Ha, it was no big deal! It was like every other time I have ridden to Seward - excellent. It just lends some drama to mention "pandemic" and since I don't have a lot of drama to add, I thought it would just add some interest to the title. Sorry.
My fellow pastor friend, Jon just bought himself a motorcycle. He's a grown man and can make his own decisions, but I like to think I kept up the enthusiasm for him buying his own bike to some degree. I would send him ads for bikes for sale and talk about how fun it is (which it is) and make sure he saw my posted bike pictures on Facebook. Maybe I didn't have much to do with it, but at the end of the day, he has a bike. It's a nice bike, Honda VTX, the 1300 cc model. I almost bought that very bike just before I found my first Harley Davidson. He did it right, he bought the bike, signed up for riding classes (3 days worth) and asked a lot of questions about riding gear and whatnot.
We took a short ride up Funny River Road,14 miles not long after he bought the bike. It has a few curves and hills but its mostly a nice, not busy little ride that is a nice warm up for longer rides. It served to keep him motivated about the next bike ride.
Just a few days go by and he is inviting me to ride with a few men from his church to Seward. Yes, I would like to go. So it is set up for mid Sunday afternoon on July 5, the day after 4th of July. It might not have been the best planning for this reason. Since the COVID restrictions, Alaskans, like everybody else have been dying to get outside. Motorhome sales are through the roof, boat sales are through the roof, travel trailer sales are through the roof, you get the idea. On any holiday weekend the population of the state's largest city tends to descend upon the Kenai Peninsula, this 4th of July even more so. The point being that as the Monday work day looms, all of the weekend warriors begin their migration back to Anchor Town clogging the highway.
As I pull onto the Sterling Highway, it is in fact full of large lumbering motorhomes, monster trucks pulling long trailers loaded with multiple 4 wheel off road transportation, trailers with boats sprouting nets and halibut poles like spiny urchins, and little Subaru's with kayaks on top, loaded to the gills with sleeping bags and tents. I pull into traffic and follow the flow to just north of Soldotna to Big John's Chevron. I am the first to arrive. No big surprise here. I am always the first to arrive. It is part of my DNA in being a pastor's kid. We always got to the church before anyone else and stayed until everyone else left. It's still my pattern. Even when I am at someone else's church and not in charge or speaking, I just have to get there early and pretty much stay there until everyone is gone. I can't help it.
Soon another biker pulls up next to me. This is Randy. He is a classic looking biker. Wearing a biker bandana on his head, white handlebar moustache, leather vest, riding a Harley Wide Glide with custom paint. We visit while we wait. Not long after Randy's arrival, Sam arrives on his Suzuki Boulevard, a big road bike. Aaron pulls up on his BMW dual sport and then Pastor Jon arrives on his Honda VTX. We are a pretty diverse looking group but we are all up for the same thing, a ride to Seward on our bikes.
We compare some notes, plan to take a break at Tern Lake before continuing on to our chosen destination. We merge into a break in the traffic. I have been selected to lead as my bike has cruise control. This is nice as it keeps the group together better instead of the leader creeping the speed up little by little as you go down the road. It's really hard to keep a steady speed on a motorcycle, so the cruise control helps regulate that.
I find the prevailing speed of the traffic and set my cruise control. Traffic is moving along quite nicely actually and we get down the road at a decent pace. Leading a group is much different than riding by yourself, especially if you haven't ridden together before. Not knowing the riding experience of the other riders I decide that we won't pass slow moving vehicles as it will be easier to keep the group together in the busy traffic. Once we get to Tern Lake, the Sterling highway will T into the Seward Highway, I am betting 90% of the traffic will turn north and we will turn south. We ride patiently knowing soon the road will be ours.
We arrive at Cooper Landing with the herd and pass Wildman's which is a hornet's nest of activity with every description of truck and trailer, motorhomes, cars and campers all jockeying for position in the long and narrow parking lot. We don't feel like adding motorcycles to the mix and just keep on going by. Wildman's is located just south of a completely blind corner. I am amazed more accidents don't happen there but I don't want to start the trend right now.
With no undue drama we arrive at Tern Lake. It takes right at an hour to get here from Soldotna. A rule of thumb is to take a break from riding every hour. That's somewhere around 50 miles or a little more. It has been an hour and the idea of stretching our legs sounds really good.
We pull up together and park our bikes, dismount stiff-leggedly and begin to walk around a bit. It's a great excuse to pull some snacks out of the tour pak. Beef jerky it is. Several in the group take some to chew on and we gather for an awkward selfie to memorialize the trip.
A nice Russian lady sees us lamely attempting to get our own picture and offers to take it for us. Sure! Thank you! She takes some off center pictures with several of our phones.
She then tells us that she is a reporter for the largest Russian language newspaper in Portland, OR. I don't know how many Russian language newspapers there are in Portland, but good enough. Now she wants to know what we think of all of the Black Lives Matter riots, monument and memorial defacing and "protests" going on in the US. She chooses Jon to give the answers as she videos him on her iPhone 11. Jon gives some dialogue and she seems to be satisfied and bids us "good luck" in her thick Russian accent.
