When the tank says 1/2 full, stop at the next gas stop. Don't stay out too late. I remember getting the last room in Dease Lake and that was probably around 5-6 PM. Even the gas station was closed by around 8 PM and didn't reopen until 7-8 AM. If you take 37, about 155 miles north, there's a place Bell II Lodge that has gas, food, and rather expensive rooms. I wouldn't pass up that gas stop. Keep an eye out for wildlife (bears) and have a safe ride. Thanks for the pics ... awesome scenery.
When the tank says 1/2 full, stop at the next gas stop. Don't stay out too late. I remember getting the last room in Dease Lake and that was probably around 5-6 PM. Even the gas station was closed by around 8 PM and didn't reopen until 7-8 AM. If you take 37, about 155 miles north, there's a place Bell II Lodge that has gas, food, and rather expensive rooms. I wouldn't pass up that gas stop. Keep an eye out for wildlife (bears) and have a safe ride. Thanks for the pics ... awesome scenery.
Thanks. I was up 37 close to 40 years ago when a bunch of it was still a Jeep Track. I will be taking my time and booking ahead once I get to Smithers. But I always have my camping gear .....
One Sadle bag has my "Motorcycle stuff", tools, tire repair, cleaning gear .... it also has my bathroom bag, electronics bag, night/rain glasses
One has jeans (heavier clothes) my lunch bag (small collapsible cooler) my camera gear, small binoculars , Maps, one pair of gloves for easy acces (either my waterproofs or my leathers)
The trunk has my light clothes, laptop & keyboard (to keep them dry), extension cord (there is never a plug in close enough to the bed in most motels) and Maps. I keep this one as light as I can. It also has my inverter if I need to charge one of my electronics on the road.
The waterproof bag on the trunk is my rain gear and my cold weather down jacket. I also use that jacket when camping in the mountains. It replaces a heavy sweater and it stuffs into a compression sack nicely. I keep that as light as I can.
The two bags on the seat contain my camping gear which I will go over if and when I break it out. They also contain my laundry and my street boots.
I take enough clothes for 10 days between laundry. 4 pairs of jeans, underwear for every day, 8 tshirts, 2 sets of socks (I always wear 2 pair, inner ones wick moisture and outer ones insulate on colt and hot days) a short sleeve hiking shirt, hiking long underwear which is also my sleep clothes when in the high country. I also take a sleeping toque.
And my pillow......lol
Behind those two bags are my Motorcycle Cover and my small backpack for short day hikes. In the backpack is my first aid kit plus a few miscellaneous items. I would use the backpack for cameras and lunch.
In the pouches are my water bottles, flashlight, disc lock, sunscreen, anything small I want quick access to.
On top of the camping bags is my wool blanket. (That is for cold nights and filthy motels .....) I have a waterproof bag I can put it in if needed. Wrapped in it is my big leather jacket. I only wear it if it is cold, or I want to put on miles and stay out of the wind. It is not a split hide and can actually stand up on its own, the true test of a real Motorcycle Jacket in my estimation.
I wear jeans, my riding boots (same boots for 40 years) t-shirt, riding shirt, chaps. I also have on depending on the temperature, electric jacket, vest, and light weight outer jacket. I switch that out as necessary and tie it on top of my wool blanket for easy access.
I DO NOT use bungie cords!! Two reasons, I want that **** tied down hard, so it doesn't move (that's the flatbed truck driver in me) and once I lost all my camping gear that was attached with that crap. Lesson learned.
From my back country hiking days, I am a big fan of layering, and as you will see, sleeping well.
I can take less, and do if it is short runs like a weekend or a week. But when I am gone indefinitely, it becomes my home. And I take what I need for the long game.
Now, as you can see, once packed it becomes a big easy chair, with great lower and upper back support. And because I got the Low, the seat and handle bars fit well. All that is missing are some crash bar foot rests, but I find I only really them if the ride is 8+ hrs. I am not as yet convinced I "need" them. But am leaning towards stopping and getting a set. I had them on the other one, they where nice to switch up from the floor boards.
Time to load and move. My sister, who I have not seen in years is north of hear heading south. Maybe we can meet up and have a coffee as we cross paths.
