It's amazing what good gear does for a good nights sleep. I spent 2 nights in Yellowstone at 16 degrees F in a worn out old 20 degree down bag and it was enough to let me know I needed to invest in good gear. I bought a 20 degree Western Mountaineering bag the next day in Montana and it was the best $400 I ever spent. Every morning since then I haven't wanted to get up when sleeping in it. I haven't closed my windows at all since returning from the bike trip, and even in the 45 degree Kodiak nights ( in July :eek1 ) I still have been sleeping better than ever before.
Morning coffee is nice I guess, but the stove (and fuel, and cookpot, and whatever you will cook) might be extra equipment. I would consider starting by leaving that behind. (blaspheme to coffee lovers, I know!) The tent, bag and pad I would consider cheap insurance. if you break down, can't find a room, or just find a neat place to stop, it's no problem. Mosquitos can drive you nuts so that is an issue right there if you have to sleep "out". My sleeping bag and tent made for a real nice lumbar support on my adventure so far, and will undoubtedly be apreciated as I superslab-it up the Alcan soon. Hotels are really cushy though, and I'll likely spend most nights in one. There's a reason why hotels have been around since the dawn of time. Good luck!
I perfer camping. The places you find off the beaten (to death) path are well worth it. Thats not to say that after a couple/few days of it on an extended trip or bad weather the plastic doesn't come out for a hot shower or refuge from the storm.
Well i'm in fairbanks. Took me 6 days from LA. I decided to bring the gear and am glad i did. Found some great spots that have internet, a cafe, and shower for about 20 bucks. But they still have a great camping experience. At toad river a moose walked through the water in front of me. And at caribou RV park, they have some great wooded sites and a walking trail that meanders out into silence. In a hotel now in fairbanks ( stay away from the golden nugget!) but am going to camp as much as possible on the way back. Plenty of options along the way with firewood and everything else. Met Adv rider Gucci at toad river. Funny dude. The caribou RV park is run by a parapalegic and his wife. He's a young guy and a cool cat. Had an accdent a few years back. Anyway its a great spot, Lots of good tent camping. stay there if you can. More to come... (Iphone only, no laptop. Seems to do the job.)
Forgot to mention that i concur on the lumbar support comment. Having the sleeping bag right behind me as lumbar support ( and a bill mayer seat) has allowed me to log some long days. 715 or so. ( st. George utah to butte montana ) try it.
My tent looks a lot like a one piece rainsuit and a full face helmet, stretched out on the ground, next to a wet KLR.
The sound of raindrops falling onto a helmet can lull one to sleep, I have found. And to break camp, one has only to insert the key in the ignition lock, start the bike, and go. By the time I reach the first coffee stop I am awake enough to enjoy breakfast. :dg
What if you have to much to drink, to help you fall asleep, and puke? This is why I wear an open helmet.
Yep. Last month I had "no place to stay" in Jade City. It was dark and I was tired. Abandoned gas station worked out fine. $6 Wally world sleeping mat and a motorcycle cover. It was cold; K O L D I tell you. You need at least some type of shelter, water and food. Just because the map says there is a "city" there don't mean it is open/stocked/ etc.
So right in so many ways... and hilarious as well! Not camping is not experiencing the true quality of what makes AK, AK.
<!--StartFragment --> If you're not going to camp, why not just get a bottle of booze & a cheap $120 + room somewhere and rent a hooker. Good luck on finding a hooker outside of Spenard, 'The Hub of the Universe'. ( Beezer.) Be sure to "leave the lights on" so you can keep an eye on your wallet. And so much for long daylight because .... A part of the 'Alaska Camping Experience' you'll also miss is the 10 bazillion mosquitos that sound like a giant hive of pissed off bees or hornets swarmin' around just outside of the wet sleeping bag you have zipped up over the top of your itchy 'skeeter bit head, , neck, hands, wrists, ankles & any 'private' parts that you may have had to expose. Ever get a skeeter bite on your di..., em, never mind. It will keep you ...emm, ..up. Sadly, you're also gonna miss the lumpy ass ground, rocks & the roots pokin' you in the ribs while you can't sleep because of the <!--StartFragment -->bloodthirsty bugs makin' so damn much much bee hive noise. To say nothing of the noise of the cold rain that soaked you & everything else while you were screwin' around with all that crap that you packed on your bike so you could 'camp'. Good thing you brought that little stove because there ain't a dry piece of kindling to be found. At least you won't have to worry about dryin' out your socks or any clothes. And at least you will smell damn good from all the 'skeeter dope you shathered on. Do take a drink or two of water after puttin' on that 'skeeter dope & before you crawl into your mummy bag. Who knew that that tiny water drop that can't avoid running down your lip 1/8th inch afterward seems to be a landing zone for any & all 'skeeters that you hadn't sucked in your mouth or nose while