We mount our bikes and start them with the popping and drumming sounds that all of those tailpipes emit. It is literally only 100 yards to the T and just our luck, not one car, motorhome or monster truck has turned south. We get to the front of the line and have the road completely to ourselves. It is beautiful. There is temptation to up the speed a little but I know that the "thin blue line" will be out in force this weekend doing their job, so we keep it in line. Occasionally there are a few vehicles in the northbound lane making their way home from their weekend in Seward. In our lane, just open highway. It is so nice.
Soon, we arrive at the community of Moose Pass which has a strict 35 mph speed limit from just outside of town not only on the official speed limit signs but painted on the road itself. The 35 mph speed limit proceeds through town and just to the other side of town which we observe. It's a good thing because the thin blue line is having a chat with someone wasn't observing the signs right where the limit goes from 35 to 45 mph. Soon we are back up to road speed and passing beautiful scenery like the Trail Lakes. There are people laying on air mattresses in the near freezing water and I honk my silly sounding horn on my bike as we pass and I wave to them. Honestly, I don't know why Harley Davidson puts such an un-manly sounding horn on their flagship motorcycles. It sounds more appropriate to my grandson's bike with training wheels. I suppose Harley Davidson's clever marketing strategy is to embarrass their buyers to the point of upgrading to the more manly sounding (more expensive) version. I've almost done it a time or two, but I just swallow my pride and keep my money in my pocket.
We soon emerge alongside Kenai Lake which is fabulous scenery. The road here is fun as it snakes tightly against the mountainside and lake. Not a lot of margin here to run off the road, it is either steep straight up or down. As we take the nice curves, I know my favorite section of the road is coming up. There is a sweeping right hand curve from the uphill approach that turns into the bridge that crosses the Snow River which empties into Kenai Lake. It is banked ever so perfectly and I can't resist. At the top of the hill I put the hammer down, shifting into my last gear and indulge myself in the moment. Soon I am across the bridge and the group is in the far distance behind me. I purposely slow to allow them to catch up and we proceed on.
This section of the highway is grandly scenic. There are still snow capped peaks, lush forests, lily pad choked ponds and four lanes. It is so enjoyable on a bike, plus it is steep going up and then steep on the long descent into Seward.
Speaking of Seward, we have arrived. A large lighted portable highway sign informs us that Seward is now requiring COVID masks inside every public building. Seward has had a big increase in positive COVID tests and the city fathers are concerned. I am a bit concerned myself as I forgot to even bring a mask and I am hungry. I can't let a little COVID stand between me and dinner!
We are saved. There was a little outdoor BBQ place right on the side of the road as you enter town. Good enough I think, and I lead the group into the BBQ parking lot. It sure smells good even inside my helmet. We all pull in and park our bikes.
The menu is tacked on the posts of the little sheltered eating area. The prices are not bad which is a surprise, summer prices in little towns like this can really get high as the business owners rake the tourists who have money to burn. I can't blame them, it is their one chance to make it before the long less income months of fall and winter. I select the combination meal for $12. I get a brisket sandwich, a side of coleslaw and a tea. I am asked if I want jalapeno's and coleslaw on my sandwich. Sure! I reply. I guess I didn't see the fine print because those two choices up the price $2. With the tip, I pay $16. I wanted to tell them they should comp me the meal as I, like a bus driver, lead the group to their establishment. Oh well, I am hungry and the meal is delivered in the open air eating area quickly. It is good.
Seward is quite chilly tonight. It is clear we are in for a change of weather and the wind has come up and the temperature has dropped. The day before, the 4th of July I actually managed to get my knees sunburned sitting in the 75 degree sun. High clouds began moving in about mid day and it looks like it could actually rain on the way home. I rode to Seward wearing my leathers, a long sleeved t-shirt and a leather vest. It felt just fine. However, I am thinking my leather riding coat feels like the right choice for the ride home.
We all finish our meals and head to the harbor area as we begin our journey home.
We use the public facilities and get on our bikes when Jon mentions we should ride up to the Exit Glacier road. I haven't been up that road in many years so I think it's a good idea too. We ride the 7 miles in at the posted speed limits of 25, 35 and 45 miles per hour. It is a beautiful ride, I forget how beautiful it is up at the Exit Glacier. It is also substantially warmer and I almost think it was a mistake to have donned my riding jacket. We get to the visitors center and stop for a moment.
We passed a photo pull out on the way in and we agree to stop there and take some pictures.
It is getting a bit late in the evening by now and our thoughts are pretty much about getting home. The traffic has fortunately remained almost nonexistent. The climb out of Seward is beautiful and as we eventually turn back onto the Sterling Highway both lanes are nearly empty of traffic. We stop after an hour at Wildman's which has quieted down considerably for a snack and a coffee while we rest ourselves.
We agree that on the way home we will all peel off wherever is closest to where we live so there will be no need to backtrack or have a formal farewell. The trip back is on mostly recently improved highway, wider and newer, it makes room for everyone with better visibility and passing lanes. Not long and I am by myself, the last one to get home. I take the long route as I want to go via Bridge Access Road which crosses the beautiful flats at the mouth of the Kenai River. The grasses that grow there are at their peak, green/yellow hues intersected by the Kenai River with the mountains as the backdrop. After living here 32 years, the view never gets old.
Soon I am on the final leg home feeling good about the ride and escaping the dread COVID virus once again.
No comments:
Post a Comment
I would be interested to have your comments!