We love Alaska! If it wasn't so far away from family, we'd move there in a heartbeat. Our "once in a lifetime" trip in 2007 wasn't enough. We went back again in 2008, and can hardly wait until we can go again. Add it to your bucket list... and if at all possible - drive, and spend a long summer! The Canadian Rockies are beautiful, Alaska is amazing and you can't possibly experience it all in just a few weeks.
We've included a day-to-day listing of our 2007 trip, that might be helpful as guide in planning your own trip. We usually remembered to record the vital stats, but had to guess at a few, plus had to convert money amounts from Canadian to US dollars (plus foreign transaction fees), so it's not all exact, but will give you a rough idea what to expect. Please note we started from Illinois, and end back at Illinois, but via Colorado and New Mexico, so we had a lot of extra miles!
Also before we left, our teens did a unit study on survival techniques and read several books about people who survived in a harsh climate. Then as we traveled we would take learning moments to reinforce preparedness, or shelter building, water conservation, food foraging or any of a number of other pertinent survival topics. It was one of the more rewarding unit studies.
TIPS:
- Buy The Milepost. It will show you good places to stop, turnouts to boondock, fuel locations, and lots of interesting tidbits.
- Have a digital camera, extra batteries, and lots of storage space!
- Plan to travel slowly (the farther north you go, the slower you need to go), or you'll miss a lot. Also, learn to anticipate frost heaves!
- Check out your border crossing requirements before leaving. What you can carry across (mainly food) changes constantly.
- If you have pets be sure to have their records with you and available at the border crossings.
- If you plan to do many touristy things, check out toursaver; it could save you a lot of money. Most of the things we did were 2-for-the-price-of-1 from the coupon book (including the flightseeing.) We bought two books because there were four of us. Be aware that businesses often limit the number of two for one redemptions to two or three a day. Make your reservations as early as possible.
- Learn about the environment and wildlife before you go.
- Flight-see Denali. It is expensive, but was the highlight of our trip.
- Anchorage is like any metropolitan area in the lower 48. But it's a good place to stock up on groceries (Fred Meyers, Wal-Mart, Sam's, Costco, and most of your usual chain stores.) Fairbanks and Soldotna are other good stock-up locations.
- Most of your bigger towns and tourist areas don't allow boondockers; they are businesses and want the tourist dollars, and they have a very limited season to earn their annual income. Boondocking is fine in most other areas.
- These were our conditions and experiences in 2007. Remember, times, and prices, change.
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| a page from the Milepost |
Our Alaska
BASIC STATS:
Two adults, two teens, a poodle, a diesel truck and a 35-foot 5th wheel.
Left
Back
Total Miles: 15,124
Total Miles from ND/Canada crossing to Canada/WA crossing: 10,135
Miles towing: 13,066
Miles unhitched: 2,058
Gallons of diesel: 1,365.44
Cost of fuel: $4,692 (adjusted for Canadian prices/credit card fees)
Avg mpg towing: about 11.5 mpg (adjusting for unhitched miles)
Total nights camping: 148
Nights with some hookups: 35 @ $725
Nights paid dry camping: 26 @ $285Nights free dry camping: 87
Other costs: Fuel for generator, groceries, outings, souvenirs, RV washes, laundry; tour-saver books, fishing license, fishing supplies, shotgun, ammo, freezer, seal-a-meal, emergency dentist visit, generator repair.
The following notes were a daily record intended for mileage and fuel. It in no way attempts to list all the things we saw and did, just some highlights.
THE DAY-by-DAY
May 30 (Wednesday):
Start miles: 30,332 (from house,
Traveled: 93 miles; I-80
Overnight: Tanger Outlet Mall,
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Left Moline IL, 4:40 p.m. Waited until after Memorial Day to leave, so we could enjoy a few extra days with our brand new granddaughter! (Note:
May 31 (Thursday):
Start miles: 30,425
Traveled: 245 miles; I-80; I-680; I-29; US-30; US-75)
Overnight: city park,
Fuel:
Stops/notes: camping was connected to softball field; watched a little-league game
June 1 (Friday):
Start miles: 30,670
Traveled: 245 miles; US-75; I-29; I-90; US-81; US-14
Overnight: city park,
Fuel:
Stops/notes:
June 2 (Saturday):
Start miles: 30,910
Traveled: (towing: 0 miles)
Overnight: city park,
Fuel:
Stops/notes: biked to the bakery; toured free Laura sites (
June 3 (Sunday):
Start miles: 30,960
Traveled: 188 miles; US-14; US-281
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Went to church at United Methodist, DeSmet then pulled out. Stopped in Edgeley because of a thunderstorm headed in (just got fueled/parked when it hit.)
