The time spent in Chickaloon was fun and I had mat a bunch of great people but even though I could have easily hung around for the following weeks 4th of July festivities the road was calling and so at around 6am I rode off again up the valley to what was going to be a short but pretty difficult day.The crap weather of the prvious evening had left the roads damp and the skies were still grey and the air cool and damp. The road itself didn't present with much joy as within a few kilometers the grade increased dramatically and I was soon grinding away in the smallest gear that my road bike offered.With the weight of my trailer dragging on me like an anchor this was indeed the start of some long,long slow cadence strength sessions for the day.I shouldn't compplain though as after about fourty minutes I spied ahead of me a guy i had met in chickaloon the previous night.
Jack is a 64 year old touring cyclist who was on his way from Anchorage to San Fancisco on a epic pilgimage to see some more of the world and lose a lot of the huge amountof weight that he was carrying.I was amazed to see his old bike and his obvious lack of fitness but who was I to judge anyone for doing what they though they needed to do.Watching him walk up the first of the hills made me feel for him though.I cruised by and then stopped at the top of the next hill for a bite to eat and to wait for him.We had a quick chat and he was off again while I stood absorbed in the moment of two totally different guys doing the same thing in two different ways for what may well be similar reasons.I finished my snack and headed off after him. I passed Jack some five kilometeres later at the bottom of a long descent where he had stopped in a lakeside pullout presumable to psyche himself into walking up the next long climb.I waved and wished him well as I hit that climb and thought of how long it would take him to walk the hill that was currently taking me more than 20 minutes to ride.I admired his dedication but seriously doubted his wisdom.
The day continued with a long series of climbs followed by the inevitable drops as I slowly gained altitude.following the Matanuska River upstream to it source at the mighty Matanuska Glacier.Most of the day was pretty grey and bleak but as I edged closer toward the glacier the sun started to peek through the shroud above me.The suns rays did little to warm me though as the glacier seemed to have to cool everything in the area.Even though I had a tailwind the chill in the air became uncomfo
rtable every time I stopped to check out the view.My sweat drenched clothes didn't help the situation and stops for happy snaps were kept brief and to a minimum.Eventually I passed the glacier and after some time checking out the tourist info center at its base I rolled on to my lunch stop for the day.I thought about making the long trek to the glacier itself but I was so wet and so cold(and without the right gear to wlak around on the ice) that I decided to view it's maginificence from a distance would be enough .I had ridden a very hard 65 kilometers that morning and sat down for a coffee and a big breakfast at the Granview Lodge RV Park at around 10:30am.
Once inside I started to warm up and dry out while enjoying my meal and the added plus of a good conversation with a very nice young girl who was the waitress that morning.She was full life and also something of an expert on everything to do with the area.It turns out that she is the daughter of the owners of the Lodge and was doing her "family duty" of a summesr work while on break from university in Juneau.There was also a very personable young guy sitting at a nearby table who was eagerly asking all kinds of questions of the pretty young girl.I can't say that I blamed him but was entertained by the round about way hee was asking qustions to find out if she wa single,which she wasn't.I understood his dismay at finding out that little titbit of information as that day was to be his first day on the job at the same Lodge and i'm sure the thought of a summer with her as company seemed like a huge bonus.With everyones place in order we continued to chat about what we were all about and as coincidence would have it both the guy, Heath and the young girl ( whose name escapes me) had spent time on the big Island in Hawaii and were both fans of Ultraman Hawaii.I couldn't believe that they actually knew about it at all let alone the fact that they were actually fans of the race.That was enough for me,I decided to stay there for the night and hang out some more with these cool people and check out the trails that I been told I must not miss.I payed my ca
mping fee and settled in for an afternoon of trail running and conversation with the never-ending flow of travellers who stopped by the lodge for a bite.I was a little sad though as my thoughts turned to my friends in Penticton who would be celebrating the 50th birthday of our mate Phil the next day.There was to be a special "Birthday Hash" in his honour and I would miss it and again miss out on being part of that fun group.I hoisted a beer in his honour and sent him a special birthday photo from Alaska.I hadn't covered very much ground that day but it was a good one and I went to bed that night a pretty happy camper.
Awesome dude!!!
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