Boondocking through the Yukon ?

[Nelson428]

Great advice Gene. The only other thing is to slow down and enjoy each place you visit, you can't possible do or see it all. Stay as long as possible and enjoy it. Even number years like 2014, you will want to save some time to visit the Gathering at Moosehide, which is a short boat from Dawson City, it is something you will always remember. Lots of things to see and do.

[Nelson428]

Oh, and don't forget to watch for the wildlife.

Hope you have a Wonderful Time, and a Safe Trip.

[dannydimitt]

Originally Posted by Gene

The Cassiar is paved and a pretty good highway. You can go north on the Alaska Hwy and return on the Cassiar. The conditions improve constantly on the major highways. Gravel is a problem during construction season as sections of the road break up each winter. Also, frost heaves along the way cause bumps and gravel breaks. They get fixed pretty quickly, but there will be lots of them and you have to watch carefully. They put red flags on the berm for most, but not all of them. You will be going pretty fast and have to slow for them quickly when you see them. It gets tiring to drive some sections, but it is worth the to see all the things you will see. The further north, the more gravel breaks, especially when you get to permafrost.

Gas, food, campgrounds are available, but try to not let the gauge go below half and buy gas when you can and bring some extra gas cans just in case. Some areas are especially expensive for gas (and everything else). There are fewer campgrounds, gas and food on the Cassiar, but just plan ahead. The Alaska Hwy. has been straightened and improved greatly in the past generation and most is quite good highway. The worst section was in the last 150 miles in Yukon before arriving at the Alaska border in 2010.

When you enter the US, the border guys were more interested in whether you had fresh fruit than anything else. Check the gov't websites for what is prohibited and what is ok. The food requirements for the US change frequently and confuse many. There are a lot of new border guards in the US. They are inexperienced and treat everyone as suspicious. Few even say "hello" or welcome you back to the US. Canadian border guys are a lot friendlier.

Bear spray is a good idea though we have never had a bear problem. They can smell food from very far away and will come to check it out. Do not leave food outside for long. Even a table cloth or other items with food on them will attract bears. If you bring a "long gun" (Canadian for rifle) you will have to declare it. Trying to hide firearms to get across the border will mean serious consequences if you are caught.

Yukon has some very nice provincial campgrounds (you'll have to have Canadian money to pay). There are many, many large turnouts which could be used for overnight camping, but many are not level. Check on the provincial website for restrictions.

The Milepost and good maps are essential. Once you get past the big cities such as Edmonton, things are far apart and it is many, many miles to everywhere. You will see more trees than you ever have before.

Have good road insurance such as Good Sam. Fixing a serious problem can take days while they wait for parts. Good Sam will tow people hundreds of miles to a garage that is qualified. If in Yukon, that would usually mean Whitehorse because that's where just about all the car and truck dealers are in that province. Make sure you tow vehicle and trailer are in great shape before you leave. bring tools to fix minor things. A tire repair kit and a compressor are important because if you get a flat, you may have to fix it yourself. We have had one flat in 3 trips to Alaska (about 30,000 miles driving). Bring an extra oil filter in case you have one that is not too common. You will see warnings some gravel roads are known for flats, but those days are over and the chance of a flat is not much more than further south. We have also gotten windshield damage, but not much more than anywhere else. It is part of the trip. Years ago people used to put big cages on the front of their vehicles to protect from gravel, but no more. If you travel off the paved roads, you will get very dirty vehicles. Mud will stick to the inside of the wheels causing them to get way out of balance sometimes—wash them carefully. Car washes are usually just a high pressure hose outside and it costs about $10 to clean everything, but there are sometimes gas stations that have a free wash with a fill up—look for those.

Since the sun will be up most of the time, you can drive in daylight all the time and may feel energized by the midnight sun. You do fine for a few days of staying up late and waking up early, but then you'll need to catch up on sleep. June and July have the most sun and above the Arctic Circle, it will circle in the sky and never go down. Dark curtains in the trailer help you sleep—we put Reflectix on the bedroom windows to keep it dark when the sun is still up. Mosquitos are most active in early summer and noseeums in the second half of summer. I'll take mosquitos over noseeums because you can see them. Mostly, mosquitos are not a problem, but you'll run into areas where they swarm and make you run fast for shelter. Anywhere wet, such as tundra, are the worst places for flying bugs.

Liard Hot Springs is a favorite stop. Free for the hot springs! Last time we went by it was raining, so we didn't stop. Canadians don't call it "The Yukon"; it is Yukon. "Alcan" doesn't seem to be used anymore for the Alaska Highway and along it it is just "The Highway".

It is a great trip. You need to check all this stuff out and prepare carefully, but it is a trip of a lifetime, and we've had 3 lifetimes so far.

Gene

Thanks Gene, plenty of great advice. I see you live in Crawford co. That is a very nice area of the state and off the beaten path. I last come through there back in 87 in a boom truck while working at Webb Crane in Grand Junction. I sometimes kick myself for leaving there. But the road beckons, and we must obey .

