When we woke up at 7:30 am it was pouring rain outside. Paul gave a grunt. I made oatmeal for breakfast. It took longer to pack than usual because we were being careful to keep our gear out of the rain. I volunteered to carry the wet tent and try to dry it out during the day.
After 40 miles we reached Delta Junction and the end of the Alaska Highway. We would ride the Alaska Highway from end to beginning. I bought a Butterfinger ice cream bar for $2. It was overpriced but delicious. We filled our water bottles and talked to a German cyclist named Logan. There was a language barrier, but we learned that Logan was riding from Anchorage to San Francisco, going 100 to 120 miles per day.
Emilio had given us 2 pounds of meat sticks that he didn’t want. I hung the bag from my handle bars and ate them all day. Under normal circumstances I would not enjoy the meat sticks but riding all day makes any food taste good.
The rain died off after we passed through the small town of Delta Junction.
We made camp at a boat launch on the Tanana River. As we set up camp, rain started pouring down. Our campsite had the highest simultaneous occurrence of rain and mosquitos I had ever experienced; far more than I imagined was possible. It was dumping rain as I tried to set up a tarp over our tent as an added water protection. Meanwhile I able to kill 3 mosquitos in one blow that were biting the back of my leg. I was wearing shorts.
I struggled to position the tarp several times and eventually called it good. Paul and I decided to skip dinner and go straight to sleep.
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| We made breakfast on a tailgate. |
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| Crossing the Tanana River. |
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| Me with the Alaska Pipeline in the background. |
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| The official end of the Alaska Highway in Delta Junction. |
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| I hung the bag of meat sticks on my handlebar for easy access. |
