Alaska Highway

[6V92TA]

any of you done it?

any of you taken the Cassiar highway as an alternate?

 

[Tractorat]

I drove up the alcan maybe 15 years ago. One of the best trips Ive ever taken in my life. I did not take the cassiar, but there are some on the tdr who have or at least there used to be. I went up thru bc from Sumas Wa. If I remember correctly without looking it up, it seems like it was Canadian Hwy 1 (?)

 

[K5IP]

We take the cassias one way, and the main route the other. The cassias is my favorite, but it is not as civilized. if you go,take your time. Good fishing if you take a boat, or (as I do, a float tube). we take three days for this part of the trip and there are nice Provençal parks spaced just right for three day stops. sometimes the route is completely closed when the road is washed out, so check. last time, still not all paved so take your time and enjoy
the best road trip left.
Roger

 

[Tractorat]

They always used to say to get a copy of the Milepost. You dont really need it. But it does have a lot of interesting stuff in it. Pointing you at things to see along the way and where they are. Things you probably dont know about and would never even find let alone know they are there. I would recommend that.

 

[SnoKing]

For years we knew where rigs had come from going South through Seattle. They look like they had been flooded in a mud slide. It has been much better in recent years as the highway has been improved.

If you run into frost heaves slow down or you will be breaking trailer spring and/or shackles!

SnoKing

 

[Tractorat]

If you run into frost heaves slow down or you will be breaking trailer spring and/or shackles!

they try to mark them, but miss a lot if not most. :-laf Definitely drive slowly, youll see more too. When are you going ?

 

[petersonj]

The first time I drove the Alaska Highway was in 1968 from Fairbanks, Alaska to Portland, Oregon. At that time the road was gravel from the Alaska border to Dawson Creek, B.C. - 1200 miles of slow driving. I drove it again in 1991 along with the Cassiar Highway and then again in 2006. My 1991 trip was in my new 1991 Ford F150 4wd, 5 spd manual truck that I repowered with a 4BTA Cummins less than 300 miles of driving off the dealer lot. in. I went all the way to Prudoe Bay on that trip.

The Milepost is worth the expense.

- John

 

[6V92TA]

they try to mark them, but miss a lot if not most. :-laf Definitely drive slowly, youll see more too. When are you going ?

if everything goes the way it should, I should be going next year, right after I retire.
if not 2020 it will be.

I'm going to buy the Milepost, just to support them. I've been reading there website for awhile, bt I like paper books and they seem to have the most to offer information wise.

 

[Memflash]

I've driven To Fairbanks and back to the Midwest twice lately and the trip is a piece of cake these days. Depending on the time of year there are plenty of services. If you go from late September to end of April there are limited services in some areas. Either carry extra fuel or have plenty of capacity in your vehicle. My truck has a 109 gallon auxiliary tank in the bed and that gives me 140 gallons of capacity. Much more then you need, but handy for piece of mind. You will see vehicles with extra gas cans strapped on or in there bed all the time.

One thing I would suggest is limit your night time driving. There are a lot of critters up there and some are as big as your rig. A deer guard ain't gonna stop em Besides unless you are doing the trip regularly you don't want to miss the sights. I have been four times all together and it's been different each time.

This is a picture of a Grizzly walking down the road beside me. I slept about a 1/2 mile from this picture. When that guy growled at me it was an experience in it's self.

The Mile Marker book is worth the money just for the options and info it gives you. I crossed at SweetGrass, MT all my times and went up through Edmonton and up to Dawson Creek. Once in a motor home and the rest in my truck.

 

[Tractorat]

I carried two cans of diesel with me, but I didnt need it. I always drive on the top half of the tank. There was one stretch (maybe two) where I thought I could find cheaper diesel down the road. And I did start to get a little worried I might have to use one of the extra cans. But I never got that low.

 

[Memflash]

I meant to mention in my earlier post about the Al Can trip, that folks should consider another trip if they have the time and inclination.
Try going to Newfoundland in Eastern Canada. The locals pronounce it "Nefinland" do it the other way and you will get looks. You cross New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, then take a ferry ride from North Sydney for about 7 or 8 hours on an ice breaker to Newfoundland. I went all the way across to the eastern side to St Johns. The farthest point east you can go and still be in North America. Great trip! Going again in a month or so I expect and looking forward to it. Just like Alaska you don't go for the warm water and beaches. Your not going to find them up there but you can get crab rolls at McDonald"s in season. You can't find that in Arizona.

Okay I'm going back to work now and will leave you folks alone for a few more days.

 

[6V92TA]

OH, me and the OL intend to do eastern Canada and the Maritime provinces at some other time but we sorta said we were going to Alaska when I retire, so thats where I intend to go.

yeah, I have a 60 gallon auxiliary in my truck already , not too worried on the fuel thing... really wasn't intending to drive at night, my eyes are starting to get old and I wont be in a hurry anyway.
just planning it out in my head and wanting to hear others experiences.

any of you haul a gun with you and have any problem with the Canadians? I've been reading up on their rules and how to do it, and it seems doable, but don't know anyone who has personally done it.. would like to hear if you transported a firearm across the border..

 

[Memflash]

I have never tried to take a firearm into Canada. My brother did once and got locked up. They let him go after he posted bail but he never went back for trial. This was about 25 years ago. I'm betting they're not any easier to get along with now. I think there is a way to take a long gun but I can't imagine them letting a handgun in. They wont even let you have mace or bear spray.