June 4 (Monday):
Start miles: 31,148
Traveled: 236 miles; US-281; US-52; ND-3; county road to Dion Lake
Overnight: Dion Lake, west of St. John's, ND; free camping via Fish and Game Management
Fuel:
Stop/notes: Rugby, ND, Geographical Center of North America
June 5 (Tuesday):
Traveled: (not towing)
Overnight: Dion Lake (free camping)
Fuel: Dale's Truckstop, Dunseith, ND; 30.05 gal @ $2.92/gal diesel ($88.01; mi: 31422)
Stops/notes: Spent the day at the International Peace Garden at the ND/Canada border.
It was too early in the season for most flowers to be blooming, but nice displays, including several beams from
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| International Peace Garden |
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| 50th anniversary stamp |
June 6 (Wednesday):
Start miles: 31,445
Traveled: 319 total miles; 15 miles in US, rest in Canada (which is recorded all in miles); US-281; border crossing @ Peace Garden crossing; Manitoba 10, Canada 1
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Easy border crossing – showed passports, answered a few questions (mainly asked about guns); didn’t look in truck or 5TH wheel; waved us through, no waiting at all. Stopped
June 7 (Thursday):
Start miles: 31,764
Traveled: 347 miles; SK-11;
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes:
June 8 (Friday):
Start miles: 32,111
Traveled: 160 miles;
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Walked thru West Edmonton Mall – it is huge – 8 blocks long and 3 blocks wide. No overnight camping at the mall. Day parking is okay.
June 9 (Saturday):
Start miles: not towingTraveled: not towing
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Kids spent the day at the World Waterpark in West Edmonton Mall. $29.95/person, but had one free admission coupon from Milepost. Parents watched from observation area, ate lunch, saw a movie.
June 10 (Sunday):
Start miles: 32,295
Overnight:
campground; $13C, electric and water (which we needed); no dump
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Needed water, and was looking stormy, so got a campsite for the night. TERRIBLE headwinds and poor mental conversions made the second fuel stop necessary; the third was prep for the next day’s travels! The sunset that evening (pictured here) was one of the most spectacular I have ever seen.
June 11 (Monday):
Start miles: 32,514Traveled: 233 miles; Hwy 43; Alcan (
Overnight: Milepost 80 Alcan Rest Area – toilets, play area, several RVs
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Dawson Creek, BC, Milepost 0 of Alaska Hwy (Alcan) Saw our first black bear along the road about 55 miles south of Ft.
June 12 (Tuesday):
Traveled: 251 miles; Alcan; Hwy 77 (BC)
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Stayed at a turnoff/rest area, walked down by the river, and the mosquitos were terrible!
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| Yes the bridge is that wavy. |
June 13 (Wednesday):
Traveled: 272 total (120 not towing); Hwy 77 (BC); Hwy 7 (NWT); Alcan
Overnight: Milepost 429.7 turnout (25 miles past Toad River)
Fuel: 85.34 liters @ $1.28/liter ($110.01C; mi: 33245)
Stops/notes: unhitched at Nelson River Rest Area and drove 60 miles, into NWT (just to say we’d been) then back to rest area, hitched, and headed on.
Along the Alcan saw moose, bear, deer, caribou, mule deer, stone sheep.
Absolutely beautiful drive and needs a slow pace. Many warning signs for animals on road. Probably took 400 pictures (so glad for digital cameras, and extra batteries!) Stopped at a mountain pass turnout for the night. The sunset was amazing. This was our turnout campsite for the night. It's totally common along the Alcan/AK Hwy to find a wide spot off the road and stop for the night. The Milepost is good at noting where most of the spots are located.
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| Shadows on the mountains followed by... |
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| ...a beautiful sunset |
June 14 (Thursday):
Start miles: 33,270
Traveled: 195 miles; Alcan
Overnight: Milepost 627.3 rest area
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Stopped at Liard Hot Springs, Milepost 477.7; $10C/family for day use, and also used dump station and water fill (free). Dry camping available there (think it was $10C, but we didn’t stay there). Enjoyed the
June 15 (Friday):
Overnight: Mukluk Annie’s, 9 miles north of Teslin, YT
Fuel: Junction 37 services, 81.65 liters @ $1.13/liter ($93)
Stops/notes: Stopped at Rancheria Falls Rec. Site, Milepost 695.2 – took short walk to waterfall. Lost trailer hubcap to pothole. Saw bald eagle, black bear.
