Riding in Alaska?

[pale scotsman]

The family and I are thinking about leaving hurricane alley and maybe moving to Alaska. I found this picture of what looks to be a decent road with good shoulders to ride on, but those chows look a wee bit bigger than they are down here. Can they run fast??? ;)

[Too Tall]

OMG I didn't know my auntie Madge and her sisters were on vacation?! Cool.

Those are standard poodles, not chows man. Get your glasses adjusted ;)

[znfdl]

A fast one could catch pettachi in a sprint

[Tom]

But they have no stamina. Besides, as long as you can ride faster than your buddies you're in no danger.

[H.Frank Beshear]

Tom But they have no stamina. Besides, as long as you can ride faster than your buddies you're in no danger
Now that definately puts new spin on survival of the fittest :D :banana:

[Sandy]

Wonderful picture. I really like it. Alaska must be gorgeous.


Sandy

[Sandy]

A fast one could catch pettachi in a sprint

A slow one could eat Pettachi for dinner after the fast one catches him. :)


Sandy

[Blastinbob]

Wonderful picture. I really like it. Alaska must be gorgeous.

Sandy Sandy, it is a place everyone should experience at least once in a lifetime. My wife and i went on an inside passage cruise this June to celebrate our 25th anniversary. I was worried about getting on a ship for 7 days, but when we it was over I wanted to go again. I took over 600 digital pictures of this beautiful state and here are a few of my favorites.

[RABikes2]

BBB,
Thanks for sharing the great photos. I really enjoyed them.
RA

[scooter01]

Ditto on the pics, I would love to see some of the rest. Alaska is still a dream for us.

[djg]

As far as they're concerned, you are the chow.

[Sandy]

The family and I are thinking about leaving hurricane alley and maybe moving to Alaska. I found this picture of what looks to be a decent road with good shoulders to ride on, but those chows look a wee bit bigger than they are down here. Can they run fast??? ;)

Faster than you and that is all that counts! :rolleyes:


Yum Yum Delicious

[Fixed]

Bro smell dem roses.cheers :beer:

[Louis]

The family and I are thinking about leaving hurricane alley and maybe moving to Alaska.

I've never been to Alaska, but I'm guessing that unless you only stay in what passes for a "city," one year in Alaska is way more dangerous than a year with 5 hurricanes in Alabama. Just ask Chris McCandless.

Just a guess, though.

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . but my sister and her husband have some friends who did move to Alaska. The husband was the manager of a wildlife refuge in Florida and took over at the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Judging from the home page for the refuge he has transferred again, but when Sis and Hubby went to visit them several years ago, their friends did not mince words. There are grizzlies and mountain lions all around, they were told. If they can catch you--and they CAN--they WILL kill you and they WILL eat you. If you are outdoors, ALWAYS be alert, and if you do see them, do NOT let them get between you and the house. Their friends lived just outside of town and rarely went out unarmed.

Of course, if you are planning to live around Anchorage or Fairbanks, then this may not apply. But if you really do love your cycling and expect to be out in rural areas, then you might want to see if you can get some feedback from the folks at the Anchorage bike club at www.arcticbike.org as to whether this is a problem you should worry about. AFTER spending thousands of dollars to move your family up there is not the time to find out!

BBDave

____________________

http://kenai.fws.gov/index.htm

[SummitAK]

That is a great photo of the bears strolling along the road:)

I thought I could offer a little local info on the wildlife for those that would like to ride here sometime. Like day to day life anywhere, we probably take the frequent wildlife encounters a little too much for granted. The moose here in Anchorage wander throughout the city. We'll see a bear from time to time in residential areas. And it is not a surprise to run into them or signs of them at the largest local parks. There are no mountain lions in AK with the possible exception of south, southeastern. Most bears are as worried about humans as we are about them. Typical bear problems occur with those that are attracted to populated areas by easy trash pickings. They don't hunt people and they will avoid conflicts unless surprised. In the summer problems occur places like the Kenai River where hundreds of anglers travel for the salmon runs. The bears are there looking for the same thing;)

With the size of the state, the close proximity of wilderness from any point, and lack of population it is not hard to seriously hurt or kill yourself here. Off the cuff, I would guess weather or lack of preparation for a change in weather is one of the leading killers. Water/boating accidents also rank high because of the extremely low water temps year-round.

The McCandless and Treadwell type stories are viewed locally as indivduals that had to make an extra effort to put themselves in such a deadly situation.

Road bikers here have to worry about motor vehicles much more than anything else - especially the wildlife. Mountain biking typically means dealing with a few moose encounters depending on the time of year. We have great trail systems - both paved and unpaved. Commuting on the roads can be problematic in the city where there may not be shoulders on the busiest multi-lane streets and drivers are not very forgiving. Most of the interstate highways (most of it has only two-lanes) have shoulders that will work for biking.

A summer bike trip here would be a great vacation. Best bet for weather is July.

[William]

I have relatives who moved up there when the pipline was being built and decided to stay after it was done. Their comments echo SummitAK's.


Now about that picture......

Those are NOT poodles Too Tall :no: , that was a pod of Alaskan Basset Hounds. That's straight from Rhea Basset so you can take it to the bank.

BAAWOOerrrrrrr
BAAWOOerrrrrrr

William ;)

[Lost Weekend]

I still think humans are more dangerous.I'd rather take a stroll in an Alaskian park then east LA. The scenery is nicer too

[Tom]

Everybody freaks on the bears but the moose get more people according to my bro that has worked up there for years. I guess everybody thinks Bullwinkle is cute but Bullwinkle is also quite irritable if you try and treat him like a clown.