Roll Call Alaska 2013

[JANETRUPP]

Just thought I'd start a thread regarding who will be starting up to Alaska in 2013. It would be nice if we could share information so everyone has a memorable and safe trip.
We will be leaving around the end of May out of Las Vegas. We will be traveling with our 40' MH and towing our Equinox car. We are heading up with my husband's cousin and her husband and they have an airstream.
We have gone before but in 2005 so we are really looking forward again to the adventure. It is surely a trip of a lifetime and to do it more than once is a blessing. We are only on this earth for a short while.
Travel safe!

Janet

[lizzie]

It is a strange spring but we are still on-track to leave NC next Saturday (May 4). Since our TT is in south Alabama, we will need to spend a few days getting it serviced and loaded for the trip. We plan to head west on I-10 on Wednesday, May 8. We will be watching the weather closely and hope to access I-40 at Ft. Smith but may go all the way to Blythe CA on I-10. We have reservations at Sparks Marina RV (near Reno,NV) on May 23rd.We have traveled to the northwest in May many times and it is best to have flexible plans. Even I-10 can have weird snowstorms and the wind can be awful. I got my signs laminated yesterday. We are almost ready to go! lizzie

[AprilWhine]

Hey Janet, when are you going to be in Vegas? If it's in May, we could meet for coffee or dinner.

Fuzzy and I travel on the retired schedule of 2/3/4: 200 miles, 3PM, or 4 hours of driving, whichever comes first. 😉

[JANETRUPP]

Butch50 wrote:
Is anybody delaying their start to AK because of the late spring this year? We were planing on leaving around the middle of May but we well probably wait till closer to the end of May before taking off. Our route is going to go on the northern route in Yukon on the way up and then come back around the coastal towns on our way back on the Alcan. Meaning taking the South Canol road up to Dawson and then back a little to head up to Inuvik. I was just looking where Top of the World is still closed which we want to go on. We also want to go to Inuvik and don't want to get there to early either.

Our weather here has been so strange this year. One day we are 80 and the next a cold front comes through and we have freeze warnings. Then it takes 3 to 4 days before it starts to warm up again. We well get one nice day and then another series of storms and cold front roll through again. Makes it hard to get anything ready to go anywhere.

No we are still leaving May 11th but we travel real slow. 3 nights in Vegas and a couple of nights in different places traveling up. Plus we never travel over 200 miles on a travel day. This way we see more and get into camp early to enjoy the rest of the day. Too long of a travel day takes a strain on the marriage, LOL :W

Janet

[Butch50]

Is anybody delaying their start to AK because of the late spring this year? We were planing on leaving around the middle of May but we well probably wait till closer to the end of May before taking off. Our route is going to go on the northern route in Yukon on the way up and then come back around the coastal towns on our way back on the Alcan. Meaning taking the South Canol road up to Dawson and then back a little to head up to Inuvik. I was just looking where Top of the World is still closed which we want to go on. We also want to go to Inuvik and don't want to get there to early either.

Our weather here has been so strange this year. One day we are 80 and the next a cold front comes through and we have freeze warnings. Then it takes 3 to 4 days before it starts to warm up again. We well get one nice day and then another series of storms and cold front roll through again. Makes it hard to get anything ready to go anywhere.

[AprilWhine]

We're leaving Pahrump NV around 5/28 heading to Moscow IA to get HWH levelers installed. From there, it's back to Great Falls MT to meet with the rest of the SMART caravan.

[JANETRUPP]

Guess What??? A new Alaska bound traveler has joined our group. Welcome to "Munches On The Move" from Atlanta, Georgia.
Our list is growing big and time is getting close.


Only 13 days for us til we leave Bullhead City!!!!

