Roll Call Alaska 2015

[trcgolf]

I know its early but we have been planning for the past 3 months. I know its another 15 months at least till we leave but we are just going crazy...
So here is our very rough plan overview. Leave mid June from western NY; travel west up through Ill., Wis., Min., ND, into Canada.
Diagonally across Saskatch. and Alberta, BC, and YT...
Our first destination is Fairbanks, via Top of the World Highway... thinking of doing the Dempster to the Arctic Circle. I know there will many stops... some short, some long but all will be great.
Fairbanks to Homer with the obligatory Denali stop for a few days.
Homer to Portland Or; Oregon to San Fran; San Fran to home via the Northern US.

We have so much planning yet to do but reading all the Roll Call posts in 2013, and 2014 just keeps us going. Started to plan finances which brings us to the first major question.
I have heard all the diesel advantages and draw backs of the gas engines. We invested in a 32' fifth wheel and 2013 GMC 2500 HD with 6.0L Crew 4x4. The fiver weighs about 8K empty, I would guess 10,500 loaded. ( I will get that checked for sure)Brand new to Rving

The truck is my every dayer.... need the 4 wheel drive here in winter. The decision with gas was pure economics. A Cummins diesel and matching tranny was $9500 more. Doing the math it was going to take a bunch of miles to save enough in mileage to pay for the increase in price. About 100000 mile by my calculation. We not going to be full timers; one long trip a year to Florida.
Traveling around NY and Pa and maybe Florida, that all makes sense but going on a trip like this, I am not so sure gas was the way to go. So I am asking for those who used a truck like mine to haul a fifth wheel through Canada...Alaska...et al... What kind of mileage can I expect? Sorry for the novelette...I will get better at this.

Edited to add 'Alaska' within the title.

[CarmenandJoey]

traveylin wrote:
The moral of the stores,,,be nice to people starting out, as you may well be camped next to them in the next village down the line..


Pops

Very wise words, I think more people should just be nice to others no matter what!

I was told that if you see someone stuck along the side of the road stop and help cause that might be you another mile down the road

[lakeside013104]

Sue T thank you. We might just have to leave the last week of August rather than the first week of September next year.

Lakeside

[sue_t]

For those planning to hang around until September, note that the Muncho Lake to Fort Nelson area, along the Alaska Highway in north-eastern BC, is having snow this morning. It likely won't stay long, but it is there.

Yet, in Whitehorse it is raining. I hear that Burwash Landing, near Kluane Lake in Yukon, had some snow yesterday though.

This at Steamboat, about 50 miles northwest of Fort Nelson

[lizzie]

traveylin wrote:


The moral of the stores,,,be nice to people starting out, as you may well be camped next to them in the next village down the line..
Pops

This is so true! lizzie

[traveylin]

Something very unique about the Alaskan experience, you begin to meet fellow travelers at campgrounds in great falls Montana and continue to meet the same folks at other campgrounds down the line, unplanned. I would walk the two dogs early and late and had chance meeting with one couple in five different locations. Many folks will seek the company of a caravan, traveling together. Independents as they take the comen path develope acquaintances also.

The moral of the stores,,,be nice to people starting out, as you may well be camped next to them in the next village down the line..


Pops

[CarmenandJoey]

traveylin Pops

Thanks for the advise, we are planning on getting one for a week. I've driven the big box trucks so I have an idea how they suck gas and drive like a #@%$ in the wind so I'm not worried about the handling of them, just go slow and steady. Everything else is a learning curve, that's part of the fun.

Trackrig Bill
I know 17 days is short and we can't do and see everything we want but I've learned if you keep putting things off till you have the time you'll never find the time. So 17 days is what we have then we are just going to enjoy what we can. The journey isn't about the destination it's what comes in between.

What would you suggest as some of the must does on the trip? I've planned a drive through the BadLands and Mount Rushmore, and then the Icefields Highway if the conditions are good, then up to Dawsons Creek to pickup the Alcan. after that still working on it?

Joe B
Thats the special, its the only way that I have found that you can get a one way north through Canada to Alaska. It seems a great deal and they have a supply of people ready to do it! You put it perfectly! A brand new Winnebago for 2 weeks.

Now its just doing the research and planning, then once we get on the road throw it all out and relax and enjoy the ride!!! LOL

[traveylin]

Tying up with a rental delivery is a neat deal, if the economics work out for both parties. That's a side issue.

Indiana is probably 4000 miles from anchorage on the route and in 17 days you will average 250 miles per day including the days spent on the bus in Denali, day fishing for salmon on the Kenai, day fishing for halibute at Homer, afternoon at Liard hot spring, posting your sign at Watson lake, checkout day at ia, checkin day at anchorage, side trip to Dawson, side trip to Valdez ,side trip to Skagway, beaver creek at 30 mph.

If the delivery works for you do it, but drive like hell to Liard hot springs and stay on schedule from there.

