Date: October 12th, 2016
Distance: Rest day

Today was the last day my sister was here. We didn't really do much, just hung out. We had seen most of the things to do in the city, and I think both of us were ready for a bit of time to just relax and hang out. Besides, I had a lot to do still to get ready to go, so we spent most of the day just hanging out in the hotel and talking even more.



-Dravis

Date: October 11th, 2016
Distance: 22 Kilometers

This morning we packed up and headed back into Yakutsk. Again, there wasn't anything exciting about the trip, but it did feel good to be riding my bike again.

In the afternoon my sister and I went for Mammoth Museum, take two. I had figured out where it was by this point. Really, it's kind of an annex to the local university. But it was fun. It went over both the archaeology from the area and also the paleontology. There were many artifacts from the area stretching from thousands of years ago to the present day. And yes, there were also Mammoths. Actually, more than that, there were many other creatures from the same time period. Giant caribou, buffalo and even some kind of tiger. I wish my Russian was better because I didn't get much of what the exhibits were labeled as. It was a fun place to go, though.

The funniest part of it was that we showed up about the same time as a group of young teenagers. We've been stared at pretty much everywhere we go here, just because we don't look like the people around here and we're obviously speaking English. Apparently we were an object of wonder to the teenagers, who kept obviously whispering about us. My sister, especially, found it funny.



-Dravis

Date: October 10th, 2016
Distance: Side trip - 22 Kilometers

Song of the Day: Lovefool - The Cardigans

One of the ideas I proposed for things to do out here was to go bike camping. I would have two sleeping bags and two bikes, so all the equipment was here. My sister actually liked the idea, even though the weather was still in the low 20s, so that is what we ended up doing.

It's crazy how much colder things get when you start riding. Even the little bit of wind you generate just sucks the heat away. The road out of town wasn't that exciting, just a big highway for most of the trip. We eventually got off the main road and headed out on a few dirt tracks that wound around to the Lena River. In spite of the cold we did a pretty good job at dinner. Well, I did, as cooking on a tiny camping stove is more of a one-person job. But we cooked some soup and made grilled cheese sandwiches. Yum!

I would also like to point out that in spite of the cold my sister never once complained. I really like my sister, she is one tough lady.



-Dravis

Date: October 9th, 2016
Distance: Rest day

My sister and I took in a show at the local circus today. I guess the Russian circus has a long tradition, so it was neat to see. The circus here has one big difference from the American version: it doesn't travel. Each major city since Uzbekistan also had a circus. Sure, different acts may come through town periodically, but there is always a show going on.

The show itself would be fairly recognizable to an American. It opened with a song and dace number that grew until it included more than 50 people, mostly children. (That was something I was shocked with, how young most of the performers were.) Then there was a high wire act. This was followed by groups of dancers, various acrobats, and contortionists. There was a lady with some trained animals as well. Of course there were also clowns. It was interesting to find that even without understanding what the clowns were saying I could still figure out what was going on, and it was still pretty funny in spite of the language gap. As my sister said "clowns don't need translation". The show finished off with three guys riding horses. I am not talking about some boring dressage, these guys were doing acrobatics from the back of a galloping horse. It was even more impressive when you realize it was all being done inside a tiny circus ring. After the horses, all the performers came back to bid us farewell. It was a very fun performance.

That evening we ended up having some "burritos" at what seemed to be a fast food Mexican place at a local shopping mall food court. The burritos were similar to what you might find at home, but the spices were all off. These ersatz burritos were sweet, not savory, and seemed more Thai influenced than Mexican. It was like someone had tried to create a burrito by looking at pictures of them. They weren't bad, just not really burritos. We had a good laugh over them.



-Dravis

Date: October 8th, 2016
Distance: Rest day

Today I tried to take my sister out to the Mammoth Museum. I guess I had the address wrong, though. I couldn't find the place. Instead we went to the National Art Gallery in town. That was so much fun. Not only had the conversation picked up this morning pretty much where it left off last night, but the art was amazing. It seemed to be all local stuff, so I am not sure what they mean by "national". The paintings were generally very well executed and the subject matter often seemed somewhat familiar, actually. My sister and I both grew up in Fairbanks Alaska, and many of the paintings had a shocking resemblance to what you see in Alaska. Even the traditional clothing of the Sakhan people looks a lot like native Alaskan dress. The art also served as a good place to start conversations. I would have stayed longer but my feet were beginning to hurt and I was getting really hungry. If you ever get out here, though, I highly recommend the art museum.