[Gene]

Thanks Nelson. Nice photos too. If you mean the ferry at Dawson City to the Top of the World Hwy, there can be long lines to get on it in the summer, but the trip on that highway is worth it too. You do feel like you are on top of the world as you drive along a ridge that appears to be higher than anything else. Some reports over the past several years are that the road is in bad shape, but I don't know the present conditions.

Dawson City has many points of historical interest and also some tourist shlock. There is a mountain, called a dome, just east of the city where you can drive to the top and look down on the city and the Yukon River. Though Dawson is not far enough north for sun all day long in early summer, the dome is high enough that the sun always seems to shine there, though just barely. I think they used to have a party there on June 21, but it got too rowdy, so they stopped it. There's a TV camera up there and you can look at the pictures on local cable TV. There's a Dine museum in Dawson. The Dine tribal lands cover a lot of Yukon and extend into NWT and Alaska. The Dine are related to the Navajo and Apache—same language group. The road to Dawson from the Alaska Hwy is paved. The Klondike is just southeast of Dawson and you can drive through the goldfields. Some people are still looking for gold there.

Several miles east of the city is the Dempster Hwy to Inuvik. About 500 miles to the end there. A gravel and dirt road through mostly wilderness,. Half way is Eagle Plains with a motel, garage, gas, campground and restaurant (surprisingly good food in 2006). In September you may see the Aurora Borealis in the middle of the night from there. I don't know if there is a campground in Inuvik. There is a small museum that is good to visit. You can take a plane from there to Tuktoyatuk on the Arctic Ocean and other flightseeing is available. The Dempster can be really greasy if it rains, so wit for it to dry out; road maintenance is very good. There are a couple of free ferries along the way; be careful when you get on and off because you can drag the back of the trailer. We saw our first grizzlies north of there.

If you take the Top of the World Hwy into Alaska, you can go north to Eagle or south to Chicken. There are several campgrounds in Chicken, gas and food. The road to Eagle should be avoided with a trailer—very narrow in places, a gazillion blind curves. But a day trip is worth it. Eagle was once the largest city in Alaska and is on the Yukon R.

Nelson is right—you can't see it all in one trip. We've still got things to see or see again after 3 trips.

Gene

[Gene]

Originally Posted by dannydimitt

Thanks Gene, plenty of great advice. I see you live in Crawford co. That is a very nice area of the state and off the beaten path. I last come through there back in 87 in a boom truck while working at Webb Crane in Grand Junction. I sometimes kick myself for leaving there. But the road beckons, and we must obey .

Danny, our house is for sale as we are moving near to Grand Junction. No need to kick yourself—you can live here.

Gene

[Nelson428]

Gene,

It's a different ride. You can see where the Top Of The World Highway starts in one of these pictures, on the left, if you look up the Yukon River to the right you will see the village of Moosehide, that is where the Gathering is First or Second week of August of the Even numbered years. Cant drive there, you will have to catch a boat ride with the First Nations to get there. It's a lot of fun, you get to eat the local food. Last year, I think there was 19 different nations there. I have thousands of pictures if you are interested. Over the years I have accumulated some very unique ones. What a wonderful place to visit if you love the wilderness.

[Nelson428]

Opps, I forgot to add a comment about Top of The World Highway, I had to wait a week for the Road to be opened due to a washout on the US side. I would check when I departed Whitehorse to be sure the road is open. Either way, you will love the area around Dawson City. Oh and don't forget to eat at Fast Eddy's in Tok, AK, Tok RV has a free car wash if you purchase your fuel there, you will need both, fuel and carwash once you get off The Top Of The World Highway.

[dannydimitt]

Originally Posted by Gene

Danny, our house is for sale as we are moving near to Grand Junction. No need to kick yourself—you can live here.

Gene

Would be nice, but I think my moving days have past.
settled in here in the pines.

[masseyfarm]

This might be a good time to revive this thread as many Airstreamers are still in the planning stages for the 2014 travel season.

This thread, although short, already has a wealth of information, with pictures, for those who yarn to travel the vast scenic lands of the north.

We have done the Yukon trip back in 2008 but will do it once again to specific areas including the Dempster Highway across the Arctic Circle before departing the RV lifestyle if all goes well. (possibly in 2015)

This is a film production by the "Inuvialuit Communications Societies" of the Yukon/NWT on the Dawson City area and the length of the Dempster Highway beyond the Arctic Circle and is worth watching if you are interested in this route.

This type of excursion requires a bit of planning and preparation, but is one that will reward you with memories (and stories) for the rest of your life.

With all the improvement in cameras and the lack of expense in taking and recording pictures today, this route is truly the Gold Trail of Travel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5RP...etailpage#t=44

Dave

[Gene]

The Dempster is quite a trip. We drove all to the way to Inuvik in '06, sans trailer. I would be concerned about getting on and off the ferries. We did see an RV get hung up at a ferry landing.

I'd like to go back with trailer. One thing—if it rains, the Dempster gets very, very slick and I'd wait until it dries out.

Gene