This final entry is long overdue. I always find it difficult to bring an adventure to conclusion and this year is even more so since it is completed by loading my motorcycle and tent trailer into the back of a U-Haul truck. The folks at Gaudin's Honda in Beaverlodge, Alberta were terrific, they just couldn't find the parts to get me back on the road. They took their Bobcat and lifted my bike into the truck, then followed me back to the motel 2 blocks away and lifted the trailer in. I strapped things down and Tue 7/26 we began the journey.
Deb and I were on the road at 6 am. The first few hours were pretty nice , but it is Tue so there must be rain. We traveled east on Hwy 43, South on Hwy 40 to Hwy 16 and the west to Jasper. This area of Alberta is also good for wildlife sightings and we were not disappointed. The counts were not as large but several deer and a few bear made the time go by.
Then as we were approaching Jasper we had the pleasure of this guy (shown on the right) just 50 ft off the highway grazing in the grass. As is common in this area when wildlife is spotted, people were stopping their cars in the middle of the road to take photos. Good thing he wasn't bothered by their antics. We continued into Jasper where we stopped for a late breakfast.
Had we been on the bike at this point we would have turned south on Hwy 93 and gone down the Icefields Parkway. Since we were in the truck and just wanting to get to the days destination, Vernon, We continued on 16 west and turned south on the Yellowhead highway 5. We were warmly greeted by our friends, the same ones we stayed with on the way up when we arrived about 5pm. A full day and 600+ miles covered. We are now just over 1000 miles from home and our friends have convinced us an extra days stay would be fun, so we don't continue south until Thur AM. Thur we intend to make Portland, Or just over 500 miles away and spend some time with my daughter that has just recently moved there from San Jose. The arrangement with U-Haul is we have 1 week and are allowed 1850 miles for the flat rate paid. We arrive in TIGARD, the suburb of Portland where my daughter Courtney lives just as she is getting off work for the day. She has Fri off and we spend that day sight seeing in the area, something I had not done before. I learn this is a very pretty area, but traffic is horrible.
Sat morning we are up early and down the road for the final leg home. Just over 560 miles later we back the truck into the driveway. It is late enough I have no interest in trying to unload the truck this evening and we have until Mon afternoon to return the truck. We are under time and mileage so there will be no additional charges.
Sunday morning using the ramp that comes with the truck and some long steel pieces we had, Deb and I unloaded the trailer and bike. We then pushed the bike up onto my table lift in the garage. I disassembled the bike to allow for the repairs when I could get the parts. This being Sunday I would have to wait until Tue to talk with my favorite mechanic. A call placed Tue morning 8/2 and he had parts available so I drove down to see him. $50.00 later I had everything I needed to complete the repairs and I was headed home. I took this opportunity to clean the bike washing out incredible amounts of dirt and stones from the miles of dirt and gravel roads we had driven up north. By Thur the bike, Froggy II, was back on the road and ready to begin the next adventure, date and destination to be determined.
To those of you that have taken this journey with us, Thank You for coming along. I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. Until next time.................................
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