Texas to Alaska to Texas. 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid driving on the Dalton Highway and the Dempster Highway. July/August 2023.

rgv

Member
I enjoyed your trip report, it brings me back to when road trips were run-what-you-brung affairs.

I'm like you, I hate paying full whack for a motel when you check in at 11pm and roll out before daylight.

Curious why car camping is out? A simple tent, air mattress, and a jet boil to make coffee doesn't take up much room and once you are north of central BC it's a free for all to siwash on a pull out or logging road access.
 
I enjoyed your trip report, it brings me back to when road trips were run-what-you-brung affairs.

I'm like you, I hate paying full whack for a motel when you check in at 11pm and roll out before daylight.

Curious why car camping is out? A simple tent, air mattress, and a jet boil to make coffee doesn't take up much room and once you are north of central BC it's a free for all to siwash on a pull out or logging road access.
Thanks a lot for liking my trip report and making time to read it.

I see we definitely share the same idea about hotels. It is truly painful to pay a lot of money for one night for a hotel only to check in very late at night and be gone by 5am the next morning.

Camping is out mainly because it is an option I have never taken the time to fully exploit. Maybe I will start considering it. But tent camping on the Dempster sounds a bit scary to me. That is bear country and I would hate for one of them to come knocking on my tent because of the sardines I had for dinner time.
 
My main concern about the Dempster is rainfall. I posted a thread on tripadvisor and someone recommend a weather app. Well, I ended up downloading a weather app and it shows there will be rainfall on one or more days on my trip on the Dempster Highway. And a single rainfall quickly turns that road into a mud pit. Now I do not know how my Accord will handle that, but I hope it is up for the challenge and adventure.

June 25: Driving from Dawson City through Eagle Plains to Fort McPherson. I see rain in Eagle Plains and Fort McPherson. That means serious mudding with very slipper roads. I am glad I am planning to take 2 days to get to Inuvik.
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June 26: Driving as from midnight from Fort McPherson to Inuvik. Arriving in Inuvik after 12 noon. There will be rainfall in Inuvik on this day. Mud pit!
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June 27: Day trip from Inuvik to Tuktoyatuk and back. There will be rain in Tuk. More mud pit!
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June 28: Leaving my hotel in Inuvik at 4 am to drive for 4 hours to get to the MacKenzie River Crossing which opens at 8 am. The plan is to drive all day from Inuvik to Dawson City. I hope there is no rainfall on that day.
 

ITTOG

Well-known member
My main concern about the Dempster is rainfall. I posted a thread on tripadvisor and someone recommend a weather app. Well, I ended up downloading a weather app and it shows there will be rainfall on one or more days on my trip on the Dempster Highway. And a single rainfall quickly turns that road into a mud pit. Now I do not know how my Accord will handle that, but I hope it is up for the challenge and adventure.

June 25: Driving from Dawson City through Eagle Plains to Fort McPherson. I see rain in Eagle Plains and Fort McPherson. That means serious mudding with very slipper roads. I am glad I am planning to take 2 days to get to Inuvik.
BgeaTDm.jpeg

neuv1Aa.jpeg


June 26: Driving as from midnight from Fort McPherson to Inuvik. Arriving in Inuvik after 12 noon. There will be rainfall in Inuvik on this day. Mud pit!
reXAgT0.jpeg


June 27: Day trip from Inuvik to Tuktoyatuk and back. There will be rain in Tuk. More mud pit!
TRbHNE4.jpeg


June 28: Leaving my hotel in Inuvik at 4 am to drive for 4 hours to get to the MacKenzie River Crossing which opens at 8 am. The plan is to drive all day from Inuvik to Dawson City. I hope there is no rainfall on that day.
Hopefuly the weather will turn to your favor.

^I don't know what the acuracy of weather forcasts are in the States. But if the above are Canadian ones, I'd wait until the dates are closer 😁.

It is a long route tho, so some rain may fall ...
No better than yours.
 
Thanks a lot for liking my trip report and making time to read it.

I see we definitely share the same idea about hotels. It is truly painful to pay a lot of money for one night for a hotel only to check in very late at night and be gone by 5am the next morning.

