The picture below is just some of the “stuff” I kept in the BFT no matter were we traveled, but especially to the Last Frontier.
I have been asked “How was the drive to Alaska”? We were told by some that the road thru Canada and the Alaska Highway will destroy a 5th Wheel, especially the slides. Did we experience any issues with your Cedar Creek as a result of the road conditions? As you are considering this trip, below is the condensed version of our thoughts as to how we did it…
I starting writing this blog while we were still traveling up to Alaska, and finished it now ;-).
I really wanted to give my answer to the “questions as to how we did it?” some thought because it would be too easy to say “just do it”. But really, “just do it”. There are many RVers that are not comfortable traveling a long remote distance alone, that is not us. We love the challenge and not knowing what’s around the corner, and saying “holy cow” all the time !
This journey to the last frontier, has surpassed all of our dreams, plans, and expectations! This is one of our trips of a lifetime for us!
As of June 2017, we have traveled 10k miles in the last 7 months and we still have another 8 weeks here in Alaska and 4000 miles before we are back to the lower 48 to winter in Arizona.
Like most folks getting ready for a big trip, I read a lot of Alaska blogs about other peoples experiences in the Last Frontier. Plus I have asked a lot of questions of those that traveled the roads before us.
Quite a few members of our CCRVOC have been to Alaska and they are a wealth of information. We have gotten a lot of advice and where to go and what to see, which has been awesome. In fact, one of our most memorable (unplanned, spur of the moment) trips was putting the BFT and CC on the Alaska Ferry from Skagway to Haines. What a journey! (Thanks to Torben).
In general, seems like the folks I have spoke with that traveled 10 years or more ago , tell different stories of the roads, than those that have traveled more recently. Except for the frost heaves, I don’t think the roads are any worse the those in the lower 48. Some roads are narrower than others, maybe without a shoulder, sometimes dirt, or gravel. But a road, none the less. The exception are the dirt roads up to the Arctic Circle, McCarthy, Salmon Glacier, and other “side” trails we drove on are challenging and not in the best of shape, but doable with caution. But we did not tow on these roads. The absolute worst stretch on the Alcan was the 300 miles between Haines Junction and Tok. Not to say it was smooth as ice, but “good” road conditions become relative.
We encountered very little road construction going up to Alaska. I think we traveled too early for road repairs to begin on the Alcan.
Oh by the way, there are hundreds of RV’s up here of all sizes. Yes, a lot have Alaska license plates, but many are from the lower 48. While planning our journey, I had a few folks say our rig was too big, and said they rented a small rig. Yep, our rig IS big, but we have not had any problems trying to find a place to call home. Being flexible helps. Our CC is our home, and our travel style is to be comfortable. Not saying you can’t be comfortable in a smaller RV, but home is home. Boondocking is ok with us, and in many areas we like that style better. Solar panels and/or a genset are a must.
Obtaining potable water initially was chore. Meaning, I have never had to search for drinkable water. Some places I couldn’t find any, unless I wanted to use a hand pump from a well, then boil the water. Much like knowing when to fill up diesel at available stations, is the same thought process I used for obtaining fresh water. Get it before you need it and when available.
I think the pace of travel affects our trailers as well. Some folks hurry up to get to their destination, spend a short time and leave. We try to tow in short distances (less the 250 miles) and spend some time (a week or two) in our new back yard exploring and then coming home at night.
That distance really is not that far, but it is the same wear and tear on the truck and trailer even if we were driving up and down the east coast roads in the lower 48.
I planned our route (as a guide) from April through Oct, but only made one campground reservation (Denali). I refer to our guide from time to time, but we travel as we please.
The drive thru the plains of Canada (from North Dakota to the Yukon) was long, at times interesting, and boring. However the highway was good, and after 3500 miles from Key West we got to Dawson Creek (beginning of Alcan).
I do not drive fast, in fact many times, the road would dictate 30mph or less due to the frost heaves or bumps. It helps to know where your tires are on the road so you can try to avoid stuff……But “Stuff” happens.
