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Friday July 19, 2013
Our day started with breakfast at the Motel 8 at around 6:00am local time. It was raining on and off while we loaded the bikes, but not very hard. We hit the road around 6:45 am. Seemed like a late start for us. We immediately hit tons of traffic. When there is only one road in and out of a town, there tends to be a lot of traffic on them. Road conidions were good at first, but this is Canada and maintenance is the rule in the summer months, not the exception. We rode for about 2 hours before our first break. The rain wasn't heavy but annoying on 2 lane roads with lots of trucks going both directions. There were also a LOT of extra wide load trucks. I guess they are moving some oil rigs around and today was the day.
After the first butt break we ran into 40 miles of no passing, loose gravel, and a truck that was pulling mud from where traffic had crossed the road and showering us with slimey waterery mud. It was almost impossible to keep your shield clean. I had bought a pair of gloves in Fairbanks for cooler weather. They have a rubber squeegee on the left thumb. Great invention. When you get too much water and mud on the shield, just swipe your thumb across the shield and "Viola", you can see again.
It stopped raining by our second butt break, about 200 miles in, so Jon decided to lose a layer of insulation and his rain gear. About 20 minutes later you could see this huge dark cloud raining hard in the distance. Fortunately the road turned to the right away from the storm and the rest of the ride into Edmonton was under clear skies.
We stopped back at the same hotel downtown that we stayed in on the ride up. They have nice rooms and covered underground parking. From here on out it'll be virgin routes as we head South toward Calgary and back into the States. I'll have to use all my Canadian cash at out first gas stop.
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Copyright (C) 2004-2013, Larry Manka. all rights reserved.
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