Aug 2008

We have come to the conclusion that Alaska is just not an easy place to be. My main goal for the Alaska trip was to see Mt McKinley. This is something that only about 20% of the visitors ever get to do. Partly because it makes its own weather by being so tall and partly because most people only have 1 day to get a shot at seeing it. To help increase the odds we scheduled 5 days in the park 2 days on the road to get there where there were viewpoints and 3 days in Fairbanks where you can see it from the university viewpoint 125 miles away. It was sunny all along the road from Anchorage to Denali, but the mountain was creating a cloud above 7000' so we did not get to see it on the way. Once we arrived in Denali National Park it started raining. And it rained for 4 days. The forecast was for at least 3 more days of rain so hope of seeing the big one was slipping away. BUT !! A miracle!! On the 5th day there was no rain and there were a few breaks of sun. These are known as sun events in Alaska. Only I was determined enough to drive to the visitors center and book a bus trip into the park. This is a $40, 8 hour, 66 mile trip on a school bus with 40 of your closest friends. It is also the only way to get into the park. They keep cars out to keep it pristine. Finally I was rewarded by what the driver called "the best day for viewing the mountain all year".

So now on we went to Fairbanks. The weather was clear and we had several more views of the mountain along the road. We also got a good view of it along with the entire Alaska Range from the viewpoint of the museum at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.

While in Fairbanks we made a stop at the Ford dealer where the truck had been repaired and got one more part installed, the coolant checked and the oil changed. We were good to go but still apprehensive. We also got to do some riding for the first time in a week. We went to see the Trans-Alaska Pipeline north of town and got lost on the way. We rode about 40 miles of dirt road that at times was little more than a cow path only to hit a dead end and have to ride halfway back to find the real route and some pavement. We finally made it and the site was very interesting.

Now if you have been following our travels you are going to find this next statement unbelievable. Our next stop was in TOK !!! That is only because it is the only way to get in and out of Alaska on the highway. We were warmly greeted by the staff at the RV Park like we were long lost friends. While it was nice to see them and did feel like we had come home we were out of there early the next morning. We drove back over the same road we had taken to get to Alaska and were held up briefly (1 hour) getting across the border. Seems like everyone wanted to get out before winter started in September. The seasons are Sept – May, winter. June, spring. July, summer. August, fall.

Our next stop was a new place in the Yukon Territory. Watson Lake. There is a Signpost Forest there where people from all over the world have posted signs about themselves, or from their hometown.

About 55,000 of them. We had a sign with our names on it made in the Redwood area of California that we decided to add to the collection. Since Watson Lake is smaller than Tok we only planned to stay one night.

Did I say planned? My mistake. Next morning, about 30 miles out, our travel partners radioed to say they had an engine light on and no power on upgrades. YES Virginia, truck trouble again. They contacted a tow truck while we pulled our rig back to Watson Lake. We then returned and hooked up their rig to our truck and followed the tow truck back to Watson Lake. The next morning the repair shop told them the truck would have to go back to Whitehorse to the dealer for repair. 250 miles in the wrong direction. Since we didn’t want them to have to endure the same fate we had in Tok we decided to tow their rig to Whitehorse so they could be with their truck and in a civilized town. We made the 500 mile roundtrip in one day. We were going to part after two more stops anyway and since they were safe and we needed to get back to the states we said our goodbyes. It had been fun traveling with them and a real help when we both had truck problems.

We continued east to Edmonton over the Canadian Rockies where we saw more wildlife in one day than in a week in Alaska. Also some spectacular scenery and some scary roads. The Alaska Highway there is only about 20’ wide in parts with drop offs into water of the bottom of a canyon. Oh Yea, it’s under construction and dirt.

After 3 weeks stranded in Tok, Alaska we are finally back on the road! Here's the ENTIRE town of Tok from the air! On July 23 Chris took a bush plane from Tok to Fairbanks to pick up the truck that was supposed to be finished. Upon arrival he found that it was not only not done, but as you can see from the picture, it was still pretty much in pieces. After Chris spent two days in a motel in Fairbanks, the truck was diagnosed as needing a new motor! Then the next day they "brought in a new technician" who decided it was good as new and said take it and good luck. The drive back to Tok (200 miles) was uneventfull except for dodging a couple of moose. The truck seemed to be running OK and we were anxious to leave, which we did immediately, even though it was already 3 pm!
We made it to Valdez about 9pm and settled into a campground just 1 block from the water and at the base of a glacier. It was a very pretty drive down and we saw several glaciers, lots of waterfalls, eagles, a bear fishing for salmon, and really expensive fuel prices. ($5.61) Two days there and we were on the road to Anchorage for one night in the parking lot of "Freddies" (Alaskan version of Super Walmart) where we restocked our food supply. The next morning we dropped off our TV for repair (it had died in Tok) and headed to what used to be the town of Portage - now just a place on the map.
We were able to connect there with our travel partners for 2 nights as we were on our way into the Kenai Peninsula and they were on their way out. On our one common day together we drove to Whittier by way of a car/ train tunnel! It is one way and one type of vehicle at a time. Cars go on the hour east and the 1/2 hour west unless there is a train which goes whenever they arrive. It's 2 1/2 miles long, about 16' high, 12' wide and costs $12. Before 2000, there was no way to get to Whittier by car at all! Once in Whittier, we went on a Glacier Cruise to see calving glaciers. It was a beautiful day and we saw lots of calving, sea otters, black footed kites, seals, porpise and more waterfalls. We also saw a large high-rise building where the entire population of Whittier lives. Very unusual to say the least.
Next we were off to Homer at the bottom of the Kenai Peninsula. Nice little town with houses up on a high bluff overlooking Kachemak Bay. We camped on the end of Homer Spit, a small strip of land that extends out into the Bay. It was about 1 mile long and 1/4 mile wide, and has 28 ft tidal changes every 6 hours! This is how they deal with it at the local marina. It had a Key West feel except at the extreme opposite end of the US and the climate scale. It would be a nice place to live except for the fact that it goes to 70 degrees below zero in the winter. Chris' thought is that that's about 150 degrees too frickin cold!!!!!!!!!!
After 3 nights it was back to Anchorage for two days to get the TV and see some sights. It was nice to be back in a "normal" sized town and be able to shop and go to a restaurant. Carol was excited to see a freeway and streetlights. Today we stopped at a Harley dealer, got a new rear tire put on Carol's bike, and came to the tiny town of Willow, about 1/3 of the way from Anchorage to Denali National Park (location of Mt. McKinley, the highest peak in the US at over 20,000'). McKinley is only visable about 20% of the time but we will have 5 days there starting Thursday so we hope to see it. We're back with our travel friends now until we get part way through Canada, so even though we're not completely trusting of the truck, we feel more comfortable. Keep your fingers crossed for us! More later.
C&C