huffin' & pufin' or just breathin' normally while dealing with all that gear that you overloaded your bike with. You know, that stuff that makes you look like a version of the Beverly Hillbillies on a fat pig of a bike goin' down the road & lookin' for a free meal.. Sweet! Oh, yeah, fresh water! That's part of another great 'experience' that I miss lately. It's finding that dead moose rotting just around the bend in the purddy little stream just upstream from where you just got face down & took several big long drinks out of that cold, clear water & then filled your canteen & sucked down some more. I really miss that one. Priceless! Don't worry! Your 'Great Alaska Experience' ain't over yet! You still git to get up in the early damp or soakin' wet morning sunlight when the very hungry 'skeeters do. I know you gonna get up real early 'cause you ain't been sleepin much, if at all. Don't want to miss anything by sleepin' through it all, right? Them nearby gun shots were kind of loud anyway. If you are lucky it's still raining hard & cold. Or better yet snowing & there is already enough snow on the ground for you to slip & slide around & fall in while you try to pack up all your Beverly Hillbilly load of gear on your fat pig. Then maybe you can get up that greasy, muddy, snowy trail you rode down last night to find that private, secluded camping spot while the sun was still bright. Or maybe not. Just more 'adventure', right? All right! Now we're talkin' some fun shit! Maybe them guys comin' through the woods will put their rifles down & help ya push it up the hill. Nice big pistols they got, huh? Don't worry, them nice big dogs won't bite. Much. Cool, you're back on the one & only real road for hundred of miles around. Time to haul ass! Look at that scenery. Nice! Seems like the middle of nowhere. Sorta is. Ooh! WTF is this thing doin? Wobblin' all over. Sumbich! Damn tire. Damn sharp rocks! Where is that plug kit & pump? Uh-oh. Much later... Tire still losin' some air, but movin' again. Through that nice cold rain. "Hey! There's a moose!" Friendly mild mannered bovine type critters, ain't they. Man, they sure blend in with the background, didn't see her 'till the last second. Shit, another one right behind her!! :eek1 Here's one right in town. Real friendly & right up close & personal like.. What a sweetie! :eek1 Yup, I just love campin'. oser Now I ain't sayin you will have all this same & as much fun that I have over the past 65+ plus years that I have had here. Or even if all those things happened to me. But many of them did. If yer reeeel lucky you will get some of it & maybe some others I haven't mentioned. These days I can afford to hit that motel. If the rooms are all filled up, I just keep on ridin'. Long as it takes. Screw campin'. Had enough of that a long, long time ago. YMMV.
My mother accuses me of camping out in my condo. A theamarest expedition grade pad is the soverign cure towards a comfy sleeping surface. the big thing is the fly on your tent needs to be large enough over the tent that the drip line is AWAY from the inner tent. Be smart where you pitch your tent, keep drainage in mind. One night floating the Tatsheshini /alsek rivers it rained 14" measured in a big pot. River came up and washed away Alaska Discovery, but we did fine Bugs have not been bad this year. DEET is your friend, I prefer Muskol. Ignore the fact it is disolving the coating on your cheap rain gear. If you use better grade rain gear you will not notice its' solvent talents. rw
That's what I love about Schnidely... He sure can sugar coat what's on his mind. Guy's gotta spend some time sifting through the flowery vernicular just to decipher what he's really feeling!
"Flowery vernicular" oser Dappy, think of it as satire with a lot of truth thrown in. Flybynite talks about a fly on a tent. I don't even know WTF a tent fly is! I don't think I've been in a tent since I was in Nam. And that was a real big tent that I had nothing to do with setting up. Good. The 'tent' I liked to camp in was an old Ford van. It never leaked, was always 'set up', & was easy & fast to move. Hauled tons of stuff. Warm, too. Critters couldn't eat it or rip it down. Roamed over most of the state & down more damn jeep trails than I can remember. Had a bike in the back & a woman in the sack! Somebody ought to write a tune.
<a href="http://s875.photobucket.com/albums/ab318/smieciasz/ALASKA%202010/?action=view¤t=DSCF8961.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.advrider.com/advrider-photobucket-images/images/s/smieciasz_ALASKA%25202010_DSCF8961.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a> no hotel will give you vew like that, and is free at Hayder AK.
Sign me up - I want to ride here and camp! A lot of times I have to hike in a few miles to get a view like this so riding to a sweet spot like this would be heavenly. I agree with Flybynite: flys are very important. A good fly can make all the difference between a satisfying or unsatisfying evening. Tom S: what were you drinking when you wrote the long soliloquy up above? I heard you popped a wheelie last night, trying to show off in front of my friend. I'm glad your bike didn't have any mechanical problems this time, after being in close proximity to my lovely DR again. You would have felt pretty ridiculous if my friend had kicked your butt on her bicycle when you "raced" her.