The Alcan dictates your driving style and you “learn” to read the road, mainly, looking for “red” flags, cones, and caution signs to drive slow. But, for us, somewhere in the 200 miles before Whitehorse we broke two rear leaf spring hanger bolts. Ironically, and unknown to us, the worst part of the Alcan, was ahead of us, from Haines Junction, Beaver Creek, Destruction Bay and into Tok. But we did not encounter any more issues.
There are many road opportunities to break something and we found it. Good news is, I found the broken bolts during a walk around when stopped for the night, and was able to find the bolts in Whitehorse, and repaired it before more damage was done.
We were boon docked at a quiet picturesque road side pull out next to Altin Lake when I noticed the leaf spring problem. In fact the snow covered mountain and lake picture on the front page of our blog. A great spot to be broke down! (Plus we had cell service.)
With help from Ray (Thank you RAY!) in the CCRVOC and the CC factory we were able to get a Dexter part that we could not order in Whitehorse.
Which by the way leads me to this. I highly recommend having two cellular service providers. It has worked out great for us. Ann Marie has ATT and I Verizon. If we did not have cell service it was because we where way off the grid, lucky to get sunshine………and there were (are) many of those occasions. But some of the towns or cities you can only get one service or the other.
Most places we have been staying do not have water or sewer, (or elect). But or us, water is the limiting resource. Getting it and dumping it….. We use about 5 gallons a day. So every 5 days or so we use our 30 gallon vinyl water bladder (lays in the bed of the BFT) to transport water to the RV and use a (separate) water pump to transfer it to our holding tank.
For our gray and black water, we carry a 42 gallon turd wagon and a macerator to fill it up. Because we have to travel to “dump” it, I leave the turd wagon in the truck, and the macerator fills it up, and then off we go to a nearby RV sanitary waste dump somewhere. I dont have to dump black water, we can go about 14 days before dumping our black tank, so just gray water.
Really, our water process is a result of the way we travel. If we did’t stay so long dry camping (7-14 days), we could refill our fresh water and dump enroute to our next location. But for us, the trade off is worth it, and besides, there are many times on this journey, that the pace of travel must pick up, and we are not staying long, so I think in the long run it balances out. It’s all about options and flexibility.
While planning, we figure “stuff’ would happen, no matter what, or where we are, there “could” always be situations. We like to think we are very well prepared, but being “prepared” is a “big” bucket when planing on driving 15K miles, through some of the most isolated wilderness we have ever been a part off. Small dirt roads on mountain tops and along their sides, with no cell or even people around. We have never seen isolation in such vast distances like this before.
Blankets, extra cloths, rain gear, jackets, extra medicine, bottled water, MREs, bug spray, mosquito nets and jackets, flashlights, fire extinguisher, bear spray, compressed air horns, and folding chairs all travel in the back seat.
Based off a locals recommendation, they said a CB was a “must have” to travel up to the Arctic Circle because the truckers will run you off the road….. So we bought a CB radio while in Fairbanks, before we drove up to the arctic circle. We never heard a “peep” on the CB and good for us, we didn’t need it for an our own emergency, but the journey up there was amazing! We did offer some assistance to a car on the Dalton Hwy that had a flat tire, but they had it under control.
I carry enough tools and spares to get me out of some jams, but I can’t “carry” everything. So a serpentine belt, idler pulleys, water pump, fuel and air filters, a good tire plug kit, 20T bottle jack, windshield crack repair kit, and new brake pads. 15 Gal of diesel, 5 gallons of gas, oils, coolant, etc.
BTW, I have not yet needed the “extra” diesel. Enough fuel stations along the way, I try to know where we are and ride on the top half of the tank.
For the CC, I have replacement parts for the water heater, all kinds of hardware, two spare tires (1 unmounted), tie straps of all sizes, tarps and roof repair stuff. A portable heater, with a lot of 1 lb bottles to keep warm if broken down in the middle of nowhere.
The CC is holding up well, and other than my leaf spring bolts, all is GOOD!
I check as many bolts and screws as I can when we are stopped for a while. I l lube the slide rack and pinons and the rubber seals. We have had no problems with the slides or any other item (except for the little problem with the springs). KNOCK ON WOOD…REALLY…we love our CEDAR CREEK.
We love Alaska so much, we plan on going back in 2020. So stay turned !