Alaska

[sithot]

One of our own members now lives in Anchorage. He was originally from AK. Grew up there. Drop by and he'd show you a good time. The Anchorage Billiard Palace. Mid Town. Ask for Shawn! That was his "handle" here.

[LongRanger]

Weather was getting dismal as I reached The Border --- again, not what I’d expected. I’d smelled smoke for a while --- asked about it, at the crossing. Hot, too --- 87F . . . stinky/sticky. The Guy There told me that there was a big forest fire burning, somewhere to the North. So, after 6 days, all the open country, all fair weather gettin’ up there . . . . finally making up to AK was actually kind of a downer.

Land smoothed-out a bit, more clouds came in, things got murky. Low mountains to the West, bordering a strange lumpy landscape, the roadbed elevated on what looked a lot like a levy. Sun never really goes down that time of year, anyway . . . . but between the drive-times, the smoky-cloudy weather, a less-than-inspiring piece of countryside/highway to cross ---- just an empty/anodyne two-lane strip of roadway . . . headin’ off into the twilight ---- and my own fatigue (one serious case of Car Face) . . . . that last stretch was pretty forgettable.

[LongRanger]

I did stop, at one point . . . a few miles past Tok, at this little road-side turn-out --- with one very lonely-looking pay phone . . . . took a 360-degree look-around

[LongRanger]

. . . 75 f . . . .

[LongRanger]

. . . high Summer . . . .

[LongRanger]

. . . hit Fairbanks at 23:29. 12:46, 890 mi/1432 km

[RickS]

you are a true road warrior. what a saga.

[LongRanger]

No reservations for accommodations. Cruised into town, middle of the night, headed in a direction I took to be for Downtown, eyeballing hotels as I went, then pulled up/checked in to a place that Looked Good Enough. Couldn’t tell you the name, but it kinda reminded me of the Tenaya Lodge, up by Yosemite --- high ceilings, rocks/logs/heads (animal) up on the walls, etc.

Coming up, traveling alone, I’d just stay any place that I could find along the way --- little motels, places that would turn up along the highway, whenever it got dark enough or I was tired enough to stop . . . then, grab a meal (or not), shower, sleep, get up, go. Nothing really memorable.

So, by the time I got to Fairbanks, I was already planning/expecting to stay a day, take it easy, treat myself, re-charge . . . . nice room, a tub big enough to soak in, a really BIG bed, nice meal, shave. I remember that I’d found it.

Next morning, got up at, like, Noon, showered, got something in the Dining Room, then headed out to see some Fairbanks. Beautiful day for it, too.

Pop = 30k? No skyscrapers or big buildings, downtown . . . but lots of stores and shops and places to check-out. On foot. I parked-up, then strolled.

I was hot for something souvenirish --- Total Tourist, remember? There were a couple of stores that had jewelry/trinkets/kitsch made from a local gem that they called Tanzanite? Dark purple-green, kinda cool --- Wifey mighta liked it. But didn't find anything nice enough to buy/bring back/get beat-up over/maybe spend a week on the couch for, so . . . pass.

Did get a coupla cool shirts, though (now loooong-since worn-out/relegated to chore/Nasty Dog duty)--- at this Outfitter’s, and a cap . . . . packed away someplace in the three moves since.

Messed around downtown for a while, then . . . . just had to take off --- check out The Dalton Highway

1) Fairbanks

2) Town sits along-side a river --- the Chenya? --- and they had some river-boat tours that run there. Easy-going atmosphere . . . no crowds, no traffic, no stress . . . something that I really enjoyed --- the whole time

3) Heading North

4) Something to keep in mind . . . things are REAL spread out. Watch the fuel. Read the signs. Circle = Arctic

5) Dalton up ahead

[LongRanger]

. . . never happened.

This trip --- every mile, over every hill, through every valley and small town . . . was/is only a small, sorry pre-amble to the trip that I first wanted to make . . . the one I bought a Land Rover for . . . . The Real Trip . . .

The Dalton Highway.

Fairbanks and back? . . . . . a solid + fun piece of driving. Nice roads. Decent weather. Lots to see. And a lot of time/distance/money . . . but nothing that any/every regular passenger car + driver do --- every few months . . . people + places/animals/topography excepted.

The Dalton Highway is something different.

Thrown down in a rush in ’74, and alternatively known as The Pipeline Road/The Haul Road/Alaska Route 11, it’s the main route for running food + supplies/equipment/personnel to/from the oil fields on the North Slope, and roughly parallels the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. Ever seen/heard of ‘Ice Road Truckers’? That’s The Dalton

Built/maintained/used for business. 425 miles. Mostly unpaved. Still. Three towns --- Wiseman, Deadhorse and Coldfoot. Crosses the highest mountains on the continent --- The Brooks Range (Atigun Pass/4739 ft/1444m) --- and the 2nd largest river --- The Yukon. Ends at Prudhoe Bay/The Arctic Ocean. Limited services. Two fuel stops.

And nothing north of Coldfoot --- no hotels, restaurants, gas stations, novelty stores, bingo parlors --- NADA, Citizens. At 240 miles, the longest un-supported stretch of highway in North America. Patrolled two days a month. Notorious for eating tires/windshields, hence suggested items for take-along include at least 2 spare tires and an extra (what else) windshield. I’d also recommend an Iridium.

And Summertime is animal time. With long winters and short summers, every critter that walks/crawls/digs/swims/flies is out packing calories. There’ll be company. Bear, deer/moose/antelope/caribou, wolf/fox, duck/goose/crane, even porcupine (like the 55-gal barrel-sized one I almost whacked just before these pics were taken). Swarming mosquitos, too --- with beaks big enough to punch through all their hides. (Does anybody make Kevlar Capilene?) Some of the safety advice I read included ‘. . . if you’re gonna camp ---- keep all your victuals as far from camp as you can, up in a tree if possible . . .' (Hungry bears are bulldozers that need haircuts, and will tear a car apart going after groceries)

I get all choked-up just thinking about it.

So. Before they pave the place, stick in the hotels --- FUBAR everything . . . I gotta go. Once in a life-time.

But that’s another trip . . . . and whole ‘nother thread . . .

This time? All I had was my Every Day, a coupla weeks, and the chance to see a place that I still think about . . . that keeps me awake some nights . . . makes this whole thread so d@mn hard to write . . .

(Its gonna take me ten minutes to settle back down/de-rattle --- just from writing this installment . . . seeing these pictures, again . . .)

1) That's it . . . . this's a far as I got. End of the Road. (This time) Dalton Highway, Mile Zero . . . the furthest North I’ve been on this continent, this planet. Mi = 3657

2) Got another Tourist to take this picture . . . and My Bestest Souvenir

Not my pics, but, some idea of the place . . .

3) ‘. . . Mile 256 on the Dalton Highway, north of the Continental Divide in the Brooks Range . . .'

4) ‘. . . facing South from Deadhorse, near the Arctic Ocean . . .’

5) ‘. . . August snow storm . . .’

[meat]

In 2005 I spent three weeks driving around Alaska. Flew into Anchorage, drove south to the Kenai, then turned and went north to Denali and then to Fairbanks. Was really worried about going north on the Dalton in my rental Pontiac Vibe, but we headed north to the Artic Circle. We got there and hopped out of the car and got attacked by the largest mosquitos you've ever seen. We took two pictures and back in the car we went! We then went to Tok and then over to Dawson City. Back to Tok and then south to Kennicott, Valdez and finally back to Anchorage.

All in all - it was 4000 miles of driving and the best vacation I've ever taken. It redefined being "in the middle of no-where". I'm looking forward to going back someday......