Alaska BS thread

Wellllllllllll?!?!? How was the meet?

 

I miss the meets and my truckkkk! I can't wait for some snow wheeling in December and January

 

what meet?

ill post pics up in a bit

 

And den????

 

Sweet photos! Well, except for that last weird one.
Is it kings river or ruby lake that has thebfrog pond?

 

Ruby lake and the frog pond are on the kings river trail

 

Its all the same trail?!? I never knew that. You gearing up for plowing season todd?

 

Yep

 

Ruby lake is were we usually stop because the trail to the frog pond is pretty rocky and it get worse from there

 

I have heard there are no stupid questions - so here goes. It is on my bucket list to take the ferry up to Alaska from Washington (State). What I would like to do is take the ferry to Alaska and drive back to Washington via the Alaskan (?) Highway. I bought a Milepost magazine - more like an encyclopedia - and it answers a lot of questions - but I have some that folks that live there might know best.

Via the ferry from Washington what is the suggested place to end up in Alaska that would put me closest to the Highway for the best route back?

I will be towing a teardrop trailer and would like to stop after a six or so hour drive to camp - are there plentiful places along the Highway to camp that have hookups?

Along the way, with wildlife/scenic photography being a priority, what is the time of year that would get me the best shots but also be decent weather? These may not always be happening at the same time, I understand.

What would be a decent time frame to allow for the trip back -- in looking at the ferry, it looks to be a 2 - 2.5 day trip? - I would sleep in the teardrop.

Would I just be smarter to bring the truck up - leave the trailer behind - and hotel it down so I can take advantage of side trips and photography?

Lastly - is there anything I am missing? I am sure of this but any insight would be appreciated!!

Thanks in advance for the help.....

 

I bring extra fuel. Make sure you have a good kit in your truck. Be prepared to have your truck searched at the border. And your trailer if you bring it. I've never had a problem crossing, but I know many who have, so clean your truck and search it for any stray bullets or a knife you may have left in there.

I don't know about the ferry schedules though. You would have to ask about that. As far as I know, the ferry trip doesn't include lodging, so if you don't buy it separately, bring a tent because you may not be able to sleep in your truck.

 

Considered a Roof top tent? You'll be far more flexible about where you can go, see huge milage increases vs towing AND you'll not need any hookups making you far more versatile on the road.

 

That jake aka jeverich, he lives in Washington now. But he still comes up to kodiak with the new boat that he is on. Search for his build he has been busy

 

Oh yeah! Haha totally forgot about jake getting his RTT. Duh. He just stayed at my house lol.

 

Yup, here I am...!

 

That's the one, I remember seeing pics of y'all together down on Kodiak

 

it is a 2-3 day trip just going from Bellingham to Hanes, AK (which is quite a ways down south in Alaska) it's another day to get to Whittier (nearish to anchorage) you can get a cabin on the boat as part of your ferry price. i think it runs around $1300? that seems like a lot, so maybe it wasn't that much. at any rate you will NOT be allowed to sleep in your tear drop on the boat. you only get to go down to your vehicle for 5-10 min every 8 hours. if you have a dog, they will have to stay in the car except for those 5-10 min where you can walk them to use the bathroom. i made the drive from Hanes to Anchorage in early december and the snow was very beautiful. that being said, the winter can be very un predictable and unforgiving. summer is best to travel on the AK highway (more people driving to possibly help you out, and no snow to deal with) I will say that i did not drive the whole AK highway, so i don't know about the stops. 6 hours seems kind of close together in my mind for camping spots, but i'm not sure. the milepost should be able to answer that for you. i definitely agree with the extra fuel and at least 1 good spare tire. many canadian gas stations close at like 9pm or something rediculous like that, so you have to get gas whenever its available. just keep topping off. i was lucky and never used my extra gas, but i came close a few times. (if you travel in the winter, be careful with getting gas on your hands, it will give you frost bite really fast)

 

But I think the Haines to Whittier ferry is only scheduled May thru September. Additionally, some of the gas stations along ALCAN are not open in Winter; at least that's what I've heard.

EDIT: Yep, Whittier is not a port on the Winter schedule.
http://www.dot.state.ak.us/amhs/schedule_pdf.shtml