Roll Call Alaska 2016

[GGeorge]

I have been planning this trip for 4+ years. It is now time to update my estimates and make my reservations.

Estimate Wash/BC border about 5 May 2016, north on route 97/1/2 to Tok, south to Valdez, make the hump to Anchorage, then to Homer and Seward, north to Denali, Fairbanks, back to TOK and off to Dawson, then south to Watson Lake, Smithers, then to CAN 16 east to Jasper,/Banff, on to Glacier in Montana, arriving early Sept so I can get thru the park then west to Kalispell. South thru the US to Houston area for the thanksgiving holiday and Florida for the Christmas holiday. Since I am sure it will be cold in Ohio I wont return home till April 2017.

Alaska here we come!!!!

G George

On edit, yup it's time to plan 2016. I edited your post to modify the title to be consistent with previous years; it will facilitate future searches for members.

... Eric (Moderator)

[sue_t]

nevadanick wrote:
Other than the wait times and pilot cars that section north of Burwash is much smoother than it was a month or so ago.

With the rain the past week, the southern construction section nearest Burwash has become washboarded and rough. The locals are speculating that the construction company "took too much off the top" and it will be a difficult repair now. Folks in Beaver Creek wonder if it will be smoothed out before winter -- needs more grading to deal with the washboard.

[AlaskaShooter]

We did the Top of the World in July. At times plowing through half a foot of mud and visibility down to 100'. Slow going to say the least. I almost locked the the front hubs in the morning we departed Chicken for Dawson City but opted not to. Wished I had by mid day. But we made the crossing. We stopped about 30 miles from Dawson to clean off the trailers taillights and rearview mirrors.

Then gave the entire rig a power wash once in Dawson City so we could touch it without wearing it and see out of the windows.

-George

[nevadanick]

Other than the wait times and pilot cars that section north of Burwash is much smoother than it was a month or so ago.

[rag-ftw]

Thanks, Sue!
You just helped me make up my mind. We are going to take The Taylor and Top of the World. At least we expect that route to be rough and dirty!

[sue_t]

We just returned home from a quick trip up to Beaver Creek and back to Whitehorse. The Alaska Highway between Burwash Landing and White River is under construction with long waits for pilot cars. Plan at least four hours between Beaver Creek and Burwash if you are southbound on the AK Hwy. We took five hours and the RV park owner in Beaver Creek told me it took motorcyclists four and a half hours on the same day.

Be prepared to get muddy. Take your time on the paved stretches that look okay; there are some good frost heaves and nasty dips. A few are good enough to get airborne and some of those aren't marked.

This 60 mile stretch is the worst I have ever seen it. Between White River and Beaver Creek it is quite nice now that construction is complete and the chipseal is down BUT keep your eyes open for crevasses that will toss your rig.

[CA_Traveler]

Lizzie, sorry for your rig issues but perhaps best to happen at the end (almost) of your trip if it has to happen. In 2013 (I believe you were 2 weeks ahead of us) we met a camper in Dawson Creek who had managed to bend his fifth wheel hitch. He was in day 19 for repairs but almost done.

Later another camper decided to decorated the Alaskan Highway with one of his trailer axles! He was lucky (in a sense) as it happened right in front of the repair shop.

[PghBob]

lizzie: Sorry to learn of your mechanical problems on the way home. But, it seems from your posts that you had the trip of a life time this summer. That's what is all about. We had our trip last summer.

Best wishes and safe travels with your new rig.

[lizzie]

We are still in the road through no fault of our own. Our trip was super, duper and everything we wanted it to be, but was too much for our little Bullet Ultra-Lite. We limped into Reno knowing that we had issues with the bushings and bearings and a tire that would not stay inflated. Long story short, not only did we have all those issues but a broken (and torqued)frame as well. We were fortunate to get great folks to work with us and we were on our way within a week with a rebuilt frame, two new tires, etc. etc. Just outside Grand Junction we blew a tire. The "new" spare that had never been on the ground. Discount Tire replaced it, gave us two new tires,and switched all four around. Just inside Kansas City a truck stopped us and said something had broken (he heard it break) and was hanging down. It was a leaf spring. After consulting with the service manager at TransWest, we crawled slowly to their place in Belton MO. We have been "camped" with these wonderful folks for the past three days waiting for parts to arrive. Today, when they actually started working on the TT, we learned of other problems. Our plan was to try to get the Bullet back to Florida, sell it and buy a B+ or small C. With this in mind, I have been researching the internet since Reno. I knew what we wanted and TransWest had it. This afternoon we traded in our poor Bullet for a Renegade Villagio. Tomorrow we have to downsize to fit into it. Then we have to drive two vehicles home. What an end to our amazing adventure! lizzie

[Tgator1]

Good pictures Sue. The bear we saw would grab one from the water, take it to shore, leave it and go get another. Probably got 4 or 5 salmon while we watched. Never saw him eat a whole one. Hopefully (s)he goes back and eats them later?!?

[sue_t]

Black bear at the salmon run in Valdez - Aug 25, 2010



A gull at the same salmon run

[Tgator1]

We had a great time in Alaska! Saw lots of wildlife, including a black bear catching several salmon near Valdez (Allison Point). Denali bus tour was another highlight. We saw several moose, a ptarmigan, dall sheep, caribou and spectacular mountain scenery. Would love to return, but dread the long drive from South Texas! Had tire problem in Soldotna and got ripped off at Midas shop there. STAY AWAY FROM MIDAS Auto in Soldotna!!! Now in South Montana headed home.
Edit to change auto repair shop to Midas, not Meineke in Soldotna.

[12thgenusa]

We are staying in Buffalo, Wyoming tonight, last night of the trip. Home tomorrow. What a great trip. Over 11,200 miles without incident. Lots of pictures of clouds and rain,:( but you accept what you cannot change and enjoy everything that you can. Too many favorite spots to pick a top favorite.

[CountryRoad_REV]

I haven't posted much, but my wife and I are in Denali and taking the bus today. Plan to spend some time I'm in Delta Junction next then head back in the next week. We have had a great time.

[DakotaCamper]

GGeorge wrote:
I think we all should give Lizzie a big round of applause for keeping us all straight for this 2016 trip. Thank you Lizzie.

We are at Glacier NP now about 1 month ahead of the original schedule
due to one of us being homesick and missing the grand children. So we had to hurry a little faster, Glacier till next Tuesday then off to Missoula for a week then 3 days of travel east to wherever that lands us. Day or two rest the eastern movement again. I promised we would be home before 22 Sept. So I have 33 days to get back to Ohio. Besides the Buckeyes will be playing football on Saturdays and I gotta watch those games. So thanks again for everyones help, advise, and making the trip worth while.

GGeorge

Are you staying in the park? We are staying outside of the park until Monday morning.

[Yeti_plus]

We weren't on the list, but we are out of Alaska now. We also travelled through Yukon territory, not just the Alaska highway, did a side trip down to Stewart and Hyder, saw one grizzly, then back up to Alaska Hwy and now are at Fort Providence, NWT before heading to Yellowknife tomorrow.Somebody thinks that since we will be in the diamond capital of North America she needs a present.
Lizzie the Liard Trail from Fort Nelson north is trees and trees and more trees. Mostly gravel and no big scenery , like Alaska and Yukon.
And a big thank you to Lizzie for keeping us all organized, and to everyone else who posted and gave us so much information for some of our side trips.
Brian