For dinner we tried to go and find a Mexican place. I may have mentioned before I have been craving Mexican food. The place did have some Mariachi caricatures on the wall, but no Mexican food. Oh well.



-Dravis

Date: October 7th, 2016
Distance: Rest day

Remember how I was supposed to get up at 5:00 AM? I actually woke up at 9:00 AM with my phone in my hand. Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap. I must have turned off my alarm without even waking up. I didn't have any messages from my sister, so maybe her plane had been delayed...

I threw on some pants and was out the door in under a minute. Then I ran around for a while trying to find a cab. Eventually I did get one and headed for the airport. Just as I got there I got about 8 messages from my sister asking me where I was. Ugh, crap. Way to be a good brother. Oh well. At least my sister is a fantastic person. She wasn't even angry about the delay. Confused, sure, and her first words to me were, "You dipshit!" but she was laughing. She was just worried about me when I didn't show up on time. If you don't know this already, my sister is awesome. The only real harm done seemed to be that an old woman called her a "fascist". Which again, if you know my sister, is pretty funny.

Getting a cab from the airport turned into another mess. My sister had my new bike, a giant suitcase full of supplies for me, another suitcase full of freeze-dried meals, and a backpack for herself. It was a lot of things to fit in a small taxi. We found one that would give us a ride, but I wouldn't exactly say that we fit. And we weren't able to leave the airport before that old lady came by and called my sister a fascist again. [Editor's note: the name-calling was purely based on the fact that the sister in question only speaks English, and is American.] It was hard to take it seriously.

From the moment we left the airport my sister and I were talking, and really didn't stop. I got her checked in at the place I am staying at, then we went out to lunch. After that I showed he around the city briefly. We stopped for some tea and then headed out to dinner. The conversation just never really stopped. It was wonderful to catch up with her.



-Dravis

Date: October 6th, 2016
Distance: Rest day
Song of the Day: Nightlife - Willie Nelson

I did get to sleep in, but at about noon Arkedy and Artem came by to take me to lunch, which was nice of them. They are still fun guys to talk to. I got to ask a bunch of questions about the end of the Soviet Union. Artem is too young, but Arkedy had a lot of insights about that time. To me it is just crazy. I don't have anything to compare it to in my life. The entire economic system changed and no one here had any experience with anything else. A lot of businesses collapsed and many people continued to work in spite of not being paid. It took years for things to settle out from that.

After lunch the two guys took me on a tour of Yakutsk. The city itself seems to be doing pretty well. It seems prosperous and getting bigger. There are a lot of new buildings and a few still under construction. Arkedy wanted to show me more stuff but I was still tired and wanted to take a nap. So I went back to the hotel and relaxed. I grabbed some dinner and Artem called me up to go hang out with some friends in a local bike club.

We went out to a little place to meet with a couple of guys. They were really impressed with my trip. One of the guys also wanted to show me his bike. I guess Canadian bikes are popular here, but I didn't recognize the brand. I also enjoyed asking the group about life here. If they wanted to leave, or stay. If there were jobs. What was up with the diamond mines. Oh, I should mention that about 20% of the world's diamonds come from here. That is like one in five. Crazy.

I was having so much fun I forgot about the time again. It was almost midnight. I had to get up at 5:00 AM to pick up my sister. They said they wanted to go sing karaoke, though and I couldn't resist. I only wanted to go out for one song, but that turned into a few. I didn't get back to my hotel until 2:00 AM.



-Dravis

Date: October 5th, 2016
Distance: 122 kilometers
Song of the Day: Goodbye Killer - The Pernice Brothers

I was certainly ready to get up this morning. The building I was sleeping in provided protection from the weather, but it wasn't any warmer than my tent. I managed to sleep okay, but it was still really cold. Not for the first time, I longed for the cold weather gear my sister will bring.

