alaska roads

[Hank85713]

There have been a few articles in magazines about going to alaska but I cant recall seeing anything on road conditions. Wife and some friends are thinking of going up there next year. Last time I really checked roads were ok still a lot wth construction and repairs.

My plan is to not tow out regular tow vehicle but my 94 ranger pickup. My friend has a mitsu 4wd type vehicle but it is also an older one. So anyone with real knowledge on road condition thru canada and alaska?

[Trackrig]

RGar974417 wrote:
There is ( or was ) a book called " The Milepost" with all the info on the Alaska and some or highways you could need.

Usually available on Amazon,the new version should be out.

Bill

[RGar974417]

There is ( or was ) a book called " The Milepost" with all the info on the Alaska and some or highways you could need.

[Trackrig]

I went down and back up last summer.

In general the roads were in good condition. Having said that, there's always going to be some gravel because they're always working on and improving it.

The further north you get, the more frost heaves you'll find - SLOW DOWN. Sometimes the gravel is preferable because they can grade it flat. There's not much they can do with a frost heave in the pavement.

Most of the people who have problems were driving too fast - SLOW Down - there's just as much to see in Canada as Alaska. Alaska will still be there when you get there.

Bill

[2gypsies1]

You need to go over to the Alaska/Canada section on this forum for lots of good reading.

Our experience: Don't worry about the roads. The horror stories you might have heard are past down from years ago. We spent the whole summer on this trip (recommended) driving our 40' motorhome towing a car. We didn't have any issues and absolutely no damage to either vehicle. In fact, we left Arizona with a cracked windshield in our car but decided not to have it fixed because we thought we'd just get another on the drive. We returned to Arizona with the same crack and no more! 🙂

Yes, you will encounter sections of gravel due to construction areas but then, you can do this in the lower 48, also. You just drive slow and if you see an oncoming vehicle/truck coming faster then move as far to the side of the road as you can and many times, you can even stop completely until it passes. Road conditions change from year to year and there will always be areas of construction.

There is always a long gravel stretch from Destruction Bay - rightly named :), to Tok, Alaska. It's an area of constant frost damage. Just drive slow. Further into Alaska there will be areas of frost heaves and you'll soon know how to pick them out from a distance. They try to put orange cones at these areas but don't succeed at each one so be alert. Reading the 'Milepost' will point out where these areas are.

This trip is just like 10 separate trips you might do elsewhere just tacked onto each other. In other words, it's a long one. Allow plenty of time and all summer is highly suggested. You won't be driving fast at any time - and you shouldn't otherwise you'll miss the beauty.

Canada and the Yukon are every bit as beautiful as Alaska in many places so take the time to explore them, also.

All you need for this trip are new or excellent tires, the 'Milepost' for history and maps, Mike and Terri Church's book, 'Alaskan Camping' which includes Canada and the Yukon and the 2/1 coupon book, 'TourSaver'. All can be ordered online before your trip. One glacier tour will pay for the coupon book and you'll want to do at least one.

Hope you make the trip. There's nothing like it!