Alaska dream

First thing I did when planning for an AK trip was to read every post in the RVing in Canada and Alaska forum on this site. Think it was almost 200 pages in 2008. Found it to be most helpful.

Yep, we hope to be going also in 2018, hopefully starting here in So. Calif in early to mid-May. That's the plan anyways....:-)

Ivylog wrote:

rirish1 wrote:
My wife and I are also planning an Alaska trip leaving Florida 4/2018

I would not plan on getting to the Alaska Highway until 5/20/18...cold and many places will not be open assuming that they will open again. You can drive the Alcan at 60 mph until Whitehorse putting many businesses out of business.

I don't think so. 60MPH until Whitehorse will get you something broken QUICK. Yes, there are some places where that's possible, but don't plan on it and DO NOT PUSH IT THAT HARD. We're in Valdez now, our 7th trip since 2006.

You are going to have to make some decisions on what you are looking to see, how fast and far you want to go and what you're interested in. Also, how long are you intending to be gone? Then start marking on a map some of the things you want to see. Read the Milepost or other travel guides to get an idea what each point of interest is about before you finally decide. A thing to keep in mind is that you'll never be able to see it all on one trip. If you're only making one trip the choices are harder. Leave some for next time.

We are planning to go, 4th trip, next year.

Route planning is easy. There are very few choices. Part of it is no choice. In Alaska you either go clockwise or anticlockwise around.

Take your pick for border crossings. Same Government agency following same rules no matter where or which way you are going.

Finding attractions & CGs is no different for Alaska & Canada than anywhere else. Online is flooded with info. Not too difficult to wade through it & find what suits ones interest.

For our trip to AK, I bought the most available Mileposts for trip planning. Then in the year we went, I bought the current edition. The current edition will have what is open, etc.--so you can expect these services, places to visit, and have fun. We spent about 4 days in Whitehorse on the way north because there is so much to see and do there. Then heading south, we stayed another 4 days. We stayed about 8 weeks in Alaska with 30 days in Soldatna for fishing and sight seeing. Have a great trip!

timandsusan wrote:
For our trip to AK, I bought the most available Mileposts for trip planning. Then in the year we went, I bought the current edition. The current edition will have what is open, etc.--so you can expect these services, places to visit, and have fun. We spent about 4 days in Whitehorse on the way north because there is so much to see and do there. Then heading south, we stayed another 4 days. We stayed about 8 weeks in Alaska with 30 days in Soldatna for fishing and sight seeing. Have a great trip!

We were amazed at how many of the road side businesses were out of business, all boarded up and abandoned.

It wasn't a case of being early in the year.

Moved to RVing in Alaska.

blknomad wrote:
I keep wanting to go to Alaska in 2018 but I don't know where to start my research. What would be the best route and best crossing. Any and all ideas will be appreciated. Should I caravan or strike out alone? Just any help would be appreciated.
P.S. I would be leaving Va with a 2014 35ft Itasca towing a Toyota.

In the Truck Camper forum there's a ton of Alaskan trip report, look in the Alaskan part of the TCTR and the Cross Country section. /These reports have photos and videos of their adventures.

The MilePost is a good resource book which we found on the fuel stops to be about 80% accurate on the route we took in the summer of 2015. Speed limit are low through Canada and Alaska so allow plenty of time between point A to B. Before entering Canada call your CC company and let them know what providence's your going through and how long you think it will take. We had to do this otherwise our CC wouldn't work in Canada, this is to prevent CC fraud in Canada.

You'll need to make or get window blackouts shades or blockers for at least your bedroom, when we arrived in Fairbanks, AK. it was 21 hr and 35 minutes of daylight. There will be long section of NO cell service in both Alaska and Canada. Wifi isn't too bad in finding, many small town have it along with many business.

We're going to be heading back up in 2018, leaving after July 4th.
PM me for any more information or questions.

Once you get on the Alaska Highway, there are few deviations available until you reach Tok, AK. We did no planning at all and the only reservation we made was at Denali a couple weeks before we wanted to stay there. You will see the same people over and over once on the Alaska Highway because everyone is going the same way. As long as you are reasonable with your driving distances, you will not have any problems finding places to stop for the night especially if you do not mind dry camping. Heck, we even dry camped in campgrounds because the price was much less. I would suggest the Church's Alaska camping book and the Milepost. For us, the Milepost was most helpful with locating wildlife and pull offs. We used the Church's book to find campgrounds. If you have a Senior Pass, make sure you bring it because there are federal campgrounds in Alaska.

I did not see an answer to your question about caravans or going alone. Probably because there is no one correct answer. We went up ourselves, based on our plan, and our schedule. Others prefer having a plan and schedule created for them. That's OK for sure. Basically, what it comes down to is this: what do you feel most comfortable doing? IMHO, it is just as safe traveling up north as it is traveling in the lower 48. There are, however, major factors that you need to be OK with if going on your own. Some factors are limited or no cell service, long distances between towns, managing your fuel supply, having a plan if there is a breakdown, and having a plan for medical issues. Determine your comfort level and go from there.