Fuel price gouging on the Alaska Highway

[explorenorth]

With fuel prices plummeting in many places, this is an FYI that it isn't falling everywhere. I just drove from Whitehorse to Vancouver and got gouged in a few places, some expected, one very surprising. It was 1.179/liter for regular when I left Whitehorse on Thursday. We had boxes on top of the RAV4, and had to stop for fuel far more often than I'm used to.
- Teslin was 1.269
- Watson Lake was 1.179 - I just put a few dollars in there as Contact Creek is always cheaper and I like to spend my money there to keep them open in any case.
- Contact Creek was 1.299!! VERY disappointing, and all the signs saying "Lower than Watson Lake" are still up. After 20 years of spending a lot of money there, he just lost my loyalty.
- Liard Hot Springs is always expensive, and was, at 1.699
- Muncho Lake (Northern Rockies Lodge) was 1.979 - I just stopped to check, didn't need any.
- Fort Nelson was 1.329
- Wonowon was 1.389
- Chetwynd was 1.299

At Prince George, we finally got to prices that were acceptable given the current situation ($1.029), and they stayed close to that all the way to Vancouver.

[almcc]

Snowman9000 wrote:
This is an example of what I like to call the living in the boonies tax. Some things are cheaper in the boonies: land, houses, wages, services. Some things are more expensive: anything that takes serious capital and transportation.

Doesn't always happen in the boonies! We filled up with Diesel at Fry's in Yuma Arizona, it was under $3.50/gallon and with the discount for shopping there it was $2.86 per gallon. Here in Borrego Springs California (3 hours away) it's $4.50 per gallon. It's nice to have a large enough tank to be selective about where you are filling up.

[AprilWhine]

[dannydimitt]

Harvey51 wrote:
I live in Alberta, east of Dawson Creek. We find the 20% higher price in Dawson a little annoying but understand it is due to higher BC fuel tax. What is puzzling is another 20% increase another hour west at Chetwynd. Anyone know why or if it also applies to the Co-op card lock a few blocks north off the highway? That card lock doesn't post prices and you must have a co-op card to use it.

Yes the price difference between Grande Prairie , Alberta and Dawson Creek , British Columbia is VERY substantial ! That's why we filled up
with diesel in Grande Prairie and drove all the way to Tok , Alaska before taking on more fuel in 2013 .

[Harvey51]

I live in Alberta, east of Dawson Creek. We find the 20% higher price in Dawson a little annoying but understand it is due to higher BC fuel tax. What is puzzling is another 20% increase another hour west at Chetwynd. Anyone know why or if it also applies to the Co-op card lock a few blocks north off the highway? That card lock doesn't post prices and you must have a co-op card to use it.

[joe_b_]

I would agree with Bill, Trackrig, to check around for different, lower, prices. Most summers, I remember being able to save up to a dime a liter on fuel in Whitehorse, by going downtown to the gas bar by Super Foods or whatever the name of the super market is, instead of buying up on the hill along the Alaska Hwy.

Another place is Haines Junction. At the intersection where you turn right to head for Beaver Creek and Alaska, avoid the gas station on the inside of that turn. They have at times been up to $.20cnd a liter higher than other places in town. Location, location, location.

Over the years, I have run into some real gougers on fuel prices. On one trip north, probably in the early 70s, I was flying a Piper aircraft up to Alaska from the Lower 48 for a friend, just for expenses. Had some bad weather chasing me so stayed in the air longer than I normally would have. Landed in Watson Lake and called the local fuel supplier. At most I had about 3 to 5 gallons of av gas remaining in my tanks. The supplier, over the radio told me he would deliver the fuel to me at the airport and he charged $5 a gal for it. The last fill up I had paid about half that much in southern Canada. I had to have fuel so told him to bring it out to the airport.
He showed up in a pickup with a 55 gal sealed drum of 80/87 av gas. He told me it was $325cdn cash. The Canadian dollar was worth about $1.25usd at the time so we were talking serious money.
Told him I only wanted 10 gal at that price and was informed, that was fine but the cost was still $325cdn for the drum. Said he only sold it by the full sealed drum. Quickly realized the situation was like dropping your soap in the shower room of a men's prison and bending over to pick it up.
I paid him the $325. Took about 30 gal to fill both 18 gal tanks on the plane. He then asked me what I wanted to do with the remaining fuel in the drum.
Told him to enjoy it and never again stopped there for av gas again. I got reimbursed for the cost by the plane owner but he didn't grumble much since I was flying for free, just expenses. LOL
Many things in the north country are cheaper now than in the past, especially out in the rural areas. About $8 a gal for av gas was the most I ever paid, in the village of Stoney River. Freight charges could double the prices on items, or more.

[PawPaw_n_Gram]

Snowman9000 wrote:
This is an example of what I like to call the living in the boonies tax. Some things are cheaper in the boonies: land, houses, wages, services. Some things are more expensive: anything that takes serious capital and transportation.

We are still paying near $3 for gasoline and close to $4 for diesel in far west Texas - 60 miles or more from I-10. The boonies tax is very real.

We bought 900 gallons of lowest grade gasoline for the state park where I'm hosting yesterday - at $2.714 per gallon - wholesale price.

lanerd wrote:
I know. You'd think that with all the oil being pumped out of Alberta, that oil by-products would be a lot cheaper.

