miscellaneous comments

One thing I really miss here in Canada(and Alaska too) is curvy roads.There are a few long sweepers but nothing like in East Tennessee.These roads are straight.They have other features to provide a little riding diversion like bumps and the occasional pothole but the really fun things are the frost heaves.They can go for miles and are like riding a roller coaster.Roads here are not built in the mountains,they are built between the mountains,right down the middle of the valley,ie straight.Obviously,this is the easiest and cheapest route both to build and maintain.Road maintenance here is a major chore since the winter freeze is brutal on paved roads...Traffic is sparse(and that is a good thing).We did see traffic in Anchorage and on the road to Homer ;but traffic has otherwise not been an issue.Sometimes we go for miles without seeing another vehicle.When we first got here we waved at any bike we saw just like in Tennessee but now we wave at cars,campers,bicycles,whatever just cause we are happy to see another person.I never appreciated til I got here just how vast and untouched by humans this country really is....boog