Arrived Mukluk Annie’s and washed a filthy truck and RV. Camped at Annie’s (dry camping is free and has dump and water) overlooking
June 16 (Saturday):
Start miles:
Traveled:
Overnight: Mukluk Annie’s
Fuel: Yukon Motel station,
Stops/notes: Visited Wildlife Gallery @ Yukon Motel in
June 17 (Sunday):
Start miles: 33,642 (towing)
Traveled: 163 miles; Alcan; Hwy 2 (
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Only 2 churches (Anglican and Catholic) and Mukluk Chuck (Annie's husband) didn’t recommend either. Since it was Father’s Day, enjoyed an all-you-can-eat blueberry pancake (with all the trimmings, cooked on a wood-burning grill) breakfast/brunch ($9.95/person) and no one – not even
June 18 (Monday):
Start miles: 33,805
Traveled: 289 miles; Hwy 2 (
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Saw a swan on a pond (approx. milepost J85). Went hiking at Five Finger Rapids,
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| Top of the Dome, Dawson YT, overlooking the Yukon River |
June 19 (Tuesday) – June 23 (Saturday):
Had to have truck towed back to
Fuel:
June 24 (Sunday):
Kent and Jordan went to Top of the World Golf Course at 11:30 p.m. to hit bucket of balls ($8/bucket.) First trip across on ferry (just the truck.)
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| Midnight golf, by appointment |
June 25 (Monday):
Stops/notes: Spent the day cleaning, watching movies, relaxing; preparing to “restart” our trip and cross border into Alaska
June 26 (Tuesday):
Start miles: 34,502 (towing)
Traveled: 68 miles; Top of the World (TOW) Hwy (Hwy 2 in
Overnight: Milepost D64.7, one mile from border – highest
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Explored downtown one last time; took the ferry across the
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| Crossing the Yukon |
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| Top of the World vistas |
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| Wouldn't want this drive in the winter! |
The sunset was actually the next morning between 1:15 A.M. and 1:45AM. By 5:30 A.M. the sun was already fairly high in the sky so sunrise was probably about 4:30 A.M.
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| Sunset was about 1:30 A.M., stayed along horizon... |
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| ...until it popped back up about 4:30 A.M. |
June 27 (Wednesday):
Start miles: 34,570
Traveled: 43 miles,
Overnight: Goldpanners, Chicken, AK (free dry camping with gas purchase)
Stops/notes: Into
Miles at crossing into
Explored downtown Chicken and Post Office/library; saw the mail plane; panned for gold in creek. (
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| Poker Creek, AK Border Crossing |
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| The "Highway" from Poker Creek to Chicken, Alaska |
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| Downtown Chicken |
June 28 (Thursday) – July 3 (Tuesday):
Start miles: 34,617 (4 whole miles spent exploring Chicken!)
Traveled: 80 miles; Taylor Hwy
Overnight: Gateway Salmon Bake, Tok , AK
Fuel: 9.7 gal @ $3.09/gal ($30; mi: 34702)
Stops/notes: Stopped at Visitor Center Kent bought a shotgun. Kent and Jordan got 7 trout at 4-mile lake, south east of Tok.
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| Aime and Jordan hamming it up |
July 4 (Wednesday):
Tok shuts down the Alaska Highway through town for the 4th of July parade. After the parade everyone went to the fairgrounds for games. Aime “won” $20 in the mud race (the real winner gave her money from his winnings because he accidently knocked her down at the start of the race) and $7 on the tug-of-war team. Didn’t win anything at the greased pole. Had music and dancing. Kids had to ride home in the back of the truck and got hosed down with the outside shower before they could go to the showers. Had a great time; kids enjoyed it more than any fireworks they had ever been to. Made lots of friends with the town kids. Laundry at the gas station was horrid (other campgrounds had their own laundries.)
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| Shutting down the Alaska Highway |
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| The start of the parade |
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| Honoring Veterans |
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| Reopening the highway after the parade |
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| "Climbing" the greased pole |
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| Results of the mud race |
July 5 (Thursday):
Start miles: 34,857
Traveled: 97 miles; Alaska Hwy
Overnight: rest area mile 138.5
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Left late in the day, didn't travel too far!
