Day’s distance: 202 miles
Total trip distance: 2,751 miles

Though a bit windy, temperatures remained in the mid 50s most of the day until reaching Fairbanks. Partly cloudy, the sun would show up now and then. It was dry all day. In Fairbanks, most folks were running around in t-shirts and shorts.

With help from the campground host, I was able to secure my morning latte. This coffee trailer is open year-round. In the summer, it is set up with outdoor seating and in the winter as a drive through. So cool and highly recommended if you’re in Tok.

 

The terrain between Tok and Fairbanks was flat with mountains in the distance.

The Alaskan Highway officially ends in Delta Junction after starting some 1,422 miles earlier in Dawson Creek.

I can check this off my bucket list now! The bike is filthy 😦  I’ll get her washed off this weekend.

Every so often, the roadway would rise up and in this case, there was a parking area where I could safely stop and try to capture a sense of the landscape.

Now here is the satellite image of today’s route for a bigger picture.

As I approached Fairbanks, congestion steadily increased in the form of signposts along the highway, streets / driveways directly off the highway, and increased traffic coinciding with the broadening of the highway into two lanes in each direction and passing Edelson AFB and into North Pole.

Of note, I had a cell signal most, if not all, of the way from Tok to Fairbanks.

I checked in at my hotel about 2pm and took a short nap after unpacking the bike.

While I’m near downtown, things are spread out. A hotel staffer suggested I could walk to Pioneer Park, a 40-acre amusement park, reminiscent of a park called Frontier Village that was a favorite when young, with facades of the old (north)west …

for the Alaska Salmon Bake, an indoor / outdoor buffet of prime rib, wild salmon, and beer battered seasonal fish (currently cod).

I was pretty hungry and able to take advantage of the all you can eat entry price, especially since I got a small discount using a coupon supplied by the hotel.  🙂 I did decline to go to the nightly live show.

It is supposed to rain in the morning, so I’ll put off my trip to the Dalton Highway sign until Sunday morning. Instead, I’ll do some necessary chores like getting some US cash, stop by the local BMW shop to pick up a liter of oil and some cleaner, wash the bike to remove the built up dirt and gravel so I can inspect her carefully, and perhaps ride around town a bit.