The MV COLUMBIA left Haines, Alaska, a couple hours late but the captain promised we would be in Bellingham on schedule and he was to the minute. The bike was safely parked against one of the bulkheads on the vehicle deck held in place by three or four rachets (you must supply your own) to keep the bike from falling over in case the ferry starts rocking and rolling. However, one of the great things about the route down the Inside Passage between islands in the Alaskan Panhandle is the water is like a lake-smooth. If you are bothered by mal de mer, you will not be if you decide to take the ferry. There is an open water passage but it only lasts about two hours.

Now I think this was my third time taking the ferry south from Alaska. I know I did in 2015 and I think I did back in 2003 on my first trip to Alaska. The route from Haines, Alaska, to Bellingham, Washington, covers 1854 miles/3004kms and takes three and a half days. Prices depend on booking date, type or size of vehicle, and if you want a stateroom. My bike and myself cost $1300 without a stateroom. A stateroom may double the cost and I do not think it is worth it. Had one split with three others in 2015. You can sleep in any of the lounges, put a tent up on the fantail, or sleep in a lawn chair under the roofed solarium with powerful IR lights keeping the chill at bay. I threw my sleeping bag and pad onto the deck of one of the observation lounges and enjoyed the quiet. No one brothers you!

MV COLUMBIA is 580 feet long and uses 800 gal(3100l) of oil/hour when at normal cruise speed.  There is a dining room for breakfast and dinner.  Prices for food seemed to be a bit cheaper than Anchorage.  Two eggs, bacon and toast for breakfast was $10.  There is also a cafeteria for snacks and sandwiches. A fairly good size cheese burger with fries was $8.75. I ate most of my meals in the cafeteria.  

There is no cellular or wifi on the ship. You can get a cellular signal while passing a coastal community or when the ferry pulls into port to offload or onload passengers/vehicles. I was actually surprised at how often my phone would pick up a cellular signal. Sometimes there was no village or cell tower that I could find. I would say texts went back and forth from me to family a couple times/day. 

I spent most of my time stretched out on a lawn chair on the fantail with a book and a good pair of binoculars. The IR lights kept the chill at bay and after a summer in Anchorage where the temperatures broke 70 (21) degrees maybe twice it was a shock to have to remove clothing as we sailed south. I saw whales, eagles and beautiful scenery.  It is a great way to break the internet addiction and to read a real book. I love to read so a couple good books were worth the weight but they stayed on the boat when I rode off.

We pulled into Bellingham on schedule.  I needed a new rear tire for the KTM690.  I had Dunlop 606's (street legal knobbies) and hoped they would last until Missouri.  Well, I have been told several times and my own experience seems to show that whatever roads in the Far North are made of, it eats tires.  I barely got 2000 miles on the rear tire as it was new when I purchased the bike.  Luckily, the bike shop in Bellingham had a tire in stock and I had made an appointment for an installation during one of the rare spots of cellular coverage as we cruised south.  The new tire and a couple small maintenance issues were taken care of and I was on the road east by noon.

If you are riding between Seattle and Spokane on I90, do not expect to get a room until you reach Spokane. There is nothing along I90 except farms, ranches and desert scenery. I reached Spokane just at dark and was glad I had made a room reservation. Back in 2015 I made the mistake of passing Spokane expecting to find a motel room just a bit further east. Well, I think I had to ride about 30 miles into Montana (120 more miles) before finding a room.

I started early today and honestly I was still tired from yesterday. I hoped to ride to Billings, Montana, for a distance of 540miles/875km along Interstate 90. In the past, that would be an easy day. The scenery along I90 in Idaho was great and the interstate parallels the Clark Fork of the Missouri in western Montana-gorgeous.  Clark's Fork of the Missouri was named after William Clark and the famous Lewis and Clark expedition started from St Louis in 1804. I guess I am doing their trip in reverse.

I made it a little over 300miles/480kms before deciding to get a room in Butte, Montana. I don't think it is age but the dirt bike like nature of the KTM690 Enduro. The seat on the BEAST and my rear start a debate which my rear looses by 100 miles. It is so painful that I am giving serious thought to switching bikes for South America. And that is using my Airhawk seat pad!  Doing 500 miles in a day is easy on my BMW GSA1200 or Harley Road King and I plan on using the Road King for those kinds of distances on our ride to Utah so we will see if it is age or model of motorcycle.

My favorite and longest owned bike is a 2008 BMW GSA1200 with 97000 miles (156000kms) on the odometer. It was the bike I planned to take last year and was gone over by a great mechanic. His verdict is that it is ready for the trip.  It is bigger and heavier than the BEAST but so much more comfortable. I would not want to take it much off road but I don't know how much off road I had planned anyway. It has been ridden less than 600 miles since new tires, oil, and the inspection for South America which I had done in the summer of 2022 so it is ready to go.

I am in a Ramada Inn in Butte, Montana for the night. Room rate was $82. I will have lunch with friends tomorrow in Bozeman, Montana, before continueing east. Checking room rates in Bozeman and Livingston, I was not surprised to find rates double or more. Bozeman and Livingston are close to Yellowstone National Park and hotels are expensive.

Premium fuel is presently $4.80/gallon. It is a bit cheaper than Alaskan prices.

I left Anchorage a week ago and have already encountered a full range of experiences. Rain and cold riding out of Alaska, bad roads in the northern Yukon, a relaxing cruise down the Inside Passage, great conversations with strangers about travel and motorcycles, wonderful scenery and weather here in Montana.  I really want to thank my partner, Mary Beth for all the support she has given. I don't know if I would have had the courage to start this ride without her!

A BRIEF BIO

There will be people reading this blog who have never met me so I thought I would write a short paragraph as a way of introduction.  

My name is Richard Newton. I am 70 years old. I grew up in southern Indiana and graduated from Indiana University in 1975. I was at Marine Officer Candidate School a month after commencement and ended up flying for the Marines for eleven years, including two years on aircraft carriers in the western Pacific and Indian Oceans. I chased drug smugglers for US Customs flying Blackhawks and Citations for the next 20 years and retired in 2007. I started riding again in 2002.

I love to travel.  Hobbies have included horseback riding, whitewater kayaking, photography, scuba diving, canoeing and camping, and reading. I have stories and my partner says I love to talk.  Science is my religion and I hate all forms of superstitution and ignorance.

I believed and still believe that the Bill of Rights is worth defending.  All people should be equal before the law and if you have a problem with that belief, we will have a problem. That belief is one of the main reasons I joined the US Marines back in 1975.

I hate cold weather and have a daughter in Texas.  And that is enough about me.  I would love to hear comments.  I will add photos, I promise but I need a bit more time so probaby after I reach St Louis.