Trip Wrap-up--September 30, 2017

WRAP-UP POST:  SEPTEMBER 30, 2017

Motorhome miles driven—Anthem, AZ (storage location) to Puyallup, WA=7463 as of 9/2/17

Days on the road=96 as of 9/2/17

Miles yet to go=1320+ (to Anthem storage unit near Cave Creek, AZ)

Days yet to go=???

Some comparative fuel prices (per U.S. gallon)

                Haines Junction, YT--$3.961

                Watson Lake, YT--$3.178 (in town in June)

                Watson Lake, YT--$3.946 (campground @ junction

                of AK Hwy & Cassiar Hwy—late August)

                Whitehorse, YT--$3.138 (late June)

                Whitehorse, YT--$3.254 (late August)

                Dawson Creek, BC--$3.037

                Fort Nelson, BC--$3.524

                Hinton,  AB--$3.152

                Tok, AK--$2.799 (July & Aug.)

                Kenai, AK--$2.810

                Anchorage--$2.559 (Costco, mid-Aug.)

                Long Beach, WA--$3.259 (resort area,
                date: 9/17/2017)

Wildlife of note spotted (wildlife seen on Kenai Fjords cruise not included)

                Black bears—23

                Grizzly/brown bears—11
                Bald eagles—50+
                Deer—16
                Moose—9
                Sandhill cranes—25+
                Caribou—2 (may have missed one of these)
                Bighorn sheep—3
                Mountain goats—15 +/-
                Stone sheep—20 +/-
                Wood bison—50+
                Red fox—6
                Porcupine—2
                Trumpeter swans—10+
                Willow ptarmigan—25+
                Dall sheep—20 +/-
                Coyote--1

The roads throughout the trip north of the contiguous 48 states were MUCH improved over what I encountered 9 and 10 years ago.  Roads in YT and BC, Canada provinces were vastly improved as was the stretch from the border westward to Tok, Alaska (90 miles).  Areas in Canada that were in somewhat poor condition when I went north, were all in very good condition when I came back south—and it appeared these were permanent repairs with new asphalt laid on good road beds.  I was prepared to cover the Jeep’s windshield and surrounding area like I had done to the Honda on the previous trips.  I was also prepared to cover the lights on the front of the motorhome.  None of this was necessary on this trip.  I only counted 3 new (small) rock chips on the motorhome’s windshield and no new ones on the car.  I saw evidence of serious windshield damage on some coaches and heard stories of others.  I also heard stories of problems with tow hookups for toads.  Most of these occurrences appeared to be related to excessive speed for the road conditions.  Fifty-five mph is the speed limit on most of the roads in western Canada and Alaska, with some areas of higher and lower limits.  I did not drive the Top of the World road this trip; however, from what I heard, it sounds like it is still a “slow-go”.

 All in all, it was a wonderful trip!  The motorhome and Jeep came through the trip in good condition.  I cleared some items from my bucket list, saw a lot of wildlife and great countryside, visited with friends along the way and made some new friends.  Now, I am thinking about how I will do the next trip to the North Country—to Canada and Alaska.  I have found that once I went (my first trip was in 1988), the country up there just keeps calling me back.