Oil is being pumped out because Canada has relatively few refineries. Most of the fuel you buy in Canada is imported from the US or other countries. There are more oil refineries in the Houston-Baytown-Beaumont-Corpus Christi area of Texas than all of Canada.

[Snowman9000]

This is an example of what I like to call the living in the boonies tax. Some things are cheaper in the boonies: land, houses, wages, services. Some things are more expensive: anything that takes serious capital and transportation.

[dannydimitt]

Having driven the Alcan back in 1970 "much different now" and sweating in anticipation that we would make it to the next gas pump after all the cans were empty and the last tank showing empty on the gauge, I opted to get and install a RDS Vertical Diesel Fuel Transfer/Auxiliary Tank — 90-Gallon, Model# 72118 from Amazon "from northern tool , but the shipping is about half of what it is ordering from northern tool direct ??? and an install kit to hook it directly into the fuel filler hose , and I added a valve inline to let me control when and where I wanted the fuel to gravity feed from the 90 gallon tank in the bed. This works wonderfully with no problems whatsoever and only takes a minimum amount of floorspace as it sits upright ahead of the wheel wells and is below eye level while seated in the cab. Ours is a short bed 4 door 3/4 ton Dodge and it fits like a glove. The Cummins coupled to the 5 spd gear box can easily travel over 1800 miles between fuel stops pulling the Airstream trailer , allowing us to pick and choose where to get fuel and not have to pay incredibly inflated prices in remote and resort places that are notoriously over priced . On our trip to Alaska and back in 2013 we filled the tanks in Bastrop Texas , then again in Cheyenne , Wyoming "Lowest price on the trip" . then topped off in Helena Mt. and again in White Fish before crossing into Canada. Drove to Grande Prairie Alberta "low price fuel" and filled up the tanks. Headed over to Dawson creek and up the Alaskan highway , with a side trip to Skagway , back to White Horse ,up to Dawson in the Klondike, top of the world to Chicken Ak , then to Tok , AK and took on enough fuel there to cruise into Fairbanks and fuel up there. Topped off in Eagle before doing a week or so out on to Homer and all sorts of nifty places then topped of again in Eagle , filled up in Tok , then down the Alkan to the Cassier , South to Hyder and Stewart , south through Smithers ,prince George , then took on enough fuel in Quisnel British Columbia to get into Washington State. Got enough there to get into Montana , Filled up then again in Greely Colordo . Got Home with over 800 miles left in the tanks . Will it ever pay back the 600 buck investment ??? But being able to travel for days without worrying over where to get fuel , the price , will it be open , Etc. And driving past the super high dollar places without slowing down , is priceless. The extra pounds of weight are not even noticed in the bed of the Dodge and does not detract from the mileage in any discernible way .

[sue_t]

A lot of the fuel sold in Whitehorse and between Whitehorse and Beaver Creek comes from Fairbanks.

I had assumed that all these Big State Logistics B-trains that pass by our place were hauling empty south and full northward. But nope, they're hauling fuel from Fairbanks into Whitehorse and driving back empty. They also deliver to Haines Junction, Destruction Bay and Beaver Creek.

One of the trucks broke down near our place and we had the tools he needed to get mobile again. So while he worked he told us his truck was full of heating diesel bound for Whitehorse, and that he makes 2-3 trips a week between Whitehorse and Fairbanks with various fuel types, depending what is ordered.

It made me wonder why the fuel is so expensive in Beaver Creek...

[Community Alumni]

Just an FYI, I deleted/edited some posts. Let's keep the rhetoric down.

... Eric (Moderator)

[explorenorth]

When gas is 12 cents cheaper in Watson Lake = Misleading Advertising laws.

Ultimately I don't care since I didn't pay the gas bills for that trip. Many of the people on this board want to save money, and information like this helps with that.

[mayo30]

explorenorth wrote:

mayo30 wrote:
Prices are what they are,business is what it is,don't stop at the expensive places.

And that's why I'm letting you know where some of the high-priced places are - so you can avoid them. Well, maybe not you, as you seem to be okay with it. Except when I'm on my motorcycle (or in my niece's heavily-loaded vehicle), I have enough range that I don't have to stop at them.

Well you do what you gotta do,if your vehicle does not enable you to reach an economical buy,you pay the price,don't see the stress point in fuel prices.Be good enjoy life you only get one go at it.Done.

[explorenorth]

Trackrig wrote:
In the towns that have more than one street, go back to the second or third street to get away from the "tourist" prices. It's usually 10 cent a gallon cheaper.

Two summers ago at the northern highway locations, the fuel was being trucked in from Alaska by an Alaskan carrier. I talked with one of the drivers and he said it was being barged in (to Haines I believe) and then they trucked it from there.

Bill

The fuel isn't cheaper away from the main drag anywhere in the Yukon (except for the one station in downtown Dawson City) or most of BC.

A bit of fuel comes in from the Skagway dock, some over the Top of the World from the Fairbanks refinery, and the rest comes up the Alaska Highway.

Murray

[Trackrig]

In the towns that have more than one street, go back to the second or third street to get away from the "tourist" prices. It's usually 10 cent a gallon cheaper.

Two summers ago at the northern highway locations, the fuel was being trucked in from Alaska by an Alaskan carrier. I talked with one of the drivers and he said it was being barged in (to Haines I believe) and then they trucked it from there.

Bill