Travel safe all!
Janet

[JANETRUPP]

ROLL CALL - ALASKA 2013
We will need to hang a sign in the window with our screen name so we will recognize each other while traveling. I know I have too much time on my hands, lol

janetrupp - Bullhead City, AZ
DesertHawk - New Mexico
TwoHands - California
SD1209 - San Diego, Calif
Lonnie4801 - Texas
LindaZ - Colorado
JUrban - Delaware
AprilWhine -Pahrump, NV - Smart Caravan
PA12DRVR - Houston -Anchorage
KPSmithSr - St Louis, MO
JoeB - Florida
Jim4929 - Roaroke, VA
HKsilvereagle - North Pole
gandalf42 - Fort Collins, Colorado
tsimtcu8 - Vancouver, British Columbia
Hjudge49 - St Augustine, Florida
Jnharley - Indiana
sodajerk - Dallas, Texas
b2egypt - Michigan
pasco1215 - Central Alabama
glen68 -Warba, MN - Great Falls, MT for SMART Caravan
CA Traveler - Sun Lakes, AZ
Gonecamping444 - Michigan
rickjf - Florida
daily double - Ketchum, Oklahoma
retired frog - Albany, NY
jonlin - North Carolina
phxkayaker - Washington state
glaciergus - Minnesota
Dirtsailor - Halethorpe, MD
donp5311 - Iowa
AidenJ - Adirondocks, NY
Texas Roadrunner - San Antonio, TX
S Ski - Chandler, AZ
Tom&Susan G - Ringgold, Georgia
lizzie - Unaka, North Carolina
Butch50 - Bentonville, Arkansas
pistolpeter55 - Maine
bajarat - Austin, Texas
pnordan - North Carolina
dlklose - Colorado
fanrgs - Denver, Colorado
Elmer Zilch - Bossier, LA
Takemeanywhere - Wisconsin
taviking22 - Omaha, Nebraska
bigtuffy2 - Merkel, Texas
Alan M - Cobb, CA
Hoaugh - Columbus, Ohio
Bob n Izetta - Florida
glen112233 - Iowa
yukiroad - South Pasadena, Calif
Bakers - ? (friends of Texas roadrunner)
two travelers - Smithtown, NY
sanjim - Mississippi
gandalf12 - Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
sassydad - Indiana
lapinebob - Oregon
gypsylady7 - Florida
TallyCouple - Florida
tbaugh - Columbus, Ohio
mhwarner - Arizona
linda9918 - Idaho
Gsmitty77 - San Diego, Calif
Laurie and Mark - Michigan
seraphim - Ohio
primetimerver - Emerald Isle
dgporter - Gainesville, Ga
Passin Thru - North VA
wla7 - Warren, Ohio - Fantasy Caravan
Colorado Travelers - Colorado Springs, CO - Smart Caravan
On the road again - Panama Beach, Florida
Never 2 late - San Jose, Calif
DannyLeininger - Boerne, TX - Fantasy Caravan (Dawson Creek)
Scottiemom - Indiana
wtravlr1 - Tampa, Florida
dannydmitt - Bastrop, Texas
Texas Two Steppers - Beaumont, TX
Applegater - Oregon
gclement - New Orleans, Louisiana
Munches On The Move - Atlanta, Georgia

[AprilWhine]

Thanks Sue, that gave me a laugh. I wouldn't have thought to look on the tank either. 😄

[dannydimitt]

sue.t wrote:
Ross River has changed much the past decade. However, if you make it there, the fuel is usually the cheapest you'll find in Yukon.

Ross River has changed significantly since the 1970s. The closure of the mine at Faro had a negative impact on the community. Most of the businesses have closed their doors. The hotel remains open and caters mostly to temporary workers who have to spend time in Ross River.

The one gas station is also the bank, the badly stocked grocery store and the post office. If you ask a question inside, don't expect an answer. Don't expect eye contact even.

To find the gas pump I asked an elderly couple in a truck because the people inside the store/gas station/bank/post office wouldn't look me in the eye or respond to questions about where the fuel pump was. The couple had a great laugh, chuckled to themselves, then pointed at the huge above ground fuel tank and said, "There!". Ahhhh ... the pump is on the tank! It wasn't easy getting the fifth wheel & truck there ... not designed for long vehicles.

Thanks Sue !
That big white tank sure wasn't there in 70 ! There was one old gas pump probably built in the 40s or 50s on the porch of the general store - trading post. Not much in the store then either .

[lapinebob]

Trackrig wrote:
Credit Cards for fuel.

When we came up the AlCan last spring, buying fuel was sometimes a real pain. Not because of the Canadian gas stations, but because of the credit card companies. We were just trying to make time to get the MH we just purchased home so sometimes we filled up more than once a day. The MH has a 100 gal tank and it was usually close to empty when we found a place to fill up so sometimes it cost $400. With two people driving more or less around the clock and being early spring before the tourist trade started, not all of the fuel stations were open at whatever time of day or night we came through.

