Back in Seward

When I left you last, I mentioned that we did not know if we would make some

side trips on the way - or make a bee-line to Seward.

Well the verdict is in....

Greetings from Seward!

Its been a few days with lots of road miles so a bunch of the photos has
the drivers eye view....  bug splatters and all.

We left Muncho Lake on Weds May 29 with no destination planned.

Turned out we drove the 450 miles to Whitehorse where we spent the weekend.

The plan was to be on full hookups so that we could do laundry.

Alaska Highway view North of Muncho Lake

The herd of Bison that is normally near Liard Hot Springs was out

near the road.

Bison near Liard Hot Springs

We made a quick stop in Watson Lake, Yukon to check out the sign forest.

We put up a sign in 2014 so we wanted to check on it. 

Sign Forest

Our sign is holding up well.

Perhaps we need to put up another and check off each additional trip as we pass thru.

West of Watson Lake we cross the divide between Pacific and Arctic Watersheds

Crossing a bay on Teslin Lake, we cross the Nisutlin Bay Bridge.

At 1,917 feet in length, it is the longest bridge on the Alaska Highway.

Nisutlin Bay Bridge

We spent 4 nights in Whitehorse.

When Kate tried to do the laundry - the Washing Machine would not turn on.

I had to pull it out of the tight cabinet it is built into, get it onto the bathroom floor,

put on my Maytag Repairman hat, and try to figure out what is wrong.

If I need parts, perhaps I can have them delivered in Seward.

The good thing is I'll have plenty of time since we'll be dry camping for months in

Seward, so there will be no using the machine in the bus anyway.

When I got the machine pulled out and took the covers off I was able to trace out the power

and found a wire had come loose off of the surge suppressor.   When that was plugged in,

I tested the machine and Voila...  problem solved.

A couple of hours after I stared, the machine was tucked back into its cabinet,

and Kate had it humming.

Our $$'s for 4 days of full-hookups would not go to waste.

On Sunday morning June 2nd we headed out of Whitehorse.

Our destination was not set, but we both were leaning towards just continuing on to

Seward.  Oh what would todays drive bring us?

This part of the drive - from Whitehorse past Kluane Lake is one of my favorites.

The mountains and Valleys are spectacular!

Heading into Haines Junction

After passing Burwash Junction at the north end of Kluane Lake, the Alcan conditions

take a nose dive.   This part of the highway is notoriously subject to frost heaves, and this

trip was no different.   We bumped and bounced our way thru the last 150mile of
the Yukon and around 2pm we crossed into Alaska.

Welcome to The Last Frontier

At 3pm we took on fuel at Youngs Chevron in Tok, then turned south
onto the Tok cutoff leaving the Alaska Highway behind.

The Tok Cutoff is notorious for its frost heaves.

The middle third seems to be the worst and a reader of this blog had informed me

that it was bad this year.    She was right.

The first 40 miles or so was a breeze, but rain clouds were forming ahead.

Soon it was raining and the bouncing began.

We started to bounce our way down the road and around 5pm we were stopped at some

major road construction.   The flagger told us that it was going to be at least

20minutes till the pilot car returned.

Kate took advantage in this lull to feed the Doodles.

No one wants angry, hungry doodles in a Party Bus.

The doodles are amazing little travelers.   They just take all the changes that we
throw at them in stride as if its normal... and it is.

They finished dinner just about the time the pilot vehicle arrived and they hit the
couches while we hit the road.

Road Construction on Tok Cutoff

The flag person had warned us that at the end of the piloted portion, the road

was really torn up with potholes.

It was pretty bad, but fortunately it was only for a few miles longer.

Then the road returned to its normal bumpy 30mph self.

I silently wondered what an airborne Doodle with a belly full of food would mean.

About 20 miles north of Glenallen, the road smoothed out and we cautiously put some

foot back into the pedal.

Turning south on the Glen Highway, at about 6:30pm, it was getting
near time to start scouting out a place for the night.

We knew that there is an abundance of nice pullouts on

this stretch of road, and about an hour south of Glenallen
at the 128mm we found a beauty!


We pulled into a nice double ended turnout at about 7:30p and shut down.

