjoyed the views from the Bay Bridge.
C-Zooki led us through Washington DC, down New York Avenue where we spotted the US Capitol for a hot second before heading through the tunnel towards Virginia.  C-Zookie found the HOV lane and we zoomed past the regular commuters who were backed up across 4 lanes barely moving.  We didn't have to exit the HOV lane until we were almost  to Fredericksburg.

My mother is an alumnus of Mary Washington College (now University of Mary Washington) in Fredericksburg, so we enjoyed walking through a bit of the campus,  admiring the brick and white columned buildings. We were happy to find the dining hall open.  Only a handful of students came and went while we enjoyed our dinner of sea bass, green beans and salads. Tomorrow will be a day of memories as we drive through Virginia stopping at family homesteads and cemeteries.

We are feeling very satisfied that we have driven through all 48 continental states.  Now we hope to make it safely home.