The greatest RV trip we ever took with our Edge trailer was a trip up the Alaskan Canadian Highway, or ALCAN, in 2014. We were living in Virginia at the time and had three weeks to make it from Virginia to Fairbanks, Alaska. Having already RV'd across the United States, we decided that I would take the Edge and drive from Virginia to Seattle, Washington, as quick as I could. My family would then fly to Seattle to join me. This way, we would be able to meander along the ALCAN.
With long days on the road, and sleeping at night in Walmart Parking lots, my two dogs and I were able to travel about 700 miles per day and cross the United States from Virginia to Seattle in four days. Along the way, I drove through Coeur d' Alene, Idaho, which to this day I think has to be one of the most beautiful locations in the United States.
Since I had budgeted five days for crossing the United States, I had a full day to rest and recoup before my family flew into Sea-Tac International Airport. I spent the day cleaning up the trailer and walking along the coastline.
Once my wife and boys arrived, along with my wife's parents (yes, planned to travel the ALCAN in a 24ft travel trailer with five adults, three kids, and two dogs), we promptly began our trip north. We decided to cross over the U.S. / Canadian Border at Sumas, Washington. We had hoped that, by getting off of I-5, we could avoid any heavy border traffic. We were wrong. It took us hours to get across the border at Sumas.
Once we got across the border, our pace quickly picked up. We drove for hours through British Columbia, making our way into the Great Basin area of British Columbia. Though people typically think of green trees when they think of British Columbia, large portion of British Columbia actually lie within the Great Basin, a relatively dry area of the continent extending from the Southwestern United States into Canada. Growing up in the Western United States, I had been traveling in and out of the Great Basin for most of my life. My father always noted that our family had a long history of living on the edged of the Great Basin. The Canadian Great Basin was a mirror imagine of the Great Basin region within the United States--few people, living in rusty structured that appear to have been lost in a time. There is a peacefulness to the Great Basin that comes from existing outside of the hectic progress of more developed areas.
The ALCAN highway begins in Dawson Creek, British Columbia. Dawson Creek is near the British Columbia / Alberta border, within the plains region of the North American Continent. Though it is a relatively small community, it was the closest thing to urban that we would see for the next 1,459 miles, when we would conclude our travels in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The ALCAN was amazing in its beauty. During our trip we saw moose, elk, brown bear, black bear, buffalo, a linx (it moved before we could get a photo), and miles and miles of beautiful scenery. The first night on the ALCAN, we stopped near the beautiful green and blue waters of Muncho Lake. The next day, we drove on, stopping for lunch at Coal River Lodge. Our stop at Coal River Lodge was made memorable by the machismo of a local dog, boldly facing off with a large buffalo bull. The restaurant served buffalo burgers, but the owner assured us that the meat was not locally harvested (the buffalo apparently are protected by local laws). After eating lunch, we traveled on to Laird Hot Springs for a nice, relaxing dip in its hot, sulfur waters. It was a relaxing afternoon.
That night, we made it to Watson Lake, which was on our "must see" list of placed to along the ALCAN. Watson Lake is the home of the famous Signpost Forest. The Signpost Forest started when a couple guys working on the the original ALCAN highway, which was being built as a military road, put some signs up pointing to their hometowns back in the United States. My mother-in-law had traveled the ALCAN with her father and mother during the 1960s and had put a sign up at the Signpost Forest. After hours of looking, we never did find my mother-in-law's old sign. I imagine it has long since rotted away. Nonetheless, it was still fun to look at all the signs put up from all over the world. That night, we stopped outside of Watson Lake at the Nugget City RV park.
Our next major goal along the ALCAN was Whitehorse , Yukon. Built along the Yukon River, Whitehorse is a beautiful town. For anyone traveling the ALCAN, I highly recommend making time to walk along Whitehorse's river walk. While walking around Whitehorse, I learned that Whitehorse is the home of the legend of Sam McGee. Remarking upon this to my wife, she asked, "Who is Sam McGee?" I was amazed that she had never heard the poem, The Cremation of Sam McGee. I thought it was mandatory elementary school reading. Apparently not.
Onward we traveled, making it to Haines Junction, Yukon. By this time, the light of day lasted well into the night. We had to put cardboard on the RV door window in order to to make our RV trailer dark enough to sleep in.
