Exotic Eastern Canada-Northern Latitudes 2010. Trans-Taiga, Trans- Labrador & beyond.

[OUtback UFO]

Nice RR ...


It has changed a lot in the 2 ears i went up there... i did all this in 2008 but for the section fro GBHV to Cartwright... it was to be open by then but they were having issues getting the road done though the mountains.

Did it in two days of sun going out to GBHV and in on long day in the rain at 35-40F all the way tothe end of 389 from GBHV.

It is a pitty on all the flow levels of the rivers up there..

2008... the large crossing going up JB road (RUPERT RIVER) a lot different from you pict in the firs cople pages of the thread.... i had a couple interesting chats with local Cree up there when on the TTR and Nord road.



The Rupert River gorge... unbelievable in 2008...





Yes they do own the road and pass close.... just like the Tanami track in Northern Ter. Australia... i always pulled off to the edge for the trucks


Plus on the TLH i got to deal with not just fresh grading but exploding semi trailer wheel hubs and chains in the loose grading...



My only problem was i did the TTR on Quebec day and did not know everything was closed... got to Mirage and everyone was going fishing... i had a 550mile range with the side tanks. so i turned around. after getting some fuel. almost got stuck there a couple days... just caught them before the owner took off...

[yellowknife]

Originally Posted by jdrocks

heard plenty of Newfy jokes up there, must be a national pastime.

when was your Meat Cove photo taken, nobody home? it was full when i went through there.

i'd like to get back again, but likely west in 2011.

no one was camping as the temperatures had fallen off a lot and rain had arrived. I took off that afternoon to head CCW on the trail and overnighted in Baddeck. These are great roads for bikes, but I prefer the south shore and annapolis valley on the bike.

YK

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by OUtback UFO

Nice RR ...
It has changed a lot in the 2 ears i went up there...

thanks for the post, photos are fantastic.

the hydro projects across northern Quebec and then Labrador are a story in themselves. i took those photos of the Rupert at the Baie James, but i couldn't bear to photograph the trickle at the gorge. same thing with the Churchill River, no water to speak of.

the Cree were not hesitant to talk about the issues, even with someone from the States, and i enjoyed the conversations.

Christophe, the manager at Mirage, assured me that i could get fuel at the end of the road that day. when i got out there to Air Saguenay, not much activity, they could have taken the day off, then no fuel.

it would have been a long pull from HVGB to Baie Comeau in a day with the loose gravel there this year, but i can see that it could be done. if they pave over 100km per year, you'll be able to go from Blanc Sablon to Baie Comeau in a day. people already do it in a cage, met one below Manic 5.

i like that line of yours-

"From out of a dream I rode to beyond the Horizon. Got Adventure?"

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by yellowknife

These are great roads for bikes, but I prefer the south shore and annapolis valley on the bike.

YK

was the road into Meat Cove finished?

i'll have to try those other areas next time.


more RR coming up.

[willys]

I have just finished reading your excellent RR in preparation for our riding the Trans-Lab and run through the east coast provinces. What a wonderful 3 days of reading and enjoying your fine penmanship.....Thank you.

I have also thought of stuffing your engine in my KLR frame for that extra bit of power....hmmmmm....? Not to forget that extra gear.
I also can't decide which tire combo is best for the trip......either a good semi dual sport tire or a 606 and risk the wear on it...? We are starting from the Toronto area and figure close to 6500kms roughly for our trip next August.
We have done the James Bay trip last year and this year I went to D2D and Inuvik, another fantastic adventure!
After next year's ride.....I'm not sure where the next destination will be......I'm stuck north of the border.....

Again....great RR and thanks a million....

[OUtback UFO]

Originally Posted by jdrocks

thanks for the post, photos are fantastic.

the hydro projects across northern Quebec and then Labrador are a story in themselves. i took those photos of the Rupert at the Baie James, but i couldn't bear to photograph the trickle at the gorge. same thing with the Churchill River, no water to speak of.

the Cree were not hesitant to talk about the issues, even with someone from the States, and i enjoyed the conversations.