I wasn't suggesting foregoing the Alaska trip but for those who replied to your post who might want something different. Newfoundland-Labrador is a great trip.There are some places everyone should see before the dirt nap. Alaska and Yellowstone are on the top of my list. I have been lucky and have been able to go to every state and province a number of times.

 

[Tractorat]

You cant take a pistol across the border for any reason. If you get caught, I think it would be unfortunate for you. But do take a rifle. You fill out the form at the border, or you can download one or have it faxed to you from a canadian customs office and have it when you cross the border. They suggest the rifle for protection from the animals. But, Im not sure if the rifle is to hopefully shoot the griz before he gets you or to shoot yourself before he gets you.

 

[MMcCallie]

10 years ago the western route was brutal, even in late summer. There were long stretches of rough gravel roads that cracked a few wheels on our trailer, a couple flat tires as well. We carried a few 6 gallon jugs of diesel and did use some of them. As for the view, there was so much fog and mist we could barely see the entire way up.

Both highways have rough sections but most of the Alaskan Highway is paved. You will still go hundreds of miles between civilizations. And if you need a part like an alternator, starter, or water pump... it will likely take days to get them shipped there. We spent almost a week stranded when the fan shroud busted and tore up our radiator. Prices were extremely high like $90 per minute to make a phone call at a local spot.

Be as self sufficient as possible. Forget cellular service and no one uses CB radios up there. They all use Ladd 1 or Ladd 2. If I made the trip again I would probably rent a satellite phone.

As for firearms I mailed mine to my destination location in Alaska, then mailed it back south when I relocated to the lower 48. I recommend driving through Banff and Jasper, the Canadian Rockies are impressive.

 

[rikbakke]

Did the AlCan spring/summer of 2017 pulling a fifth wheel. Decent road, really. More repair is happening in May-June. In general, the road is no worse than Louisiana roads. Fuel is readily available. I filled when I hovered around 1/2 tank full to keep at least one fuel point ahead of need. Keep a watch for frost heaves. We didn’t make the planned return via the Cassier due to a family issue back in South Dakota. We’re plannng to do it again in 2019.

 

[Kilroy]

Last summer we went up the Cassier highway and back on the Alcan. Glad we did it that way. A lot of interesting things to see. Many good campgrounds. I think they were better than on the AlCan. Have fun, but as has been mentioned, beware of the dips. Some are marked, not all. Had to hit the brakes hard a few times. Couple of stretches of continuous dips for miles. Just slow down and enjoy the scenery.

 

[davidmartin]

We lived in Anchorage for 20 years and drove the Cassiar many times. As someone else indicated, there still aren't that many services on the Cassiar. You won't need more than the truck spare if the tires are high quality and in reasonable condition. Suggest driving a reasonable speed for the conditions and you will be fine.

I've stopped and changed 4 or 5 trailer flat tires on Cassiar. Again, the key seems to be having high quality tires (not Chinese) and driving at a reasonable speed.

Have fun!

 

[Barbieri]

Been on it three time. It is a fabulous drive. If you drive it early in the morning the wild life is out. They trim the growth about 100 feet on both side and this encourages the wild life to come out and feed.

 

[MarkMullins]

We've done the trip three times, the best one was the Cassier though the road was way worse and slower. Contrary to what was said above, you can take guns through, even a handgun. Please go read through the Canadian Firearms Center before listening to anyone on the internet. Even me. Might have changed some rules since I went through. I requested permission to take my Glock 20 through with me when I went down to Montana in 2008. The only issue I have is my little plastic case didn't make the border folks happy, they could pry the lid up and touch the gun, even though they couldn't drag it out. So I dug around in my stuff and found another padlock and with my knife scraped the handles enough to fit it on there to satisfy them. Here's the real interesting thing, the Canadians are more gun friendly than the US border folks are. They, at least in Alberta, Yukon and BC are much like Alaska and say Wisconsin and all hunters. That trip I actually got permission to bring my AR-15 through with me..BUT the guy called me from the Firearms Center and recommended I ship the AR down and not bring it through. He told me even though I had written permission, the border guards sometimes did their own thing and confiscated things and caused folks a lot of trouble and money, permission slip be dammed. So I shipped the AR. So with any guns you are planning to take through, they say you must have the gun in a locked case completely inaccessible to the vehicle occupants. They don't really recognize any sort of need for self defense particularly from 2 legged predators. They actually told me this so this isn't some "yeah my buddy said" BS, This is what really happened with my situation. I would honestly have to say I had more to fear from bears or moose than any 2 legged things up there...but with what is going on with terrorists now, I might think an 870 might be a good idea...placed strategically.. not in the truck but the camper closet or somewhere..



Saying all this, please go read the CFC...oh back then you could have so many KG of powder, primers, 5000 rounds of ammo, etc... the CFC I think links over to their explosives site which clearly gives these allowed amounts. I busted the powder amounts by double and the ammo by more than that but had it placed all through my household stuff and since I was on Military orders all the trips they were nice to me. They didn't even think I was some kind of criminal for having a gun with me. The American side though....even in Sweetgrass acted like you're a criminal and 20 questions, etc..

Oh, the milepost mag isn't mandatory but it is awfully handy..
There is a huge, long lake up in BC with absolutely stellar rainbow fishing. Rented a little aluminum boat for hardly nothing and fished it for three days. As others said above, it is still an epic road trip and should be done slowly as possible to enjoy it.