2019 – Summer: Alaska

North to Alaska … and back

READY TO ROLL

Liftoff Conditions – 53,653 miles on the odometer.

GETTING STARTED

The trip started by picking up Nancy at the Red Lion hotel the morning after a late night arrival from Greensboro.

OH NO!

Not an auspicious start as Ron left his credit card at the restaurant where he bought Nancy breakfast. This was discovered later in the day and Ron spent the first evening updating lodging reservations and also utility payments which were to be made against the card during the trip.

CANADA CELL PHONE

Ron’s second night was spent replacing his phone’s US SIM card with a Canadian one. (The safety pin has the tip clipped off to serve as a SIM extractor.) It turned out his carrier selection did not have coverage in northern BC/Yukon, which was what he was aiming for. Fortunately we never needed a phone for an emergency. (We also had a satellite phone that was never used.)

TRAVELING, AT LAST

Beautiful NW British Columbia, in the Peace River basin on the way to Dawson Creek on day 3.

DAWSON CREEK

A glorious sunset …

and sculpted towels at the motel.

Start of the ALCAN Highway

“Current” start of the Alcan Highway at the Dawson Creek visitors center.

Here’s the original start of the Alcan about a block way.

DOWN THE ROAD

Mile 80 on the Alcan, our first stop – BC rest area …

… and the view down the road.

Mile 200 – much of the Alcan was like this: 2-lane highway with 30-50 foot brush clearance on the roadsides. The highway does climb through a few passes to 4500 feet and also dips into river valleys but much of the drive was across this sort of rolling terrain. The posted speed limit was generally 100 kph (62 mph) but many vehicles, including RVs and semis were running 110-120 kph. Traffic was almost always light. About 5-10% of the non-commercial traffic was motorcycles, typically in groups of two or more. There were also a number of bicyclists and just a few backpackers.

FT. NELSON

Day 4 – view from Ron’s room at our first stop on the Alcan.

STONE MOUNTAIN

Day 5 – Stone Mountain, BC. Among the varied terrain, it was unusual to see a mountain with no trees or other vegetation.

SECOND STOP ON THE ALCAN

Northern Rockies Lodge at Muncho Lake, BC – front of the lodge …

… and view from the back.

BUFFS!

Buffalo! Blocking the road on the stretch between Rocky Mountain Lodge and Watson Lake, right at the northern British Columbia border. It took about 5 minutes for the herd to clear the road so cars could pass.

Here’s a full shot of the herd after getting through the jam. Around 50 animals total, including numerous calves.

NEXT STOP – WHITEHORSE

Day 6 – Whitehorse in the Yukon Territories, we arrived in time to stop by the Visitor’s “Centre.”

ALASKA!

Welcome to Alaska! We’ve made it! – Day 7

Ron at our first stop in Alaska

TOK FOR THE NIGHT

Tok, AK. Day 7 lodging at the Golden Bear and dinner at Fast Eddy’s.

MATANUSKA!

A valley glacier! Driving south from Tok, AK, to Anchorage on day 8 – after seeing snow-capped peaks in the distance, it was a shock to suddenly see the snow and ice below us on a valley floor with the normally forested hillsides around it.

ALASKA ZOO IN ANCHORAGE

The zoo in Anchorage has a moose …

… a tiger …

… grizzly bears …

… silly people (Nancy in full moose dress) …

… goats …

… a barred owl …

… and a snow leopard (Ron’s favorite! I really never expected to see one of these.). Unlike many animals (black bear, caribou, and numerous others) which were hiding in their lairs, the snow leopard was lying patiently at the front of the habitat (waiting for someone to reach in for petting … or a hand snack?).

Also, of course, there are lots of other animals to see.

ANCHORAGE MUSEUM

Ron’s favorite item at the Anchorage Museum was actually this donor plaque (a quote from Coco Chanel).

ALASKA NATIVE HERITAGE CENTER

The Alaska Native Heritage Center was possibly the highlight of the trip for Ron. It includes six houses, one for each of the native cultures of Alaska. In addition to a tour of the houses, there are also stage presentations of native dancing (performed standing in one spot since the space in the houses was so limited) and sports (again performed in limited space, see “Eskimo Olympics” on Youtube for examples). Even more: about two hours of video presentations.

This house for the Tlingit culture has four carved posts. This one represents Respect for Self.

