Road to Tuktoyaktuk!

Just remember to not over think the trip. You could run all the way up to Tuk in a Corolla with decent weather and be just fine.

 

This is an awesome list and i appretiate that you've brought it up. I was planning on renewing my first aid before the trip so that way there is at least 1 person (best if everyone knows) that can deal with a situation/ teach and direct others.
Having a sealed copy to only be used when needed for emergencies is certainly one thing to consider adding to a document list

 

To add anyone crossing the border - understand both health and vehicle insurance crossing into Canada. Your insurance may not cover international travel. Also if you're bringing any medicine or pets. My dog is a 50/50 shot. I may bring her for this, if so I cannot bring opened dog food. Fortunately her food is common enough to find a big bag in Toronto or a bigger city area. Or I may ask assistance come that time and ship a bag from Amazon to one of y'all for me when we rendezvous.

Spot on. I love going out with people and they're in these jacked up trucks with tires and every light in the world and we stop for lunch and an old guy going hunting passes us in an outback "hello fellow woods people. how do you do. Good afternoon!"

However don't overestimate your fuel useage. Understand your fuel useage and plan the stops for fuel. At a fuel stop and have 3/4 of a tank and think "nah I'll be fine"? Stop anyway. You're on a 3 week trip - an extra 5 minutes is worth it.

 

Here is something else I read and since I am not a medical type person, I follow it.

I got your back B!

From my perspective there are 2 trains of thought when it comes to wilderness medicine. I'm talking way out there.

1. Do as much as you can to keep someone going until you get to a real place to help them.

2. Those who are gonna die...will. Those who aren't gonna die...won't.

Number 2 is a quote from a guy named Howard Donner. He’s an ER doc who was expedition doc for NOVA Everest trips and was a consultant to NASA for space exploration regarding medical problems. It doesn’t get more “wild” than space. NASA had plans for all kinds of crazy medical stuff and he told them Number 2. It was years ago since I heard Donner speak, but you all get the gist.

I’ve done wilderness training and it is all very fun to practice and go through scenarios prior to having to act in real life. This training is only as good as the med kit your willing to make and carry.

In reality there is really very little one can do in the woods without extensive kit/medications and proper tools. But there are easy things we can do while out in the field from a wheeling perspective.

For instance,

1. Chest Pain/Heart Attack - Take some aspirin. Then high tail it to the nearest help.
2. Broken Bones - No need to “set” the fracture, build a well padded splint, go to nearest help.
3. Allergic Reaction - Take some benadryl. You know who you are if you are crazy allergic to stuff, get an epi pen. Then go to the nearest help.
4. Diabetic Emergency - If you are a diabetic you need to bring medication for your high sugar, you must also bring candy/food/sugar pills for the possibilty of a low sugar event. Then go to nearest help.
5. Cardiac Arrest - I’m talking no pulse, not breathing. Yes there are situations where an AED (automated external defibrillators) will be useful but they are expensive. In a true cardiac arrest situation in BFE, the AED is the best option to save someone. CPR is cool, but I can’t imagine a good outcome doing CPR in the woods with a long ETA to a road or helicopter. See train of thought number 2 above. If the AED is present and works...then go to nearest help.
6. Respiratory Failure - You better be choking and getting the heimlich. True failure and I’d say your dead, again how long can we do mouth to mouth on you while trying to get off the trail. Minor respiratory complaints are different and should be treated by going to the nearest help.
7. Bleeding - Direct pressure, pressure points, tourniquets in rare cases. Then go to nearest help
8. Head injury - Go to nearest help.
9. Asthma - Bring you inhaler and some prednisone if you are and asthmatic. since you brought the steroids I would offer it to the allergic reaction guy as well. If your asthma is really acting up...go to nearest help.
10. Vomiting/Diarrhea - Were in trucks, should be able to drive to nearest help.

Is anyone else noticing a trend...you must seek out the nearest help! Not much rocket science going on. The trucks are more complicated than anything I mentioned above. Add in hypothermia and dehydration and I think we have it covered. I always throw a sleeping bag in the back and bring plenty of water.

One of the best things HDC has is all the HAM operators. In a real emergency don’t be afraid to call for help and don’t be afraid to ask for helicopter service. Having GPS location is great and can be of great help. Our Air Care service at San Juan, often is first on scene out in BFE, they rock and roll and zip patients back to me all the time. Wheeling to a landing zone is way better than trying to get all the way out of the woods, plus the air crews are usually full of fantastic paramedics and flight nurses. They have the kit on board needed to change the course of the problem.

 

I have my amateur radio license and by that time will have a UHF VHF radio setup in the truck. Possible but unlikely to have CB unless that's the intent for comms. I will potentially have an inreach or similar too. All up in the air a bit - hard wired VHF UHF is almost a guarantee but others are kind of wishy washy.

 

I remember planning for an atv across Newfoundland trip. While we were taking everything including hundreds of liters of diesel, food, clothes ect tools you name it. The weekend b4 some seniors from our church rented a minivan and drove to Nova Scotia non stop. When they got back I asked someone about their trip, apparently they took some blankets to and some snacks and their clothes....lol...

 

Yep. People get caught up on needing five spare tires, 30 gallons of gas, a month’s supply of food and all kinds of other ridiculous shit on their overloaded “overlanding” rig and get passed by mid ‘90s minivans and sedans the whole time.

 

Anybody who’s ever owned a Vette knows a pack of smokes is luggage.

 

A lot of what you carry, want or need will depend on how long you plan to stay up north or anyplace. Can you get supplies in Inuvik or Tuk, yes, will you pay a lot for stuff up there, definitely. I found it best to stock up in Whitehorse, same with fuel.

First time doing the Alaskan Highway was in 1982 in a Mercury station wagon, never got a flat or even a chipped windshield. Almost didn’t make it back to the Alaskan Highway from Chicken, road was so muddy.

