Day 49
   
   6/15/01
   Mile 4560
   Vicinity of North Pole (the city, not the geographic point)
   
   I'd been told yesterday that a rest area was here that had an
   overhang, which would come in handy if it started raining. When I got in last
   night, there were 2 other cyclists there too, already asleep in their
   tents. So, I knew this morning would be a slow start since I'd end up
   yakking with them about the cycling world.
   
   But it's always worth it.  Actually, only one of them was cycling; the
   other was pulling a cart (but this was a "real" cart, not a flimsy
   thing).  That person, Gene, left at 5am, so I didn't talk to him, but
   I did talk to Oliver at about 8am while I was packing.  They had gotten
   $15,000 sponsorship from an outdoor company (klondyke.com I think) to
   do this trip, and had both started out hand-pulling carts, until Oliver's
   feet got so bad he had to switch to a bike.
   
   And the gear they were carrying... Laptop computer in a heavy plastic
   hard case, solar panels, digital and film cameras, tripod, and a huge
   amount of food, over 100 pounds each. Yikes. To me, carrying that much
   food is only something you would do when there was no other option,
   say, an Antarctic crossing where there was absolutely no chance of living
   off the land. Of course this limited them to perhaps 25 miles a day, but
   they said that was the way it worked out with their sponsor.
   
   We talked for a while about the lifestyle we were having.  Oliver had
   also met Tillman a few days ago, and remarked about how Tillmann had
   managed to stay sane after all his years on the road; people often
   develop psychological difficulties after such extended periods (present
   company excepted, of course!). I relayed to him how Tillman's escapades grew
   over time, and that I had a similar experience, as follows:
   
   I previously lived in a different town, and returned only occasionally
   during my transition to Houston. People there would hear of my outdoor
   adventures, and tell and retell the tales among themselves, but get
   the facts distorted since they were not familiar with the different
   sports.  By the time these tales got back to me after several years, they had
   reached Paul Bunyan stature. After hearing it, my response was, "Gee,
   I sure wish I was me!"
   
   I suspect the same has happened to Tillman.  Not really a problem,
   unless you start believing it yourself.
   
   There's not a lot to see on this section of road, since it's just cut
   out of the forest and fairly flat by comparison.  If you didn't know
   better and someone blindfolded you and dropped you off here, you might guess
   you were in Tennessee.  I heard a sound I hadn't in a long time...a
   lawnmower.  People have lawns with grass instead of a gravel driveway
   leading through muskeg - wow.  Much more prevalent here than in Canada
   are "no trespassing" signs.  Perhaps Americans are more uptight about
   such things.
   
   Depending on how you look at it, Delta Junction might be called the
   "end" of the Alaska Highway, as the Richardson Highway takes over on
   the northward journey to Fairbanks. It has far more traffic, at all hours,
   than practically any place on the Alcan.
   
   The Alaska pipeline is visible at times, usually buried but elevated
   when crossing rivers.  It's massive all right.
   
   There was a moose quite close to me at one point, trudging through a
   marsh, munching on succulent water plants just below the surface.  She
   checked me out; I checked her out; she ignored me and went about her
   business.  Nothing unusual about that.  I get the same reaction from
   just about all women, and I saw no reason why a female moose should be any
   different.
   
   A little distance past town, I finally caught, through the trees, a
   glimpse of...behold! THE MOUNTAIN! As I went farther I got
   progressively better views of Denali.
   
   Finally no longer a mythical dream in the distance, it is now a
   tangible, physical manifestation of my goal.  Far off on the horizon
   now, but it's only a matter of time.
   
   *I'm getting close.*

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