If you have a large tank, when you pull into a place to fill up, we found it best to go to the cashier to see if you could pay them after filling up instead of using the card at the pump. If we did it at the pump, we’d have to run the card through three or four times to get enough fuel and every time the credit card company would lock up the card because their computer would think the card was stolen and multiple people were using it.

The main card I was using was my Bank of America card so that I got my Alaska Airline mileage. Yes, I had called them before we left Portland and told them we would traveling through Canada for the next five days with a MH requiring a lot of fuel. They said thank you, they would put notes in their computer and there wouldn’t be any problems. At every pump the card would get locked up. I’d call them and they would once again assure me it wouldn’t happen again. Then it got to be that the first run of the card, it would work, on the second run it would lock up, I’d call them, they’d assure me it was fixed, then the second run would work and the third run would lock up again. When that started happening, when I called on the card locking on the second run, I wouldn’t let them off the phone until I was all done filling up.

About half way through the trip we’d start calling them when we got within cell range of a town that we’d have to fill up in. By the time we got to a diesel pump and ready to fill up, we’d have gotten through all of their recordings and told them to stay on the line while we started fueling and stay on the line until we were done. This way they would immediately reset the card when the computer locked it up. In the end, this was by far the easiest and least painless solution. One night we couldn’t get through on the cell phone, but needed fuel to keep moving so we had to use four different credit cards to fill up. I’m guessing the fuel pump card readers were working on land lines. Had to call all four credit card companies the next day when we got cell service again to unlock the cards.

If there was a funny part to all of it (?), it was that when calling them you would listen to a recording telling you how you weren’t liable to for any theft on your card. Then when you got a live person and asked them why they kept locking up the card after all of the assurances that it wouldn’t happen again, they would tell me that it was for my own protection…………

So
1. Call them before going into Canada because it’s scary foreign country to them
2. If you can pay at the counter after you’re finished filling instead of paying at the pump, it will work better
3. If the card locks up, make sure you can read the phone # on the back of the card to call. On some of my cards they ran the card number imprints on the front, over the 800# on the back so you can’t read them
4. If it really starts becoming a problem, call them before starting to fill up and keep them on the line
5. Make sure you have three cards with you just in case you can’t get through on the cell phone

Have a great trip. We’ll pass a lot of you on our way down. We’ll leave Anchorage about June 12th to arrive in Conconully, WA on about July 18th.

Bill

Great information, I'm considering installing my in-bed 100 gal. tank unless it overloads the truck and had not thought about the credit card limits. I have about a 400 mi. range without it, but it should allow me to get fuel where it is more reasonable.

[sue_t]

Ross River has changed much the past decade. However, if you make it there, the fuel is usually the cheapest you'll find in Yukon.

Ross River has changed significantly since the 1970s. The closure of the mine at Faro had a negative impact on the community. Most of the businesses have closed their doors. The hotel remains open and caters mostly to temporary workers who have to spend time in Ross River.

The one gas station is also the bank, the badly stocked grocery store and the post office. If you ask a question inside, don't expect an answer. Don't expect eye contact even.

To find the gas pump I asked an elderly couple in a truck because the people inside the store/gas station/bank/post office wouldn't look me in the eye or respond to questions about where the fuel pump was. The couple had a great laugh, chuckled to themselves, then pointed at the huge above ground fuel tank and said, "There!". Ahhhh ... the pump is on the tank! It wasn't easy getting the fifth wheel & truck there ... not designed for long vehicles.

[AprilWhine]

We continue to do maintenance on the camper:

Fuzzy hubby is changing the fuel filter:




And because we NEED our coffee:

[dannydimitt]

There are no services between Watson Lake & Ross River. When we're in the area we prefer to not stop at Ross River (based on a couple of bad experiences there), so carry extra fuel to make it to Carmacks.




