Our next adventure takes us along the oil pipeline North to Deadhorse.
Our next adventure takes us along the oil pipeline from Livengood (yes that is the name of a community in AK) to Deadhorse (yep Deadhorse is right) (Prudhoe Bay) and back to Fairbanks, 828 miles round trip on the Dalton Highway. Alaskans have a sense of humor when it comes to their highways. Many of their numbered highways are not even paved. In the case of the Dalton, Hwy 11, it is paved 25% of the way. That means 555 miles of gravel roads. We had a great time and there will be many stories to come, about this trip, but for now I have some advice for you. When planning a trip such as this, do your homework. Be honest with yourselves are you capable of changing a tire, taking care of yourself if need be and are you ready for a long, bone jarring ride for you and your rig? It is advised that you take extra fuel and two full sized spare tires mounted on rims as well as a CB radio and emergency supplies. We read up on the trip and followed the advice given. We talked to people that had driven the highway, Alaskans and tourists alike, most just turned pale, got a glazed look in their eyes and shook their heads, “Don’t do it!” was the common answer. This road was built to service the pipeline and is used mostly by 18 wheelers and heavy equipment as well as hunters and a few brave souls that want to see what’s there. If you “Drive Smart” and follow a few common since rules of the road you will have a great adventure. Take your time, don’t try to do it all in a day, you can’t! Read the road, mud, dust, washboard and potholes are waiting for you. Give the working rigs respect, they know the road and will travel faster than you. When it is safe pull over and let them pass. Slow down when you see oncoming traffic. This prevents your rig throwing rocks at oncoming windshields. You hope that those coming at you will do the same for your windshield. Don’t stop in the middle of the road when checking out wildlife and scenery, find a safe pull out. We took 5 days and could have stayed longer. We did not take our mortorhome all the way, instead we parked it at Coldfoot (yep, I am not making up these names) and drove the rest of the way in our tow vehicle, stayed overnight at a hotel in Deadhorse before returning to our rig the next day. I will save the story about swimming in the Arctic Ocean and others until next time.
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