Second time going was 2014, my JKUR carried an extra 10 gals of fuel, needed it twice because stations that should of been open but were not for whatever reason and I had a rock crack the windshield.

Third time up, everything went good for me, except for some trailer problems, but the two people with me each had a tire blow out. We also help a lady in a newer Camry around Inuvik who had a rock or something break a oil sending unit, very small leak, but her oil light was on.

After I finish my set up, I will able to stay away for 2-3 weeks no matter where I go. I will also be able to shop where food and supplies are more readily available.

I’m an old fart, in the future I want to be very comfortable when out camping and traveling, so I’ll carry it with me.

 

well folks, I am almost ready for this trip.. My 11yr old son I are heading up to Tuk for the summer solstice June 21st.. Leaving Portland Oregon area, heading up to Tuk, then over to Alaska for a bit then back home.. probably 4 weeks or so total trip time.. still have a couple items to close on my truck built and things like good sleeping bags and mosquito prevention and bear spray.. Did I miss when this group was leaving or is this still postponed? oh and I just wanted to sub this thread..

 

Just make sure before hand that the town is willing to accept visitors. issue we had earlier because of the pandemic is they openly announced they didn't want any visitors/ tourists to avoid loosing anyone.
i believe you can make it most of the way but not sure any further.

 

Taking my name off the list for now.. too much to do with the truck and last winter road trip showed how much I'm not prepared for this...

2022-2023 trip interested:

1. @Shveet
2. @Windigo (just too much other things I want to do with the money) not going
3. @Tridet167
4. @zuknewbie
5. @GarlicFarts
6.
7.

 

It’ll be more fun going less prepared
I am thinking leaving Tacoma and slapping some 30” meats on my 86 and ski roof rack and send it.

 

Oh I have zero plan to do this in the real cold I will probably get a set of 10 ply/E load, MAYBE get a fridge instead of a cooler (or just get MRE/etc instead and not worry about it), and that's about it. Otherwise I'll be pretty much fully stock

RUN IT. When my wife retires her hybrid camry I am going to take it and overhaul it into a road trip machine - same setup as I have with the sleeping platform, but with 50mpg etc. for long haul trips, like when I do a cannonball run for G's and S's again. Only a few of my camp sites would have been inaccessible for the camry - like copper harbor up in Michigan, indian bread rock etc would have been not doable for the camry. I have thought about it

 

Made it in one piece! (TLDR: new line of work, got opportunity to work there as a temp for a few months)



@Windigo
Ok so a few things you had asked me about the trip
1) How much in fuel
2) is it doable on a bike


1) i paid just shy of $1500 in gas accross Canada from Toronto. which i was crawling at 95km/h almost the entire time. I can do a number break down but i'll do that if someone asks while i'm still up here.

gas prices went like this:
1)Southern Ontario (baseline = Toronto area) = $2.00 /Liter of regular
2)Mid Ontario (around the Sue) = $2.10
3)Ontario (Thunderbay) = 2.10
4)Not so North Ontario (Dryden) = 1.95
5)East Mantioba: 1.87
6)West Manitoba: 1.85
7)East Saskatchewan: 1.85
8)West Saskatchewan (Lloydminster): 1.67
9)East Alberta (Lloydminster): 1.67 (Cheapest i've seen was a 1.63 but for native gas from what i could tell)
10)Mid Alberta (Edmonton): 1.85
11)North West Alberta: 1.95
12)Alaskan HWY (Beaverlodge area, got a few cents cheaper at Dawson Creek): 2.20
13)Alaskan HWY (Pink River area): 1.95 (but it's the Machine you got to mess around with yourself to turn on. Push a nob, insert credit card only, Pull nob fuel up, push nob, swipe card again, print recipt.)
14)Alaskan HWY (Fort Nelson): 2.05
15)Alaskan HWY (Toad River): 2.10
16)Watson Lake: 2.05 (i dont recall exactly what it was but was above 2.00)
17)White horse 2.10

Largest pass i did with no fuel stations (there are signs that say) was 250km and that was between Coal River and Watson Lake. However, driving through the HWY there - there was a bunch of gas stations along the way but were "closed" due to the season, mostly all snowed in or decrepit old shacks that might have been abandoned. Second largest stretch was also on the Alaskan but was about 173km to the next gas station. All signs are posted just before/ at a gas station so you're able to top up before yo go in deep.

2)Since you asked, the road up to Whitehorse is entirely paved*

*paved when not under construction.

Lots of landslides had happened and lost of road reconstruction was on-going, anything they touch looked like it is left as compacted gravel/ dirt roads. Maybe as it warms up it will get paved but not 100% certain.
longest stretch of road that was left compacted gravel/ dirt is gonna be about a 5km stretch just before you enter the Yukon to enter Watson lake: somewhere in this marked area. just a few signs saying "Dusty road" and "Gravel" but no construction vehicles were around so it might just be like that going.


Also lots of steel grate bridge decks.
Not sure if it'll chew Bike tires (I seen cyclists up here and mostly ADV touring bikes up here)

but other than that 250km stretch and the ability to withstand random snow squalls that last and hour or 2 and reduce visibility to about 50m, you should be fine.

 

That is a lot of gas but I don't know what I expected.

 

i estimated about $2000 to make it to Tuk. @Norilsk mentioned $2200 so i wasn't far off the mark.

but yeah, it's not cheap to drive across the country. maybe we could price out getting a convoy of trucks onto rail cars and training them to BC and then just drive north?

 

ADV bikes can do it fine. Had a group of friends do a similar route last year.

 

Shveet
youtube video?

 

Great report, I dont really remember the cost for fuel back in 2014 and 2018, but I do remember one stop along the way equaled out $7.52