:)Sounds as if not much has changed in the past 43 years along the Campbell highway ! Your comment about a bad experience in Ross River brought back
memories of the agony on Dad's face ,God rest his sole, and some not to kind comments by him when we pulled into Ross River's trading post with it's lone gas pump on the front porch and found the price of a Canadian Gallon "5 quarts" of gasoline was .75 cents ! This was easily double the usual price for gas we found in Canada. And at the time 19.9 cents a gallon could be found at home. We bought enough to make it to Carmacks . Was great to bring up the Ross River gas stop
with Dad over the next 40 years and we would get that same look as back in 1970 🙂
We will be bringing Dads old coffee mug,"the same one he had with us in 1970" with us on this trip
and pour some hot mud in it. Set it on the table, and maybe, just maybe, feel his presence with us.

[Trackrig]

Credit Cards for fuel.

When we came up the AlCan last spring, buying fuel was sometimes a real pain. Not because of the Canadian gas stations, but because of the credit card companies. We were just trying to make time to get the MH we just purchased home so sometimes we filled up more than once a day. The MH has a 100 gal tank and it was usually close to empty when we found a place to fill up so sometimes it cost $400. With two people driving more or less around the clock and being early spring before the tourist trade started, not all of the fuel stations were open at whatever time of day or night we came through.

If you have a large tank, when you pull into a place to fill up, we found it best to go to the cashier to see if you could pay them after filling up instead of using the card at the pump. If we did it at the pump, we’d have to run the card through three or four times to get enough fuel and every time the credit card company would lock up the card because their computer would think the card was stolen and multiple people were using it.

The main card I was using was my Bank of America card so that I got my Alaska Airline mileage. Yes, I had called them before we left Portland and told them we would traveling through Canada for the next five days with a MH requiring a lot of fuel. They said thank you, they would put notes in their computer and there wouldn’t be any problems. At every pump the card would get locked up. I’d call them and they would once again assure me it wouldn’t happen again. Then it got to be that the first run of the card, it would work, on the second run it would lock up, I’d call them, they’d assure me it was fixed, then the second run would work and the third run would lock up again. When that started happening, when I called on the card locking on the second run, I wouldn’t let them off the phone until I was all done filling up.

About half way through the trip we’d start calling them when we got within cell range of a town that we’d have to fill up in. By the time we got to a diesel pump and ready to fill up, we’d have gotten through all of their recordings and told them to stay on the line while we started fueling and stay on the line until we were done. This way they would immediately reset the card when the computer locked it up. In the end, this was by far the easiest and least painless solution. One night we couldn’t get through on the cell phone, but needed fuel to keep moving so we had to use four different credit cards to fill up. I’m guessing the fuel pump card readers were working on land lines. Had to call all four credit card companies the next day when we got cell service again to unlock the cards.

If there was a funny part to all of it (?), it was that when calling them you would listen to a recording telling you how you weren’t liable to for any theft on your card. Then when you got a live person and asked them why they kept locking up the card after all of the assurances that it wouldn’t happen again, they would tell me that it was for my own protection…………

So
1. Call them before going into Canada because it’s scary foreign country to them
2. If you can pay at the counter after you’re finished filling instead of paying at the pump, it will work better
3. If the card locks up, make sure you can read the phone # on the back of the card to call. On some of my cards they ran the card number imprints on the front, over the 800# on the back so you can’t read them
4. If it really starts becoming a problem, call them before starting to fill up and keep them on the line
5. Make sure you have three cards with you just in case you can’t get through on the cell phone

Have a great trip. We’ll pass a lot of you on our way down. We’ll leave Anchorage about June 12th to arrive in Conconully, WA on about July 18th.

Bill

[sue_t]

dannydimitt wrote:
Has some place for fuel been added between Watson Lake and Ross River?

There are no services between Watson Lake & Ross River. When we're in the area we prefer to not stop at Ross River (based on a couple of bad experiences there), so carry extra fuel to make it to Carmacks.

The Campbell Highway between Watson Lake and Ross River is often in rough and muddy condition so we've taken to not driving it but instead enjoy the South Canol Road.

The South Canol is not suited to large RVs; it is a dirt road and in many places it is a single track. There's a stretch on the north end of the South Canol that is single track on a mountainside ... no place to go if you meet someone. One of you would be backing up to a wide spot. There are no services along this route either.

I understand Faro now has a card-only pump installed. Will be there this coming weekend for the Crane & Sheep Festival so will check it out.