Opinions on our Canada/Alaska Trip

[AlR]

Was I on a different road? I drove the route from White Horse to Fort Nelson in a day on July 4th. Stopped in Watson Lake to visit friends for a couple of hours. The road was fine. No gravel... all decent pavement. Saw lots of moho's and travel trailers. The road is basically flat, wide open. Lots of game along the way; deer, bear and bison. I will not hesitate to pull my WnP through there again.
PS I maintain the speed limit so maybe that makes a difference?
Al

[fanrgs]

My first trip to Alaska was in 1972. The Parks Highway from Anchorage to Fairbanks was not completed, so we drove between the two cities using the Glenn and Richardson Highways. The Alaska Highway was still gravel for much of its length and the Alaska Pipeline and its haul road (now called the Dalton Highway) had not even been started. In later years, I traveled to Alaska more than 25 times for both work and pleasure and knew exactly what the roads were like.

So, when my wife and I took our first RV trip up the Alaska Highway in 2013, we were prepared to go much less than the speed limit when the road conditions demanded it, ate lunch in the truck when stopped for long periods at construction zones while waiting for pilot cars, and always had alternatives for campgrounds that might be closed when we got there (eg., after a fire burned the campground in Watson Lake and the owner of the campground at Johnson's Crossing died just before we arrived).

Yes, many of the campgrounds are just gravel parking lots, but imagine yourself trying to make your annual income from an RV park that is only open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. And, in Chicken and many other places, the electricity for your RV is generated right there in the RV park because there are no power lines that far into the bush. The same applies to Alaskans running cafes, motels, guided fishing trips, RV and car rentals, and every other tourist-related activity in Alaska. Their annual income depends on a 3-4 month tourist season and whatever work they can pick up the rest of the year--substitute school teacher, paramedic, grocery clerk, etc. It may seem like a Third World country outside the cities and larger towns because it is--that's why their license plates say "The Last Frontier." And that's exactly why a lot of Alaskans love living in Alaska!

Those who think that Alaska and Yukon roads should be the same as the roads in other cold places like ND, MN, ME, or MT obviously don't understand permafrost. Yes, Bismarck may have colder winters than Anchorage, but ND has no permafrost. It is permafrost that creates frost-heaved and broken-up paved roads, but the only places permafrost is found in the Lower 48 are above timberline and beneath mountain glaciers in the Rockies and Cascades.

The best advice I can offer for future travelers planning trips to Alaska and the Yukon is to allow plenty of time for the trip. You may be able to do 500 miles a day in your RV on Interstates in the Lower 48, but you will be very lucky to do 300 miles a day on the Alaska Highway. And Alaska and the Yukon have a 4-month MAXIMUM window to do all of their annual road reconstruction, so expect long stretches of gravel and delays for pilot cars. KNOW BEFORE YOU GO, then enjoy the fantastic scenery, loads of wildlife, world's best fishing, and midnight sun.

[RB19RR]

Did the whole Alaska thing including the Haul Road to Prudo Bay in 2006, on a motorcycle. 11,000 miles in 5.5 weeks.

It was very rough, but we expected it to be and it was a fantastic adventure! Loved every minute of it. But we kept saying to ourselves, "I'd never do this trip in a camper...." We saw lots of damaged, broken down RVs on our trip. The roads just tore them apart.

The roads tore our bikes apart, and the bikes we used were made for this type of travel (BMW-GS and Suzuki V-Strom)

We are going back next summer....On bikes....Can't wait!

"The Difference Between an Ordeal and an Adventure...is your Attitude!"

[fedexflyer]

We've done the Alcan 6 times, three up and three down. Always looked at it as an adventure, used Good Sam and the milepost travel guide. I only use my class A facilities so I can't speak about the the cg restrooms, but wife and 5 kids did and I heard no complaints. I have Verizon and can't remember any significant time without service. I keep a "bra" on the front of my wrangler and put flexible plastic over the windshield when towing, never had any damage. There is definitely a lot of dust. I carry a coiled spray hose on a "y" connection and wash 1/4 of my rig at each stop, it uses very little water or time so before anyone even notices I'm done. Every 4 days it's been completely cleaned.
Did get a chip in the MH windshield on the way down last time, I just dropped the family at the Edmunton mall and found a little repair shop; $40 dollars later it was fixed, I'd met some really nice people and the family had a blast at the mall water park. Take your time, accept the construction delays and enjoy the journey. It's the experience of a lifetime that my family always references to their friends. There is a reason they sell those sticker that "I Survived the Alaska Highway", it takes a certain adventurous state of mind to even enjoy the tough spots, but I feel it's worth the effort and the costs.

