Community Forums

t55watson · 03-11-2015, 05:30 PM

I was going to tell you to make time for touring through BC and the Yukon. Then I checked and see you already live in the prettiest western Province. The wife and I fell in love with BC on our last Alaska journey. 4 weeks in BC heading North and 2 more weeks Heading South. Planning another trip in 2016. As for Alaska...the haul road to the Arctic Circle is all they say it is, beautiful but rough. The first 60 to 80 miles almost turned us around but it got smoother as we went North. Truckers on the haul road all use the CB. Telling when they are approaching or passing. When trucks are coming at you, slow down. They throw rocks and if you are going 45 and they are going 45 thats a 90 MPH rock. If you slow to 15 it becomes 60 mph rock and does no damage. We had no broken headlights or windshields.

jacwjames · 03-11-2015, 05:43 PM

We went in 2009, took a month to get there, a month in AK, and then another month to get back home. We did not take a tow vehicle and regret it, to much stuff out of the way for the RV.

The scenery is awesome. We did Valdez, then onto Anchorage, Kenai Peninsula, back to Anchorage then Talkeetna, Denali, Fairbanks, then back down to Delta Junction.

We spent a week in Denali, 3 days in the campground in the interior of the park and then another 4 days at the entrance campground. We did the green bus tour 2 days, great way to see the park.

We didn't make any advance reservations, found plenty of places to boon dock and stayed at state campgrounds very reasonable.

I would like to go back and will at some point in the near future.

Enjoy

Ron_H · 03-11-2015, 07:17 PM

A lot of potential suggestions may be contingent upon where in BC you are coming from and how long do you plan to stay in Alaska and the other northern locations.

I did Alaska, from Vancouver, in 2008 on my motorcycle and my wife and I are heading up there for this summer, leaving in early May.

There are two primary route up to Watson Lake, either on the Alcan from Dawson Creek or up the Cassiar Hwy. I strongly suggest you do them both and if you are coming back down in late August or later the Cassiar takes you near Stewart, BC and Hyder, AK where there is great bear watching during the salmon run.

You will also have to decide if you take the Top of the World Hwy through Dawson City and Chicken, AK as well as out of the way places such as Haines, Skagway and Valdese.

I would also suggest you take a toad to provide travel freedom.

twogypsies · 03-11-2015, 08:55 PM

3 Things to Purchase Online:

Milepost - for history and maps

Mike & Terri Church's 'Alaskan Camping' which includes Canada & the Yukon. There is so much more in this book for camping, RV parks and boondocking spots than the Milepost. They lived in Alaska at one time and travel back & forth updating the book.

TourSaver 1/2 Coupon Book - one glacier cruise will pay for the book and at least one is recommended. We did the Stan Stephens out of Valdez.

Take your Jeep and disregard the above picture of rocks laying on the hood. Yes, we have seen that also but the ones that had damage had the stiff, across the rear mud flap. They were actually taking them off in Whitehorse because of them throwing rocks. We just had the individual flaps behind each wheel and received absolutely no damage to the Jeep and we traveled every road - slowly.

The only reservations we made were for the July 4 weekend in Palmer (Alaskans like to camp, too) and for 5 nights in Teklanika campground in Denali Nat'l Park - the farthest one you can drive. For those we first made reservations about 3 weeks prior when we could better judge when we'd be there. As it turned out, we got to Denali area early so on a whim we boondocked nearby the previous night and drove into the park early morning and easily secured a site for our 40' MH in Denali's front campground, Riley Creek for another 5 nights without reservation. There was plenty to do for our total of 10 nights in the park. From Teklanika campground you need to purchase the TEK bus pass and the busses will make a stop at the campground all day long. We could ride it as often as we wanted during the 5 days and we saw every one of the major animals living in the park. Sometimes we went on the bus a couple hours in the morning or evening and sometimes all day long. Pack food & drinks and it's an enjoyable outing.

There's also a nice ongoing post of those going this summer over on the RV.net site in the Alaska/Canada forum. Also, at the top of that forum is a Sticky for tips and hints compiled by those who have already made the trip.

Have a great trip!

