Our first Alaska Trip, looking for comments on our itinerary!

[tim myers]

If you like sourdough pancakes there is a hole in the wall restaurant on the Rich near Sourdough that has the best all you can eat pancakes. I actually ate there when the old and I mean old cabin was still standing. IIRC it burned to the ground in the late 80's. Used to ride our bikes down there from Eielson AFB (Moose Creek) and eat a ton of pancakes on our way to Valdez. Yummy.

We ate there on our last trip to AK in 2011.

[Terry Jay]

You can drive to Skagway from Whitehorse, about 100 miles.

We do 4 months a year in Alaska, leaving from western WA in May. We get snowed on at least one day in May. So Late May or early June would be fine.

We cross at Sumas. The usual thing would be to get off the freeway at Hope and take 97 north up the Fraser River Canyon to get to Prince George, then left on 16 to Prince Rupert and the ferry. The alternate is take Hwy 5 over the top of the Cascades to Merritt and Kamloops, and stay on 5 north to where it intersects 16. You could take a side trip east on 16 and go thru Jasper just to do it, and then return toward Prince George and Prince Rupert. No charge if you are just going thru. On our trip we stay at Clay Banks RV in Merritt, and then at the KOA in Hinton. Nice parks, and the distance is about right.

In Alaska when you hit Tok you need a decision. If the weather in Valdez looks good, go to Valdez first. If not, go to Fairbanks.

The road (note, there really is only one road, and it loops around between Fairbanks and Anchorage, with few spurs to Valdez and the Kenai) near Anchorage will be crowded at rush hour, and Friday and Sunday evenings. If you want to see something in Anchorage, do it on the weekend, there is no one there.

Starting in mid July the dip-net season on sockeye (also called reds) get going on the Kenai River mouth and the Kasilof River until the end of the month, so lots of weekend traffic. That is also the time to try rod and reel fishing if you are so inclined. Next summer will also be a Pink salmon year, so lots of fish.

Overnighting in parking lots and gravel pits is fine. The Fred Meyer in Soldotna has a dump station and fresh water.

Seward over the 4th of July is a reservation needed, and Denali anytime. Other than those two, no reservation needed.

Many (not all) of the visitor activities are open Memorial Day to Labor Day, so staying between those dates will pretty much ensure that anything you want to do will be open. In Southeast on the Marine portion of the trip the schedule is determined by the cruise ship schedule.

If you want to try fishing, Trustworthy in Soldotna has everything you will need at decent prices. If you do the Kenai and Valdez later, there are silvers from the beach in Valdez.

Here is a site for Alaska Outdoor information Alaska Outdoors Forums

On the way home, take 16 to Jasper, then 93 south, the Icefields Parkway. I think the charge is $20 CDN fo 24 hours. It comes out on the Trans Canada in Banff, and 93 south continues about 10 miles east and will deliver you to I-90 in Missoula.

If you have not been, consider the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, WY Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Cody Wyoming

Have a great trip.

[Sharona1947]

Originally Posted by tim myers

If you like sourdough pancakes there is a hole in the wall restaurant on the Rich near Sourdough that has the best all you can eat pancakes. I actually ate there when the old and I mean old cabin was still standing. IIRC it burned to the ground in the late 80's. Used to ride our bikes down there from Eielson AFB (Moose Creek) and eat a ton of pancakes on our way to Valdez. Yummy.

We ate there on our last trip to AK in 2011.

YES YES YES on the Sourdough pancakes..we ate ours at the Sourdough Campground in TOK..won a free breakfast tossing pancakes the night before ..was fun..
ALSO for pizza lovers, the MOOSE'S TOOTH in Anchorage is a must! The Bake Shop in Girdwood is also a must for more sourdough pancakes and cinnamon rolls!....Before AK in Cody WY the rodeo, in a small town outside of Crazy Horse heading east, the best hamburger I have ever eaten at a hole in the wall...closes a few hrs in the afternoon to get more fresh meat for the dinner hr...racking my brain for the name of the town..place written up in magazines as the best hamburger place ever!!

[Sharona1947]

Black Hills Burger & Bun Co. in Custer, SD...Campground in Custer was great..close to the Needles Hwy, Mt Rushmore, Crazy Horse...

[HicksRA]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is this book:
Traveler's Guide to Alaskan Camping: Alaska and Yukon Camping With RV or Tent (Traveler's Guide series): Mike Church, Terri Church: 9780982310151: Amazon.com: Books
We traveled AK/Canada this summer and I found this book to be much more valuable and easy to reference than Mileposts. Of course we used both, but for RVing, I'd recommend having this book.
If you can make it to Homer during the salmon run, don't miss the fishing hole there on the Spit. When the tide comes in, so do the salmon and the fishing can be pandemonium..

[Pigman1]

Whatever you do, don't miss any local museums, visitor's centers or welcome centers. Some are only one or 2 small rooms, but they're much better than the one in Denali with it's plastic animals. We took the marine highway for our first trip and stopped at each stop for 2-3 days before getting back on. We used few pay RV parks and had a ball. From Haines to AK is a long day's drive, but the Canadian customs doesn't stay open 24h, so check for hours before you hit it. Each town and place is unique so take your time and talk to everyone for suggestions. We especially liked the drive through the train tunnel under the glacier to Whittier, the Stan Stevens long glacier tour boat run at Valdez, the Valdez helicopter tour to the glaciers and our fly up, van ride down to Prudhoe Bay/Deadhorse. If you have time a side trip to Chena Hot Springs is also fascinating. We went in the winter but a summer trip is worth while. A ton of stuff to see and do so plan carefully. We planned for our "trip of a lifetime" in 2006. Went back in 2007, 2009, 2011 (twice--once in the winter to see the Iditerod), 2013, 2015 and are planning for the 2017 trip already. You can't see it all but the place is addicting so be prepared.