July 6 (Friday) – July 7 (Saturday):
Start miles: 34,954
Traveled: 170 miles;
Overnight: Shaw Pond, Richardson Hwy
Fuel: Delta Junction 21.68 gal @ $2.99/gal ($65)Stops/notes: Stopped at Delta Meat and Sausage, sampled reindeer, buffalo, yak, elk sausage (bought buffalo sausage and spicy jack cheese block). Stopped at end of
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| End of the Alaska Highway at Delta Junction, Alaska |
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| Sullivan Roadhouse Museum |
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| Get a hot meal and restock |
July 8 (Sunday):
Start miles: 35,027
Traveled: 68 miles
Overnight: Santaland RV, North Pole, AK (didn’t record rates, but more than we normally would spend)
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Stopped at Santa Claus House, North Pole, AK. Met the 2 reindeer, and bought Lori Eslick’s Christmas book (Lori was a family friend of my brother’s; just surprised to see her book there.) Santaland RV is connected to Santa Claus House. It was so close to ourFairbanks destination, but we had to stay a night at the North Pole!
Stops/notes: Stopped at Santa Claus House, North Pole, AK. Met the 2 reindeer, and bought Lori Eslick’s Christmas book (Lori was a family friend of my brother’s; just surprised to see her book there.) Santaland RV is connected to Santa Claus House. It was so close to our
July 9 (Monday):
Start miles: 39095
Traveled: 27 miles
Overnight: Road’s End campground, east of Fairbank (paid weekly rate, didn’t record it though, guessed $150; was basically a camp for road-workers, not a tourist place. We had planned to dry camp at Pioneer Park
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Unhitched to stay for a week
July 10 (Tuesday):
Made tour arrangements (from our Toursaver.com book), drove around Fairbanks
July 11 (Wednesday):
Riverboat Discovery on
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| Riverboat Discovery II |
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| Float planes are a necessity in many parts of Alaska |
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| Salmon wheel |
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| The decorating details told each families' history. |
July 12 (Thursday):
Pioneer Park in Fairbanks
July 13 (Friday):El Dorado Gold Mine, just north of
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| Sluice box operation |
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| Panning for....... |
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| GOLD!!! |
Drove the truck to the
Fuel:
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| At the Arctic Circle |
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| Fireweed |
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| Dalton Highway with the Alaska Pipeline running alongside. The pipeline is bent back and forth to absorb the expansion/contraction of temp changes. |
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| What the Haul Road does to a windshield |
July 15 (Sunday):
Attended Fairbanks Christian Center
Fuel: Fairbanks , AK
July 16 (Monday):
Start miles: 35,705 (towing)
Traveled: 156 miles;Parks Hwy
Traveled: 156 miles;
Overnight: Nenana River Bridge
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Paused at Denali National Park Dana , Jordan
NOTE: If planning on taking the Denali Hwy
July 17 (Tuesday):
Start miles: 35,861
Traveled: 41 miles;
Overnight: Denali Hwy
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Saw first glacier! Drove back toDenali National Park Denali Hwy which is really just a gravel road, occasionally graded. Slow going, but pretty scenery. Won’t see many others along the way. Had a campfire at top of overlook, practiced with the new shotgun. Lots of evidence of bears and moose, but didn’t see any.
Stops/notes: Saw first glacier! Drove back to
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| Along the Denali Highway |
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| Practicing with the shotgun |
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| Dinnertime |
July 18 (Wednesday):
Start miles: 35,902
Traveled: 40 miles
Overnight: Denali Hwy
Fuel: Gracious House, mi P82; 10 gal @ $4/gal ($40; they weren’t a regular fuel stop for tourists)
Stops/notes: No luck fishing (Jordan did fall in and had to be thawed out.) While walking along the creek to fish we found several signs of bear activity (moose bones and bear scat). I was glad we had a shotgun. Saw a porcupine. The Denali highway has very little traffic. In two days, we saw less than half a dozen other people.