The next day, we traveled north from Haines Junction. Actually, at first we missed the turn north and continued west toward Haines, Alaska. My boys still give me a hard time about missing the only turn on the ALCAN. Once we got on the right road, we continued through the beautiful and remote Yukon, stopping for lunch at Kluane Lake. When I say we stopped at Kluane Lake for lunch, I mean we prepared some food from the RV and ate lakeside, since there were no stores anywhere in sight. It is a beautiful and peaceful lake. If you have a pair of binoculars, you can see Dall Sheep dotting the mountain side near the lake.
From Kluane Lake, we continued on to Beaver Creek, Yukon. Once you pass Kluane Lake on your way to Beaver Creek, the ALCAN turns into a dirt road with a lot of potholes. The bumpiness of the road was a fair price to pay for the nature we got to see, to include seeing numerous brown bears in the wild. Unlike the black bears in British Columbia, these brown bears didn't seem very intimidated by humans.
Beaver Creek is the last stop in the Yukon Territory before you cross back into the United States. There's not much there, but the small cultural center did serve as a nice reprieve from the road.
Once we crossed into Alaska, the road immediately improved. By the time we go back to the paved roads of Alaska, our car and trailer had become caked in dirt. That night, we stopped in Tok, Alaska. By this time, the mosquitoes ruled the dusk (I say dusk, because it never got dark).
After Tok, we headed on to the end of the ALCAN at Delta Junction. Delta Junction is a neat little community. The cultural center was a fun stop Right next to the cultural center there was a neat old road house that was used by prospectors trekking north from Valdez in search of gold. From Delta Junction, it is an easy drive north to Fairbanks. My family would fall in love with Fairbanks. For a small town, there is an amazing amount of stuff to do. While in Fairbanks, we would even drive the Dalton Highway to the Arctic Circle. Without a doubt, the Arctic Circle was the most remote place I have ever been in my life.
All in all, traveling the ALCAN was a life event. I know that my children will talk about it their whole lives. I imagine that one day, they may even take their own children on the trek, remembering along their first trip up the ALCAN with the own parents.
The reason we took up RVing was to spend time with family, and to give our kids a childhood full of happy memories that they can draw upon when life gets tough. I think our ALCAN trip will be a memory my children will recall throughout their lives when in need of a smile.
Happy Travels,
Scipio
With long days on the road, and sleeping at night in Walmart Parking lots, my two dogs and I were able to travel about 700 miles per day and cross the United States from Virginia to Seattle in four days. Along the way, I drove through Coeur d' Alene, Idaho, which to this day I think has to be one of the most beautiful locations in the United States.
Since I had budgeted five days for crossing the United States, I had a full day to rest and recoup before my family flew into Sea-Tac International Airport. I spent the day cleaning up the trailer and walking along the coastline.
Once my wife and boys arrived, along with my wife's parents (yes, planned to travel the ALCAN in a 24ft travel trailer with five adults, three kids, and two dogs), we promptly began our trip north. We decided to cross over the U.S. / Canadian Border at Sumas, Washington. We had hoped that, by getting off of I-5, we could avoid any heavy border traffic. We were wrong. It took us hours to get across the border at Sumas.
Once we got across the border, our pace quickly picked up. We drove for hours through British Columbia, making our way into the Great Basin area of British Columbia. Though people typically think of green trees when they think of British Columbia, large portion of British Columbia actually lie within the Great Basin, a relatively dry area of the continent extending from the Southwestern United States into Canada. Growing up in the Western United States, I had been traveling in and out of the Great Basin for most of my life. My father always noted that our family had a long history of living on the edged of the Great Basin. The Canadian Great Basin was a mirror imagine of the Great Basin region within the United States--few people, living in rusty structured that appear to have been lost in a time. There is a peacefulness to the Great Basin that comes from existing outside of the hectic progress of more developed areas.
The ALCAN highway begins in Dawson Creek, British Columbia. Dawson Creek is near the British Columbia / Alberta border, within the plains region of the North American Continent. Though it is a relatively small community, it was the closest thing to urban that we would see for the next 1,459 miles, when we would conclude our travels in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The ALCAN was amazing in its beauty. During our trip we saw moose, elk, brown bear, black bear, buffalo, a linx (it moved before we could get a photo), and miles and miles of beautiful scenery. The first night on the ALCAN, we stopped near the beautiful green and blue waters of Muncho Lake. The next day, we drove on, stopping for lunch at Coal River Lodge. Our stop at Coal River Lodge was made memorable by the machismo of a local dog, boldly facing off with a large buffalo bull. The restaurant served buffalo burgers, but the owner assured us that the meat was not locally harvested (the buffalo apparently are protected by local laws). After eating lunch, we traveled on to Laird Hot Springs for a nice, relaxing dip in its hot, sulfur waters. It was a relaxing afternoon.
