Alaska - 2023

[Salty_Dog]

Sorry for the long post! I did a search on this forum and others prior to asking...

My wife and I are recently retired and are planning on making the trip to Alaska next summer. We have a multitude of questions for those you have also made the trip.

Our trip is planned for about 4 months and includes Mt Rushmore , Yellowstone, and the Grand Tetons on our way (not all encompassing, taking about a month to travel west and visit these areas), the Canadian Rockies (Banff and the Icefield Parkway) to the Cassiar Highway and then to the Al-Can - about 4 weeks to reach Alaska, Glennallen - 4 days, Palmer - about 3 days, Seward - 6 days, Homer - 5 days, Anchorage - 10 days, Denali - 5 days, Fairbanks - 10 days, and then begin the trip home from Alaska at the middle of September. The start of the return trip is governed by the campground closings in Fairbanks.

We have the Milepost and it has been a great source of information!

We are still in vacation mode where we try to cram a lot into a little space. Any tips on addressing this?

I am trying to keep the drive times to about 6 hours or less using RV Life Trip Wizard. Only a couple are a touch longer and a most are shorter.

Is the weather typically a washout when it rains? Cloud cover - thinking photos of the landscape, tours, etc.

We will be making reservations and plan on staying in campgrounds rather than boondocking. If our plans get altered, are boondocking opportunities available if the campgrounds cannot accommodate the change?

There is lots to see and do and this will be a trip of a lifetime for us - we don't want to waste the opportunity with over staying or under staying.

I appreciate your thoughts and taking the time!
Mike

[SideHillSoup]

PA12DRVR wrote:
For the OP, I'd second most of the destinations suggested by Wadcutter as good places to visit. It is beautiful country around Chicken, but (IMHO) that's the draw, not the town itself. Similarly in my view, Valdez and Juneau are scenic spots and great starting points for "adventures", but I believe the "adventures" can be duplicated in other parts of AK. If one catches the right combo of weather and seasons, the drive from Glennallen to Valdez can be spectacular in late summer / early fall.

I've always enjoyed Whitehorse, Watson Lake, Muncho Lake, and Dawson Creek. It is striking to me how much all of those have changed since '74.

One should be cautious about frost heaves, but..again opinion...the biggest concern is if one is trying to flog a big MH or 5th wheel along the Alaskan / Canadian roads like they were on a freeway in the L48.

...and you neither want to hit a moose in AK nor a buffalo in Canada. 'nuff said.

And not to further pound the horseflesh, but: My dad worked on the road during it's construction for a few months as a catskinner, called it the "Alcan"; in '74, my first trip, it was referred to, in Alaska anyway, as the "Alcan"; upon entering Canada (if coming from Alaska) or entering Dawson Creek otherwise, the road was referred to as the "Alaska Highway" on road signs, billboards, sign forest, etc; and, sometime in the early '80's when there were enough roads that I had to look at a map, the Alcan / Alaska Highway had road numbers, either "BC #xxx" or something similar. The nomenclature doesn't really matter, but in my 7th decade now, I've become habitual about calling the road the "Alcan".

No pounding here either, my uncle was a surveyor for the Canadian Govt, and was working with the US and Canadian governments jointly building the Alaska Hwy during its entirety.
He was actually working in the Yukon for mining companies at the time the war broke out in 1939 and joined up then.
He was then stationed in Ottawa and shortly after that because of is northern experience sent back to the Yukon / Northern BC to work on securing the northern guard, what that meant I have no idea, he didn’t talk about it, as he died when I was in my 20’s back in the 70’s.
There are many names for different things in this world, However I will always call that Hwy the Alaska Hwy because my Uncle Jack worked on it for start to finish, and that’s what he called it.
He lived in Whitehorse from 1937 to 1976, so he had some seniority of northern life.
Oh, I’m in 7th decade as well.
Cheers

[Wadcutter]

From Ft Nelson we drove to Ft Liard and that's where we saw the most bear per mile. And the fewest vehicles. That's a long stretch - not by Canada or Alaska standards but it's a good drive. IIRC on our way to Ft Liard we saw 2 other vehicles and 10 bears.
As PA12DRVR mentioned those towns are good jumping off places to see what else AK and Canada has to show. They're all nice towns with their own history but AK, Yukon, BC, and Alberta isn't about the towns.
You don't want to underestimate the frost heaves. We were parked along the road taking in the view when a flatbed semi came by, well faster than I would have been driving. He hit a frost heave and all 18 wheels came off the ground by the time he cleared the heave. It was down and then up like going off a ramp.
As far as hitting a moose we were first on the scene after a Dodge pickup hit a moose square on. The hood was crumpled and shoved inside the cab. The driver was OK but a bit banged up. Every thing in front of the engine, grill, lights, bumper, everything was compacted into the engine. The moose didn't fare any better.