Stops/notes: No luck fishing (
July 19 (Thursday):
Start miles: 35,942
Traveled: 143 miles; Denali Hwy Richardson Hwy
Overnight: Richardson Hwy
Fuel: Glennallen (at junction of Richardson and Glenn Hwys); 23.67 gal @ $3.16/gal ($75; mi: 36080)
Stops/notes: Took Glenn Hwy
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| A glacier along Denali Highway |
July 20 (Friday):
Start miles: 36,085
Traveled: (forgot to record ending miles for the day)
Overnight: Richardson Hwy V28 (29?) across from Worthington
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Visited Wrangell-St. Elias National Park Jordan
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| Worthington Glacier |
July 21 (Saturday):
Start miles: (oops, forgot to record)
Traveled: 84 miles, Richardson Hwy
Overnight: Richardson Hwy V28 across from Worthington Glacier
Fuel:  |
| Road down from Thompson Pass into Valdez. The things that look like light posts are really snowplow guides. Record snow for Thompson Pass is 900+ inches. |
July 22 (Sunday):
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| A good day's fishing |
July 23 (Monday):
With the great fishing, decided to stay another day in
July 24 (Tuesday):
Start miles: 36,466 (towing)
Traveled: 154 miles;
Overnight: Glenn Hwy A152.6 turnout
Fuel: Valdez
Stops/notes: changed the oil at the turnout; kids learned to throw a tomahawk at a cabin/store across the highway.
July 25 (Wednesday):
Start miles: 36,620
Traveled: 155 miles; Glenn Hwy Seward Hwy
Overnight: Anchorage
Fuel: Palmer, AK, Tesoro 25.27 gal @ $2.84/gal ($72; mi: 36726)
Stops/notes: Stopped at Musk Ox Farm (what ugly creatures!) Explored Palmer, took lots of pictures in the garden at the visitor center. Gave Dana early birthday presents – Alaska
July 26 (Thursday):
Start miles: 36,775
Traveled: 141 miles; Seward Hwy Sterling Hwy
Overnight: Soldotna , AK Sterling Hwy
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Bought a 5-cubic-foot freezer and seal-a-meal; and hip boots. The line for fishing license was VERY long!
July 27 (Friday) – July 29 (Sunday):
Jordan hooked a big silver, and a seal stole it from his line as he was reeling in. Walked along the Spit. On Saturday took a boat tour to Seldovia (across Ketchamak Bay
Start miles: 36,916
Traveled: 75 miles; Sterling Hwy
Overnight: Mariner Park
Fuel: Homer, PetroExpress 27.9 gal @ $3.18/gal ($89; mi: 37023)
Stops/notes: Fished for silver salmon.  |
| Heading into Homer |
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| Volcano along the Cook Inlet |
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| Elephant Rock seen on the way to the old Russian village of Seldovia |
July 30 (Monday) – August 12 (Sunday):
Fishing, fishing, fishing. Decided to stay another 2 weeks in Homer. Moved to a “prime” corner space by the fishing hole (really nothing more than a gravel parking lot, think it was $70/weekly rate; used the dump station first and didn’t move again; hauled water a gallon at a time for drinking. I call it prime because it was a corner slot, and there were several people watching/waiting for it as we prepared to pull out Aug 13!) We attended church at Homer Christian Church (a professor we had in college once pastored there), started the new school year, fished for lots of silvers, watched the eagles, visited the Farmer’s Market where we got strawberry-rhubarb jam and a few Christmas presents, shopped along the Spit tourist traps, drove to Nikolaevsk, a nearby Russian village, and watched St. Augustine, Redoubt and two other volcanoes.
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| J's first silver. A proud catch! |
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| This is why you don't leave your fish in sight. You cover them with a tarp. |
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| If you ever wondered this is where it is. |
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| Russian Orthodox Church in Nikolaevsk |
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| The famous Salty Dog Saloon on the Homer Spit. (A spit is a glacial deposit forming a small peninsula) |
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| Out our window... people had no problem getting "close" |
August 13 (Monday):
Traveled: 75 miles,
Overnight: Soldotna, Fred Meyers (has water and dump station)
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Unhitched at Fred Meyers; drove to Kenai City beach, saw another Russian church and met bishop, saw mouth of Kenai River
August 14 (Tuesday):
August 15 (Wednesday):
Start miles: 37443 (towing)
Traveled: 142 miles; Sterling Hwy Seward Hwy Old Seward Hwy
Overnight: Anchorage
Fuel: Soldotna, Fred Meyer 15.39 gal ($42, mi: 37443)
Stops/notes: Unhitched; shopped at Sam’s, Border’s, Michael’s, Best Buy; checked out airport (to know where we would pick up daughter). Saw the moose that hangs out by the airport fence.
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| A moose just outside the Anchorage Airport grounds. |
August 16 (Thursday):
Spent the day in Anchorage ; went to Walmart; went to Dimond Center W. Dimond . Another amazing sunset.
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August 17 (Friday):
Overnight: Fred Meyers (Thursday night was quiet, but Friday night there was drag racing and loud rap music until 2:30-3:00 a.m.)
