Take my Classic 33FB to Alaska?

[Kittycatcat]

We did Alaska from south of Atlanta, GA in Aug 2019 in our 2016 27FB - had Duraflaps on the F250- Worst road was I believe in Montana.....

No lost rivets. I do believe the mud coating that dried hard as concrete at one point helped protect the trailer from dings. LOL (Our campground in Dawson City had a coin-operated self-serve power wash - much appreciated!)

Did Top of the World Hwy from Chicken, AK to Dawson City - there's a free ferry to get from the highway to Dawson City - the operators are pro- they'll shoehorn you in along with the big class A's. We bottom a bit at the rear coming off the ferry, but no damage.

Milepost book was extremely helpful - tells you what's where at the mile markers along the way.

[jimfa440]

Originally Posted by BGClassic

We are on the road, wrapping up a 7 week trip out west. A couple of fellow retiree friends want to plan a trip Alaska for next year. We have hada few things shake loose on our 33, mainly the wardrobe doors. Would we be crazy to take this to Alaska? I40 in Arizona is bad enough.

The quick answer is yes, if you want to beat the crap out of it.

[SeeMore]

Talk to people who have done Alaska Highway RV driving and you’ll quickly realize that everyone has a damage story of some variety. However, the road certainly isn’t as bad as it used to be. The number of unpaved miles has dropped, but the risk to your rig still remains.

Your precious home on wheels may get banged up at least one of several ways: kicked up gravel that breaks windows or pummels road guards, or tow bars that break on frost heave jumps are among common occurrences. Underbelly damage occurs as well. Gas lines can get punctured, tanks can be damaged, plastic drain valves get sheered, and, of course, tire issues.

There are insights to be found in the forum threads about protecting your Airstream as well as elsewhere -

FYI, here is a much cheaper segment quilting solution: https://www.airforums.com/forums/att...0&d=1572585769

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f42...ml#post1737044

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f42...ka-231198.html

https://travelwiththeslowskys.com/20...prep-may-2017/

https://snowmads.blog/myths-versus-r...-rv-to-alaska/

Note: You will really appreciate the black-out curtains suggestions!

[Dennis C]

2023 Milepost ships next week.

[BGClassic]

Wow, I’m overwhelmed at the responses. A lot ofgood info here. I have forwarded this thread to our group. My wife and I are thinking we should do it.

Thanks again everyone!

Bill

[Davedog]

We did Alaska last year in our International Serenity 28 RBQ. 9,800 miles round trip from Northern California. Only damage was a few hinges/pantry door came loose (easy fix), a rock to the top of the truck windshield (happened in BC before we got to the Alaska Highway) and a ding on the rock guard when I jackknifed the rig leaving a Harvest Host location in Washington (dumb mistake, did not want to wake up my neighbor and thought I could clear). I do have a few very light scratches from some trees backing into a tight spot near a lake in Talkeetna where we spent the night before we took a float plane over Denali.....love those scratches. We are leaving for Santa Monica in the morning to start our "Route 66 adventure", be back in July.

"Twenty years from now you’ll be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.” Mark Twain

Go.

[reginac]

Originally Posted by Davedog

We did Alaska last year in our International Serenity 28 RBQ. 9,800 miles round trip from Northern California. Only damage was a few hinges/pantry door came loose (easy fix), a rock to the top of the truck windshield (happened in BC before we got to the Alaska Highway) and a ding on the rock guard when I jackknifed the rig leaving a Harvest Host location in Washington (dumb mistake, did not want to wake up my neighbor and thought I could clear). I do have a few very light scratches from some trees backing into a tight spot near a lake in Talkeetna where we spent the night before we took a float plane over Denali.....love those scratches. We are leaving for Santa Monica in the morning to start our "Route 66 adventure", be back in July.

"Twenty years from now you’ll be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.” Mark Twain

Go.

Love this response! Have a great trip!!

[jcwall]

We went last summer after waiting through 2020 and 2021. Great trip. Covered front of AS with yoga mats. $5 per mat. Windows with bubble wrap. Didn't think I needed them so removed. Had rock guards. I too dented a rock guard turning too sharply. We ended up with a bunch of tiny dings in the front of the camper. Next trip I would just cover the front aluminum with duct tape. Don't put it on the wrap around molding as it will pull off the shiny part. I'm in the process of replacing that. Road much better than here in Terre Haute or coming through Wisconsin on the way home. Go for it. We will probably go back in 2024

[BGClassic]

Thanks Davedog and jcwall for the input, love Twain. Good tips, too. Love the yoga mat idea. Someone else recommended Duraflap mudflaps.

[PatLee]

But if you cover your windows with bubble wrap, how do you enjoy the fabulous scenery you've set out to see in Alaska? I mean, what is insurance for?

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by PatLee

But if you cover your windows with bubble wrap, how do you enjoy the fabulous scenery you've set out to see in Alaska? I mean, what is insurance for?

Hi

The views along the way are amazing. Indeed, you *could* spend a lot of time enjoying them. Few of us (me included) plan well enough to do that.

