Equipt's Alaska Solo Trek June/July 2014
- Thread starter Equipt
- Start date
Equipt
Supporting Sponsor Presenting Sponsor of Overland
Yep, that was me. I saw your 60 in the lot there, left hand side by the store when heading in. Looks nice! The rain was impressive those couple days, that is for sure.
Take care.
Equipt
Supporting Sponsor Presenting Sponsor of Overland
The Deadhorse Run, part 1
The Deadhorse Run, part 1
Mile 5090
This goal has been a long time coming. A check on my bucket-list since I was a small boy, and part of a much grander scheme of connecting the long dotted line from Alaska to Argentina. I had a timeframe for this segment of the trip. Accomplish the drive north and return to pick up my sweetheart in Fairbanks by Friday June 27. I had set aside a couple days with a couple day buffer, just in case something happened. Truck, gas, route, weather, zombies, etc. Time to recover and be at the airport with a smile on my face. I pulled into Fairbanks on Tuesday afternoon, just coming off the Top of the World Highway segment. Cleared the email box, and wrote up a report for the thread. Standing outside the Starbucks at around 8pm, I debated my options and decided, "No time like the present". An hour later, I had finished gasing up and grabbing a bite to eat. I started north at 9pm, not sure how far I would go.
The Arctic Circle
Having over 20 hours of daylight per day is enlightening. I am very used to the sun going down on a daily basis, usually within a 3-4 hour variance on an annual basis. And especially being solo, I had all the time in the world. I headed north on highway 2. I climbed out of northern Fairbanks rather quickly, into rolling hills covered in pine. It narrows to a 2 lane pretty quick, and roughly an hour into the journey the road starts to vary between paved highway and compacted road grade. They use calcium on the graded roads up here, as it helps the pack get very hard. Trouble is that in wet weather, it also makes them slippery. I had checked the weather earlier in the day and saw that Deadhorse was going to see a 60% chance on Wednesday, Rain on Thursday and Friday. It's 495 miles from Fairbanks to Deadhorse. A long route by any estimation. And slippery wet 2 lane with 60mph semi trucks loomed in the back of my head. Time was of the essence.
As with anywhere up here, if you get above the trees the views are spectacular. No disappointment here. A 4-5 hour sunset provided the magical hours for photography. At around midnight, I pulled up to a hillside pullout with a big sign that told me I had reached the Arctic Circle. Wow. Made it. 66 degrees, 33 minutes, 44 seconds. And there waiting for my arrival was a swarm of mosquitos at the door. They bounced off the door like zombies at the gate, waiting for me. This was the first time on this trip that I had really seen many of the ghouls. A few here and there, but not like this. I prepped well before leaving, and have a chemical arsenal ready for war, but holy cow! I jumped out of the truck long enough to snap a photo, and back in I went. Here is a photo of the sign at midnight. I pulled the truck out of the way, crawled in back, and sacked out. 3 hours in.
Coldfoot AK
After a good long 5 hours of sleep, it was time to get going. The next goal was Coldfoot AK. Roughly 250 miles north of Fairbanks and the midway point on the long road to Deadhorse, it is the logical stop for fuel to head further on. The Coldfoot Camp was supposedly named for a goldminer that made it that far north in search of his fortune, got cold feet, and came back south. Mythical stuff that sticks. Anyway, the light outside hadn't changed much from midnight. The road became even more graded, and leveled out from the epically long inclines into a glacier valley. A quick stop for fuel and bug respite, and north we go. Mile 4845, 6:30am. 9-1/2 hours in
Deadhorse AK
The Dalton Highway is primarily a commercial road, 415 miles long with an extra 80 miles on Hwy 2 into Fairbanks. It was created specifically for the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, built in the mid 1970s. Though there is public access, it is their road and you are on it. For 90% of the time, I was the only vehicle around. The other 10% was 9% oncoming semis and 1% everything else. I did see a fair share of dual sport riders, and a few international folk. It was the semis you fear. The standard procedure is to slow down, move right, and cringe as they pass. Most are decent, but several sprayed me with rocks and goo. From Coldfoot, you continue north up the glacier valley to a mountain range that comprises the continental divide for Alaska. A beautiful climb that reminded me of the high country in Ouray CO. Treeless, random snow, and incredible views. Off the north slope, you again head through another glacier valley. A little road work was the only required stop along the way. Mountains give way to open tundra the further north you go.
