The Amazing Senior Biker Babes Do Denali!

Amazing! 

That sums up my five-day Denali trip with the Senior Biker Babes. And it sums up how I felt on the last day as I biked uphill to meet the others. I had a huge smile on my face. My heart and soul were filled with joy. This is what I love. This is what makes me the happiest. Being physically active, riding my bike, in wilderness and natural beauty. 

We had four days of incredible weather, no rain, no bugs, and mostly tail winds. The Alaska Range was out in all its glory. And I got to share all this with three amazing women. Amazing biking with amazing scenery and amazing women! 

How the Amazing Senior Biker Babes' Denali Adventure Evolved

The idea for this trip started rolling from a meeting a year ago. 

I met Lynn in the Washington, D.C., area at the end of my Bike Nonstop US bike race last summer. She is friends with my good friends, Elisa and Steve, who live in Arlington, Virginia. Lynn came out with Elisa, Steve, and Eric to bike with me to my finish. We spent time together after the race and I found out that she hadn’t yet biked in just three states, and one was Alaska. So, I immediately invited her to Fairbanks to show her some of the most scenic bike riding in the world and she answered an emphatic yes. 

Then I started scheming. What other older women biking friends could I invite? I knew that our truck could hold four people and their bikes so I could invite two other women. I immediately thought of both Linda and Carolyn and reached out to them. Surprisingly, everybody was available to come the second week of June.

I wanted us to bike in Denali National Park for one day. I figured we could take the bus in as far as possible and then bike back out. That would give people the option to get back on a bus if the weather was terrible or they were flagging. Each bus can only carry two bikes so I knew we would have to start at different times. We would send  Lynn and Linda on the earlier bus and then  Carolyn I would try to catch them after taking the next bus. 

The Denali park bus with 2 of our bikes on the front

I also wanted us to bike on the Denali Highway. I love biking that highway but it’s a one-way trip and the logistics of a shuttle allowing all of us to bike the entire 135 miles were daunting. I’ve biked on the Denali Highway at least a dozen times, so I really didn’t care if I did the whole thing. That freed me up so that I could drive the truck to our destination each day, then bike back to meet everybody and still get plenty of time in the saddle. And that would add flexibility since the truck could be a “sag wagon” if somebody didn’t want to ride the whole way each day. 

Our truck as our "sag wagon"

I also decided that this would be a glamping trip. We would stay in lodges and hotels, not tents. That would lessen how much gear everybody had to bring and would make sense if the weather was not great. I sent the itinerary to everybody, and they all thought it looked great. 

Relaxing at our room at the Alpine Creek Lodge - photo courtesy of Lynn

As the trip got closer, I got more and more excited. I love showing Alaska to Outsiders, especially when I know they will appreciate the beauty and wildness of our state. 

Meet the Senior Biker Babes

Since we are all over age 65, we decided to call ourselves the Senior Biker Babes. Here’s the crew. (Except for me. If you’re reading this blog, I figure you know who I am. If not, read back on the posts!) 

Lynn – age 76

Lynn is amazing. She has several Guinness World Records for being the oldest woman to have biked across the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Steve and Elisa, my good friends from Arlington, introduced me to Lynn a couple of years ago. Steve bikes with Lynn and let me know about her attempt to try and be the oldest woman at age 75 to bike the length of Europe north to south. I followed her blog on that journey in 2024 and then met her in person last summer. Unfortunately, she developed a herniated disc and lumbar stenosis last winter and needed back surgery 6 months ago. But despite that, she was ready to do this trip. Lynn doesn’t really like gravel but was willing to go outside her comfort zone.

Carolyn – age 66

Carolyn is another amazing older biker. I met her online while she was racing the Tour Divide the year after me in 2019. Unfortunately, her leg swelled up, causing her to drop out of the race. But during that, I reached out with some medical advice. We stayed in touch through Strava and Facebook and have talked a few times on the phone but had never met in person before this trip. Carolyn loves gravel and continues to do long gravel bike races, often in Minnesota, where she lives. She has finished countless races ranging from several hours to several days in length. She likes to push herself and see what she is capable of. She is a retired teacher, married with a husband who supports her biking endeavors, and has five grandchildren. Also, like me, she is a quilter. Carolyn was the strongest biker of our group.

