Alaska Journey: 25th May

DAY OF THE EPIC DRIVE

Woke up in the car par, shifted all the luggage around and got a coffee at Starbucks before heading out of Fairbanks toward Fox on the Elliott Highway. Had great hopes of getting a coffee at Livengood, but there were no services, and suddenly we were on the Dalton Highway.

The beginning looks like a slightly wider version of the track to Kinchurdy Farm! And so it started – 414 miles to go on an unmade road.

The weather was beautiful and the country was BIG. The road was not bad once you got used to it and there were only a few trucks. We made the first stop at the huge bridge across the Yukon, where I took the opportunity to pan for gold using Colleen’s frying pan – no luck. Then drove on til we reached the Arctic Circle. Another stop; photos and a cup of tea – fresh milk and sugar at last. Met a biker on his BMW who’d ridden up from Texas, and was heading North to Deadhorse.

Still the terrain was gently hilly, with lots of spruce and birch and we headed further and further North until we eventually reached Coldfoot. It’s an old mining camp that was then used to house some of the thousands of construction workers that the road required. Now it is a collection of prefab huts and rusted old machinery in a huge levelled area. And, oddly enough, a post office in a hut, staffed by a woman with perfect English, with a very strong German accent. Had a burger and coffee in the diner, then topped up with fuel, before Murray took over the driving and we continued ever Northward.

Passed the highpoint of Gobblers Knob, with a slightly smoky haze in the air and continued on to the Atigun Pass through the Brooks Range of mountains. This rises to 4800ft before dropping away dramatically on the other side. This range of mountains is where the 2 continental plates meet, and to the North the terrain changes dramatically – no more rolling hills, no more tall growth – just flat open tundra all the way to Deadhorse; this is where we saw all the wildlife (list at end of today’s entry).

As we looked forward we could see a fog/cloud bank below us which we descended into with 120 miles to go. An odd noise started from the right, rear wheel, but looking out of the window nothing appeared amiss. There was almost no plant growth above 8" in height and we ground on ever Northward.

Finally the loom of huge buildings appeared through the pale mist and we arrived at the huge oil town/factory of Deadhorse/Prudhoe Bay. A little cheekily, we pinched a cup of coffee at the "Arctic Caribou" and then drove to a secluded car park to bed down for the night. Time arrived at Prudhoe was 11.53pm. Time we started the Dalton Highway was 10.45am. THIRTEEN HOURS – we’ve made it.

WILDLIFE
Greyish Goose – White fronted
White Goose – Snow goose
Swan – Tundra Swan
Tan Owl – Short eared
Snowy Owl
Caribou
Gopher
Snow Bunting
Arctic Fox
Bloody Mosquitoes
And all the way along the road the Alyeska Oil Pipeline kept us company
PS. Nip of whisky before bed!