Appy · 03-11-2015, 09:07 PM

Either haul your toad or travel with others that are heading that way. Enjoy and happy trails.

Full.Monte · 03-12-2015, 08:04 AM

Excellent thread. Has anyone tried towing a boat? Is it worth it?

R2Home · 03-12-2015, 08:36 AM

Having have lived in Alaska for the last 45+ years, there is so much to see and do that it is difficult to cover it in any type of reply! Much of what to do, will depend on what a persons interest are. Yes, bring the Jeep, as you will want to explore and that is hard to do in a motor home. Take you time, as some of the roads are not the best and there is lots to see. As far as places to camp, along with the RV parks, there are lots of gravel places to boon dock as you want. During the weekends you will see lots of MH's and ATV's in many places, with a lot of friendly people that are willing to share Alaska tales with you.
Have a fun trip, be safe and enjoy!

coyotebrooks · 03-12-2015, 09:23 AM

Hi,

If you are going to bring some sort of weapon with you; you will want to check to contact Canada and seewhat type you can bring in and get a permit to bring it in.

Wiley

Davidej M · 03-12-2015, 06:15 PM

Thank you to everybody that has posted their comments. Based on the comments by all of you, we are now leaving as early as we can to max our stay. Looking forward to the trip.
Thanks again

Dave

Ray,IN · 03-12-2015, 06:53 PM

There is an ongoing discussion here: http://www.irv2.com/forums/f38/carav...-a-211173.html

MikeandClaudia · 03-13-2015, 10:13 AM

Here, Here on the Churches Book.

Be sure and take your Jeep.

Parking is at a premium around the "Moose is Loose" bakery in Soldotna, and you SURE want to go there---and many other places!

lanerd · 03-13-2015, 01:01 PM

For what it's worth, we left home (Sou Cal) around mid May and didn't return until Oct. We spent about the same amount of time in BC and Alberta as we did in Alaska. We did take the Alaskan ferry on the return trip by getting on in Haines and then spent a week each at Juneau, Sitka, Ketchekan, and then in Prince Rupert BC. We explored the Kenai for four weeks, Anchorage, Fairbanks, Denali, Whitehorse, Valdez, for at least a week each. So much to see, so little time.....that's why most people make at least one return trip.

Ramets · 03-14-2015, 04:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeandClaudia

Here, Here on the Churches Book.

Be sure and take your Jeep.

Parking is at a premium around the "Moose is Loose" bakery in Soldotna, and you SURE want to go there---and many other places!

OMG!!! The "Moose is Loose" bakery is awesome. We stayed in Soldotna for a month, and I think I tried just about everything they baked.

Ron_H · 03-14-2015, 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Davidej M

Thank you to everybody that has posted their comments. Based on the comments by all of you, we are now leaving as early as we can to max our stay. Looking forward to the trip.
Thanks again

Dave

Dave,

Watch the weather and road condition reports, keeping in mind that it will take you awhile to reach the northern roads. As stated earlier, I did a return trip from Vancouver to Anchorage/Fairbanks and other Alaska destination a few years ago. It was a 12 day trip (6,000 miles) departing in mid-May and I had clear snowfree roads all the way with only one frosty morning below freezing. On the other hand, a friend did near the same trip one year later and spent three days in a motel in the Yukon waiting for the snow to clear off the road.

DW and I leave Vancouver for Alaska in early May, in our motorhome this time. We'll travel north on the Cassiar Hwy and head for Dawson City before heading into Alaska. I really don't know how long that will take but if we run into weather issues, we'll simply camp where we are until the weather clears.

Unfortunately we have to be in Alberta in early September so we'll miss the salmon run and bear feeding at Hyder on our way back down and may not have enough time to see all the sights. But, if we don't see it all we can do a return trip in a couple of years.

Seeing Alaska by motorhome (or other RV) is, I believe, the ideal way to maximize your enjoyment. While zipping through northern BC, the Yukon and Alaska on my bike I often thought that the best way to visit AK would be by in an RV. It allows you the flexibility to adjust your schedule on the fly and wander at will which is my ideal travel mode.

Enjoy!