Linda – age 72

Linda was the only “babe” I had spent much time with. I met her online when she decided to ride the Tour Divide in 2021. I gave her some advice and followed her journey during the race.  Linda and I have stayed in touch ever since. In 2022 she visited Eric and me in Alaska while her wife, who is supportive but not a big biker, did a cruise trip that ended in Fairbanks. During that visit, Linda and I biked and talked and became good friends. And in 2023, Linda joined Eric and me and a few other friends on a 7-day hut-to-hut bike trip from Durango to Moab. 

Linda has been riding bikes since she was a teenager and doesn’t even own a car. She once worked as a roving bike mechanic and stays very active. She has been involved in gay rights advocacy, has fostered children, still works as a mediator, and has several other pursuits. 

Have I mentioned how amazing these women are?

The Amazing Senior Biker Babes' Adventure

The day we drove to Denali it rained, but after that the weather improved. We had mostly cloudy to mostly sunny skies for our biking days. We never needed bug dope. We had light winds only, often as a tailwind. Really the weather doesn’t get much better than this for a trip to the Alaska Range. What’s the word to describe it? Oh, yeah: Amazing! 

Denali National Park Road

We had a 43-mile day on the Denali Park Road after being dropped off by the buses at their turnaround spot before the Pretty Rocks bridge work. Linda and Lynn took the bus first and started biking. Then Carolyn and I followed. We biked at a good clip and finally caught up to the other two at the Teklanika River. Nobody saw any close-up big wildlife, but we did see caribou and sheep off in the distance. I really wanted them to see bears in Denali (preferably from the bus) but no such luck. However, Denali did start peeking out from the clouds as we made our way back to our truck. And we had a wonderful night’s rest in cute cabins along Carlo Creek at The Perch.

One of the cute A-frame cabins at The Perch

The Denali Highway

The next three days on the Denali Highway were superb. The first day was 67 miles to Alpine Creek Lodge. Lynn thought she might be too slow for the group so decided to get dropped off halfway to our destination. As the two of us drove up the first hill, we could see that Denali was out behind us, so we stopped for a photo. I had told Linda and Carolyn to stop and look back as they were biking, but they were so focused on that first climb that they never did! They missed seeing Denali! But fortunately, there were plenty of other gorgeous mountains to see all day. 

Denali out in all her glory

After I dropped Lynn off about halfway, I biked back to meet the other two then biked with them back to the truck. I then drove to the lodge, checking in with Lynn as I passed her to make sure she was okay. After parking the truck at the lodge, I biked back to meet everybody again. Linda was flagging in the afternoon after that long day. She was the last one to the lodge, but she recovered after a hot meal and a shower. Both Linda and I saw a fox that day but not much in the way of other wildlife.

Meeting back up with Linda and Carolyn on the Susitna River bridge

Following a fox up the road

The next day was shorter, but still a beefy 46 miles and it included the big climb to Maclaren Summit. Once again, I drove Lynn a short distance ahead before I headed to Maclaren Lodge and biked back to meet everybody. Lynn, after doing the summit decided she was satisfied for the day, so she drove the truck to that day’s destination at Tangle Lakes Lodge allowing me to ride the rest of the distance. 

At the Maclaren River before the big climb

Maclaren Summit sign - not actually at the high point and covered in so many stickers that you can't read it anymore!

The views all day were spectacular. And we even had enough energy after dinner to do a short tundra hike. We saw and heard trumpeter swans and loons in the evening. 

Evening hike on the tundra

It was fun to reconnect with the owners of Tangle Lakes Lodge, Dave and Tawnia and their son Trek. Eric and I had done a trip there in spring of 2025 with some friends, and Eric wrote a story for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, which had increased their spring bookings. I highly recommend staying at their lodge. They are the best hosts and their pizza is great!

Our cabin at Tangle Lakes Lodge

The last day was a quick 22 miles with a long 10-mile fun descent at the end. But I drove the truck to the end at Paxon, which meant I first had a long climb back up to meet everybody. We met at a rest stop lookout. I got there just before the others. We all stopped for a group photo before the final descent. We finally got a little rain but not even enough to stop and put on rain jackets. After packing up the truck, we drove home with a stop at the Buffalo Center Drive-In for milkshakes. And, of course, a stop at the Santa Claus House, because you got to do the tourist thing with tourists! Then it was a flurry of packing up bikes and washing clothes before everybody was off on their way home or to their next adventure.