Deadhorse is about as anti-climatic as you can get. The stop sign at the first intersection is the official end of the Dalton Highway. That's it. I drove around a while, looking for the "Welcome to Deadhorse AK!!!!" sign. Nada. I guess there was one over close to the general store two blocks off to the east, but it isn't there any more. Checked the airport hotel. Nope Buzz kill. This is a oil town, not a tourist town. The dual sports and RVs wander around like lost children, looking for a sign. Sigh. I guess it really doesn't matter if there is someone there to validate your journey. I know the significance. It matters to me. It's been a long time coming, and I am here. So I jumped up and down, congratulated myself, gassed up and headed out. Sixteen hours after leaving Fairbanks, with 5 of that sleeping. Not too bad. The summit reached is only half the trip. It was overcast most of the day so far, but the south western horizon was turning dark grey. The forecast was for the weather to worsen. Better get going. Mile 5090, 1:00pm. 16 hours in
The Deadhorse Run, part 1
Mile 5090
This goal has been a long time coming. A check on my bucket-list since I was a small boy, and part of a much grander scheme of connecting the long dotted line from Alaska to Argentina. I had a timeframe for this segment of the trip. Accomplish the drive north and return to pick up my sweetheart in Fairbanks by Friday June 27. I had set aside a couple days with a couple day buffer, just in case something happened. Truck, gas, route, weather, zombies, etc. Time to recover and be at the airport with a smile on my face. I pulled into Fairbanks on Tuesday afternoon, just coming off the Top of the World Highway segment. Cleared the email box, and wrote up a report for the thread. Standing outside the Starbucks at around 8pm, I debated my options and decided, "No time like the present". An hour later, I had finished gasing up and grabbing a bite to eat. I started north at 9pm, not sure how far I would go.
The Arctic Circle
Having over 20 hours of daylight per day is enlightening. I am very used to the sun going down on a daily basis, usually within a 3-4 hour variance on an annual basis. And especially being solo, I had all the time in the world. I headed north on highway 2. I climbed out of northern Fairbanks rather quickly, into rolling hills covered in pine. It narrows to a 2 lane pretty quick, and roughly an hour into the journey the road starts to vary between paved highway and compacted road grade. They use calcium on the graded roads up here, as it helps the pack get very hard. Trouble is that in wet weather, it also makes them slippery. I had checked the weather earlier in the day and saw that Deadhorse was going to see a 60% chance on Wednesday, Rain on Thursday and Friday. It's 495 miles from Fairbanks to Deadhorse. A long route by any estimation. And slippery wet 2 lane with 60mph semi trucks loomed in the back of my head. Time was of the essence.
As with anywhere up here, if you get above the trees the views are spectacular. No disappointment here. A 4-5 hour sunset provided the magical hours for photography. At around midnight, I pulled up to a hillside pullout with a big sign that told me I had reached the Arctic Circle. Wow. Made it. 66 degrees, 33 minutes, 44 seconds. And there waiting for my arrival was a swarm of mosquitos at the door. They bounced off the door like zombies at the gate, waiting for me. This was the first time on this trip that I had really seen many of the ghouls. A few here and there, but not like this. I prepped well before leaving, and have a chemical arsenal ready for war, but holy cow! I jumped out of the truck long enough to snap a photo, and back in I went. Here is a photo of the sign at midnight. I pulled the truck out of the way, crawled in back, and sacked out. 3 hours in.
Coldfoot AK
After a good long 5 hours of sleep, it was time to get going. The next goal was Coldfoot AK. Roughly 250 miles north of Fairbanks and the midway point on the long road to Deadhorse, it is the logical stop for fuel to head further on. The Coldfoot Camp was supposedly named for a goldminer that made it that far north in search of his fortune, got cold feet, and came back south. Mythical stuff that sticks. Anyway, the light outside hadn't changed much from midnight. The road became even more graded, and leveled out from the epically long inclines into a glacier valley. A quick stop for fuel and bug respite, and north we go. Mile 4845, 6:30am. 9-1/2 hours in
Deadhorse AK
The Dalton Highway is primarily a commercial road, 415 miles long with an extra 80 miles on Hwy 2 into Fairbanks. It was created specifically for the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, built in the mid 1970s. Though there is public access, it is their road and you are on it. For 90% of the time, I was the only vehicle around. The other 10% was 9% oncoming semis and 1% everything else. I did see a fair share of dual sport riders, and a few international folk. It was the semis you fear. The standard procedure is to slow down, move right, and cringe as they pass. Most are decent, but several sprayed me with rocks and goo. From Coldfoot, you continue north up the glacier valley to a mountain range that comprises the continental divide for Alaska. A beautiful climb that reminded me of the high country in Ouray CO. Treeless, random snow, and incredible views. Off the north slope, you again head through another glacier valley. A little road work was the only required stop along the way. Mountains give way to open tundra the further north you go.
