Driving the Alaskan Highway

June 27 – There’s no turning back now! We are on the Alaskan Highway and heading to Whitehorse, AK.

This is Dawson Creek, British Columbia and “Mile 0” of the Alaskan Hwy and a must-do for every first time traveler is to take a photo in front of the Alaskan Highway sign. We were no exception so we posed for pictures and were on our way. The official end of the highway is 1523 miles northwest near Fairbanks, Alaska. We hope to get to that spot in a few weeks and I’ll take a picture of that spot too!

The highway itself is paved but segments are always being repaired.  We drove a good number of miles on wet gravel, so our poor Roadtrek is looking a bit sad right now. There are also sections that can have a few curves.

Along the way we discovered we had a leak in one of our two fresh water tanks. The inside 10 gallon tank was empty.  We found a water refill location so we could try to locate the leak. Sure enough, we found a plastic fitting had broken. Fortunately, it is on the line that feeds the exterior tank.  We just had to move a couple valves in the system and we can make the fresh water system work perfectly until we can get home and make the repair.

BUT, the day had lots of bright spots. We saw lots of wildlife. We saw eight black bears, one cow moose, three bison (two HUGE bulls), a few deer and a grey fox.

After all that, we found another free camp site. This time along the Yukon River and 25 miles from Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. We met some travelers who had just come from three weeks in Alaska and shared some tips about road conditions, places to see, and activities that we might enjoy.

After a great night sleep, we awoke to noises that we soon discovered were beavers swimming in the Yukon river next to our camper and slapping their tails.  Soon we headed across the bridge for another great day.