You *might* get a bit of dirt on the windows as you drive up there .... just maybe . There's at least one "car wash" in Tok AK that you can pull a 33' into and (manually) wash it down. It's past most of the dirt, a lot of people wash down when they get there.

Since Tok is just past a really bad stretch of road, it also is a place to stop, unhitch, and check for "issues" that might have come up along the way.

Tok is big enough to have some places you can buy this or that. You can drive the truck from there to Anchorage and back in a day (been there / done that).

There's always some stuff for stuff they won't have in Tok or maybe even in Fairbanks. If the "stuff" is shipped in (Amazon ....), it likely will get to Anchorage quicker than other places in AK.

Fun !!!

Bob

[BGClassic]

Originally Posted by PatLee

But if you cover your windows with bubble wrap, how do you enjoy the fabulous scenery you've set out to see in Alaska? I mean, what is insurance for?

LoL. Good point. We rarely look out our front windows in our FB. We just try to stay outside as much as possible.

[BGClassic]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

The views along the way are amazing. Indeed, you *could* spend a lot of time enjoying them. Few of us (me included) plan well enough to do that.

You *might* get a bit of dirt on the windows as you drive up there .... just maybe . There's at least one "car wash" in Tok AK that you can pull a 33' into and (manually) wash it down. It's past most of the dirt, a lot of people wash down when they get there.

Since Tok is just past a really bad stretch of road, it also is a place to stop, unhitch, and check for "issues" that might have come up along the way.

Tok is big enough to have some places you can buy this or that. You can drive the truck from there to Anchorage and back in a day (been there / done that).

There's always some stuff for stuff they won't have in Tok or maybe even in Fairbanks. If the "stuff" is shipped in (Amazon ....), it likely will get to Anchorage quicker than other places in AK.

Fun !!!

Bob

We have watched a few Youtubers take this route, and their rigs are covered in mud. I think one of them posted a video of the car wash, too. Noted!

[WestieHouse]

We took our 23’ FC to Alaska and experienced most of the issues described above. Also a rock that broke the front window rock guard covering the window, but fortunately not the glass widow. Black duct tape fixed easily until we returned to the lower 48.

Tip: Cover the cheap white plastic fresh water drain valve on the bottom of your tanks. Ours got broken off when we were struck by gravel thrown by an impatient passing vehicle. Though the drain valve on my 25’ is located on the curb side and thus less vulnerable to passing vehicles I still cover it with a slit open tennis ball fastened with a small bungie cord.

I recently discovered a pickle ball that is even better because it is a harder surface. I plan to replace the tennis ball with the pickle ball before my next trip.

Fortunately I had plumbing weld putty to field repair the valve, but only after we lost all our fresh water. Extra bottled water saved the day until we reached potable water to refill our fresh tank.

[Marilynjom]

I was told by an awesome Airstream guy, Vinnie, (that you may have heard about him on this forum as he’s kind of famous here , to watch the Long Long Honeymoon or Loloho YouTube videos about Alaska trips. It was the best advice I got before my Alaska trip! Here’s a link to the first one or you can just search for Loloho Alaska on YouTube.
Not just Alaska, though, all their videos are excellent for Airstreamers!

https://youtu.be/cdTLGMHV_yY

[WestieHouse]

If you decide to go over Top of the World Highway (definitely wonderful) from Dawson checkout the ferry boarding area before going early the next day to see how the clearance is looking. It is usually very level, but can change. And being on the first ferry of the day will mean you are likely going to eat less dust from folks ahead of you on the unpaved road!

[WestieHouse]

Here’s how the loading dock looked on our day of departure…

[SD Grammy]

We took our 2014 25 FB Flying Cloud to Alaska about 8 years ago. We started out from Southern California and went straight north. We had 6 weeks. We left in May and although there was a little snow on some roadsides, we had great weather AND we missed the mosquito season! It wasn't long enough and we would like to go back. The roads were not at all bad. We stayed on the paved ones and didn't venture onto the gravel roads. We came home with some road rash on the front rock guards and had one flat tire. If you watch your speed and use common sense, it will be the trip of a lifetime! Be sure to buy the printed Mile post guide (amazon). It was invaluable. You won't regret taking this adventure.

[bmc5311]

Originally Posted by AKNate

The purpose of rock guards is to get dented. The purpose of a travel trailer is to travel. Go for it!

This is the way.

[Airsurfer]

Just go for it. You won’t regret it. We went last year with another couple. We both had newer 23’ Flying Cloud FBQ. Went as far north as Fairbanks and boondocked for a week in Denali. Took three months and covered 10,000 miles. Things will happen. Microwave tried to fall out in both trailers. They won’t now. A flat repair and a few dings on the trailer. Go slow when you need to and damage will be cut to a minimum. Top of the World Highway is a great recommendation. We found the gravel road to be better than some of the frost heaved, paved highways. Definitely take advantage of the Canadian Provincial Parks. They are wonderful.