Deadhorse is about as anti-climatic as you can get. The stop sign at the first intersection is the official end of the Dalton Highway. That's it. I drove around a while, looking for the "Welcome to Deadhorse AK!!!!" sign. Nada. I guess there was one over close to the general store two blocks off to the east, but it isn't there any more. Checked the airport hotel. Nope Buzz kill. This is a oil town, not a tourist town. The dual sports and RVs wander around like lost children, looking for a sign. Sigh. I guess it really doesn't matter if there is someone there to validate your journey. I know the significance. It matters to me. It's been a long time coming, and I am here. So I jumped up and down, congratulated myself, gassed up and headed out. Sixteen hours after leaving Fairbanks, with 5 of that sleeping. Not too bad. The summit reached is only half the trip. It was overcast most of the day so far, but the south western horizon was turning dark grey. The forecast was for the weather to worsen. Better get going. Mile 5090, 1:00pm. 16 hours in
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brentbba
Explorer
What Ramjet said!
Jeff Baker
New member
Awesome trip report. I found this Tuesday night and thought to myself it might be awhile before I get a response to my email to equipt (understandable). However, less than 24 hrs later and my email was answered in full. Pretty cool indeed.
Ace Brown
Retired Ol’ Fart
Quick story about Coldfoot. I stopped there in 2006 and asked about a mountain bike rental. Was told they had folded but a young BLM rangerette said I could borrow her bike and suggested riding down by the airport (one plane), so I did. Came back and thanked her. As I was leaving I noticed a note taped to the door which said "warning grizzlies seen at the airport that morning". That nice young gal had sent me that way to find out if the bears were still there. Thankfully no bears seen.
2008 FJ Cruiser expedition ready and off-road trailer with RTT.
2008 FJ Cruiser expedition ready and off-road trailer with RTT.
Equipt
Supporting Sponsor Presenting Sponsor of Overland
The Deadhorse Run, part 2
The Deadhorse Run, part 2
Mile 5580
With no fan fare at all, I left Deadhorse in the rear view mirror. Well, there were a couple well wishers. A small herd of caribou was grazing by the roadside, and several looked up in amusement. I feels really odd at this point. My goal had been met, but I am still a long way from done. The skies were getting dark in front of me. Another roadside attraction was a sedan on the side of the road, showing signs of a full blown yard sale, and laying there like a bloated cow. All by itself. I asked one of the road construction stop sign guys if he knew what happened. He had heard that a couple days before an Asian couple had lost control and ended up there. He believes they were taking pictures while driving. I didn't tell him "Hey, I do that too", but I could have. I made a note to at least slow down when I take a photo driving. Our pilot vehicle came back for us, and we were off again.
Back through one glacier valley, and up the mountainside again. I stopped at the summit again, and took another photo of the 4Runner. Take a look at the first photo in part 1. In the photo here, you will see a slight weather change. The summit was clouded in, and the cloud crystals were freezing in the air and falling to the earth at a 60 degree slope. I lucked out. I was coming through here early enough in the storm that the road was still in good shape. Down the other side, and down the southern glacier valley.
I made it back to Coldfoot, and it was raining quite constant by this point. There were dual sports, a cyclist, and semis all hanging out for a bit before moving on. I also met a couple from England in a rather well kitted D110. Jayne and David had just finished a much larger goal than mine. Making it to Deadhorse AK completed their trans-America journey. They started in Argentina and drove north. Well, they started in Europe, did a bunch in the middle east and Africa tip to toe, then started in Argentina. 5 years on the road in the D110 called Lizzybus. You can check out their story at www.lizzybus.com They were at the Overland Expo too, and participated in several roundtables. They were planning on camping at the Arctic Circle campground, and I said I would meet them there. They left Coldfoot, I got some gas and left as well. We met at the camp, and they were more convinced than I was about staying. The same bug hoard was there, and not to my liking. I bid them fairwell, and headed south. And the rain started to pick up a bit more.
There are a couple campgrounds between the Arctic Circle sign and the start of the Dalton Highway. And there are a multitude of roadside pullouts to take a break at. I stopped at several, but opted to continue as the mosquitos were ever present and I wasn't that tired. The clouds seemed to lower themselves onto the tops of the rolling hills on Highway 2. Visibility dropped to a couple hundred yards at times, and the rain was really coming down now. Unlike the night before, midnight tonight was pitch black.
I made it back to Fairbanks at 12:30am. Mile 5580. 990 miles of dirt/paved road and 27-1/2 hours later, my Deadhorse run was completed. The 4Runner ate it up like it was dessert. No issues at all.
Did mention I don't like mosquitos?
