Fort Nelson
From Dawson Creek we took Hwy 97 to Fort where we spent the night. Along the way at about KM marker 130 there was an unmarked dip in the road that was really bad and caused some problems in the rig. It happened so fast there was no time to slow up or react in time. The couch came apart and the chairs in the back bent the back shade. The bad dip is not far past the place the Mile Post Magazine calls the Cut and well before Pink Mountain.
The park we are in is called Triple G Hide Away formerly known as West End RV Park. It is very crowded and a poor choice of a place to stay. There is another park before you get to town but I don’t know how it is. A pullout along the road would be a better place to stay. There was even a large party going on past midnight. When we checked in they said it would be over by 8:00PM. They obviously do not care about quiet hours.
We filled up for $1.15 per Litre at the Fort Nelson Husky station. Prices in Canada are always the same at every station in each city we are in. Very pricey fuel around here.
Fort Nelson Triple G
Liard River Hot Springs.
From Fort Nelson Hwy 97 took us over Steamboat Mountain and onto Liard Hot Springs. After getting set up in a campsite we all donned our swim wear and went into the hot springs. The water was about 120 degrees.
The road today was not bad. It did have several gravel patches a lot of hills and curves.
Liard Hot Springs Camp Spot
Liard Hot Springs
The Yukon
Watson Lake Sign Forest
28 June 2010
Swift River Pullout
After leaving Liard River Hot Springs we stopped at Watson Lake to see the Sign Forest and try to look up our license plate we left there in 1997. We searched the almost 65,000 signs for about an hour and half but did find our plate. The lady at the visitor center told us the signs are taken down from time to time and new posts are put up. Using a photo from 1997 we did locate the signs that were around our plate.
We stopped for the evening at the Swift River pull out at 88 miles past Watson Lake. The pullout is a large graveled area on the left side right before you go up a hill. There is plenty of room and the stream runs by the pullout. We took advantage of the stream and washed up our rigs. I had brought along a 12volt pump and an electric pressure washer. Worked great using a 30 gallon plastic storage bin from WalMart to hold water from the stream.
Diesel was $1.09 per Litre in Watson Lake.
Swift River Pull Out
29 June 2010
Kulane Lake Pullout
When we pulled out from the Swift River Pullout this morning with clean rigs the roads were wet and there was a light rain. We ran into some gravel patches with watered down sections. Naturally we got dirty rigs again. That is the way it is when you travel to Alaska. Just expect to have dirty rigs. We stopped at the Marsh Lake rest area for lunch.
After lunch we got into Whitehorse and headed to WalMart on the North end to do some shopping. When we got to WalMart there were a lot of rigs in the lot and very crowded. We filled up at the Shell station adjoining the parking lot and headed down the street to a Super Store to do some grocery shopping.
Then it was onto Kulane Lake where we found a big pullout on the south end of the lake ad decided to spend the night there. There was a lot of dust from the road construction on the west side of the lake blowing across the lake. The dust did settle down during the night after traffic slowed down. We were not affected by the dust. This afternoon at 5:00PM the sun was at the normal 12 noon position we are used to. I found that interesting.
Kulane Lake
Tok, AK
There was a light rain this morning when we pulled out of the pullout at Kulane Lake. The pullout was a good place to spend the evening and had a great view. From Kulane Lake all the way to the Alaskan border was very bad and about 45 MPH was all we could do most of the way. There was a lot of frost heaves and gravel sections. We crossed over into Alaska and the US at about 1:30PM Alaska time. I was surprised at a couple of questions the US Customs agent asked me. He asked me if I had any weapons on board and if I had more than $3000 in cash with me. They wanted out passports and vehicle registration.
We stayed at the Tundra Lodge & RV Park about a mile out of town. It was very nice and priced lower than the Tok RV Village. The sites were in the trees but very well trimmed back.
Alaska US Border Crossing
1 July 2010
Chena Lake Recreation Area
After leaving the campground in Tok this morning we filled up the main tank with diesel at the Tesoro Station. The price was $3.79 per gallon. Along with the fill up we were able to wash up the rigs at the car wash out back for free. So we took advantage of the car wash and got back on the road to Fairbanks at about 11:00AM. Alaska Hwy 2 has several gravel patches but the frost heaves are not bad.