Fuel: Fred Meyers; 20.29 gal @ $2.83/gal ($58; mi: 37683)
August 18 (Saturday):Fuel: Fred Meyers; 20.29 gal @ $2.83/gal ($58; mi: 37683)
Start miles: 37,708 (towing)
Traveled: 130 miles;
Overnight: Seward municipal campground on beach ($12 dry camp)
Fuel:
Stops/notes: You can still see signs of the 1964 earthquake. The tree damage is from salt water flowing in as the earth lowered during the quake (38 foot vertical displacement in places.)
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| Portage, Alaska, tree damage from 1964 earthquake/tsunami. |
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| Cabin remains from earthquake damage in Portage. |
August 19 (Sunday):
Overnight: Seward municipal campground on beach ($12 dry camp) (did have a few electric/water sites for $25/day, and a dump station is nearby)
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| Seward campground, as seen from the water. |
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| Lodge on Fox Island |
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| puffin |
August 20 (Monday):
Visited shops. Hiked to Exit Glacier. Took a 3-hour kayak tour to Bridal Veil Falls.
Overnight: Seward municipal campground
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| Exit glacier |
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| Glacier edge in 1917. It has retreated over one mile in the last 200 years. |
August 21 (Tuesday):
Start miles: 37897 (towing)
Traveled: 206 miles;
Overnight:
Fuel: Girdwood 23.74 gal @ $2.94/gal ($70, mi: 37897)
Stops/notes: Stopped at
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| A black bear at the Alaska Wildlife Refuge |
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| A BIG bull moose at the Alaska Wildlife Refuge |
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| Our camp for the night - Denali is hidden behind those clouds |
August 22 (Wednesday):
Start miles:
Traveled:Overnight: Denali RV and Motel,
Fuel: Healy; 30.04 gal @ $3.32/gal ($100; mi: 38315); also gas for generator; NOTE: no diesel around
Stops/notes: Unhitched and drove back to Denali National Park Denali was not in view. Visited shops outside at park entrance.
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| The sled dogs love to run! |
August 23 (Thursday):
Jordan's birthday! Saw
Overnight: Denali RV and Motel
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| Denali! Awe-inspiring sight! |
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| A big slab of meat and cake = happy boy! |
August 24 (Friday):
Met at McKinley Chalet for a 3-4 hour rafting on
Overnight:
August 25 (Saturday):
Start miles: 38405 (towing)
Traveled: 205 miles
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Set up camp, enjoyed the horses, played badminton, had a campfire. Didn’t ride horses, but owner let Jordan
August 26 (Sunday):
August 26 (Sunday):
Whitney’s last day with us before flying back to college. Attended the Alaska State Fair ($10/person, $1 ticket for rides, with most rides costing 3-4 tickets.) Fair was very crowded. After leaving, drove into Anchorage to take Whitney to airport – not much to do in Anchorage
Overnight: Fuel:
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| What's a fair without funnel cakes |
August 27 (Monday) – August 28 (Tuesday):
Start miles: 38768 (towing)
Traveled: 45 miles,Parks Hwy
Traveled: 45 miles,
Overnight: Parks Hwy Lake Kashwitna
Fuel:Stops/notes: Spent a couple of days fishing and resting; had been moving fast to show Whitney as much as we could while she was there. On Tuesday it was very clear with great views of
August 29 (Wednesday):
Start miles: 38,813Traveled: 34 miles;
Overnight: Talkeetna,
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Arrived Talkeetna. Explored town and shops.
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| heading to Talkeetna, Alaska |
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| Crazy children! |
August 30 (Thursday):
Start miles: 38,858 (towing)
Traveled: 38 miles; Talkeetna Spur;
Overnight: Parks Hwy A121.5 turnout
Fuel:
@ $2.89/gal ($41.39)
Stops/notes: Hour and a half flight-seeing around
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| Co-pilot Jordan |
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| Flight seeing passengers |
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| Yes, Aime, we're MOVING! |
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| Our first distant view of Denali |
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| Flying among the various peaks was amazing! |
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| Breath taking views |
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| Looks like a highway, but it's a glacier. |
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| Glacial lakes |
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| Denali glacier from the air |
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| Foothills |
August 31 (Friday):
Start miles: 38,896
Traveled: 66 miles; Parks Hwy
Overnight: Parks Hwy
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Stopped at Mary Carey’s McKinley Lodge at mile A134.5. Met Jean Richardson (her daughter) and got two of her children’s books, and a book by her mom about her Alaska
Start miles: 38,962
Traveled: 30 milesOvernight:
Fuel: Cantwell, Chevron; 12.85 gal @ $3.26/gal ($42.01; mi: 38987) NOTE: filled water, but didn’t have a dump station.