Out on the highway, the first part of the day was kind of terrifying. The snow that started as I was going to bed had not let up, so now a pretty good layer of snow was covering the road. Some of it had been flattened by passing trucks into a icy sheet on the road. The rest had been kicked off to the side, forming an even more treacherous and unpredictable surface for riding. There was only about a lane and a half available to ride on. I'll tell you, it's pretty nerve-wracking to have large trucks that close to you on super slick roads. I don't recommend it.

In the afternoon, though, things changed. The sun was out, which made things worse for about an hour. So bright on the snow. I ended up sliding out and crashing again. Soon after that, the sun actually started to melt away at the ice. Before long I was riding on wet roads, then finally dry and clear roads. At that point I was really cruising.

By the end of the day things just kept getting better. The roads are well marked here, with signs every kilometer. I could just watch those numbers get smaller until I hit zero. I was so excited about this. I have been planning this whole crazy adventure for the past 9 months and now it is actually coming true. It has taken 22,000 kilometers all by bicycle. I crossed 21 different countries. I broke one fork, ground through two rear hubs and wore out one set of tires. I slept on a park bench, under a bridge, in an abandoned house, and camped in some of the best places on earth. I got sick a couple of times and even had to spend a day in a Tajik hospital. I also met so many amazing and wonderful people along the way. After all of that I had finally finished Phase 1 of this expedition. I had arrived and I was going to spend a few days with my sister before starting Phase 2. Wooo!

The first thing to do was the cross the Lena river. Yakutsk is actually on the other side of it from the highway. There is no bridge, either, which given the river I understand. It's more than a kilometer wide at this point. Seriously, the Lena river is massive. So to cross I needed to get on a ferry. This is the first time my bicycle and I have been on a motorized vehicle together since the flight to Portugal. When I figured this out a few months ago I was sort of worried. I wanted to cross the world using only a bicycle and this kind of breaks that. Then I realized, I am being ridiculous. I am going to Yakutsk to change out my current bike for one that will arrive on a plane.

The ferry crossing itself was a lot of fun. I met one of the ladies that worked loading cars on the the boats. She was really excited about me and where I was from. She had all sorts of questions. I also met another gentleman who drove a sort of ambulance. Since there isn't anywhere inside the ferry for passengers to stand he invited me into his van to have some tea and food. Again, I can't express how grateful I am for all the generous people I have met.

Once I was actually in Yakutsk, things got a little more complicated. I was trying to find a place to stay but my phone was having trouble connecting to the internet here. When it finally could download things (like a decent map of the city) the battery died. So annoying. While I was busy curing my rotten luck, a local gentleman came up to me. He asked if I needed help. I said I needed to charge my phone. No problem, we could go to his office where his boss was also a cyclist. Cool.

When I got up to their office they gave me tea and biscuits. While my phone charged I told them all about my trip. It turns out the boss, Arkedy, had taken his bike all the way out to Uelen 20 years ago. How amazing is that? After an hour he offered to take me to dinner and find a place to stay. How could I refuse?

The first thing we did was to meet up with Arkedy's son Artem. Artem spoke English quite well, and it helped a lot. My Russian is coming along, but very far from perfect. We had a nice dinner together and I talked about my trip some more. I also asked Arkedy about his route through Chukotka. I was having so much fun I didn't even notice the time. When we left the restaurant it was almost midnight. My hosts did call around and check a couple of hotels for me. It seemed like most of them were booked for some reason. I mean, it was a Friday night, but how many visitors does this town get in October? Eventually we found a nice little place to stay at. It was affordable, and I think decent enough for my sister. I mean, I will sleep just about anywhere. Staying in an abandoned house last night should have told you that. I want to have something a bit nicer for my baby sister though.

By the time I went to bed I was so happy. I was where I needed to be. A day early, even. I could sleep in and I didn't have a care in the world.



-Dravis

Date: October 4th, 2016
Distance: 148 kilometers
Song of the Day: Electric Music - Band of Horses

Today went really great. I got up early and went to the kafe. The owner, Haji, gave me some tea and plov for breakfast. I tried to give him something for the food and place to stay, but he refused. What a great guy.