Samples of the native boats on display.

AIRPLANES!

For an aerospace engineer, the Alaska Aviation Museum was an excellent place to visit. In addition to having lots of planes, both small and large, commercial and military, to look at (with floats and skis, also), there is also plenty of information on the WWII occupation of the far Aleutian islands by the Japanese.

Just one of the many planes on display.

It’s not all serious airplane stuff!

ALASKA BOTANICAL GARDENS

Ron: “Is the 8-foot fence and gate to keep out the moose and bears?”

Admissions person: “The fence keeps out the moose but nothing keeps out the bears. However, no one has reported a bear in the gardens this morning. Let me know if you see one and I’ll chase it out.”

Ron: “Umm, okay.” (And very glad that he had his bear spray, especially since an optional part of the walk he took is outside the fence and along a salmon creek that the bears frequent[happily not at this time of year]. Also very glad for his insect repellent – the Deet was magical – since the mosquitos were dense here.)

Just a tiny sample. There are plenty of lovely areas in the gardens.

WELLS FARGO

A small gem of a museum. Lots of artifacts to see as well as a library for anyone investigating Alaska history and culture.

Nancy with a Wells Fargo stage at the museum.

Huskies!

Day 14 – we’re on the road again but a stop in Wasilla is a must.

No snow, but we still got a dog ride!

A tree decorated with discarded dog booties.

Talkeetna

Nancy’s favorite place. We had the two main windows on the second floor plus the window/balcony to their right.

From our room, we could see a moose in the distance having an evening drink.

Talkeetna is a tiny, isolated hamlet … where Princess Cruise buses drop off loads of tourists, not to mention those of us who drive in. As a result, the town was jam-packed with people. Luckily, we were able to get a table and eat at the Wildflower Cafe.

DENALI!

Day 15 – we’re at Denali Rainbow Village for our time here.

First item of business was to get bus tickets.

We did a six and one-half hour tour that went to the Eilson Visitor Center.

Yes, six and a half hours is a long time on one of these buses!

Denali scenes. Note that it was overcast the entire time we were at Denali so we never got to see the mountain, just the foothills.

First animals seen on the Denali tour were these ptarmigan.

Then goats (distant goats!)

Caribou in the tundra.

Shots of the Denali foothills.

Another distant goat (if you can find the white spot).

Bus turnaround spot, with numerous toilets.

A portion of the bus road.

The colorful flora is fireweed, which was ubiquitous along the roadsides in Alaska, the Yukon and northern British Columbia.

Rear view … of a caribou.

And, finally for our tour, more distant goats.

Denali also has sled dogs. I missed getting video of the dogs but here is a summer training wagon and a repurposed sled.

FAIRBANKS

Day 18 – back on the road and arriving in Fairbanks. Our first stop was at the Large Animal Research Station to see …

… musk oxen: juvenile, mamas and babies, …

… and reindeer. Reindeer are a domesticated variant of caribou and this herd originated from European stock.

CARS!

Fairbanks also has an excellent museum of old cars (also period fashion in dress).

Ron and Nancy, outside the auto museum.

RAVENS

The Fairbanks Visitors Center also has more cultural displays and artifacts. Outside is an artistic tribute to ravens which, along with fireweed, are ubiquitous along the northern roadsides. Ravens also play a significant part in northwest cultural symbology.

A WONDERFUL MUSEUM

Also in Fairbanks, the Museum of the North is a great place to visit with lots of artifacts and cultural displays. How often do you find a mastodon bone (and many other items) with a sign that says “Please touch?”

The museum also has art. Here is Ron’s favorite whimsical piece.

He also likes wolf art …

… and found these overhead photos of caribou circles delightful.

View of the city of Fairbanks from the museum – very flat, and the university occupies the high ground.

PIPELINE

The Alyeska pipeline passes just north of Fairbanks and has an informational site.

For an engineer, all this “big iron” is fascinating. The various aboveground supports deal with, among other objectives, not disturbing the permafrost and accommodating any earthquake disturbances.

Pig!

And more pig!

Stickers on this raised portion of the pipeline. Where would you rather be?

FAIRBANKS PIONEER PARK

Fairbanks’ Pioneer Park has a huge number of mostly commercial activities but also has some raven art.

NORTH POLE

Day 20 – starting for home … but, yes, Virginia, there is a North Pole!

