Driving from NC to Alaska!

markw8 · February 23, 2012

I think if you want bear spray it will have to be bought in Canada. I did a 12,200 mile round trip from Ohio in 07. We turned around at the Arctic Circle on the Dalton Hwy. I changed the oil before leaving with 5w30 extended life Mobil One, then changed it after getting back home. We had a camper on the truck.

The only mechanical problem was going into Skagway. It started making noise lile a wheel bearing going out. I pulled the rr tire and found a pieceof gravel stuck between the caliper and rotor hat. The only other thing was the bad roads killed my oem aux. battery. Never had a flat but had to have a windshield afterward.

A warning about the roads. Once you get north of Grande Prairie watch the fog line on the side. When it dips, the road dips. The frost heaves can be killers. BC and the Yukon Hwy depts will mark bad dips, holes and broken pavement with cones and orange flags on the edge of the road. Be on the lookout.

The worst road stretch was between Destruction Bay Yukon and Tok Alaska. The Scenery will blow you away though.

Mark

AlaskanSilverado07 · February 24, 2012

Yes, you can take certain weapons through Canada provided you declare them...I had them shipped down as it just made it alot easier to get through customs.

j-ten-ner · February 24, 2012

http://www.webastoshowroom.com/images/truck_trifold.pdf

That's what I would think about.

so long

j-ten-ner

jwh463 · March 9, 2012

One other fluid you might want to change out and that is the power steering fluid. You can change it out to synthetic and it will help with the colder temps up there as well as the extreme heat you might be getting into driving there from here in NC. What base in NC are you stationed at?

Never really thought about power steering fluid..gives me a good reason to put another amsoil order in though! I am in the Coast Guard at Air Station Elizabeth City. (Please no jokes about the coast guard haha)

Safe travels Coastie, I thought maybe you were doing a DIDY move..thats a hard one all the way to Alaska. My son is stationed now in Cape May. He went from Marquette MI to Petaluma and now Cape May. Stay safe and make sure you document all your belonging he has had some issue with stuff getting damaged and they questioned the condition of his furnitue and attempted to low ball him on replacement

rvlrbear · March 9, 2012

Having lived in Alaska for many years I would recomend that you not opt for a block heater, but install an oil pan heater instead.. If you are running synthetic oil in your motor and gear boxes you will have less problems in the cold weather. Kodiak is not as cold as where I have lived but the freezing and heating of all the components is hard on all vehicles. A lot of people install a battery charger under the hood to keep the battery warm, but I doubt that would be necessary in Kodiak. Get as much done as you can before you get there, Kodiak is EXPENSIVE !!!

gmtech4 · March 10, 2012

Having lived in Alaska for many years I would recomend that you not opt for a block heater, but install an oil pan heater instead.. If you are running synthetic oil in your motor and gear boxes you will have less problems in the cold weather. Kodiak is not as cold as where I have lived but the freezing and heating of all the components is hard on all vehicles. A lot of people install a battery charger under the hood to keep the battery warm, but I doubt that would be necessary in Kodiak. Get as much done as you can before you get there, Kodiak is EXPENSIVE !!!

great advice,,,awesome

Drifthopper · April 5, 2012

I can't believe nobody commented about the trailer...??

Going that far, go thru that whole trailer front to back. Look at all the weld joints / look for cracked welds. Re- do the bearings, no matter how new it may be . Check all the lights and wiring, get spare bulbs or sealed light assembly. Consider new tires for the trailer, trailer tires never seem to last as long as car/ truck tires, check your hitch , ball , safety chains , coupler .... Etc ...give everything a good going over .

Good luck preparing

00Silverado4x4 · April 5, 2012

I can't believe nobody commented about the trailer...??

Going that far, go thru that whole trailer front to back. Look at all the weld joints / look for cracked welds. Re- do the bearings, no matter how new it may be . Check all the lights and wiring, get spare bulbs or sealed light assembly. Consider new tires for the trailer, trailer tires never seem to last as long as car/ truck tires, check your hitch , ball , safety chains , coupler .... Etc ...give everything a good going over .

Good luck preparing

I'll second that...haven't driven the Alaska Highway twice now.

February/March 2004 from Delaware to Alaska

May/June 2008 From Alaska to Georgia

Both time went across the US and then straight up from California throuh Seattle. Both times ended up being about 6k miles with stops for famiy/friends/vacation. Can't wait to do it again, probably after I retire from the Air Force. British Columbia/Yukon have some of the most awesome scenery I've ever seen.

tbhuge · April 24, 2012

Welcome to Alaska. I'm in Anchorage currently. My wife and I did the drive back in 2008. We went through Minneapolis straight north and then straight west 2000 miles to Edmonton.....I will never do that 2000 miles again. I am from the midwest and that 2000 miles is the most BORING drive ever. Completely straight flat boring farm land. I would recommend shipping any guns and ammo you have up instead of going through Canada. You can take bear spray through the border, you have to declare it. Make sure it SAYS bear spray on it. If it does not, they will confiscate it.....ask me how I know. Mine only said pepper spray on it. Even though its the same stuff. I wouldnt worry to much about carrying extra gas cans unless you are wanting to drive all night. I think the longest distance between gas stations is around 120 miles. One thing to consider is get up early and drive until you run out of gas. Most of the gas stations have bankers hours, and they are old school pumps. I didnt see a single pay at the pump option except in Edmonton. They will come out after hours and turn the pumps on for a convenience fee. If you have not picked up the book the Milepost, you may want to. It was only about $15 a few years ago. A ton of cool info in there as well as places to stop. Definitely stop at the hotsprings. Lastly, enjoy the drive. If you have the time to slow down and take your time, do it. The drive past Edmonton is absolutely gorgeous. You will be blown away by the scenerary. Take a ton of pictures and bring extra batteries and memory cards for your camera.