Seeking riders for San Francisco to Alaska this summer.

Hey there, what neighborhood are you in?

I've been on long rides to Grand Tetons, San Felipe and points south, +3000 mile long trips and by process of elimination, the new spots are harder to come by. So I've been looking at trips to Alaska and July (after the 4th) or August would fit nicely. Feel like grabbing a coffee or a beer to figure this out a little more..shoot me a PM.

I live in Emeryville, right over the Bay Bridge from San Francisco.
I am on sabbatical but will be back in May and going to probably make the Mendo Rally first weekend of May...then will start training rides 200-400+ mile rides to get ready.

June is the best time to go weather wise....also once July 4th hits, the drinking and driving and overall partying sky rockets so think twice about waiting for July and August I've been told you could get caught in "some" snow.

going to PM both of you
Thanks for posting your interest

I have no choice but to leave Tampa, FL around July1st. Thanks for the heads up. I've had to dodge the drinker/driver types here plus the elderly, and also have been caught in snow in the Rockies (in July!). Looking forward to having your fresh tips from the experience of your trip up and back (just before mine) and appreciate it!

Just discovered that Spot satellite tracking does not work in Alaska.
Anyone knnow an alternative?
I'm not going into the rugged unknown with bears and such without some kind of safety net.

I beg to differ. I sell em and they've been proven to work fine all the way up to Prudhoe Bay.

There are alternatives, especially if you think you need to 2-way text.

Have fun, Mark H.

OK well the same place that I discovered that Spot didn't work in Hawaii (where I am now) said that it was also like that for far northwest Alaska
http://gearjunkie.com/gear-review-spot-satellite-messenger

But yes, what are some alternatives?

Me to. as usual
Don’t have one, friend with an airplane does.
I can’t see how Spot satellite tracking would keep anybody safe from “bears and such” anyway. Ok, it might help to find your remains if a bear gets you. Or if the bear eats the thing maybe find the bear?
You wouldn’t think a ‘Special Agent’ would be very concerned with such things.
Well, maybe Nancy ain’t the kind of agent that comes to mind when one hears ‘‘Special Agent’?
She may have some ‘splainin’ to do 'bout that. :ddog
Don’t worry, Nancy. You can’t ride to anywhere near far Northwest Alaska anyhow. Takes a good boat or an airplane. You should be ok as long as you stop or stay in places like the one I just recommended to the guy looking for campground prices.
Check it out here.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=20885647&postcount=8

That review is 5yrs old. SPOT's service area increased dramatically about that time. Because you already own and use a SPOT I recommend just sticking with it and calling it good.

FYI SPOT uses the Globalstar sat phone system. Up here people have long preferred the Iridium sat phone system with it's north/south orbiting satellites. DeLorme took the SPOT/SPOT Connect one step further with their inReach unit which allows 2-way texting using the Iridium system. It's also a monthly service compared to SPOT's yearly fee.

Mark H.

Thanks Mark.
Spot has the texting option too with the newest model but the additional details about the satellites is helpful.

Sounds like Spot will be fine and I'll just get a SAT phone for the ride.

Sent you a PM

FYI - I used the "new" Spot tracker last summer when I flew my bike up to Nome to go riding around and it worked great. I explored the Seward Peninsula, which is in western Alaska, and the people who were tracking me said it was fun watching my progress. I even giggled to myself a few times as I knew AlcanRider was watching my tracks, so I paddled figure 8s in my packraft out on the lake a few times and also hiked in figure 8s a few times. I thought he might wonder what I had been drinking and got lost so was going in circles.

Maybe the Spot does help with bears as I had received countless warnings about bears on the three very remote roads I rode and camped on and I didn't have any problems.

Don't worry too much about bears. Be "bear aware" do the usual safety practices (eat and prepare food a distance from where you sleep) and you should be okay. I'm out in the backcountry a lot, sometimes by myself, and carry bear spray and so far, thank goodness, haven't had a serious issue yet.

---Amy

I'm planning on an early June departure from SF to Skagway then ferry to Sitka for 2 weeks, then ferry to Bellingham & back to SF. Plans are currently flexible, except for the 2 weeks on Sitka.

Bet the broom was jealous.

What are you doing/is there to see around Sitka?

N

My wife got a teaching gig at an arts camp.

Actually, per a discussion tonight, the first week is now negotiable and the second week is subject to ferry schedules... Hmmm. Haul Road to Deadhorse?

Signed up for D2D today

I'm over the hemming and hawing part and have decided to start pre-planning. That means if I find riding partners and we can agree to a general plan (with the understanding that weather, sickness, bike problems etc can happen and we stick together no matter what) I'm in.

I've registered for D2D.

Here is the general plan as I see it happening. Just my ideas of timing, route, completely open to anything at this point.

Ride North from the Bay Area with either Raider-Rider from Antioch or Roadracer_Al from Oakland (OR both) somewhere between June 1st and 14th. Open to other folks interested in this ride.

My preference? Take it slow going up and fast coming back.

Leave the 1st or 8th.

1st day. SF to Lassen (camp) or stay with my friend Hop-Sing (ADV handle)
2nd. Lassen to Crater Lake OR. (camp)
3rd. Crater Lake to Portland. (stay with a friend, riding partners could camp in the back yard, maybe basement.)
4th. Portland to Seattle. (stay with a friend, I can probably extend this to 1 or 2 riding partners)
5th. Seattle to Victoria Island ferry.
6th. Victoria island. (one home stay, backyard camp)
7th. Port Hardy.
8th. Ferry
9th. Ferry
10th. here is where it gets fuzzy....thinking of getting off at prince rupert but could go further, seems Haines would be ideal so I would do a RT with McRuss.

Coming back with McRuss. His general trip plan has 5 days between D2D and arriving in Haines on the 26th. Ferry from there to Prince Rupert on the 27th. We would split off in Northern Oregon (probably I would go to Portland) then I would ride the rest back alone. (I'm OK with that)

AKDuc might be able to play tour guide which means I would then go up even a week earlier, the 1st/2nd of June and that might work nicely with Roadracer_Al schedule.

My riding preferences:
-Keep it under 250/300 miles per day (I can ride 800-1000 a day and not complain just defeats the point of the ride if everything is whizzing by on a highway)
-Ride sunup to sundown. no night riding. I'm an early riser.
-Prefer smaller local roads, avoid highways.
-Eat well (at least 2 square meals a day) happy to cook camp food
-Prefer to camp over hotels (guerrilla camping too)
-Wait at forks for last rider, discuss next day route each night, the basic safety stuff.

I'm in comm with everyone mentioned here by PM but just thought I would start to lay stuff out and see what shakes out.

Nancy I used Spot up there last year. Worked great. Family and friends enjoyed keeping tabs on my progress.
June is a great month for the trip and catching D2D is outstanding. Only thing I could add is carry a lot of bug spray and head netting for around camp really helps.

Enjoy your trip.

'Duc is a great tour guide!

We're in Victoria, B.C., and thought about it a fair bit then opted to go via Belligham, Wa then we'll see what's up and take three weeks or so to return to our fair Isle via the Yukon and Northern British Columbia...I'm on a Dakar and she's on a Can Am Spyder....should be fun...hope to see lots of people and share info....

yatman

The current plan has be riding to WA then taking the ferry to Victoria. What is the best port in the US to embark?
I've heard Victoria Island is gorgeous and wanted to ride it to Port Hardy and ferry one way to Prince Rupert from there. Thoughts?