Christophe, the manager at Mirage, assured me that i could get fuel at the end of the road that day. when i got out there to Air Saguenay, not much activity, they could have taken the day off, then no fuel.

it would have been a long pull from HVGB to Baie Comeau in a day with the loose gravel there this year, but i can see that it could be done. if they pave over 100km per year, you'll be able to go from Blanc Sablon to Baie Comeau in a day. people already do it in a cage, met one below Manic 5.

i like that line of yours-

"From out of a dream I rode to beyond the Horizon. Got Adventure?"

I hope not... keep it a bit on the wild side... the planet is small enough with all the humans on it already.

I left GBHV at 7am at got into Baie Com.by 8-9pm if memmoy recalls...i had rain from Chuchill Falls to the pavement on 389... the temp dropped as theelevation rose in Lab city... it was in the mid 30s... i was soaked to the bone even with rain gear on... the seams leaked really bad... plus my dirt bike boots did not good either... i had one change of dry clothes and sme trash bags... fueled up and then changed in the bathroom into all dry winter clothes... then i coated myself in trash bags and duct taped them in place... i sealed up and put my riding gear back on... i sealed up like a wetsuit in a way... then all the curves south of Lab city on 389 were nothing but mud soup..all the sand was just a mess...could only go bout 25-35mph t best in a down pour... at least i blasted down the paved to BC for knowing a hot shower was instore at the cheap hotel...
Thanks.... it is what happens when you ride in Australia's Outback solo... the Dreamtime getss you... I was at Lake Eyresin the middle of nowhere on the Oodnadatta track and was in a fog storm inverson in the middle of the second driest desert on the planet (Anartica the first)... i could not see more than 50 m... and saw this...

the thought came to me as i rode out of the fog bank in litterally oneturn in the road... it was a very odd wall of fog in the desert... and that was infront of me was the horizon...a very flat one



here are few more of the better images from my trip for everyone..






the bike turned 150k on the TLH.. no better place.

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by OUtback UFO

... then i coated myself in trash bags and duct taped them in place... i sealed up and put my riding gear back on... i sealed up like a wetsuit in a way... then all the curves south of Lab city on 389 were nothing but mud soup..all the sand was just a mess...could only go bout 25-35mph t best in a down pour...

the bike turned 150k on the TLH.. no better place.

i got real wet on this trip, but it wasn't too cold, no trash bags. the Vermont F800GS was lost in the 389 sand holes and i had my own difficulties with sand holes on the rainy Trans Taiga.

plenty of kms on that bike, but it got you there and back.

[OUtback UFO]

Originally Posted by jdrocks

i got real wet on this trip, but it wasn't too cold, no trash bags. the Vermont F800GS was lost in the 389 sand holes and i had my own difficulties with sand holes on the rainy Trans Taiga.

plenty of kms on that bike, but it got you there and back.

it is actualy miles... so i think that is 250,000 Kms


The sand holes are bad things if you are not xpecting one... in Australia they swallow cars... ... i hit one on the Tanami track at about 55mph and dissapeared into a good 12-20 inches of just talc fluff... i did not even see it.. it looked like the rest of the sand blown rode... i did have some bad sand section on the Trans Taiga also going into Mirage... with a load it is aways fun..

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by willys

I have just finished reading your excellent RR in preparation for our riding the Trans-Lab and run through the east coast provinces. What a wonderful 3 days of reading and enjoying your fine penmanship.....Thank you.

I have also thought of stuffing your engine in my KLR frame for that extra bit of power....hmmmmm....? Not to forget that extra gear.
I also can't decide which tire combo is best for the trip......either a good semi dual sport tire or a 606 and risk the wear on it...? We are starting from the Toronto area and figure close to 6500kms roughly for our trip next August.
We have done the James Bay trip last year and this year I went to D2D and Inuvik, another fantastic adventure!
After next year's ride.....I'm not sure where the next destination will be......I'm stuck north of the border.....