[grumpy0374]

Originally Posted by B and B

The tourists are going to Alaska though Canada. Are you prepared to pay a Toll to use a good road? Are you prepared to pay a fee for a satellite phone?

In a heartbeat!!! Would gladly pay a toll for good roads and infrastructure.
Would definitely be cheaper than repairing our rig and toad.
I did not have high expectations as to the road condition and campground availability. Although many previous posts did more to "glamorize" the trip, I did a lot of research. But no amount of research could prepare you for actual conditions.
I do appreciate that many of you took the trip/routes in "2005" or several years ago, ect. But my opinions are based on "RIGHT NOW". Spent two weeks going up to Alaska in June and 10 days coming back out of Alaska via Taylor and Top of World, and south. Did that last week, and never again.
There are many different roads, some better than others, though not by much. My "expectations" are simply a safe route, decent services, and the ability to communicate should the need arise. Didn't expect such a letdown.
Will be staying in the lower 48 from now on.
Grumpy

[B and B]

Originally Posted by grumpy0374

In a heartbeat!!! Would gladly pay a toll for good roads and infrastructure.
Would definitely be cheaper than repairing our rig and toad.
I did not have high expectations as to the road condition and campground availability. Although many previous posts did more to "glamorize" the trip, I did a lot of research. But no amount of research could prepare you for actual conditions.
I do appreciate that many of you took the trip/routes in "2005" or several years ago, ect. But my opinions are based on "RIGHT NOW". Spent two weeks going up to Alaska in June and 10 days coming back out of Alaska via Taylor and Top of World, and south. Did that last week, and never again.
There are many different roads, some better than others, though not by much. My "expectations" are simply a safe route, decent services, and the ability to communicate should the need arise. Didn't expect such a letdown.
Will be staying in the lower 48 from now on.
Grumpy

I guess you can live up to your name then? You did not do your homework. To come on here and bitch and complain serves no purpose other than to show your lack of research. I bet a quick trip to the local AAA office would give you information you need to decide not to go.

Best of luck with the Interstates where you travel!

[D W]

Originally Posted by fanrgs

My first trip to Alaska was in 1972. The Parks Highway from Anchorage to Fairbanks was not completed, so we drove between the two cities using the Glenn and Richardson Highways. The Alaska Highway was still gravel for much of its length and the Alaska Pipeline and its haul road (now called the Dalton Highway) had not even been started. In later years, I traveled to Alaska more than 25 times for both work and pleasure and knew exactly what the roads were like.

So, when my wife and I took our first RV trip up the Alaska Highway in 2013, we were prepared to go much less than the speed limit when the road conditions demanded it, ate lunch in the truck when stopped for long periods at construction zones while waiting for pilot cars, and always had alternatives for campgrounds that might be closed when we got there (eg., after a fire burned the campground in Watson Lake and the owner of the campground at Johnson's Crossing died just before we arrived).

Yes, many of the campgrounds are just gravel parking lots, but imagine yourself trying to make your annual income from an RV park that is only open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. And, in Chicken and many other places, the electricity for your RV is generated right there in the RV park because there are no power lines that far into the bush. The same applies to Alaskans running cafes, motels, guided fishing trips, RV and car rentals, and every other tourist-related activity in Alaska. Their annual income depends on a 3-4 month tourist season and whatever work they can pick up the rest of the year--substitute school teacher, paramedic, grocery clerk, etc. It may seem like a Third World country outside the cities and larger towns because it is--that's why their license plates say "The Last Frontier." And that's exactly why a lot of Alaskans love living in Alaska!

Those who think that Alaska and Yukon roads should be the same as the roads in other cold places like ND, MN, ME, or MT obviously don't understand permafrost. Yes, Bismarck may have colder winters than Anchorage, but ND has no permafrost. It is permafrost that creates frost-heaved and broken-up paved roads, but the only places permafrost is found in the Lower 48 are above timberline and beneath mountain glaciers in the Rockies and Cascades.

