Jay61
Member
As an avid fly fisherman I am curious. How many from the lower 48 have gone to our 49th State and explored the fishing along some of the lesser travelled roads such as the Dalton Highway, the Parks Highway, etc....? Having driven to Alaska in my younger years when the Alcan was still gravel and not having much green in my pocket I have always dreamed of doing it again and doing it up right. Now some 35 plus years later I am in the process of planning a return trip to Alaska and doing it right. The one time I drove up there was on a fluke, no more than me and my cousin drinking beer one night deciding to go....we collected our paychecks that Friday and was on the road by 7pm with nothing more than a few paychecks worth of cash each we had saved, what was left from our fur check from the previous winter (that is how I bought my truck with cash) , a road atlas and a brand new 1981 Toyota 4 cylinder 4x4 pickup loaded with camping and fishing gear. Needless to say, we caught fish, but not like we had dreamed and we had no clue where to go. This was long before the advent of the internet and we just had a few magazine articles to base our plans on....and every one of those places was what I came to learn was known as combat fishing Alaska style, no where near the wilderness we had dreamed of. So, here is my question. Those of you that have done this, what words of wisdom can you impart upon a fellow traveler who is looking to bend some fly rods? I have ordered a 2018 JKUR loaded with goodies and will be testing it out over the next year to learn what exactly I will need in the way of overland gear to enjoy the trip with some modicum of comfort. I will be taking about a month and a half off from work and will be driving from SOWEGA (for those of y'all that ain't from around here, that is South West Georgia). Thanks in advance for any words of wisdom directed my way. As an interesting aside note on my previous Alaskan visit, when me an my cousin were heading back to GA, we were coming from Anchorage stocking up on food and beer for the return trip. At the Ft. Richardson entrance, we notices a hitch hiker holding a sign saying Georgia. We picked him up and gave him a lift all the way to Stone Mountain GA. Has to be one of the longer rides in North America given to a hitch hiker.