Alaska Highway Boondocking

[grampabar]

We are leaving May 1 from Minnesota, and travelling thru Jasper and Up the Alaska Highway to Fairbanks. Have been trying to make a list of some boondocking sites to help defray the cost of fuel. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

[DAN L]

Originally Posted by grampabar

We are leaving May 1 from Minnesota, and travelling thru Jasper and Up the Alaska Highway to Fairbanks. Have been trying to make a list of some boondocking sites to help defray the cost of fuel. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

we use this free allstays website mostly for walmart locations that allow overnight parking. this site has other parking and camping opportunities listed also and is kept up to date by users.

Walmart Store Locations Map - Wal-Mart Guide

[TW]

If you should leave Jasper NP via the Yellowhead Highway towards Edmonton, the first City / Town is Hinton. You can stay 1 night at the MALL Parkinglot. Is a big sign, when you enter. CANADIAN, TIRE, Walmart is right there too. The Parkinglot belongs to the MALL company....
On one long weekend last year over 100 RV's parked there for the night.........

[gg]

Tips from 2010 trip

1. Buy the Milepost Guide
2. On the Alaska Highway from Dawson Creek to Delta Junction many people pull off the road. Large Towns have Walmats or Fred Myers store parking lots.

3. Take it slow in the frost heave areas.
4. Gas up in the Major towns
5. In the wild their are two kinds of Bears in the wood: 4 and 2 legged! be prepared.
6. Take your camera to see the Greatest Drive of your life!!!!

[RV735]

Grampabar, My DW and I will be leaving for Alaska on May 15 form central New York State. We will travel through Glacier, Banff, Jasper and the Alaskan Highway. Do you have a blog that you will be posting to?

[ottffss]

You can boondock at any roadside turnout once you get north of a line roughly drawn through Edmonton, AB and Prince George, BC. The exception is on the Cassier where you can not boondock at a named "rest area" but you can in any turnout. The Milepost has them all marked for planning purposes - not that you need to plan - there are many, many turnouts along all the highways up yonder. When you see a nice spot just pull off and get to enjoying the outside!

I did that trip over 4 months and spent only 3 weeks in an official CG - in a 45'er w/toad no less. All the rest of the time was spent roadside boondocking. Your only dilemma when selecting a turnout will be deciding if the next turnout will be any more spectacular than the current one! Usually you will be parking alongside/near a lake or stream - get a fishing license for each province (BC, AB, YT) and AK. Fresh dinner every night. Some days you may travel 50miles some days maybe a couple hundred - it's what suits your fancy each day when you start out that day.

After 5pm or so - even though still light out - the traffic dies down from a car every 15-20 mins to a car every 3-4 hours. It will be very, very quiet. It will be just you and a "vastness" you can not imagine until you experience it. You'll seldom even share a turnout, and when you do it can turn into a nice meal gathering right alongside the road. BTW - the turnouts can be quite large.

Take in a meal (and often a show) in the "towns" along the way. These "towns" are populations of 20-50 folks. You will learn a whole new level of "community" you never dreamed existed. Ask how they make electricity, get water (summer/winter), mail, even do their banking. You are in for many surprises.

Remember, you are in the real wild (this is wilder than any "lower 48" wild) and MUST practice safe campsite/boondocking management. NO food or garbage left out EVER. If you don't know the rules of being in the wild there are all sorts of park service on-line videos to learn from. BTW - these are not Yellowstone bears, they do not know how to break into vehicles - and don't begin to teach them.

The more you learn about the people and land up there the more eye-popping the trip will be. CGs and store lot parking give you one perspective, roadside boondocking an entirely different experience.

[ralper]

Once you get on the Alaska Highway there is no end of places to boondock. The best being in gravel pits because you can get way off the highway. In 2008 I spent the summer in AK and boondocked more than CG'ing. You can also find some breathtaking scenery to enjoy with supper and AM coffee that way.

Due to the almost 24 hour daylight your solar will work great, if you have solar.

[ottffss]

Oh, one last thing to add to my prior post. Make sure to ask the real locals you will meet in all those small towns what to do/see and where to go next and you will have an experience like no other RVer or CG neighbor even dreamed existed. The "locals only" fishing holes, canoe spots, hike trails, overlooks, things-to-see, flowers-to-smell, and largely unpublished events/festivals far exceeded any of the typical planned/canned or published itineraries. Not that you should miss some of those either!

ENJOY!

[R2Home]

grampabar
We have made the trip from Alaska to the 'lower 48' several times. We have done this trip everyother year since to 90's. While we have never had the chance to really enjoy the travel, we have learned a lot. For the most part we have gone from Palmer, Ak to Suma Wa in 4-5 days give or take a little.
There are lots of places to boondock along the route, but some of them take a little searching to find. No matter which way we are going we always make it a point to use a CG at Dawson BC. This gives us a chance to get cloths washed, refuel with diesel/propane and restock on food. There are items that we buy in BC that we can not get any other place. One thing that we did learn was that if we wanted to see more wild game, that we did more travel early in the morning or late evening. Also the time that you are traveling, watch the roads. While more of them will be fine, there are areas that you will really need to watch your speed and driving. Keep in mind that there seems to be a LOT more big rigs on the roads in Canada and they do not slow down one bit.
Let me know if there is any other information that I might be able to share. I am sure that you will enjoy the trip. Our next trip out the wife will be retired and we will be able to enjoy the trip more.

[grampabar]

Thanks for all the help. We plan to take our time, (3 weeks), getting there, and "smell the roses".

[grampabar]

No, don't have a blog.....not sure how to set one up (not too computer savvy). Would like to follow yours, if you have one.

[RV735]

grampabar, We are also new to blogs. We have set up one and posted once to start. It is "RVGR8escape.blospot.com". It will be used to keep all the relatives informed of the trip as we travel. Our plan is to start in mid May and return in September. We intend to take the AK highway, Top of the world road, Fairbanks, Denali, Anchorage (our grand kids will fly in for 17 days), take a flight seeing tour of of Denali, Salmon fish in the Kenai, my DW and Grand kids to attend a seafood cooking class at Tutka Bay lodge, Ocean fish for Halibut, Kayak out of Whittier, Hike the mountian at Seward, visit Valdez, take the ferry with the MH out of Haines and spend severial days each at Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan, and Prince Rupert. Then travel home. We have put together a list of items to do at each city. Right now we are in the final preperations of the MH and will take a short practice trip with some NY FMCA members. We can hardly wait to get started.

[grampabar]

If you get down to Skagway, be sure to visit Slide Cemetery at the Dyea townsite....well worth the short drive.

[1ciderdog]

As others we found no problem finding wide spot off the roads which were level enough to overnight. Never once questioned by anyone about overnighting just off the highway. We did campgrounds every four or five nights to dump tanks - get fresh water, etc. Was GREAT!
Safe Travels
Bob