Situated at Eureka Summit, about 3,300' we figured it might be a cool night, and
it turned out to be not so bad.   It got down to about 39 degrees.

Eureka Summit on the Glenn Highway

A great view of the mountains, a view of a glacier, and a clear view of the

satellites...  we were home for the night.

A room with a view

This morning dawned cool and foggy.

As we pushed south towards Anchorage and the coast the fog first tuned to intermittent rain.

Glen Highway - Glacier View Stretch

 To the south, the clear blue skies told us the sunshine was waiting!

Thru Anchorage, we round the Turnagain Arm, and cross onto the Kenai Peninsula.

Stopping to top off the fuel tank, by 1230 we were parked in Seward at our old 

stomping grounds.

We are parked in the exact same space that we stayed at last July - Sept.

The only thing missing is Eric & Pat who were here with us for a part of the summer.

Kate & the Doodles.

There is no water, electric or sewer.   There is a town dump station and water

fill a few blocks away so every few weeks we'll need to take care of business but 

other than that we've got all the satellites locked in, plenty of solar power,

so life here is good.

We were greeted upon arrival by a Humpback Whale spouting right in front of our

site.   There are also rafts of seals and sea otters swimming by.

Looks like its going to be a fun summer!

We nose up to the town walking path that runs along the waterfront.

In the photo below we are about the 3 RV down right near the South End of the RV Area.

The walking path along the Seward Waterfront

Looking south along the path, there is a town park, then further

down the Marine Science Aquarium, and town.

The view.

Gracie posed for a photoshoot in the park.

So...  3,944 miles logged on the gps from home and we are here.

My next job is to try and get some good photos of the wildlife for you folks

and get that posted in a future blog.

This 4th of July is the big race up and down the mountain behind us.

It's televised so perhaps you'll get to see it with us.

Tomorrow is June 4th.   The 75th anniversary of D-Day.

Let's all take a moment and think about all those young men, on both sides of

that conflict, that never got a chance to enjoy life like we do.

From the 4 of us in Seward.

✌️

Idaho Falls to Whitehorse, Yukon

“Babouschka lived in a little cabin in the coldest corner of a cold and frosty land. 

Her tiny little house was sitting right in the place where four roads came together. 

When Father Frost  was in the land, then Brother Wind howled at her windows 

and piles of deep snow piled around her house and hardly anyone ever came to visit her

 or passed by on those nearby roads. 

Babouschka’s heart yearned for the warmth of summer, the fragrance of the flowers, 

and the song of the birds, and for her friends.”     

(Thank you Craig for sending this to me)

(remember to click on pictures to enlarge them)

Babouschka goes RV'ing

I sent the above out in an email to a bunch of our friends and got such a funny response

 that I thought I’d post it here with an explanation.

We’d been traveling thru some very cold temperatures and snow 

and we were rushing north in search of warmer temperatures.    

That’s right – we were heading NORTH for warmer temps.

When I sent out the above picture, several friends asked “Don’t you have heat in that tin can?”

We’ll yes… we do.   We have the normal dashboard heat that uses the engine just like in a car, 

and we also could run one or both house heaters.

I did have the dashboard heat running on full and it was chilly in the coach.

The dash heat does a decent job but when it really gets cold you need to supplement it 

with one of the house heaters.    

What you don’t see in the picture however, is that while Sweet Babouschka was all bundled up 

and wrapped under the quilt – I was still in shorts and a t-shirt.

As we progressed north thru Idaho and Montana on Monday May 20, 

we continued to run thru some cold temps and snow but as we passed thru 

the Rockies north of Butte, the temps started to moderate as we left the precipitation behind.

Even the Doodles were huddled under the blankets

We overnighted in Shelby Montana at an RV Park where we dumped tanks, 

washed clothes, and took on water.   

We’d be dry camping again for and extended period, so Shelby was a good place 

to take care of these needs, and is only 30 miles or so south of the border.

Now that the long Victoria Day weekend was over, we set off on Tuesday morning 

and crossed the border back into Canada.   

As usual, it was a smooth and effortless process.

Entering Alberta Canada

We had no itinerary for our road ahead and decided where to stay as we rolled along.

