Tales From The Alaska Highway

Paige White was the Content Creator on the 2025 North American Epic from Whitehorse to Fort St John.

Most of the travellers on the iconic Alaska Highway aren’t on two wheels. Stretching from Whitehorse, Yukon, southward to Dawson Creek in British Columbia, the Alaska Highway is steeped in history, built as a strategic military project during World War II.

By the time our riders made it to the second section of the tour, they’d already endured a wicked storm at the North American Epic’s starting line in Tuktoyaktuk. The reality of life on a bicycle had begun to sink in. When you’re on a bike for 128 riding days from the Arctic Ocean to Panama City, you risk misremembering some of the smaller details from the beginning of the trip.

Let’s share a few highlights from our riders on the Alaska Highway section of the North American Epic to make sure those moments stay alive and ensure that the beginning of this long trip is not so easily forgotten.

Luca Bortolami, Italy

Luca breaks records for the most sandwiches he can eat in a day. His record is 12.5, which he gets dangerously close to, day after day. When he isn’t breaking his own lunch records, he can often be found riding by himself at the front of the TDA pack – until one day he wasn’t alone anymore.

In Northern Canada of all places, Luca was reminded of a transformative experience he had in Kruger National Park, South Africa but this time it wasn’t a herd of elephants and he wasn’t in a world renowned national park. This time, Luca was on the side of a  Canadian highway and now he had suddenly made friends with the largest Canadian land animal, the bison.

“They were so close and everything felt so peaceful. I felt like I was a part of the group with them, a part of the herd and it was a really beautiful feeling. I really enjoyed it and there was no fear or concern.” Luca had managed to go from riding solo to joining over 25 bison. Not only could you see him cycling side by side with these large animals but you could hear the rhythm of their hooves hitting the ground while they ran alongside him. He had the security of Tour Leader Britney cruising close behind him (after all, bison are large wild animals) so we were able to capture the moment on video and Luca can relive and share his special moment.

Kaye Hudson, New Zealand

Kaye is a seasoned rider, with the North American Epic marking her 10th tour with TDA. No matter how many tours you have done, if you sign up for an expedition tour you will still need a reliable tent and sturdy tent poles. Kaye learned this lesson the hard way and, after completing the first stretch of the tour through the Arctic, she stopped in Whitehorse on the rest day and bought a brand new tent.

With her fancy new digs, Kaye left Whitehorse heading for the next stop, Squanga Lake Campground. No problems. From Squanga Lake, the next stop was Teslin, which is a gas station, motel, campground, laundromat, restaurant, a one -stop shop kind of campground. Leaving Teslin, Kaye arrived at the Continental Divide RV Campground for the night…but Kaye’s tent poles did not. After a minor freak out and with the reality setting in, Kaye managed to wrangle the campground owner to borrow their phone. He wasn’t incredibly enthusiastic but maybe he deals with a lot of city-slickers who can’t cope one night without cell service.

Kaye called Teslin and got a hold of the manager who was equally as unenthusiastic and uninterested in her dilemma, “I said look, a tent without poles is pretty useless and I really need it, could you please and go have a look for them and I’ll pay you for your time.” Some nervous waiting and one phone call later, she heard an enthusiastic, “Yep. I’ve got them” before facing the next problem, how to transport the poles to her. It turned out every evening there is a shuttle that passes through Teslin and conveniently passes the Continental RV Campground. “All was good. Until the shuttle arrived, and they were not on the shuttle. I talked to the shuttle driver and he said no one spoke to him about the poles.”

So Kaye called back to Teslin, again. This time a new woman answered. “Yep, yep, they are on the shuttle.” “Yep, yep – No they’re not. Can I talk to the guy who was going to put them on the shuttle?” Silence. “Oh ya, I missed the shuttle driver by about a minute. Don’t worry I stopped a couple of guys in a white Nissan asked them to drop them off.” Kaye, of course, thought she would never see the poles again as the Teslin manager couldn’t remember what time the Nissan left, and couldn’t make any guesses as to when the car might arrive.

Kaye got some camp chores done and sat near the road for an over an hour. Fed up and frustrated, she decided to go to bed, and then what does she see? A white Nissan. Just like that, Kaye walked back to camp, tent poles in hand.

Keith Elliott, United Kingdom

Keith loves to swim. In the lobby of the Super 8 Hotel in Fort Nelson you could hear the TDA crew cheering like sports fans and pounding their fists on the glass window while Keith was hitting the hotel water slide at full speed, with the energy of a toddler.

Keith says that he goes out of his way to make sure his TDA trips are about more than cycling and if that means a swimming stop, he’s always open to the possibility. Canada is the land of fresh water and lakes with no shortage of swimming spots but it isn’t everyday that you pass a natural hot spring. Liard Hot Springs, is a top tourist attraction, and Keith made sure to stop and peel off the lycra to enjoy a midday swim.

“On these trips I can relax and enjoy myself, I don’t have to think about the outside world and the reality of life. You can just get up and cycle, and do things like swimming. When I was a teacher I was very stressed at the end, and this is one of the best ways of de-stressing.” Lucky for Keith, the next rest day hotel also had a water slide.

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