As we write this we just got news of the 7 bicyclist who were hit and then stabbed. Our hearts go out to all of them and to the friends and family of the 4 (2 from D.C.) who died from this brutal attack. Extremely sad news and makes you think about life all over again. Here's to Jay Austin and Lauren Geoghegan!
To wake up in a familiar space and a bed (we are really digging sleeping in beds... luxury i know) is a good feeling! A couple of the guys we saw before were still there so we chatted with them for a little bit. One guy got a DUI and was stuck in Alaska until his court date which happens to be tomorrow so he's hoping to be going home soon. Another cyclist, Ray, had just come back from the Chena hot springs. We talked to him about our trip and he confessed that when we told him what we were doing and that i had never toured before, he didn't think that we would make it all the way down the Dalton Highway. I guess he was correct in a way... we made it down just not on our bikes. :) we had quite a long chat with him about touring and really trying to find your niche in life. He's riding by myself and i give ANYONE major credit for traveling by themselves!!!
Now it's time to think of plan B since we are ahead of schedule. We still want to make our way to Denali and Seward... maybe by train now. Right now Jimmy is totally over biking anywhere, i want to keep trying but he probably knows best. I know i can do it but Jimmy suggest we do something in the lower 48 where there are towns every so often to make me feel comfortable before we start going days without civilization.
We head to a coffee shop, The Venue, in downtown to look into the trains and other transportation.
We still wanted to get to Vancouver island on ferries or a cruise and we were feeling really good about our plan until the stars were not aligning... or whatever that saying is. Trains are perfect to get to Seward, from there it gets tricky. Cruise ships do not allow bicycles on them, so no to that. The ferries have the most random schedule and are super expensive. The ferries were not fitting into our time frame either, so no to that. Our hopes are getting low and then we really start to think 'how are we going to get home?'. Finally i look at Jimmy and say "i know it's not true but don't you feel stranded in Alaska right now?".... we both just laughed because he thought the same thing. We are in a bit of a pickle right now, but laughing to make everything seem lighter really helped!
Plan C from Katie's great mind.... let's buy a cheap car off Craigslist and drive it back to the states! We can still do most of the things we want to do (especially Banff) and we have the time to do it. We start looking on Craigslist and there are quite a few gems!! The ones that we feel will make it back to the states are way out of our budget. How sweet would it be to come back with a van and convert like we have always wanted to!! Plan C isn't working out realistic within our budget so no to that. Says Jimmy says... "we have really #*&@ed ourselves.
Too much thinking for today so off to the pizza and groceries!! Maybe Plan D tomorrow..... We did get 13 miles on our bikes today. I'm trying to learn how to love my bike again.
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