Alaska Trip, Day 2

Today we rode north as far as Bellingham, WA. Did about 650 miles, all up the I-5. We're only about 25 miles from the Canadian border.

Tomorrow the pace slows down as we enter Canada and put more focus on enjoying the ride. Mike and I sat in a restaurant this evening pouring over maps to get an idea of what our time line is going to be.

I don't have a photo to show you for today because I didn't take any. It rained on us for much of the way and so I just kept my camera safe behind a zipped jacket pocket.

I brought my pair of Frog Togs, which are rain gear. But I'm not sure I needed them, at least not today. First, my Tourmaster Coaster II leather jacket kept me pretty dry. Second the fairing on the Honda ST1300 provides excellent leg protection. I actually did put on the Frog Togs pants, but I don't think any rain hit them.

In comparison to the Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic I rode previously, the Ultra provided poor rain protection, even with its lower fairing.

However, the Frog Togs pants does help retain more body heat.

It was also a lot of chilly riding, seeing temperatures varying from 50 to 61 degrees F. I brought my Gerbings electric heated gloves and jacket liner, and was happy as a hound dog by a fireplace.

I also took AZHarleyDude's advice and bought a couple of those bug repellent wrist bands. We stopped at an REI store in Portland, as Mike wanted to find some waterproof gloves, and so I took the opportunity to look for those bug bands.

Tonight we are staying at a motel, by the way. The Villa Inn. It's about as low-budget as it gets for Bellingham.