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LivinRiveted · 02-19-2016, 01:52 PM

My wife and I have joined the Alyeska Caravan for 2016 and are leaving Venice FL on June 11th, seeing the sights along the way. Wondering if anyone else is headed that way in June . . .
Got reservations as far as K.C., and working on the rest.

2013 30' Classic Limited
TV: 2013 Silverado diesel

tsunami · 02-19-2016, 07:02 PM

Heading out on or about June 6 for Alaska from Kentucky

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veratipton · 02-19-2016, 08:06 PM

Hope to be crossing into Canada heading north in late May!

interstateflyer · 02-19-2016, 08:21 PM

Plan on being in Dawson Creek on June 1st.

JaneFox · 02-25-2016, 02:54 AM

Good luck! I also was thinking about such trip!)

joej · 02-29-2016, 06:07 PM

Planning on leaving Colorado around May 1st (depending on weather) and heading home from the Fairbanks area around the first week of August. Can't wait!

Oregon Ms · 02-29-2016, 06:21 PM

Might leave here (Anacortes area) mid July and head north and see what happens.

OregonVista · 02-29-2016, 09:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by interstateflyer

I've heard from people that did the 2014 Alyeska Caravan that the their trip on the Top of the World road was an unmitigated disaster. Trailers had their lots of interior damage because of the condition of the road. Driving was rather sketchy in poor weather. Not so sure that I'm convinced that the road would be fun.

We did the TOW with the Alyeska Caravan in 2014 and the road was not the problem. The fog was so bad that we could not see more than a few feet in front of the truck. We averaged 13 miles an hour for that 108 mile journey simply because we could not see where we were going. The road was as good or as bad as any dirt/gravel road; you look for potholes and drive slow, fair warning for any road in the Yukon or Alaska. I don't recall hearing about much interior damage on that road, but if you were talking about the road to Destruction Bay, well..... Too many times people tend to go too fast for road conditions, that's when damage occurs. Several in our group traveled back along the TOW the next day in beautiful sunshine and said it was a great drive.

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**Nelson428** · 03-01-2016, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OregonVista

We did the TOW with the Alyeska Caravan in 2014 and the road was not the problem. The fog was so bad that we could not see more than a few feet in front of the truck. We averaged 13 miles an hour for that 108 mile journey simply because we could not see where we were going. The road was as good or as bad as any dirt/gravel road; you look for potholes and drive slow, fair warning for any road in the Yukon or Alaska. I don't recall hearing about much interior damage on that road, but if you were talking about the road to Destruction Bay, well..... Too many times people tend to go too fast for road conditions, that's when damage occurs. Several in our group traveled back along the TOW the next day in beautiful sunshine and said it was a great drive.

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I saw you in 2014 headed to Dawson City and snapped your picture along the way.

J Nelson
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OregonVista · 03-01-2016, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nelson428

I saw you in 2014 headed to Dawson City and snapped your picture along the way.

J Nelson
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Hey, that's us! Way cool!

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oledawg · 03-02-2016, 08:37 AM

We will be in the Alyeska 2016 WBCCI Caravan. Getting the rig ready now 😎

oledawg · 03-02-2016, 08:48 AM

We are in the 2016 Alyeska caravan also, leaving NC the first of May. Trip planned all the way to Dawson Creek. Spending time along the way "touristing".

**Nelson428** · 03-02-2016, 05:43 PM

I'm gonna be taking pictures of folks I see in the Yukon again this year so look for me, I'll be looking for you !! Hopefully I will get everyone's picture posted.

J Nelson
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CruizinDux · 11-19-2016, 09:04 PM

Starting to think Alaska for 2018. As of last fall were were planning Alaska in 2017 but to to an unexpected leg break 2017 plans were totally rejiggered.

Does anyone who posted on this thread happen and made the trip this year happen to have a thread they could point me to of their experiences.

I'll start sifting thru the On the Road section.

Thanks

bob

NicheVintage · 11-19-2016, 09:57 PM

Cruzin we too are looking to do an Alaska trip in 18. The forums are a huge source of knowledge. Have a great trip!

CruizinDux · 11-20-2016, 09:35 AM

NicheVintage, congrats on your plans, a huge endeavor. I searched the On the Road for Alaska and found about a dozen or so threads that I hadn't seen before. I stopped at one thread dated around 1-2015 figuring might as well use the most current info.