Ok... if you are waiting for a picture storm... it ain't happening. The two you saw, are all I took. Not to say it is not a beautiful place from 100 mile House to Prince George, but it all looks the same...."Here is another one I took, oh, it looks like the other 35 i posted...."
I met my sister at 150 Mile and we had coffee an caught up, her and Alex are heading to 108 ranch to do some family golphing.... I was invited... I declined as I dont Golf, and I would have just ended up drinking and driving the golf cart, and then getting tossed off the course for yelling "JUST SWING THE DAMN CLUB!!!"
OK, so after coffee I worked my way up to PG and found the Harley dealer... actually Darla found it and took me there. My buddy at Kootenay HD in Cranny told me there was a recall on some of the 2017's and I should have it checked out before I head up towards Alaska, as there is a dealer in Smithers, but I had a bad taste in my mouth from the time I was there back in the early 90's on my Sporster.
They checked the VIN, and said it was not my bike. But then the head service guy took me out and showed me the fix, and to watch out for an issue. It is just a clamp that was not installed right, and I could fix it with a pair of players if needed. I then asked him about oil pump failures and Transmission leaks I have heard about. He said there are no reports yet, and has see none. I bought a litre of oil just in case.
Service was great, as was the parts people and Trevor (?) the sales guy who I got to talk to for a while. If you are in the area it would be worthy to pop by as they are good people.
I carried on but started looking for a place to stay. I found a great MOM and POP in Vancerhoof, called Siesta Inn. Super clean, coffee in the room, microwave, and a fridge. Right in the Center of town, with a gas station across the street, and a couple of fast food places within walking distance. I went to the KFC (which I do once a year).
Tomorrow.... I have a room booked in Stewart and it is about an 8 hour drive, so it will be a 10/11 hour drive, as I will be going into picture country. Right by the Great Bear Glacier, and it is suppose to be sunny. Hopefully I will be able to do an update tomorrow night.
Good parking at the Siesta Inn......
As I sleep with the window open, I should be able to hear the alarm...
Now, I run 91 Octane when I can get it, which is most often. But I did not fuel up in Williams lake, and then the next gas station only had regular. So I put it in, and thought I would just deal with a crappy ride for a bit..... but.... it seemed to have the same power, sounded the same and did not seem to make a difference at all.
So, I did the pull down power test.... it is a truck driving thing..... You get the engine running supper low RPM, and then power up. Now I know I will get some push back on this, but Lugging an engine is no longer a bad thing.... It use to be.... now with the modern long stroke computer engines, lugging is OK.... what is not OK, is to Labour an engine. Labouring is running at any RPM, no matter how low or high, where you cannot accelerate by simple using the accelerator....OK, OK....please remember I own a company and teach this to newbie truck drivers.... and a long stroke engine, is a long stroke engine...they are built and designed to be Tourque monsters.
Here is the test.... run the cruise control, in 6th, and using the cruise, slow the engine down, in my case I started off at about 60 mph, and slowed it down to 45, and then down to about 35 mph, still with the cruise on.... which is about 1300 rpm. I did that going through a small town. The engine ran smoothly with no bucking or lurching.... once I got out of town, i just bumped the cruise back up, slowly, all the way back up to 60 mph.
It did the task, just like it would on Premium. There was no difference. Go figure.
Here is a product I have been using to clean the bike on the road. It is a spray on wash and wax. You just spray it on .... paint, Chrome, glass and windshield.... let it sit on for a few minutes, then wipe it off with one cloth (I use a clean damp cloth and it takes a little bit of work to get bugs off, but it seems to melt them away) let it haze up a bit, then polish a bit. And it works!! ..... some kid in a gas station parking lot sold it to me.
Back in 2002, my buddy's bike started making noise up at the north end of 37. It was either backtrack to Whitehorse or continue heading home with a stop in Smithers. We choose Smithers and ended up spending a few days there while they repaired his motor. I must say our experience was different from yours, as they went out of their way to get us back on the road as quickly as possible. The tech even came in on his day off to get us up & running. They even got HD to cover part of the repair.
Some great sights up in that area. Stay safe, enjoy the ride.
I am starting to see the longer days the further north I get. The Sun was streaming into the window at 5 am. Oh well, looks like a nice day. Time to get up.
06-17-2017, 07:36 AM