Stops/notes: Kent and Jordan met a guy on the river and took a jet boat ride with them. Had a little rain and a beautiful double rainbow.
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| Note the colors turning, September 1. |
September 3 (Monday):
Start miles: 39,003 (towing)
Traveled:
Overnight:
Fuel:
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| Kent's new BFF |
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| Jordan the sled racer |
September 4 (Tuesday):
Traveled: 69 miles;
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Morning ranger walk, 2 ½ hours; picked berries. First sighting of Northern Lights.
September 5 (Wednesday) – September 6 (Thursday):
Start miles: 39,118
Traveled: 60 (ish) miles; Parks Hwy Fairbanks ; 19 non-towing miles in Fairbanks Stease Hwy
Overnight: scenic vista turnout, Stease Hwy 20.9 miles north of Fairbanks
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Arrived  |
| One last chance at a big discovery! |
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| Couldn't capture the Northern Lights, but got a nice picture of the moon |
September 7 (Friday):
Start miles: 39,220
Traveled: 43 miles, Stease Hwy. Fairbanks (unhitched at Fred Meyers, ran errands, got groceries, did laundry); left Fairbanks
Start miles 39,257 (towing) traveled 150 miles, Richardson Hwy Alaska
Overnight: Richardson
Fuel: Fairbanks, Fred Meyers; 24.22 gal @ $2.89/gal ($70.20; mi: 39,252)
Stops/notes: Started serious driving toward lower 48. Stopped by Rika’s Roadhouse near Delta Junction (trying to get a nativity set I wished I had bought our first visit there.)
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| The colors say it's time to head south |
September 8 (Saturday):
Start miles: 39,407
Traveled: 302`1 miles; Richardson Hwy
Overnight: Fuel:
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| Our feathered friends want a ride south |
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| The hillsides were a vibrant gold.... |
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| ...except where they were already white.... |
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| It's time for serious driving, but we're having trouble leaving |
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| But when it's this beautiful, who can blame us |
September 9 (Sunday):
Start miles: 39,709
Traveled: 162 miles from
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: saw a grey wolf
September 10 (Monday):
Start miles: 39,997Traveled: 211 miles;
Overnight: Jade City , BC
Fuel: Junction 37 Services, YT, 86.28 liters @ $1.15/liter ($105.30 CA; mi: 40122)
Stops/notes: Crossed into BC at 11:30 a.m., just starting down the Cassiar Hwy (BC37). Crossed 40,000 miles on the truck at milepost DC749. NOTE: Cassiar had been closed for part of the season; always double-check first before heading on these smaller roads. |
| Cassiar Highway |
September 11 (Tuesday):
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: averaged about 35-40 mph (at J264 at 1:17 p.m.; at J155 at 4:00 p.m.) Saw black bears two different times.
September 12 (Wednesday):
Traveled: 96 miles (to Meziadin Junction , BC
Overnight: Hyder , AK
Fuel:
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| Salmon Glacier |
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| Postcard of Monica and babies |
Spent the day in Hyder and drove around
Fuel: Stewart , BC
Traveled: 137 miles; back 37A to Mezidan Junction; then south on Cassiar (Hwy 37)
Overnight:
Fuel: Kitwanga , BC
Stops/notes: Alaskan/Canadian border - mile 40596. Saw St. Paul ’s Anglican Church and bell tower in Gitwangak , BC
September 15 (Saturday):
Start miles: 40,749 (towing; had unhitched in Kitwanga)
Traveled: 82 miles; Cassiar Hwy (Hwy 37),
Overnight:
Fuel: Smithers or Telkwa, while unhitched (didn’t get recorded)
Stops/notes: Stopped early because 1) this campground had a free RV high pressure wash, and we needed it after the Cassiar! (Noting a pattern here? Stop whenever you can get a cheap RV wash! $30 is cheap for washing an RV, plus the bonus of hookups.) And 2) wanted to get the generator fixed. Kent
Start miles: 40,853 (towing)
Traveled: 227 miles, Yellowhead (Hwy 16), Hwy 97 (Cariboo)
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: This is a lost day…. We were in Prince George
September 17 (Monday):
Start miles: 41,080
Traveled: 180 miles; Hwy 97
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Last night in
September 18 (Tuesday):
Start miles: 41,407
Traveled: 232 miles Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: 39 degrees and ice in the morning, but warmed quickly. Multitudes of fruit stands with cheap prices on the Canadian side as we approached the border .. didn’t buy, because unsure of getting through customs. At border crossing (
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| Our last morning in Canada - time to be gone! |
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| Border crossing |
September 19 (Wednesday):
Stayed Omak , WA
September 20 (Thursday):
Start miles: 41,682
Traveled: 120 miles (Omak, WA to Grand Coulee Dam, WA); I-90 @ SpokaneOvernight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Visited Grand Coulee Dam
September 21 (Friday):
Start miles: 41802
Traveled: 136 miles Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/notes: Into
Silver Express Casino,
Beautiful sunset!