Camping is out mainly because it is an option I have never taken the time to fully exploit. Maybe I will start considering it. But tent camping on the Dempster sounds a bit scary to me. That is bear country and I would hate for one of them to come knocking on my tent because of the sardines I had for dinner time.
You might consider a small SUV for your next purchase if you can find one that gets great MPGs. Making a bed in the back seems like it would solve a lot of your needs. Just my .02
 
You might consider a small SUV for your next purchase if you can find one that gets great MPGs. Making a bed in the back seems like it would solve a lot of your needs. Just my .02
Great idea. But you might be a bad influence echoing the thoughts I already have in my mind after going to look at a Toyota RAV4 hybrid and a Honda CR-V hybrid. I think I should stop swiping at them online and avoid stopping at the dealership or I might walk out of a dealership with a new car since this one is already paid off.

But this Accord is a keeper because it has been amazing. I hypermile in city driving and get some very good numbers. 55 mpg to 65 mpg in the city.

For example I just went out to my car right now and took this picture. This is my current tank of gas. I am getting 62 mpg after 707 miles out of this tank of gas. This is 50% city and 50% highway. Top speed of 65 mph. I hypermile in the city and I am always guaranteed over 55 mpg in the city with this car. My gas tank is 12.8 gallons, but I get over 600 miles in city driving, up to 700 miles some times.
xMVANbN.jpeg
 

AggieOE

Trying to escape the city
Great idea. But you might be a bad influence echoing the thoughts I already have in my mind after going to look at a Toyota RAV4 hybrid and a Honda CR-V hybrid. I think I should stop swiping at them online and avoid stopping at the dealership or I might walk out of a dealership with a new car since this one is already paid off.

But this Accord is a keeper because it has been amazing. I hypermile in city driving and get some very good numbers. 55 mpg to 65 mpg in the city.

For example I just went out to my car right now and took this picture. This is my current tank of gas. I am getting 62 mpg after 707 miles out of this tank of gas. This is 50% city and 50% highway. Top speed of 65 mph. I hypermile in the city and I am always guaranteed over 55 mpg in the city with this car. My gas tank is 12.8 gallons, but I get over 600 miles in city driving, up to 700 miles some times.
xMVANbN.jpeg
Wow! Is yours a plug in? I just can't believe those numbers. The Accord isn't a super light car either. I wonder if its mostly aerodynamics or what.
 
Wow! Is yours a plug in? I just can't believe those numbers. The Accord isn't a super light car either. I wonder if its mostly aerodynamics or what.
My car is not a plug in.

Yup, I got 62 mpg to the tank. I hypermile. The car is amazing in the city. It competes with the Prius in mpg numbers in the city, if you hypermile the car.

My best tank of gas from this car has been 65 mpg from a whole tank of gas. Let me find that picture and post it.

This is the picture. I got 65 mpg from a whole tank of gas. This is 50% city and 50% highway with a top speed of 60 mph and tires set at 36 psi. I just like to hypermile when in the city.
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Accident on the Dempster Highway on June 14, 2024.

I saw a closure online today on the Dempster Highway and called the visitor information office in Dawson City at 1-867-993-5566. They told me that there was a collision of 2 vehicles heading in opposite directions, so the highway has been closed as from 12:30pm today (June 14th) from Tombstone to Eagle Plains. I asked how long the closure would last. She said probably only 24 hours or until they get medical personnel out there.

I guess one has to be very careful this season on that road.
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I left work last night with an ambition to drive 20 hours straight. I realized it wasn't going to happen, so I drove for 4 hours and found a hotel to spend the night. I slept from 1am to 5:30 am. I woke up, took a shower and left for a 16 hours drive today.

I just got into Amarillo, TX, in seriously bad weather. Cars can barely drive the speed limit. I stopped to get gas. I am back on the road in the very bad weather with poor visibility.
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I stopped for gas and saw this rig and just took a picture of it. It has foreign license plates and it is right hand drive.
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Why is there a number on your car?
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When I bought my brand new 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, the first trip I took with it was to go and drive on Route 66. That is why I put the number on my car. On that trip, I met a lot of cool people who admired it because I was on Route 66 and I had the number on my car. It was a conversation starter at a lot of places. Also, I personally really like the way my car looks.

8 months ago, I traded my 2020 Honda Accord Hybrid for this 2024. This is its first trip out of Texas. I am going all the way to Alaska. I found it befitting to put the 66 again on this car. And it will stay on the car permanently.

This time, people who see my car think I work for the Police Department because of the Houston Police Foundation stickers I have on my car.

In Houston, you can pay $50 to become a member of the Houston Police Foundation and they will send you 2 of these stickers to put on your car. I became a member 2 months ago to support the Houston Police Department and so I have 2 these stickers on my car.
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