That night, we made it to Watson Lake, which was on our "must see" list of placed to along the ALCAN. Watson Lake is the home of the famous Signpost Forest. The Signpost Forest started when a couple guys working on the the original ALCAN highway, which was being built as a military road, put some signs up pointing to their hometowns back in the United States. My mother-in-law had traveled the ALCAN with her father and mother during the 1960s and had put a sign up at the Signpost Forest. After hours of looking, we never did find my mother-in-law's old sign. I imagine it has long since rotted away. Nonetheless, it was still fun to look at all the signs put up from all over the world. That night, we stopped outside of Watson Lake at the Nugget City RV park.
Our next major goal along the ALCAN was Whitehorse , Yukon. Built along the Yukon River, Whitehorse is a beautiful town. For anyone traveling the ALCAN, I highly recommend making time to walk along Whitehorse's river walk. While walking around Whitehorse, I learned that Whitehorse is the home of the legend of Sam McGee. Remarking upon this to my wife, she asked, "Who is Sam McGee?" I was amazed that she had never heard the poem, The Cremation of Sam McGee. I thought it was mandatory elementary school reading. Apparently not.
Onward we traveled, making it to Haines Junction, Yukon. By this time, the light of day lasted well into the night. We had to put cardboard on the RV door window in order to to make our RV trailer dark enough to sleep in.
The next day, we traveled north from Haines Junction. Actually, at first we missed the turn north and continued west toward Haines, Alaska. My boys still give me a hard time about missing the only turn on the ALCAN. Once we got on the right road, we continued through the beautiful and remote Yukon, stopping for lunch at Kluane Lake. When I say we stopped at Kluane Lake for lunch, I mean we prepared some food from the RV and ate lakeside, since there were no stores anywhere in sight. It is a beautiful and peaceful lake. If you have a pair of binoculars, you can see Dall Sheep dotting the mountain side near the lake.
From Kluane Lake, we continued on to Beaver Creek, Yukon. Once you pass Kluane Lake on your way to Beaver Creek, the ALCAN turns into a dirt road with a lot of potholes. The bumpiness of the road was a fair price to pay for the nature we got to see, to include seeing numerous brown bears in the wild. Unlike the black bears in British Columbia, these brown bears didn't seem very intimidated by humans.
Beaver Creek is the last stop in the Yukon Territory before you cross back into the United States. There's not much there, but the small cultural center did serve as a nice reprieve from the road.
Once we crossed into Alaska, the road immediately improved. By the time we go back to the paved roads of Alaska, our car and trailer had become caked in dirt. That night, we stopped in Tok, Alaska. By this time, the mosquitoes ruled the dusk (I say dusk, because it never got dark).
After Tok, we headed on to the end of the ALCAN at Delta Junction. Delta Junction is a neat little community. The cultural center was a fun stop Right next to the cultural center there was a neat old road house that was used by prospectors trekking north from Valdez in search of gold. From Delta Junction, it is an easy drive north to Fairbanks. My family would fall in love with Fairbanks. For a small town, there is an amazing amount of stuff to do. While in Fairbanks, we would even drive the Dalton Highway to the Arctic Circle. Without a doubt, the Arctic Circle was the most remote place I have ever been in my life.
All in all, traveling the ALCAN was a life event. I know that my children will talk about it their whole lives. I imagine that one day, they may even take their own children on the trek, remembering along their first trip up the ALCAN with the own parents.
The reason we took up RVing was to spend time with family, and to give our kids a childhood full of happy memories that they can draw upon when life gets tough. I think our ALCAN trip will be a memory my children will recall throughout their lives when in need of a smile.
Happy Travels,
Scipio
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| While Driving Through British Columbia, we Saw a Brave Dog Trying to Take On a Buffalo |
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| Pulled Off on the Side of the ALCAN |
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| GRIZZLY BEAR!! |
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| Them Moose are BIG!! |
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| The Last Part of the ALCAN is Unpaved |
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