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| Another beautiful sunset - but awfully early! |
September 23 (Sunday):
Start miles: 41,938
Traveled: 281 miles
Overnight: Belgrade , MT
Fuel: Stops/notes: Snow and accident in the pass. Traveling toward
September 24 (Monday):
Start miles: 42,219
Traveled: 86 miles to Gardiner , MT (Yellowstone National Park ); about 100 miles through Yellowstone; 107 miles from West Yellowstone, MT, to Idaho Falls , ID
Fuel: Belgrade , MT
Stops/notes: Arrived at 
September 25 (Tuesday) – September 29 (Saturday):
Start miles: 42,512 (ish)Traveled: 214 miles
Overnight:
Overnight September 29 (Saturday): Draper, UT, outlet mall
Fuel: Sept 25,
September 30 (Sunday) – Oct 2 (Tuesday)
Start miles:Traveled: (43052 when unhooking)
Overnight:
Fuel: Sunday 23.79 gal @ $3.06/gal ($73; mi: 43061); Tuesday
Stops/Notes: 1:00 p.m. Sunday arrived
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| Our campsite |
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| Canyonlands |
Traveled: 150-ish miles
Overnight: Mesa Verde, CO (boondocked outside
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Visited
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| Arches |
October 4 (Thursday)
Start miles: 43,580
Traveled: 62 miles (mostly unhitched)
Overnight:
Fuel: Mesa Verde, CO, 6.914 gal @ $3.61/gal ($25.02; mi: 43,636)
Stops/Notes: Parked in campground and unhitched. Toured Cliff House at 11:00 and Balcony House at 1:00. Did some other hiking and exploring in the park.
October 5 (Friday)
Start miles: 43,642 (towing)
Traveled: 166 miles
Overnight: rest stop at Apache Casino, Hwy 550 @ 85 milepost, NM
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Pulled RV to laundry area, so we’d be ready to leave as soon as laundry was done. Thought we were heading east, but heard an advertisement on the radio for the hot air balloon festival, so detoured to
October 6 (Saturday)
Start miles: 43,808Traveled: 120 miles
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Hoped to stay at Flying J, signed in with manager, but it just didn’t feel “right” so we moved to Sam’s. (Unhitched at 43928 miles.) Watched the sunset flights.
October 7 (Sunday)
Start miles: 44013 (towing)
Traveled: 131 miles
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Watched the early morning balloon mass ascent. Had a great view from where we were parked, but eventually drove along to follow. Had one balloon set down very close to us. Went to church at “Passion”, met in the Cottonwood Mall. Contemporary service, friendly people. Went to 
October 8 (Monday)
Start miles: 44,142
Traveled: 284 miles
Overnight:
Fuel: Tommy’s Phillips 66, I-40 exit 22/21
Stops/Notes:
October 9 (Tuesday)
Start miles: 44,426
Traveled: 304 miles
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Ate supper over the top of the turnpike!
October 10 (Wednesday)
Start miles: 44,730
Traveled: 181 miles
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Unhitched 44911 miles. Arrived in time to help with the Wednesday clothes packing at church (for MASTER Provision, to send overseas.) Sent
October 10 (Wednesday) – October 23 (Tuesday)
Stayed in
Fuel: October 22 (Monday)
October 23 (Tuesday)
Start miles: 45,051 (towing)Traveled: about 150 miles
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Our college. Parked overnight on campus, met some old friends, Aime took a campus tour and visited some classes the next day.
October 24 (Wednesday)
Start miles:
Traveled:
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/Notes:
October 25 (Thursday)
Start miles: Traveled: 405 miles (from
Overnight:
Fuel:
Stops/Notes: Arrived home 2:24 p.m. ready to see the family!
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| Two pressing reasons to leave Alaska! |
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