Again....great RR and thanks a million....

glad you're enjoying the RR.

i've been using TKCs on these trips. you're on the gravel early in your trip next year and the tire will be relatively fresh for the gravel. you should be able to get home on the set you start with. riders cross 389 and the translab on street tires, be my guest. you never know what the road conditions will be, easy or tough, so with an aggressive tread you're prepared for the worst.

there's been plenty of discussion about the 650 ptwin engine in the KLR frame and it has been done, but it's not easy. the mods i build into these last two rat bikes work pretty well for these trips with the long transit distances and then thousands of miles of gravel. 6000 miles of gravel road on these last two bikes. the FI 650 6-speed is a great engine at about 68HP.

you might enjoy my RR from last season, we went through some of the same places.

as far as being stuck north of the border, you must be kiddin', right?

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by OUtback UFO

it is actualy miles... so i think that is 250,000 Kms


The sand holes are bad things if you are not xpecting one...

150,000 miles, i guess you like that bike.

the moldboard on the grader floats over the soft spot and leaves it looking just like the rest of the road, a disguise...then you find out what's really there.

[willys]

JD can you link me to last seasons RR....thanks.

Yes....per being stuck north of the border....lol.....your homeland crazies don't like me......lol

As for the rat bike idea...I like it too....but....I need the straight up seating position and the longer distance from seat to footpeg. Bad neck and back demand this. I have the 685 kit and the stage II head work and all the rest of the power tricks done to my KLR at the moment.....but it's always nice to have more.....lol I would like the extra gear for highway cruising. I have the power now but need that gear.

I also need to see the Trans-Lab before they wreck it with hardtop......but wonder ....where else there is remote roads that hold the same mistique as the Dempster,Trans-Lab up here......you know...roads that very few know about or care to travel to.
Yes we can sit for hours on end Googling maps hoping to find a descent loop or destination, but it's always a bonus if another has gone before and experienced it firsthand.

Again..thanks.

[Libertynh]

Other than being old enough to remember peanut boy as president, pie and beer are the only things I can really claim in common. But I am awed and inspired. Your writing is humorous and enjoyable. Thanks!!

[Bleak21]

Great RR! You read my mind, I was thinking of doing a trip along the same lines.

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by willys

JD can you link me to last seasons RR....thanks.

Yes....per being stuck north of the border....lol.....your homeland crazies don't like me......lol

ride report from last year-

Canuckistan and Alaska 2009-Kick the tires and light the fires. Ride like Hell.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showt...ht=canuckistan

there are some for real twists and turns in that 2009 report...a bailout, destruction, and death. a bizarre series of events related to that ride.


everyone knows KLR riders are subversives, that's why you can't get in. ride a hardley and breeze right through.

anyone wanting to ride the "big gravel" should do the trip soon. the character of all those northern roads is changing very fast. with the extension open on the trans lab, i saw more traffic on that road than any of the other northern gravel roads. the northbound traffic was a steady stream at times, probably due to a load of vehicles coming across on the ferry. likewise the dempster was nearly deserted for long stretches in 2007, but had a lot of traffic around tombstone in 2009 even though the ferrys weren't running early in the season.

plenty of good routes in Canada, the more you look, the more you find.

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by Libertynh

Other than being old enough to remember peanut boy as president, pie and beer are the only things I can really claim in common. But I am awed and inspired. Your writing is humorous and enjoyable. Thanks!!

ah yes, our peanut boy. op-ed in the WSJ recently said that jimmy's revenge on the electorate that kicked his sorry ass to the curb was to write 25 books. the books can't be reviewed, everyone that tries dies of boredom by page 2.

pie and beer, critical building blocks in the foundation of the food pyramid, everyone knows that.

headed for the NH lakes region, stay tuned.