Tuesday  July 9       Rest Day 1

   Eagle Plains (Y)

Had a good night’s sleep in Room 16. A double room but 3 of us (with Ed of NY and Murray of Canada) sharing so a little cramped. No fighting yet. 

And successfully resisted to rise at 1 am to see the novel phenomenon of the sun dipping under the horizon for an hour since we’re outside the Arctic Circle. Looking forward to experiencing darkness again. Miss it.

For breakfast had the Yukoner, the local version of the Full Irish, so that builds me up for this relaxing day.No laundry service in the hotel so all of us washing and scrubbing in the rooms. Outside the warm sunshine and breeze ensured quick drying. And so we’re all set up and presentable for the next 4 day stint on gravel into Dawson City at the end of the Dempster and gravel sections.

Here in Eagle Plains we’re just half-way down the Dempster, a gravel road constructed as infrastructure for the gas and oil exploration endeavor and completed just in 1979. 

It’s the only Canadian Highway to cross the Arctic Circle, a thrill ride over stark mountains and eternal valleys. It’s named after Dempster, the Mountie who regularly made this 700 dog-sled journey and also found the (dead) Lost Patrol in 1910.

The Arctic Circle that we have just exited is an 8,000,000 square mile area at the top of the globe covering parts of Canada, Greenland, Russia and Alaska. It’s the second driest (after Antarctica) region of the world and also  since the sun never shines directly down on it, it has a very short summer growing season in that top shallow layer of earth that thaws. 

So, the spruce trees of the boreal forest look small and spindly but are up to 100 years old.

Since 1994 lots of them have been killed off by Spruce Beetle and look burned. I passed by stands of these yesterday. The warmer winters have failed to kill off the Beetle as previously and so the problem persists. Birch and Alder are beginning to make their presence felt.Next up this morning was some TLC for the bikes. Handy that a power wash was available next door to remove the gluey gunk from the frame and wheels ( Calcium Chloride is sprayed onto the surface to bind the gravel.) over the last few days. I’d made attempts to wash it down in Inuvik and Fort McPherson but lacked the power. Then degreasing of the drivetrain and re-oiling and checking all nuts and bolts are firmly in place. Looks like new.

Thankfully no tourist attraction about so it’s rest, rest, rest and legs up.

Back on the road tomorrow.

And happy wedding anniversary to Richard and Maria. Thinking of ye.

Thank God for a lovely day.