The beginning of the day was slow, but things soon picked up. I was really rocketing along for a while. The road is still doing its thing, going from paved to gravel for no reason. I was making good time on the dirt parts, though, so that was good. The road was also much flatter here. Still hilly, but nothing major. Just long, little climbs. Lots of them.

It really is winter here. Everything is frozen. I can't help the urge to want to throw a big rock onto the ice of the frozen ponds. Stuff is so cold right now, though, that it isn't that much fun. The ice doesn't break in a satisfying manner. You just hear the dull thunk of rock hitting really thick ice. But, there is something fun about riding through untouched snow. This place is a little forbidding, though. Most of the trees are bare. It's quiet and the colors are mostly white and grey. There is evidence of stuff being here before, but it's all rotted away. The remnants of some houses, or maybe an old wooden bridge. It's clear that the weather around here is hard on things, they take a beating. I guess I should take that as fair warning.

As it was getting dark I found an interesting spot to stay for the night. Another abandoned place. This one looks like an old garage, or maybe a gas station. Didn't figure anyone would mind me spending the night here. I had to sweep the cow poop out of the way, though. Who has cows this far north? At least the last vagrant who was here left me a broom to sweep up with.



-Dravis

Date: October 3rd, 2016
Distance: 140 kilometers
Song of the Day: Complicated - Gnarles Barkley

I made a pretty good effort at getting up and on the road today. Usually I am slow on cold mornings, but today I was only sluggish packing up. I am getting better at dealing with the weather here.

In the morning I slid out on two different occasions. Nothing serious, I was never going that fast. It's just frustrating to be riding along and fall over basically out of nowhere. I soon picked up the paved road again and was fairly glad for that. Less chance of crashes. Snowy pavement is also a lot faster than grinding over frozen dirt.

I stopped in the town of Amaga for something to drink. I had forgotten about this and all my water bottles had frozen again. I was very thirsty when I pulled into this little cafe. I got myself a bottle of soda and the couple that ran the place invited me to sit down. While I was there the lady brought out some caribou meat, some bread, and a salad for me to eat. I tried to pay for it but the woman wouldn't take my money. I continue to be really impressed by the hospitality of people out here.

The rest of the day was nothing special. Just lots of long miles through the snow and cold. I felt like I had been climbing all day and never found any downhill to go with it. It was frustrating. Finally, as sunset was nearing, I got to the top of whatever hill I was on and could see a long descent below me. Heading down the hill turned out to be much more unpleasant than I thought. The whole road was basically a sheet of ice. I was riding on the shoulder where things were less icy and the thin cover of snow was helping to give a hint of traction and a bit of resistance. It helped most of the time. Halfway down the hill I hit a hidden patch of ice and slid out for the third time that day. Grumble, grumble, grumble. Really annoying.

Even more annoying, this wasn't the last hill of the day. I had one more to do. Night fell while I was climbing up the stupid hill. I spent a couple of hours riding through the dark trying to get to the next town. I planned to stop in the town of Uluu as I am still trying to spend as many nights inside as I can.

When I finally did arrive in town it was this sort of shabby, tiny, frozen Las Vegas. The roadside was lit up with brightly colored flashing lights. I guess the local businesses did what they could to attract truck drivers to stop. I asked around for a place to stay but what I was told was disappointing. There was no place in town to stay. It really is more of a glorified truck stop than anything. Crud. They told me that one of the cafes was open 24 hours, so I went over there. I figured I could at least beg them to let me nap on the floor.

Upon entering the cafe I was greeted with a "salaam". That threw me off guard. It turns out the guys who run the place are from Tajikistan. I asked about food and a place to stay they said it would be no problem. The fixed me up with some hot tea and even some hot water to wash the ice from my beard. The two guys also got me a bowl of hot soup. After that the owner, Haji, took me over to a his apartment. I guess he was working the overnight shift so he wouldn't be home, but he let me have his place to stay in. It was so amazing and welcoming. The night could have been a disaster, but instead it was wonderful. I love how generous people are.



-Dravis