[Tom_Barb]

ALASKA HighWay = just another long highway, 99% is paved but the road improvement is on going (always)

[Salty_Dog]

Thanks for all the comments and thoughts! Weather and its impact on touring is a concern for us. I added content on our trip plans.

My wife and I do not like to just sit so I didn't plan on idle time (maybe the vacation mode mentality). Our RV is pretty well optioned so we don't require a laundromat.

Our planned route - so far and including the already mentioned stops has us entering Canada north of Shelby Mt, staying in Calgary for 3 nights, Banff for 6, Jasper for 3 nights, an overnight in Prince George, 2 nights in Telkwa, an overnight in Meziadin Lake, and 2 nights in Iskut.
Spend 3 nights in Watson Lake, 2 nights in Whitehorse, and an overnight in Beaver Creek.

Our return trip is leaving from Fairbanks with an overnight in Tok, 2 nights in Haines Junction, an overnight in Watson Lake, 2 nights in Fort Nelson, 2 nights in Dawson Creek, 3 nights in Edmonton, 2 nights is Saskatoon, an overnight in Estevan, and then back into the USA in North Dakota.

The beginning of the trip is after we return from Myrtle Beach in May.

We want to leave late enough so we can see the Northern Lights - either in Fairbanks or on the return trip.

Two of our children will be flying in to spend 2 weeks with us while we are there - into Anchorage and out of Fairbanks.

A couple of other questions - does Sirius satellite radio work in the north country? As mentioned, I used RV Life Trip Wizard for the trip planning. How often is the travel speed significantly less than the posted speed? I get seeing wildlife and having slowdowns - how often does this impact the travel? I love to photograph both wildlife and landscape so this is another concern for us. Thanks again!

[enblethen]

OP: you may want to reverse your trip. Travel westbound in Canada using CAN 11, CAN 17 and CAN 1. There is lots to see crossing Canada. In Alberta, British Columbia and Yukon, there is many places to visit.
Don't miss Laird Hot Springs.
Make sure you watch for milepost adjustments in the Milepost. Highway has been rerouted shortening distances.
Then come back eastbound through your planned lower 48 locations.

[Veebyes]

All to often people have no idea just how big Canada is or how much great scenery it has to offer.

For distance reference, NY is not much different, MD to Homer AK, Edmonton AB is only half way.

By the time side trips are added in you can total 17,000 miles quite easily.

This is no 2 week jaunt.

[PA12DRVR]

For the OP, I'd second most of the destinations suggested by Wadcutter as good places to visit. It is beautiful country around Chicken, but (IMHO) that's the draw, not the town itself. Similarly in my view, Valdez and Juneau are scenic spots and great starting points for "adventures", but I believe the "adventures" can be duplicated in other parts of AK. If one catches the right combo of weather and seasons, the drive from Glennallen to Valdez can be spectacular in late summer / early fall.

I've always enjoyed Whitehorse, Watson Lake, Muncho Lake, and Dawson Creek. It is striking to me how much all of those have changed since '74.

One should be cautious about frost heaves, but..again opinion...the biggest concern is if one is trying to flog a big MH or 5th wheel along the Alaskan / Canadian roads like they were on a freeway in the L48.

...and you neither want to hit a moose in AK nor a buffalo in Canada. 'nuff said.

And not to further pound the horseflesh, but: My dad worked on the road during it's construction for a few months as a catskinner, called it the "Alcan"; in '74, my first trip, it was referred to, in Alaska anyway, as the "Alcan"; upon entering Canada (if coming from Alaska) or entering Dawson Creek otherwise, the road was referred to as the "Alaska Highway" on road signs, billboards, sign forest, etc; and, sometime in the early '80's when there were enough roads that I had to look at a map, the Alcan / Alaska Highway had road numbers, either "BC #xxx" or something similar. The nomenclature doesn't really matter, but in my 7th decade now, I've become habitual about calling the road the "Alcan".

[Wadcutter]

Places you didn't name but we enjoyed.
Carcross
Whitehorse
Watson Lake
Muncho Lake
Dawson Creek
Skagway
Haines
Valdez
Stewart-Hyder
Top of the World Highway - Chicken
From Haines take the ferry to Juneau.
Take your time. Drive slow for a couple of reasons.
1) Frost heaves. They'll usually be marked with a flag on a stick or a cone. But sometimes not. These are not bumps. They are BUMPS! and DIPS! You may see vehicles on their tops next to these heaves. They can be a serious problem.
2) Critters. Drive fast and you'll miss seeing a lot of critters. Drive slow and you'll miss a lot of critters but get to see them. Animals like moose and caribou can cover a lot of ground fast. They'll be out of the brush and in the road before you can stop.