Since we were both anxious to get back into the North Country, 

we added another 500 miles or so to the log and drove to Whitecourt Alberta, 

northwest of Edmonton where we spent the night at another Walmart.

As you can see – we opted for the deluxe site with the Doodle-friendly grass outside the door.  Unfortunately, the pool and hot tubs has been drained for repairs but we made do without.

Weds morning we were off again – destination unknown.

Since we’ve made this trip now several times we don’t stop anymore at the usual spots like the giant Beaver in Beaverlodge, or in Dawson Creek (mile zero of the Alaska Highway) but instead we buzzed right thru town past the sign.

The stretch of the Alcan, between DC and Fort St John tends to be quite busy.  

Traffic thins out a fair amount between FSJ and Fort Nelson, and even more so after FN. 

About 30 miles north of Dawson Creek, barely settled into our northbound trip on the Alcan, 

we were crossing a narrow bridge and a flatbed with a bulldozer on the back bounced by 

going in the opposite direction.   

Just as it passed by we heard a loud bang.    

A stone had hit the window in front of Kate and left a bullseye the size of a grapefruit.     

Normally I can fix stone damage – but this one is too big 

and will require a new windshield when we get back home.    

I’ve made  a temporary repair merely to keep the wiper blade from getting chewed up 

where it passes over the hole and hopefully stop any cracks from expanding..

Chips and cracks in the window are a normal part of life on the Alaska Highway.  Because of that, I usually carry about 6 windshield repair kits with me.    We’ve been lucky on our past trips that we’ve only had a few hits with minor damage that I was able to repair.

We had considered the possibility of spending the night at Walmart in Fort St John, 

but when we stopped south of town at the UFA Cardlock for fuel it was only about 2pm,

 so we decided to push on and just stop at a rest area or turn out further up the road 

when the mood to stop struck us.

The stretch between Fort St John and Watson Lake is about 565 miles, 

it crosses the Rocky Mountains,  and stretches my fuel reserves.   

Especially if we are going to spend a week or so dry camping at Muncho Lake 

and might need some generator time.    

Fort Nelson – 180 miles north of Fort St John is the last town before Watson Lake 

and the last decent priced fuel.  

Since my fleet cards no longer works at the Petro Canada Cardlocks,  

I’ve been pressed to find a place in town with easy access for 63’ of Partybus and truck.  

There are several other places down the road to get fuel, Testa River or Toad River 

to name just two, but their fuel is much more expensive and this early in the season 

I wonder if it’s from last year and would rather buy from somewhere that I know 

is selling a lot of fuel.   

This trip however,  I found a new public Cardlock in Ft Nelson, just south of the Alcan 

where I could top up and give me plenty of reserves.

The AFD Cardlock is south of the Alcan down 55th st then right and left, 

behind the Esso Cardlock

.

AFD has Public Cardlocks Stretching from Pink Mountain up to Dawson and is a good, 

albeit more expensive, alternative to gas stations.  

They pump a lot of fuel and service commercial fleets so you know the fuel is not stale.

I also prefer to use Cardlock facilities as there is plenty of room for big rigs to maneuver.

With a full tank of fuel, we departed Fort Nelson about 530pm.   

Tonight the dogs would have a late supper.  

We decided that we would stay at the 536 KM rest stop about 1 hr. west of town.   

We’ve passed it several times and its large, flat, and on top of a mountain 

so the long grade downhill is easy on a cold engine first thing in the morning. 

Enroute to our stop we were treated to 9 different Black Bears grazing along the highway,

 one about every 5 minutes or so.

KM 536 Rest Area

 When you leave Fort Nelson heading North, you pretty much leave civilization (and cell service) behind.   From here on its only found in the few small towns along the way.

When we stopped for the night at the rest area, we were surprised to find that it had cell service – a whopping hour out of Ft Nelson!    

Not only did we have cell service – but the internet was fast 4g!

Of course, being on top of a mountain also helped with a view of the satellites 

so we had internet and Satellite TV.

So after a 550 mile day we were parked for the night in a quiet comfortable stop 

deep in the woods of northern British Columbia.

One of our neighbors for the night.   I was impressed with the paint job on the trailer.

