Hi all,
I've been negligent getting back on the results of my Alaska trip. All went well. It was a fabulous road trip. Scenery and wildlife was unbelievable! The cruiser performed flawlessly. Got 12-13 mpg which sucks, (it's getting me thinking about a vortec), the tranny held up and didn't overheat. It got up to 250+ deg climbing the passes, but that big cooler I installed kept it from going red. The only problem is that the tranny is balky when cold. It's reluctant to shift when cold, but it was manageable.
The roof top tent was outstanding! The awning with mosquito net came in really handy three of the nights where the mosquitos were really bad. Otherwise mosquitos weren't too much of a problem.
The Dalton wasn't as bad as I expected. Many miles of perfect pavement. Also many miles of dirt road that was as good as pavement, where you could go 70 mph! Then again, there were some really bad areas, and we'd get a few spine-jarring hits from the potholes and frost heaves. I had to learn to keep an eye out for the little warning flags, but not all the hazards were flagged. You just have to pay attention.
The haul from Coldfoot to Deadhorse is a long one with no gas stations in between, and we were bucking an offshore wind. I still made it on one tank. In deadhorse I put in 20.1 gal. I did have two 5-gal jerry cans on top just in case. I only brought one spare, but it was a good one. Never saw anyone stranded the whole time.
Too much to tell, but here's a quick recap of the timeline, There's links to pics following:
Jun 5, left SoCal by myself, took a leisurely drive to Seattle, stopping along the way to see friends and my daughter in Eugene OR.
Jun 9, met my wife in Seattle.
Jun 10, Boarded the Alaska Marine Hwy ferry MV Colombia
June 13, arrived in Haines, AK in the afternoon, and hit the road. Camped at Congdon campground at Kluane Lake in the Yukon
June 14 camped just south of Fairbanks at Birch Lake campground
June 15 Picked up son at Fairbanks airport, hit the Dalton, camped at 5-mile camp, which is just past the Yukon crossing.
Jun 16, camped at Galbraith Lake campground after crossing the Arctic circle and going over Atigun Pass in the Brooks range
Jun 17 made it to Deadhorse, took a tour of the facility at the Arctic Caribou Inn, and then started back, and camped at Marion Creek campground
Jun 18 and 19. stayed two nights at Denali Nat'l Park
Jun 20. Dropped of my wife in Anchorage to fly home, and son and I continued on to Whittier, camped in an undeveloped campground with a nice view of a glacier
Jun 21 annd 22 Did some ocean kyaking in Whittier, then hit the road to Seward. Hiked up to the Exit Glacier and Merrill ice field, and camped two nights at an unimproved campsite along the river.
June 23 Took a marine wildlife tour out of Seward and got a up close to a calving glacier. Took off toward Homer and camped at the Ninilchik River Campground
Jun 24 spent the day at Homer, started heading back toward Anchorage, and camped at the Crow Creek Mine.
Jun 25 Dropped off my son to fly home, then started heading back to Haines via the Glenn hwy. Camped at Lakeview campground on the Alcan
Jun 26 Got to Haines and camped at the Chilkat state park campground.
Jun 27 boarded the ferry to Bellingham.
Jul 1 - 3 drove the rest of the way home
Shots of the Cruiser and Campsites | Facebook
Wildlife | Facebook
Scenery | Facebook
Mug shots and Misc. stuff | Facebook
Pipeline shots | Facebook
Towns and Places | Facebook
I've been negligent getting back on the results of my Alaska trip. All went well. It was a fabulous road trip. Scenery and wildlife was unbelievable! The cruiser performed flawlessly. Got 12-13 mpg which sucks, (it's getting me thinking about a vortec), the tranny held up and didn't overheat. It got up to 250+ deg climbing the passes, but that big cooler I installed kept it from going red. The only problem is that the tranny is balky when cold. It's reluctant to shift when cold, but it was manageable.
The roof top tent was outstanding! The awning with mosquito net came in really handy three of the nights where the mosquitos were really bad. Otherwise mosquitos weren't too much of a problem.
The Dalton wasn't as bad as I expected. Many miles of perfect pavement. Also many miles of dirt road that was as good as pavement, where you could go 70 mph! Then again, there were some really bad areas, and we'd get a few spine-jarring hits from the potholes and frost heaves. I had to learn to keep an eye out for the little warning flags, but not all the hazards were flagged. You just have to pay attention.
The haul from Coldfoot to Deadhorse is a long one with no gas stations in between, and we were bucking an offshore wind. I still made it on one tank. In deadhorse I put in 20.1 gal. I did have two 5-gal jerry cans on top just in case. I only brought one spare, but it was a good one. Never saw anyone stranded the whole time.
Too much to tell, but here's a quick recap of the timeline, There's links to pics following:
Jun 5, left SoCal by myself, took a leisurely drive to Seattle, stopping along the way to see friends and my daughter in Eugene OR.
Jun 9, met my wife in Seattle.
Jun 10, Boarded the Alaska Marine Hwy ferry MV Colombia
June 13, arrived in Haines, AK in the afternoon, and hit the road. Camped at Congdon campground at Kluane Lake in the Yukon
June 14 camped just south of Fairbanks at Birch Lake campground
June 15 Picked up son at Fairbanks airport, hit the Dalton, camped at 5-mile camp, which is just past the Yukon crossing.
Jun 16, camped at Galbraith Lake campground after crossing the Arctic circle and going over Atigun Pass in the Brooks range
Jun 17 made it to Deadhorse, took a tour of the facility at the Arctic Caribou Inn, and then started back, and camped at Marion Creek campground
Jun 18 and 19. stayed two nights at Denali Nat'l Park
Jun 20. Dropped of my wife in Anchorage to fly home, and son and I continued on to Whittier, camped in an undeveloped campground with a nice view of a glacier
Jun 21 annd 22 Did some ocean kyaking in Whittier, then hit the road to Seward. Hiked up to the Exit Glacier and Merrill ice field, and camped two nights at an unimproved campsite along the river.
June 23 Took a marine wildlife tour out of Seward and got a up close to a calving glacier. Took off toward Homer and camped at the Ninilchik River Campground
Jun 24 spent the day at Homer, started heading back toward Anchorage, and camped at the Crow Creek Mine.
Jun 25 Dropped off my son to fly home, then started heading back to Haines via the Glenn hwy. Camped at Lakeview campground on the Alcan
Jun 26 Got to Haines and camped at the Chilkat state park campground.
Jun 27 boarded the ferry to Bellingham.
Jul 1 - 3 drove the rest of the way home
Shots of the Cruiser and Campsites | Facebook
Wildlife | Facebook
Scenery | Facebook
Mug shots and Misc. stuff | Facebook
Pipeline shots | Facebook
Towns and Places | Facebook