[SideHillSoup]

enblethen wrote:
Need to go to "acceesCan.ca".
Need to follow instructions to make it easier even though there is no guarantee on entrance to Canada. Must be done within 72 hours of border crossing.

It’s called the ArriveCAN App.

Needed to enter Canada as of August 24/22

[SideHillSoup]

Trackrig wrote:

enblethen wrote:
First item, don't call it the AL-Can. It is the Alaska Highway.
You will be pushing a lot even for four months. As earlier post suggests delete lower 48.
Only place you may need reservations is Denali area.
There are many campgrounds that are open later in year plus lots of places to spend the night.

It's the Alcan to those of use who have been in Alaska for a long time.

Bill

😄 my Uncle was a Canadian who helped build the Hwy during the war. He lived and raised his family in Whitehorse for the remainder of his life ( Uncle Jack) he called it the Alaska Hwy. :W

[valhalla360]

We are on the start of a very similar trip right now (starting from Michigan) and we've done multiple several month cross country trips in prior years.

If you stick with vacation mode and do 6 hour days, it's certainly possible with 4 months. We would find it tiring.

We have it roughed out at around 11,000 miles of towing from Michigan. Let's call it 12,000 miles from NY and 120 days. That means you have to average around 100miles per day (every day). 6hrs for us, we would be looking at around 300miles (we figure an average of about 50mph for planning).

- Rochester NY to Yellowstone is around 2000 miles. Call it 7 travel days (@ 300miles per day)...give yourself 2 weeks. (Do Badlands, Rushmore on off days)
- 1 week Yellowstone (21 days total)
- 1 week to Banff including a stop in Glacier (28 days total)
- 1 week Banff & Jasper (35 days total)
- Jasper to Tok is around 1600 miles. Call it 6 travel days and give yourself 12 days (47 days total)
- 30 days to wander about in Alaska (77 days total)
- Tok to Rochester is around 3900 miles. Call it 13 travel days or 26 days total (103 days total)

That leaves you 17 days to cover bad weather, break downs or unexpected things you want to stop and see.

So yes, it's doable and you can still see things along the way.

Our plan:
- Depart late July 2022. Get to Cascade Mt, late Sept.
- Store RV over the winter at a friends property (you could always use a commercial storage lot).
- Spring 2023, start working our way north in May, letting weather dictate how fast we get north (we are comfortable in weather down in the teens for a few days and if we have to wait a week for things to warm up we aren't bothered).
- Reach Alaska mid June
- Depart Alaska start of August.
- Back in Michigan early September.

We usually shoot for 100-200miles per travel day and only travel 2-3 days per week.

So if you are retired, is there a reason you are limited to 4 months?

[Dick_B]

Devil's advocate here: We flew to Fairbanks and started a two week tour which included several days on a small cruise ship and some railroad travel. Saw a lot and it was easy on our aging bodies.
I'd start the Alaska trip with something similar then go back another time to spend more time if you want. I just noticed Viking has something similar.

[Rigdon]

Watch the calendar for both US and Canada holidays, the campgrounds can be booked solid or no services may be available. This year some of the gas stations did not have gas only diesel or reverse the station attendant told us it could be 2-3daysbefore deliveries in the springtime.

[PA12DRVR]

"It's the Alcan to those of use who have been in Alaska for a long time.

Bill"

^^^^ Bingo. That's how it was referred to in '74 and the name stuck with me anyway.

The proposed trip is too many stops and not enough days. Suggest (as others have said) doing the Western U.S. on another trip and keeping the focus on Alaska / Y.T. / BC / Alberta this trip.

The Alaska portion of the trip seems (granted, I live in Los Anchorage) to put too much time in Anchorage, unless the intent is to do stuff that involves going to i.e. Palmer, Glennallen or Seward, but those are already on your list. You might want to put some time in for the Kenai Peninsula (Slodotna, Kenai, etc) or Talkeetna instead of 10 days in Anchorage.

Weather can obscure the mountaintops, particularly Denali, but (except for June of this year), one won't escape rain in Alaska, so that should not be a go / no-go factor.

Alaska and Western Canada are great for driving and sightseeing...but I'd suggest that some thought be put into what else you might want to do (fishing, flightseeing, boat trip, glacier hikes, camping (away from pavement), hiking, etc) and slot in some days for those activities. Although it's hard to predict, some of the "tourist" activities tend to book up well in advance and that may end up being the critical path for your trip.

[Trackrig]

enblethen wrote:
First item, don't call it the AL-Can. It is the Alaska Highway.
You will be pushing a lot even for four months. As earlier post suggests delete lower 48.
Only place you may need reservations is Denali area.
There are many campgrounds that are open later in year plus lots of places to spend the night.

It's the Alcan to those of use who have been in Alaska for a long time.

Bill