This rest stop was picked in part due to its proximity (100 miles) to our initial destination 

which was Muncho Lake.  That meant in the morning we’d only have about a 2 hr drive 

and would arrive early enough to get a good pick of the few campsites 

where we would spend 5,6,7 days or perhaps longer.

Between our overnight stop and Muncho Lake we cross over the Crest of the Rockies

 at Summit Lake – the highest point on the Alcan.

You might recall that on our last trip we stopped here heading south 

and were treated to the Northern Lights. 

That was late Sept however and it got dark at night.   

This is late May and we’ve left night darkness behind for the time being.

Summit Lake on the Alaska Highwayu

Once past Summit lake you have a long grade downhill

  

About 5 miles short of Muncho Lake I was able to snap this Black Bear.

See the black dot on the left.

Finally the shore of our destination, Muncho Lake, came into view.

Running along the shore of Muncho Lake between the mountain and the lake, 

you always see this herd of Stone Sheep.    

Knowing that they might be around the next curve it pays to drive a bit slower 

lest you have an unexpected meeting.

At the north end of the lake our campground came into view.

Our private lakefront paradise….   This is why we love it here!

170 miles from the nearest town.

Fresh air and clean water.

There are 2 Provincial campgrounds on Muncho Lake.

Strawberry Flats at the south end of the lake, and McDonald at the north.    

McDonald is the smaller of the two with about 15 campsites and is our favorite.

An easy gravel road with a loop at the end makes it possible to go in, 

take a look if you are towing, and drive out without any problem.

We drive by the sites to see what is available, then take the loop and come back and nose in

 to which ever site suits our fancy.

Our site - #13 is private with a great lake view,  good solar, 

and even a view of the 119 satellite so we are sitting here with all the comforts once again.  

Site 14 would fit that same criteria as well.   

The other sites along are all great as well, just might not be satellite friendly.

We originally paid for 3 ngihts (Thursday – Saturday) and on Sunday we paid for 3 more.

A heavy passing T-Shorm afforded me the opportunity to go outside with a car mop 

and give the bus and the truck a fresh water bath.    

I was able to get the heavy dirt and road grime off and now both look presentable once again. 

For how long is anyone’s guess.

Meanwhile – the nearest towns are about 170 miles or so in either direction.  

This is a great place just to enjoy the peace & quiet, the fresh air, and the great scenery.

Word has it that there has been a bear about as well but we have not seen it yet.

Our view out the front window

On Monday -  Memorial Day – we took a day trip and headed 40 miles down the road 

to Liard Hot Springs Provincial Park.

On our first trip north we stayed at the campground here, 

but since then we much prefer the smaller, quieter, 

and much more private environment at Muncho Lake, 

and so we commute to the hot springs when we are in the mood for a hot soak.

To enjoy the natural thermal springs, you park and then approach the springs 

on a wooden walkway that is about ½ mile long and passes thru a lush forest 

resulting from the downstream runoff from the springs.

A large cedar platform has been built with changing rooms with rest rooms further up the slope.

There is an upper and lower pool

The upper pool, pictured below,  receives the hot water from the spring 

and is the warmest of the two.  

As you move upstream in either pool the water gets progressively hotter.    

At the upper end of the upper pool it is quite hot.

Kate enjoying the Lower Pool

Separating the two pools is a small dam with a spillway.

The water is about 1 meter deep in both pools.

The pools are crystal clear and have a slight Sulphur smell.

It’s not hard to imagine just what a wonderful treat these rejuvenating waters would have been 

for the weary soldiers building the Alcan back in 1942.

After 6 days at Muncho Lake we decided to move on.

The Ocean at Seward awaits...

Our solar system paired with the new Lithium batteries are meeting all expectations...

We dry camped for the 6 days and did not need to run the generator once.

Our destination for the night was open - and we eventually decided to drive all the way 

to Whitehorse, Yukon for a 440 mile day.

Along the way we stopped at the sign forest in Watson Lake to check on

our sign that we put up on our first strip 5 years ago.

It's still in great shape.

So we are now in Whitehorse for the next 4 nights.

I'm not certain yet if we will detour somewhere or make a beeline for Seward.

Time will tell.