'22 GX460 on the ALCAN (1 Viewer)

[Mark W]

Wow - thanks to everyone for the input. Sounds like I'm dramatically over-preparing. I'm looking to spend no more than about $2k in prep (besides, of course, the trailer or camper), and sounds like that's real attainable.

Just ordered the OEM hitch from Bell (20% off + free shipping - thanks, Cold!) Truck came with brand new tires, but as you can see from the pic, they're nothing impressive and certainly won't hold up under any off-roading out in AK. I'll steer clear of studs and start to shop around from some cold-rated A/Ts as we get closer to departure time.

While we're on the subject... anybody have good camper recommendations?

I'm excited for the trip, and getting more so seeing pics and hearing stories from y'all's travels over the years!

If you were just coming up and heading back, I'd say don't worry about tires. if you are moving up, the smart thing to do is to have two sets of tires on rims. Summer and winter. On rims so that you can swap them yourself in the drive way. Studs can not be beat for packed snow and ice. But the dedicated studless winter tires have gotten pretty good these days and for most people's all condition all winter use those are arguably a better choice.

Whatever you have on the rig now will be fine for the summer.

Don't worry about "all terrain" tires. Get nice smooth quiet highway tires for the summer. A GX460 is not an Alaskan off road rig anyway. And an AT is kinda pointless in these parts anyway. a Mud Terrain tire is the Alaskan All Terrain tire.

Mark...

 

[Rednexus]

We have friends with that type of camper (pop up and pull out, or is it pull out, then pop up?) and for an overnighter or weekend, to me, seeing them set it up, seemed like more trouble than it's worth. But considering the OP will be living in his and constantly opening and closing, it may not be a bad choice aside from it not being 4 seasons.

Another option would be to just plain drive up there and buy one up in that region. Then you can be pretty sure it'll already be outfitted for that climate, and wouldn't have to worry about gas MPG, towing, etc. Maybe start looking at ads in the area up there withing a week or so before the departure date, then when he gets up there, do his purchase.

Ours swings up from both sides. It's around 30 minutes of total setup/tear-down time. About 2X as long as sleeping in the GX solo, but half as long for setup and teardown as messing with a tent. It also contains everything in the camper and the rig has very little stuff inside it. Overall, it's not much different in time than unpacking when you roll up on an Airbnb, or packing before you depart.

The most PITA part of setup/tear down is getting the camper positioned properly in the campsite, hooking/unhooking the weight distribution hitch, and getting the stabilizing jacks set right. Then, dealing with the waste dump prior to leaving. That would be no different with a non-collapsible camper. I'm hoping to ditch the WDH at some point in the future, by using aux airbags, which would shave 5-10 minutes off each setup/teardown.

While a normal non-collapsible camper would save maybe 10 minutes for each campsite in setup/tear down time, it would be much more stressful, less safe, slower, and use much more fuel while towing with a short-wheelbase, lifted vehicle like a GX.

If we had a larger tow vehicle, we would certainly consider a more premium non-collapsible camper like a Airstream or Lance. However, short of a 200 series, no vehicle exists that can tow a camper like that AND go wheeling. And 200 series plus a premium camper is an easy $100K plus investment , which would require many more than 17 days/year to break even relative to Airbnbs .

 

[GrizzlyClint]

I did the break-even on our camper vs. Airbnbs and found it was 17 days per year of use over a 7-year period. My analysis considered cost of the camper and insurance, campground fees, reduced MPG towing, and resale value of the camper at Year 7 etc. But, it didn't consider ROI we missed out on from taking the $$$ we spent on the camper and putting it in a interest-bearing account instead. Ours is made by a Hutterite colony in South Dakota (seriously), rather than sketchy people in Indiana, so it's pretty well built. It also tows great behind our GX, and we get around 11-14 mpg, depending on speed. Being solid-sided, it's also acceptable for use in bear country. But, it's also a 3-season camper, and not something you really want to be in below-freezing.