The best advice I can offer for future travelers planning trips to Alaska and the Yukon is to allow plenty of time for the trip. You may be able to do 500 miles a day in your RV on Interstates in the Lower 48, but you will be very lucky to do 300 miles a day on the Alaska Highway. And Alaska and the Yukon have a 4-month MAXIMUM window to do all of their annual road reconstruction, so expect long stretches of gravel and delays for pilot cars. KNOW BEFORE YOU GO, then enjoy the fantastic scenery, loads of wildlife, world's best fishing, and midnight sun.

Amen Brother, tell 'em like it is!

[DouglasReid]

The scenery is BEAUTIFUL.................The roads can be BRUTAL...............My suggestion is to fly to Anchorage and rent a MH and drive the rental in AK, Fly home and keep your rig in good condition!

I lived there for 10 years, pulled a 23' Layton all over the road system, but the trip up and down was, as I say, Brutal!

[itat]

Originally Posted by grumpy0374

In a heartbeat!!! Would gladly pay a toll for good roads and infrastructure.
Would definitely be cheaper than repairing our rig and toad.
I did not have high expectations as to the road condition and campground availability. Although many previous posts did more to "glamorize" the trip, I did a lot of research. But no amount of research could prepare you for actual conditions.
I do appreciate that many of you took the trip/routes in "2005" or several years ago, ect. But my opinions are based on "RIGHT NOW". Spent two weeks going up to Alaska in June and 10 days coming back out of Alaska via Taylor and Top of World, and south. Did that last week, and never again.
There are many different roads, some better than others, though not by much. My "expectations" are simply a safe route, decent services, and the ability to communicate should the need arise. Didn't expect such a letdown.
Will be staying in the lower 48 from now on.
Grumpy

If the tolls were priced like they are here around Toronto, ON you wouldn't be willing to pay!

[B and B]

Originally Posted by itat

If the tolls were priced like they are here around Toronto, ON you wouldn't be willing to pay!

I ran 407 from Oshawa end to 401 by Milton last fall after doing the Frog PreRally in Kingston. I did not get charges but my FROG plate was beside the Ontario Plate...

[TNSolera]

We took the trip Montana>Tok/Fairbanks etc 2013 in small MH, NO ISSUES, some parts of road construction but simply slow travel, Campgrounds not super but OK.. understanding only open a few months each year. We did not go to CHicken due to hwy reviews. We also put the MH on ferry system South and visited Juneau, Ketchikan, and ended at Price Rupert. We had a wonderful time over 2 months and plan to go again 2018.. Once in a Lifetime trip we want to do again and expect to see more and wonder about a little longer. For those that go> Milepost Book is a MUST FOR INFO along the trail. We found several places to wash the MH.. not a big issue then

[glwolf]

Have made the trip twice. 2013 in a 26 foot Class C towing a Honda CRV, and last year in our Class A, FR3 towing a Jeep Wrangler. I would not trade those two trips for all of the other trips I have taken. In 2013 we spent 3 months on the road and drove over 15000 miles. Last year, 2 and a half months and over 12000 miles. We have driven every highway in Alaska, including the haul road to Prudhoe Bay, and the Top of the World Highway. The experience is amazing. Yes, at times the road surfaces are not the best, and at times they are horrible, but the best trips of a lifetime will have some good and some bad. We are in the process of planning our third trip as we speak.

[ofishlbusiness]

Hey grumpy 0374 sorry to hear you had a bad time with the roads or lack of roads on your BC, Alaska, trip. If you really wanted to have a challenge you should have tried doing the Alaska Highway by car when I did in 1970. No pavement at all, 100 % gravel, curves banked like a race track, trucker's ruled the road and if he wanted 90% of it, you got 10 %. Like they say about the road, Winding in and winding out makes you wonder if the bloute that built this route was going to hell, or coming out !! According to you, sounds like you have been to hell and back, and survived. Congradulations

[itat]

Originally Posted by B and B

I ran 407 from Oshawa end to 401 by Milton last fall after doing the Frog PreRally in Kingston. I did not get charges but my FROG plate was beside the Ontario Plate...

