Blogs from Northwest Territories, Canada, North America

Saturday August 6, 2011 Checkpoint to Blackstone Territorial Park I made good time today; the road was in good condition even with gravel. I rode 105 km’s today with no wind to fight and also no wildlife. I rode from Checkpoint to Blackstone Territorial Campground. I even got stuck in a murderous thunder storm. I think “my” rain cloud caught up with me. I don’t think it was expecting me to take that shuttle van from Yellowknife and was it pissed at me. I ended up paying full price for my campground only to find out the showers were not working. I was not over pleased. But then I ended up getting my camp site for half price because I ended up sharing the site with a biker from Illinois named Bill. So I guess it ... read more

August 1, 2011 Yellowknife I attempted to dry things out this morning but that didn’t last long. It was a big scramble to get everything back in the tent before the rain. I was stuck in the tent till after lunch. I spent the afternoon updating blogs and doing emails and getting a few supplies. You would be amazed how long it takes to keep these blog current. I still have stuff to do tomorrow so I will spend another day in Yellowknife. Yellowknife is a good little town. It is neat and clean and they have everything you need. The only store I would miss is Future Shop. I don’t know about the social dynamics of the town; due to the strong presence of natives but I like it here. I am at what I ... read more

Thursday July 28, 2011 Ft. Providence The weather looks good this morning and I got a good start this morning. The terrain is changing bit by bit. There are a few more dips in the road and I always seem to be going ever so slightly on an upward climb. I did a stop at Lady Evelyn Falls. It was a 16 km side trip; 8 there and 8 to get back on the highway. I saw 7 Sandhill Crane today. The first 4 took to flight (as usual). I got real lucky with last 3 cranes. I was able to photograph them. It seems that wildlife get real nervous when they see me coming on a bike. Most animals seem quite accustomed to vehicles but they don’t know how to react to me, on a ... read more

Sunday July 24, 2011 Nice Weather? Nice weather is almost a shock to my system. That being said I still got stuck in a flash rain shower for 45 minutes that came out of nowhere in the middle of the afternoon. I ended up riding far longer than planned. Towards the end of the day I rode straight through the middle of a thunder and lightning storm. The only thing is that luckily I was given a corridor between the rain showers for almost 2 and half hours. The rain finally caught up with me for the last 20 minutes. I was trying to get beyond the storm because it looked ugly and I was hoping to camp on some dry ground. Almost worse than getting stuck in the rain is camping in the wilderness where ... read more

Hello from the Great White North! We found that Churchill just wasn't north enough for us so we ventured on up to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories. Theresa has just completed her 3 weeks of work at the Stanton Hospital. Now holidays have officially started! We have enjoyed the nature walks around Frame Lake, especially because we didn't have to watch for bears! The crisp air and the orange skies of sunrise and sunset in the short daylight hours are magical and the people are really hospitable and friendly. We had a great Christmas with Theresa's cousin, T-BO, the well-renowned artist of Yellowknife and his lovely Jacklyn. We both really enjoyed the North and its quirky atmosphere, however we have decided to migrate south for a wee while to get a bit more sunshine and warmth...? ... read more