Happy Trails

bob

polarlyse · 11-20-2016, 09:56 AM

We did the trip this past summer. Roads are not perfect but probably the best they have ever been. We took the Cassiar Hwy both ways. Diverted from the Alcan
( northbound) due to heavy rain and flooding in mid June. Fuel was readily available. I have a 50g diesel tank but our friends did not. Very nice provincial park CG's available along the Cassiar. We stayed in roadside sites as well as CG's. Our friends had made the trip about 10 yrs ago but our first one. Don't know if I would have gone alone but after having done it I would see no problem. We planned a few days break and stayed in Whitehorse, YT a few days going up and back. From Whitehorse we went to Dawson City and the Chicken, AK route on the northbound and the Alcan coming down to Whitehorse. We had a dry day on the road the the border ( and Chicken). A dry day is good a wet day would be a bit sloppy. Road on the Canada side is a very good graded gravel road. After the border things change. Ten miles of new blacktop will quickly change to the
"Road from HELL" for the next 30m to Chicken. It's a spectacular trip just take it easy. After Chicken a few more miles of dirt then blacktop back to the Alcan. The Alcan is
100% blacktop except for where repairs are under way. They can be long. Some with a pilot vehicle some without. They will be dusty if dry and sloppy if wet. Take your time and enjoy the ride. I was told, by a many tripper, that for him it's 44 hrs from Alaska border to Montana border. So no matter how you break it up that's what you need to contend with. Plenty of rest areas and places to pull over to dry camp along the way. If you'd rather not there's provincial CG's spaced out too. The one's we tried were very nice but no hookups. Some were able to take american $$ but have some canadian $$ for those that don't. If you route yourself through Prince George there's a casino there that allows camping as well as a walmart, private CG's as well.

It's the bucket trip of a lifetime. Allow enough time to smell the roses and you won't be sorry.

PS: We had 1 tire repair on the trailer. Carry a plug kit with you and be sure you know how to use it. Also 2 stone chips in our windshield from gravel roads in Canada and one on blacktop in Montana. Go figure.

See ya along the road sometime.

RamblinManGa · 11-20-2016, 11:15 AM

Hi from AZ. . . there are a lot of discussions on this trip sprinkled thru the forums. . . not always easy to find. We did PHX to Alaska & back in '15, going again in '17 ! 14k miles on TV, 12k+ on trailer. . . .Anybody contemplating this trip is welcome to p m me & I'll share any info I have. It's a great trip.......regards, Craig

woodytwo · 11-20-2016, 01:39 PM

.........because they tried to drive too fast.
.............Bottom Line is take your time and enjoy the scenery and you will have no problems.[/QUOTE]

My wife and I have travelled to Yukon and Alaska twice (2002 & 2006) and have even been up the Dempster thru Yukon to NWT.

Our experience and advice for what its worth......
Both trips were most enjoyable .there is a lot to see and a million photos to take. On both trips we departed Dawson Creek along Alaska hiwy mid July and returned down Cassier first week of Sept. This is basically when the A/S caravan travels that route. Our advice. The Caravan does this trip every 2 years and there must be a reason for this timing. Yes you will miss the summer solstice but you will also have better roads to travel on. It seems that the frost is coming out of the ground in May and June causing lots of road upheavals and some flooding. Both Yukon and Alaska do their best to keep up with this but it is a daily challenge. The graders are out on the gravel sections daily. And also fill in the pavement holes. They really can't do any "permanent" repairs until July /Aug.

Advice number 2. Slow down and enjoy. You have come along way for this trip so enjoy. If/when you do hit some bad road, you will bounce around your trailer and its contents much less. We had heard the stories of broken axles, top cupboards falling to the floor, front of trailer breaking away from the chassis and were glad we took our time. both trips did not incur any problems.

On our trip on TOW in 2002, the Canadian side was pretty good: mostly paved and the US side to Chicken was gravel but smooth. Weather was also perfect but others in other years had a different experience. If you are travelling these roads in June you can expect the roads to be less (dreadful) than perfect. And from what others have experience July and August can be challenging as well. But the scenery is great.

Advice number 3. If you are fans of fishing, you must take some time to wet a line. The salmon are great, large and plentiful. If you are used to hooking 1 to 2 pounders back home, you will be amazed with a 15 pounder on your line.

Have a great time.
Woody

interstateflyer · 11-20-2016, 03:42 PM

We traveled from California to Homer and beyond with six other Airstreams this summer. We took a few relatively simple precautions.

Flying rocks may be the most significant bother on gravel/dirt/mud sections of the Alaska, Cassiar, TOW etc highways. We all Gorilla taped yoga mats to our trailers' front and street side windows as well as on the rock guards. Many of us also ran Rock Tamer tire flaps. Nobody in the group suffered glass damage.

Also, make sure you have excellent tires on truck and trailer and keep an eye on pressures preferably with good TPMS systems. Many of us ran Michelins on both. Some ran Carlisle and Maxiss tires on their trailers. Nobody had a flat tire during the entire trip. I heard from a friend that went on the WBCCI caravan this summer that they tallied 42 flat tires on thirty something trailers. So it can happen.

Otherwise don't stress. Our Airstreams are incredibly tough and can do many miles of washboard and bumpy roads without a hiccup.