Part 1 for the day: It was a cloudy day, but the mountains stood out anyway.  See the pictures.

The drive was not challenging, exactly.  It wasn’t fun, exactly.  Bumpy for sure.  Curvier than the past.  But the 30 miles of gravel was, for me, satisfying.  I’ve always been terrified of gravel, but somewhere today I got past that fear.  I guess I’d call it a zen moment. Instead of stressing out and tensing up, I started ignoring the minor bumps and began accelerating out of the tough spots.  “Trust the bike”, instructors would probably coach, and that’s what I did.  Even when an 18 wheeler walked right past me.  I wasn’t looking back, so when this monster sped past me while I thought I was doing so good, well, all I could think was, wow!  The driver gets big points for that.

Anyway, the drive was unforgettable, and the views, even with clouds, were sensational.  If I don’t find a ferry option suitable, I’ll be doing this ride again.  Even with the gravel, I plan on enjoying it.  But I hope the sun is shining.

There was a little more information about the Army’s construction of this road in 1942.  I continue to be in awe that it took just eight months.  Of course I think this is not exactly right.  The arctic permafrost threw a curveball in the spring when their roads began to turn to mush.  Today’s road rides in most places 30 feet above the surrounding ground.  I assume this is required to prevent the permafrost from melting and the road from sinking.  But the fact remains that 1,400 miles of road was created where none were before.  History shows that the road wasn’t actually necessary, but it sure was nice that they built it anyway.  As Jim Lovell has been fond of saying about going to the Moon: “It’s not a miracle: They just decided to go.”