The entryway to the North Pole post office is papered with letters addressed to Santa … and not all of them are in English.

WEST END OF THE ALCAN

Our next stop was Delta Junction, the western end of the Alcan highway.

Finally, a photo with both of us in it!

Pipelines go through Delta Junction, so …

… more pig!

Delta Junction also has humor …

… and art (some humor here also).

TOK, REDUX

By the end of day 20, we were back in Tok, AK, having traversed the entire Alcan (the final piece from Delta Junction in the opposite direction from the rest). Our dinner was once again at Fast Eddy’s (really, the only restaurant in town despite what the Golden Bear sign says).

YUKON

Day 21 – we’re back into Canada in the Yukon Territories.

Views in the Kluane National Park.

Further into the Yukon, we are at Tes-lin-too.

A view of the lake at Tes-lin-too.

WHITEHORSE AGAIN

At the end of day 21, we are back in Whitehorse for a second stay at the Yukon Inn..

WATSON LAKE

Day 22 – we made it to Watson Lake for a stay at the Air Force Lodge: WWII officers quarters with tiny rooms and beds..

Watson Lake sign forest.

DEASE LAKE

Day 23 got us to Dease Lake, now driving south from Watson Lake on the Stewart-Cassiar Highway rather than the Alcan. The road was slightly less grand (narrower in some stretches and roadside brush not as well cleared) but still pretty much the same as the Alcan. There was less traffic, often in groupings due to a number of one-lane road construction segments with traffic controllers.

Dease Lake has only one (very!) general store, the Super A. Note on this receipt that the Canadians are doing “nickel rounding” – we never received pennies in change.

EAGLE!

Day 24 – driving on the way to our lodging in New Hazelton, a bald eagle flew across just in front of us at about 12 feet above the road. Obviously no chance to get a photo but this clker image is about what we saw.

PRINCE GEORGE

Day 25 brought us to Prince George, although it took the Garmin GPS a second try to find the Carmel Inn where we stayed. (Using the “Highway 97” address from the Booking.com itinerary took us 7 miles north of town while the Carmel Inn was actually to the south. Looking up the “Lodging” location with the GPS did the trick.)

CLINTON, BC

Day 26 brought us to Clinton for our last night in British Columbia. A booking error (the wonders of software!) did not have a reservation for us but the Cariboo Lodge did figure out a way for us to stay.

OOPS, A QUICKER ENDING THAN EXPECTED

Day 27 began with the return drive to Bellingham, WA, for our last night of the trip. On the way, a raven posed at a rest stop.

The road took us along the Fraser River to experience more of Beautiful BC.

Nancy, in the middle of the afternoon: “Isn’t this the date of my return flight?”

After checking her itinerary, it was indeed the date for her flight – Ron had set up a trip schedule in mid-May that was wrong and neither one had noticed the error. So, instead of a leisurely last two days, we drove all the way to PDX, arriving at about 9:30 pm in plenty of time for her 11:45 flight.

Ron arrived home just after midnight and Nancy about noon the next day.

Home again! Just over 6,000 miles added to the odometer.

CLOSING NOTES

Except for self-caused nuisances, the trip was pretty seamless. Thanks to:

2017 Ford Expedition – definitely at home in the north woods. The range at highway speeds was 500-600 miles so it was easy to refuel at our daily stops which were generally 200-300 miles apart. (As a result of improved vehicle mileage and range over the years, along with highway improvements, the Alcan highway now has many abandoned gas stations/convenience stores/restaurants/lodging between the major towns.)

Garmin 2597LMT GPS – maybe just because I’m a techie, I love knowing I’m on the right road and when I will arrive. Also a big help at finding addresses in Anchorage and Fairbanks.

Photos – Canon 6D with 24-105 mm F4 L lens (75-300 mm F4-5.6 for the “distant” Denali shots) and iPhone 7 (also buffalo video).

Special thanks to Stacey, Cookie and John Kelly for keeping the home fires burning while we were on the road.

Lodging via Expedia.com, Booking.com (both with some glitches) and Airbnb (no glitch for our Anchorage stay). Nancy’s flights by American Airlines.

MISSING IN ACTION!

These socks returned from the northland without their mates. Obviously I was paying too much attention to the scenery and the experience to notice they were lagging behind. Maybe a sign of a good trip!