Things Just Clicked

Despite us not really knowing each other well, we had a great time over our five-day adventure. We all had different biking speeds but worked out the biking without any problems. We were all flexible, accommodating, and worked well together whether it was packing and unpacking the truck, deciding where to eat, or who was going to share rooms and beds. We laughed and told stories and had so much fun together. Some people act as though older women are irrelevant, but they obviously don’t know this group of senior women! We may be older, but we aren’t done having fun and adventures. I would 100% do another trip with these women! These Amazing Senior Biker Babes! 

Sometimes Things Just Line Up

post by Corrine

The weather forecast looked grim: Southeast winds 30-40 mph with gusts up to 50-65 mph expected from 4 PM Saturday to Sunday afternoon.

That was exactly during the time I was planning on being out on a bikepack adventure at Eklutna Lake just north of Anchorage. An Anchorage friend, Janice, had already been on the fence about joining me. She saw the forecast and texted me on Friday that she was going to stay home. 

Then Saturday morning, Carlene, another friend who had planned to join me, texted that she wasn’t sure she could make the trip either. A friend’s car had just died, and she had to go rescue her. Carlene said she might try and make it but wasn’t sure. And she said the winds in Palmer, where she lives a little north of Eklutna Lake, were already howling. 

I wasn’t sure what to do. Should I cancel? Should I wait and see what conditions were like when I got to the trailhead? Another friend who lives in that area said it is often a bit more protected around Eklutna Lake. And our route was mostly in the trees, not up high on ridges. But did I want to chance riding in gale force winds? All by myself? 

I am one of those people who will make a decision but then doubt myself or change my mind after getting more information. Sometimes I go back and forth multiple times. It drives me crazy! I had already been doubting whether I wanted to do the Eklutna trip since Janice texted me the day before. I had finally convinced myself to just go when Carlene let me know she might not be able to make it. Now what should I do? I had to head out to that area anyway, so I decided to pack as if I was doing the overnighter and then make a last-minute decision. Why do I vacillate so much?

Anchorage Bound

The main impetus for my trip to Anchorage was my yearly rheumatology appointment. I have ankylosing spondylitis, an uncommon type of inflammatory arthritis that affects the spine and other joints. It’s mostly under control, but I need to check in with my rheumatologist once a year. 

I decided to set up some visits while I was in the area. While talking to Anchorage friends about getting together, I learned that the weekend after my appointment would be the culmination of GRIT (Girls Ride Into Tomorrow). This program empowers middle school girls by getting them out on bikes and teaching them biking and bikepacking skills. That weekend would be their final achievement, a 3-day, 2-night bikepack adventure. The girls that finish the program get to keep their bikes and gear.  One of the leaders, also a friend, asked if I wanted to help and I agreed. My job would be to bring out supplies including hot pizza to their final destination near Eklutna Lake.

A Full Trip

Now I had my appointment, some visiting, and a fun volunteer job during my trip to Anchorage, but could I make it even more fun? Earlier, I had committed to doing the Bikepack Every Month Challenge. In April, I did an overnight to Chena Hot Springs Resort. But I was having a hard time coming up with a fun May trip in Fairbanks. It would have to be another paved road trip which I was not excited about. But I knew there is a trail along Eklutna Lake that leads to some backcountry camp sites. Eric and I had biked it a few years ago as an out-and-back. Maybe I could do an overnight bikepack after I finished with my GRIT volunteer duties. I reached out to friend Carlene, who lives in the area to see if she knew about trail conditions. She was able to find out that the trail along Eklutna Lake was good to go with just one little section of snow, and she said she would love to join me. Great! Since I was meeting biking friend Janice while in Anchorage, I invited her, too. Plans were working out for volunteering and having an adventure!

Carlene and me at the Eklutna Lake Trailhead

But there’s more! I had also recently joined a group in Fairbanks that is working with the American League of Bicyclists to do a project around biking. We had just decided that our project would be to promote Bike Month (May) with an emphasis on National Bike to Work Day - a program started by the American League of Bicyclist to promote cycling as a healthy, environmentally friendly alternative to driving. Anchorage has an amazing Bike to Work Day program and it just so happened that it would occur while I was there. So, I could experience their program and meet with their director while there. 

Eric’s older sister, also named Janice, lives in Anchorage and would be around so I could stay with her and get a chance to catch up. It was looking to be a busy but fun few days in Anchorage. Everything was coming together nicely.