I just got my Hwy. 407 bill for our trip last month on route to Rondeau PP. Cost me CAD$63.02 including toll charges, "trip toll charges" (2 x $1 per trip), camera fee (2 x $4.10 per trip) and account fee ($3.90). Total distance of 183 km (114 miles) for a return trip from the 401 in Ajax, up the 412 to the 407 and across to the 401 in the west end. So that's CAD$0.3444 per km. Not cheap, but a much better driving experience and quality of road surface than taking the 401 through Toronto.

grumpy0374, I don't think you'd want to pay that kind of (per km) cost for tolls on the ALCAN but it would be a much more comfortable road to drive on!

[mogman]

We did the VA-AK-VA trip in 2016. Went to Haines, Homer, Fairbanks, Chicken, Dawson City etc and back via Sturgis, Mount Rushmore, Chicago etc.
Roads in BC, YK and AK were not as bad as others say, we did not have great expectations but found the dust and mud tolerable. We were of the opinion that, given the climate and road conditions, the DMV's were doing the best they could.
We had NO chips or dings on our toad truck in 16500 miles. The windshield of the GT caught a rock from a truck 20 miles into BC on the way back. Just a star on the glass. We found several campgrounds with power wash facilities, all coin operated with Loonies or Toonies. In Fairbanks one was free but it was well pressure and took us 2 hours to scrub the GT and toad.
Would we go again?? In a heartbeat, it's an adventure and there's so much left to explore in the great northwest.

[spock123]

We took the same roads you did but we thought that overall the roads in Canada were better than Alaska. We stayed in probably some of the same campgrounds that the OP stayed at and some were not great but we have found campgrounds the same in the lower 48. But unlike the OP we had the time of our life and plan on another trip next year. Our Cedar Creek was great except for the curtains falling and they fell in the lower 48. We plan to cross the border May the first of 2018 and stay for two months in Alaska. We had a great time in Canada and Alaska and met some really great people, in campgrounds and traveling.

[spock123]

I have two years of the Milepost and honestly I never used it. We really had no things that we just had to do. Next year I plan on doing some different things, like dry camp more and take more money to spend on more tours and fishing for Halibut. I want to take truck and camper and on a ferry ride. We plan on spending three months on the trip from North Carolina and back. About the same miles but more days in different parks. We like highway 37 and plan that road again plus tour Jasper National Park. I was stationed at Ft Greely in 1972 and drove home in 73 on the Alcan , 1100 miles of gravel road. The road was a lot better this time. If there is anyway we are going back next year, one more time as we want to spend more time with two grandchildren. We plan on taking more short trips. We had always wanted to go back to Alaska and this trip did not disappoint us, it was great. We did have a few problems with the Silverado but that was because of DEF problems. The Cedar Creek was awesome and still is, I can't say enough good things about the Creek.

[twdenman]

I've read, and heard, that Alaska rods are horrible in June because Alaska just came out of "winter" and crews have not had time to repair them. Maybe August/early September, would be a better time to visit. For ME, I have NO plans to visit Alaska, be RV anyway. Maybe Train, Bus, and Cruise? Not MY RV. This thread is very interesting. Thank you ALL for sharing.

[twdenman]

Originally Posted by mogman

We did the VA-AK-VA trip in 2016. Went to Haines, Homer, Fairbanks, Chicken, Dawson City etc and back via Sturgis, Mount Rushmore, Chicago etc.
Roads in BC, YK and AK were not as bad as others say, we did not have great expectations but found the dust and mud tolerable. We were of the opinion that, given the climate and road conditions, the DMV's were doing the best they could.
We had NO chips or dings on our toad truck in 16500 miles. The windshield of the GT caught a rock from a truck 20 miles into BC on the way back. Just a star on the glass. We found several campgrounds with power wash facilities, all coin operated with Loonies or Toonies. In Fairbanks one was free but it was well pressure and took us 2 hours to scrub the GT and toad.
Would we go again?? In a heartbeat, it's an adventure and there's so much left to explore in the great northwest.

What time of year did you travel to Alaska?

[spock123]

We crossed the border the middle of May , we didn't see a lot of campers until about dark at campgrounds. Some campgrounds had just opened up, some business were just starting up. We never made any reservations just the day we were traveling on. The only bad roads we saw was after Whitehorse and of course the road to Chicken AK. Most people that we talked to that made that trip said never again to Chicken with a RV. Like I said our Cedar Creek held up great but with the bumpy roads some screws and nuts worked loose