You'll never find a real way to financially justify a camper purchase unless you work on the road and live out of one. A lot of guys who work in construction drag theirs across the country, from job to job, and pocket their per diem/living allowance. That's not most of us, however.

The reason to get one is that you'll camp 3-5X as much once you have it, and get to visit a lot of new areas. That's been our experience, and we've had no problem hitting the break-even days per year. The ROI on our camper is memories our kids will have when they are older. In July we're towing it to Yellowstone, Glacier, and the Black Hills. It's already been within eye distance of Canada and down to the Gulf.
View attachment 3840994

Solution? Stick with the overlanding rig and learn to s***, shower, and shave inna woods. LOL

 

[markthegrea]

I drove it in a 2003 Chevy Venture van with 3 kids in the back and a hitch haul. Plenty of gas and lots of fun!

 

[Rednexus]

Solution? Stick with the overlanding rig and learn to s***, shower, and shave inna woods. LOL

I use my rig for that too.....it's just kind of hard to sleep 4 in a GX

 

[GrizzlyClint]

I use my rig for that too.....it's just kind of hard to sleep 4 in a GX

Details, details...

RTT + two front seats = solution. LOL

 

[Rednexus]

I seriously might consider a RTT in the future. Depends on how much interest my son picks up in overlanding.

In the meantime, having an ancient DVD player in the GX provides sufficient camp entertainment for my daughter!

 

[Devils Paw 80]

There are no several hundred mile stretches without gas stations. The worst road conditions are found on either side of the Canadian border in the Yukon Territory, due to frost heaves. Just slow down and make sure any add ons are fastened well.
I partially broke a bike carrier on this stretch once in my FJ62. Also had exhaust pipe separate due to these conditions.
There are usually stretches of road maintenance going on during summer/fall and these will slow down your progress.
Otherwise as Mark said, it’s not a big deal driving the route so no reason to go wild with preparations.

 

[Mark W]

As said above, no hundred mile stretches without fuel stops. But... Not all the fuel stations are open 24/7. Many are not. And occasionally one will be out of fuel. Some shut down during the winter. or they used to. But since your trip is gonna be in the summer. this does not matter.

Just do not be stupid about fuel stops/fuel levels in the rig and you will be fine.

A few years back, I managed to reach a planned fuel stop after they had closed for the night. I looked at my guage and how far it was to the next stop and decided to go for it. Big fail. Almost made it. Short by about 6 miles.. Wound up sleeping for a while in the rig beside the road before starting the hike. This was the only trip where I did not carry extra fuel. I had gotten complacent. Did not even have a fuel can. I dumped out the gallon jug of water that I had with me for the dog, cracked the windows and left him sleeping in the rig as I hoofed it on down the shoulder. Apparently, in British Columbia carrying an empty milk jug as you walk along the road marks you as an axe murder... or maybe just a stupid Yank? Anyway, the only person who stopped was an American on a motor cycle as I was almost back to the truck already.

A 12 mile stroll at first light in upper BC in the summer time is actually not really a bad way to start your day. So long as you don't have anywhere else you need to be.

A trip or to later, on a last minute run to bring a rig up for a friend... similar situation... When I pulled in for a middle of the night refuel and the place was closed, I relaxed and slept in the idling truck (it was January) and waited for the gas station to open for the morning. I did at least learn from my experience. No way was I gonna risk running out of fuel in the Dodge diesel and taking a walk of unknown distance at -30

Mark...

 

[r2m]

I seriously might consider a RTT in the future. Depends on how much interest my son picks up in overlanding.

In the meantime, having an ancient DVD player in the GX provides sufficient camp entertainment for my daughter!
View attachment 3841963

Is your daughter playing too much MineCraft? She's turning into a MineCraft character!

 

[Rednexus]

Is your daughter playing too much MineCraft? She's turning into a MineCraft character!

I does feel at times like I've lost both of my kids to Minecraft .