We are spending the next four nights at the Chena Lake Recreational Area. We called the Rivers Edge RV Park in Fairbanks and they could not take us for more than two nights. This is the 4th of July weekend and everything is booked up. There are no hookups here, only a couple of water pumps in our loop. The water has a lot of iron in it. The park is a Corps of Engineers Park.
Along the way today we stopped at the Delta Meat & Sausage Company near Delta Jct. They had several different kinds of meat available with samples. I bought a pound of Yak Summer Sausage. The samples were sure good.
The next stop was the Knotty Shop. They had unique gifts and an interesting collection of burl sculptures in the front yard. The sculptures were of insects and animals made from tree burls. It is worth the stop to see the burl collection and for the free scoop of ice cream when you bring in your Mile Post Magazine with their ad. A good place to select a diamond willow walking stick to create your own walking stick with diamond eyes.
Another stop was Rika’s Road House. This was a historical park with antique displays and buildings. They have a gift shop and a restaurant.
The Knotty Shop
Begonias at Rikas Roadhouse
2 July 2010
Fairbanks.
Today was a day to go to WalMart and the Fred Meyer store. Diesel at Fred Meyer’s was the best price around. It was really busy every place we went. Diesel was $3.54 with our Kroger card. WalMart had several RVs in the parking lot spending the day. There was not enough room at the Fred Meyer store to do that. The station would also be hard to get into with a rig behind if it was as busy as it was today. The 4th of July weekend is a time to be put around here.
3 July 2010
Fairbanks
Today we all toured Fairbanks and made several stops around town including the Farmers Market. All the produce was very expensive. We didn’t buy anything.
The museum at the University of Alaska Fairbanks took most of the afternoon to tour. They have a large collection of Native art and displays. They have three different movies about Alaska running every 15 minutes.
We bought out fishing licenses at WalMart since they would take credit cards. The cost is $145 for the non-resident yearly license. If you plan to fish more than a two week period the yearly license is the best way to go. They also cover you when you go out on the boat halibut fishing.
4 July 2010
Fairbanks
After attending church at Zion Lutheran Church in Fairbanks this morning we stopped at the Sourdough Café for lunch to celebrate Jeanne’s birthday. We all had a breakfast special. Each plate was more than each of us could eat. All the food looked excellent.
After the Sourdough Café stop Lucy and I decided to go back by WalMart and pick a couple of things up. I bought a new 8’ fishing rod. Look out salmon.
My truck only made it to Fairbanks
5 July 2010
Fairbanks
It rained most all night long and it was raining when we got up this morning and our trip to the steamboat Discovery was in doubt today. At about 11:30AM we all decided to head to town and take a chance that things would clear up. Sure enough at about 12:30 when we got to the boat tour parking lot the sun came out and things were looking up. So we paid $54 each and got our tickets for the steamboat ride up the Chena river to where it met up with the Tanana River. We passed by the kennels of late Susan Butcher and visited a native village. It was a touristy thing to do but it was interesting and informative.
On the way home we stopped at U-Haul and bought propane. The price was $3.70 gallon, about average for this part of the country.
In the morning we head to Denali Park area.
Discovery lll Steamboat
6 July 2010
Healy, AK
We are in the McKinley RV Park this evening. This private park is located about 10 miles north of the park in Healy, AK. Not many choices for parks around here where you can open your slides. I was put in a site where I could not even turn into the street. To tight and overgrown pine trees. So I pulled out and was ready to leave but they gave us a nice wide open site. We let them know I would not drag my rig into any campground where the trees would drag down the side of the rig or the roof. This park need some serious attention. I got to speaking with another guy while we were doing laundry and he said Rainbow Village a little ways down the road was a better park and had wide open spaces. But, they book full about every night. We were already here so we were not moving.
Tomorrow Tom is taking the 11 hour bus ride in Denali Park. The rest of us will visit the Visitor Center and take some hikes on trails available around there.
Lots of Bridges in AK
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