SMU Alaska Expedition II

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The team was one cyclist short after the accident that Lesley was involved in while enroute to Fairbanks. With the good knowledge that she was well and recovering, the team pushed on with the expedition. There was a new sense of energy and responsibility to complete the challenge not only for the cyclists but for Lesley too.

Our third leg started with beautiful sunshine and blue skies as we rode to Harding Lake. The sunshine was much short-lived as we went on to endure relentless rain and cold on route to Clearwater Lake, Cathedral Creek.

From Harding Lake to Clearwater Lake
Jasbir: It's 10pm and we had completed the stage 2.5hrs ago. Dinner is almost ready, but Bryant is already lying asleep in the van. Not that I blame him.

Alaska has thrown us so much beauty, coupled with a myriad of challenges that I think we are finally beginning to feel the strain. Today's ride was nothing short of arduous. Kat terms it ‘drag-ass'. My Scott Speedster felt as heavy as my mountain bike. The terrain was bad, sky was completely gloomy with nothing pretty in view. The road today was the worst yet. The first 60km was us fighting our way through a road that probably had not been resurfaced in over 20 years, not loose gravel, just completely worn out roads that sucked our energy. I finally ended the ride after having cleared 5 bottles of H2O.

Another section saw us ride through some road works and we rode on dirt for a good 10km. That was right after we got hit by two bouts of rain, leaving us wet and cold as we pushed on. So here we are in Delta Junction, camping at Clearwater Lake Recreation Site, 5 hours and 3 punctures later, waiting for dinner.

Clearwater Campground to Cathedral Creek Lodge

Kat: This is the day we traveled from Clearwater Campground to Cathedral Creek Lodge. We are into the 10th day of cycling and the weather had been pretty kind to us for this leg of our expedition. Apart from the occasional showers that last no longer than 5 minutes, it had been sunny most of the time. If anything, we are getting sunburn on our claves and cheeks. Time to slap on that tube of sun block dudes!

Our team clocked the longest day cycling distance in Alaska - a whopping 138km. It took us slightly more than 6 hours to do that - rest time included! It was quite a feat considering we faced headwinds and energy zapping gravel tracks more than halfway. However, with our teamwork and determination, we took turns to brave the wind by pulling the rest of the pack. As a result, we averaged 28km/h for today's ride and that was quite an achievement. Kudos to the team!

Spirits were high today, most probably due to the magnificent scenery. We were happily shooting uncountable amount of photos to capture every moment on the ride. There were some minor glitches today though. Yukina crashed into Leong while trying to switch lanes. That resulted in Leong having a broken rear-D. The poor dude then had to sit out the remainder of the ride.

The other problem was the weird noises coming from James' bike. His crank made loud screeching noises every time he exerted pressure on them. We reckon it could probably be due to all the water and dirt we've been exposed to on the road. Where is that mechanic when you need one?

We intend to get it fixed tomorrow when we stop by Tok, a more developed town. Meanwhile we are hiding in some warm and cozy storeroom in Cathedral Creek Lodge - a great way to escape the frosty 5-degree temperature outside.

Await for part 3...

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