We are still not finished with our second trip to Alaska. 95 day since setting out. You gotta go. It's the trip of a life time. With limited time I would drop the northern part of ak, chicken Fairbanks and Denali. Denali is visible not a large part of the time.

Pops

[joe_b_]

The program that Camen and Joey are involved with is the delivery of new rentals to Anchorage. They get a greatly reduced rental price and the Anchorage rental agency gets their RV deliver directly from the factory in the Lower 48. They probably don't have a choice as to where to turn it in, it is in their contract.

A couple of springs back, ABC Rentals or GAH Rentals sent 150 new Class Cs to Alaska with this method. It is a win- win situation to me. When they get to Anchorage they turn in the RV and fly home. Some people rent for an extra week or so to stay longer. To me, 17 days will make for a great trip. Not as long as some can make, but it will give them a good idea of what to do on the next few trips they make to the north country. I can make it from south Florida to Fairbanks in 10 driving days, with a few stops along the way it works out to be about two weeks . From Iowa 17 days will give them a very nice trip. I have often said, I would fly to Alaska, just to spend a weekend, if I could afford it, which I can't. LOL

Several of the big RV rental agencies in Anchorage are also dealers, so they buy directly from the factory. The renters apply to take the new Class Cs north on a set departure date. They can rent all the basic items they need, such as pot and pans, linens, etc. Then at some time, the rental agency loads all the pots and pans, linens, etc in a truck and sends it back to the lower 48 for the next years renters to use. The rental agency will have people at the factory to go over the rigs with the people, explain all the working, how to handle any problems, etc. Folks leave out in assigned waves and the route they take north is, as I understand it, is up to the travelers, to a large degree.

Most of the renters will fly into the factory area. The rental agency furnishes transportation from the nearest airport to the factory to pick up the new rigs. They have the process figured out, from telling the renters where the nearest grocery stores are, to how to order pizza to be delivered to their RV, that first night.

[Trackrig]

Carmen and Joey

As Traveylin Pops said, the 17 days you have is way too short. You'd be a lot better off to fly to Alaska, rent a MH and spend the time in Alaska. Most people will tell you that even that is way to short to see Alaska. Either that or rent the MH as planned but only go up as far as one of the northern Canadian towns, fly back from there and do the Alaskan portion later. Again, the 17 days is way to short to see what Canada has to offer.

I'm not sure how many miles you're planning on driving a day, but one of the main things every says after they get back, is to slow down for the road conditions. You're not going to be on a freeway at 70MPH. If you do break something from speeding for the road conditions, most of the RV repair places in northern Canada have at least a two week back log of work before they can even look at you. And when they do, if parts are needed, it will be another week to get them.

The Lynden trucks can make the trip in 72 hours when they need to, but considering the time you'll spend setting up everyday, you're not going to see much more than they do. You really need to reconsider how far you want to go in that short of a time.

Bill

[daily_double]

We are leaving Tok as soon as I can get the snow off the windshield. We didn't get much just a dusting.

[traveylin]

Carmen, consider renting a Rv for a week since you are new to it,things to be learned prior to starting out to Alaska next summer,,,

How much to pack, you will try to take to much stuff

The operation of the different systems on an Rv, refrigerator, battery's, gas detectors, hold tank size etc

How fast the vehicle goes and fuel used. Slower and gulps gas

How to park and access stores

A weeks experience will allow your ak trip to proceed with less stress.


Pops

[hr0082]

We have been home for a week. We left home June 4 and spent 11 weeks on the way to, in and home from Alaska and Canada and I am already thinking about returning next year. If we do go back for our 4th trip in the last 6 years, I think we will leave home later and stay in Alaska until the trees are changing. I have seen some pictures and I think that would be a wonderful time of the year to be there. Since we mostly boondock or stay in Federal, state and provincial campgrounds, the closing of full service campgrounds would probably not impact us much.

[CarmenandJoey]

My wife and I just signed our papers and are renting an RV and doing the drive from Forest City IA, heading up to Alaska on May 16 2015. We only have 11 days to get up there and another 6 to do Denali and the Kenai Peninsula but we figure that is better no days. We are really excited about the drive up there, we are new to RVing and thought this would be the best way to get the full experience. Only 9 months left to plan!!

[traveylin]

Five windshield chips and one crack on the toad. Bring two or three windshield repair kits and fix as soon as possible to minimize a crack spreading. I like the rainex kit sold at walmart with the windshield wipers. Chips are kinda like the cost of fuel, not much you can do about it except add it into the budget

Pops

[rkassl]

We did Alaska in 2013, and all we can say it was the most amazing trip we ever took. This year we stayed local got caught up on house stuff, but I think there is a very good chance to hit the road north in 2015. We left Wisconsin on May 15th and returned the first week of August. I think we would leave the same time next year but stay at selected locations a little longer and travel back on the Cassier and check out the Hyder/Stewart area. We like to come back into the USA in Western Montana and hide out in the West Glacier area for a while. Otherwise we keep planning and dreaming.