Biking in Anchorage

Anchorage has an amazing bike infrastructure with dedicated multi-use paths and bike lanes. And they have a fun 31-mile loop, almost all on bike paths, that makes the shape of a moose head called, appropriately, the Moose Loop. So, after biking to my doctor appointment on Thursday, I headed out to do the loop. This route is well worth doing if you are visiting Anchorage. Much of it is on beautiful bike paths that run along creeks, lakes, and the coast. 

The Moose Loop

The next day was Bike to Work Day. The program was started in Anchorage more than 20 years ago and keeps growing. Local businesses and advocacy groups support the commuters with treat stations from 7-9 AM and 4-6 PM. In 2014 they had 14 treat stations and about 1000 bikers. This year they had 130 stations and expected over 5000 participants. I wanted to check out several of the stations, especially the one that was serving bacon! I found out later that some stations give out hats and T-shirts, although those prizes were gone in about 15 minutes. Most stations had snacks, stickers, bike maps and drinks. Some even had live music! I also found out that you could get a free drink from any Kaladi Brothers Coffee stand if you had a bike helmet. Many people plot their routes specifically to get the best swag! It was fun to see so many people out on bikes on a brisk Friday morning. And it gave me a lot of ideas for what we could do in Fairbanks. 

So many cyclists out and about

Of course I had to get my picture with Seymour the Moose!

I found the bacon station at the top of Spenard hill!

Live music and fresh bakery treats!

To Bikepack or Not

Saturday morning dawned sunny and calm. But the forecast for windy conditions just kept getting worse. That’s when I heard from Carlene that she was possibly bailing, too. I had to meet the GRIT riders anyway, so I packed up all my gear, picked up the pizza and headed out to Eklutna Lake. The wind was picking up but wasn’t bad on my drive. I passed the riders on the road to the lake and cheered them on with promises of pizza when they finished. After arriving at the destination, an ice cream shop, I biked back to continue encouraging them. Some of the girls complained a little and some walked up the steeper hills, but they all made it to the ice cream stand and were revived with pizza and ice cream. 

Pizza and ice cream save the day! 18 girls completed the course.

As I chatted with everyone, I saw that Carlene had showed up after all. It was a little more windy but not terrible, so we decided to just go for it. We also knew that a friend had rented the Serenity Falls Cabin a couple of miles past the end of the lake. We figured we could always use her as our back up plan if the weather got worse that evening. Another thing lining up in our favor.

The last time I had biked the Eklutna Lake Trail, it had been one huge puddle after another. Carlene concurred that this was how it always was for her, too. So, we were delighted to find the trail dry with only one large puddle. And just one small section that still had snow on it. And the single track sections that had been eroded in the past had all been fixed. It was great riding the whole way. 

The forecasted winds did come. It was quite windy when we were by the lakeshore, but in the woods it was fine. And it was downright gale force on the bridges where the wind could rush through unimpeded, but those areas were few and far apart. We could hear the wind howling higher up in the mountains, but it was fine on the trail. We made great time stopping for photo opportunities along the way. Everything was working out perfectly and we were glad we had decided to go.

You can't tell from this photo but I was almost getting blown off this bridge!

The clouds got lower the further up the valley we went and by the time we made it to the cabin it was spitting rain. We had a nice surprise visit with Raena and her friend - they did not know we were coming – but then it was time to turn back and find a place to sleep before it started raining and blowing harder. We headed back down the valley and by the time we found a sheltered campsite, it was 9 PM, we had biked 15 miles, and we were ready for bed.

Surprise visit with Raena and Heather

Campsite sheltered in the trees

Home After a Full Trip

The next morning, it was still spitting rain on and off, but the wind had died down. We decided to skip breakfast and just pack up and go. The ride back was a quick, mostly downhill nine miles and we were at the trailhead by 8 AM. That bikepack trip was short, but well worth it. I completed my Bikepack Every Month Challenge for May. And so did Carlene. (She is doing the challenge, too.) I hadn’t spent much time with Carlene, so it was fun to do an overnight with her. We schemed some possibilities for another bikepack trip together later in the summer.

As I drove the six hours back to Fairbanks, I mused how my trip to see my rheumatologist had morphed into a fun few days of seeing friends and family, doing some volunteering, and going on a little adventure. Sometimes, everything does just line up perfectly.