The Deadhorse Run, part 2
Mile 5580
With no fan fare at all, I left Deadhorse in the rear view mirror. Well, there were a couple well wishers. A small herd of caribou was grazing by the roadside, and several looked up in amusement. I feels really odd at this point. My goal had been met, but I am still a long way from done. The skies were getting dark in front of me. Another roadside attraction was a sedan on the side of the road, showing signs of a full blown yard sale, and laying there like a bloated cow. All by itself. I asked one of the road construction stop sign guys if he knew what happened. He had heard that a couple days before an Asian couple had lost control and ended up there. He believes they were taking pictures while driving. I didn't tell him "Hey, I do that too", but I could have. I made a note to at least slow down when I take a photo driving. Our pilot vehicle came back for us, and we were off again.
Back through one glacier valley, and up the mountainside again. I stopped at the summit again, and took another photo of the 4Runner. Take a look at the first photo in part 1. In the photo here, you will see a slight weather change. The summit was clouded in, and the cloud crystals were freezing in the air and falling to the earth at a 60 degree slope. I lucked out. I was coming through here early enough in the storm that the road was still in good shape. Down the other side, and down the southern glacier valley.
I made it back to Coldfoot, and it was raining quite constant by this point. There were dual sports, a cyclist, and semis all hanging out for a bit before moving on. I also met a couple from England in a rather well kitted D110. Jayne and David had just finished a much larger goal than mine. Making it to Deadhorse AK completed their trans-America journey. They started in Argentina and drove north. Well, they started in Europe, did a bunch in the middle east and Africa tip to toe, then started in Argentina. 5 years on the road in the D110 called Lizzybus. You can check out their story at www.lizzybus.com They were at the Overland Expo too, and participated in several roundtables. They were planning on camping at the Arctic Circle campground, and I said I would meet them there. They left Coldfoot, I got some gas and left as well. We met at the camp, and they were more convinced than I was about staying. The same bug hoard was there, and not to my liking. I bid them fairwell, and headed south. And the rain started to pick up a bit more.
There are a couple campgrounds between the Arctic Circle sign and the start of the Dalton Highway. And there are a multitude of roadside pullouts to take a break at. I stopped at several, but opted to continue as the mosquitos were ever present and I wasn't that tired. The clouds seemed to lower themselves onto the tops of the rolling hills on Highway 2. Visibility dropped to a couple hundred yards at times, and the rain was really coming down now. Unlike the night before, midnight tonight was pitch black.
I made it back to Fairbanks at 12:30am. Mile 5580. 990 miles of dirt/paved road and 27-1/2 hours later, my Deadhorse run was completed. The 4Runner ate it up like it was dessert. No issues at all.
Did mention I don't like mosquitos?
Equipt
Supporting Sponsor Presenting Sponsor of Overland
Gas on the Dalton Highway
Gas on the Dalton Highway.
One of the main concerns I had about the journey up here was the availability of gas. It becomes a strategic planning thing, making sure you have enough to get to the next fill up spot. It really hasn't been as bad as I expected. No nail biting so far. The closest I got was 1/4 tank left between Stewert BC and my next stop along the Cassiar Highway. But the real test was coming. The Dalton Highway.
Well, that turned out to be a non issue too. It is roughly 500 miles to Deadhorse, and Coldfoot is about halfway. I have a full tank range of approximately 300 miles. Filled up in Fairbanks, in Coldfoot, in Deadhorse, and in Coldfoot again. Easy peasy. So if you have a tank range less than 250 miles, take fuel. If you are over that, you should be just fine. Oh, they don't take Am Ex in Coldfoot either.
Cheers,
Gas on the Dalton Highway.
One of the main concerns I had about the journey up here was the availability of gas. It becomes a strategic planning thing, making sure you have enough to get to the next fill up spot. It really hasn't been as bad as I expected. No nail biting so far. The closest I got was 1/4 tank left between Stewert BC and my next stop along the Cassiar Highway. But the real test was coming. The Dalton Highway.
Well, that turned out to be a non issue too. It is roughly 500 miles to Deadhorse, and Coldfoot is about halfway. I have a full tank range of approximately 300 miles. Filled up in Fairbanks, in Coldfoot, in Deadhorse, and in Coldfoot again. Easy peasy. So if you have a tank range less than 250 miles, take fuel. If you are over that, you should be just fine. Oh, they don't take Am Ex in Coldfoot either.
Cheers,
PetitFrereArmada
Explorer
Great report.
sumnrfam
Active member
Thanks for the support guys. I am glad you like the thread.
Alan, you would be great bear bate. Each to catch, but a little tough to chew.
Cheers,
Hilarious Paul!!,, Great trip so far,, thanks for the thread, :bowdown:, Travel safe,
Wade
