The Alaska Highway & Northern Highways

The Alaska Highway, also known as the Alcan, begins in Dawson Creek (more info on photo to left), British Columbia, and runs nearly 1,500 miles to Fairbanks, Alaska. What used to be a glorified dirt road is now an easily driven highway. The occasional road construction zone is another matter (see below). There are plenty of visitor services along the route, but you still pass through some beautiful and unspoiled country. Summer traffic can be a headache, as the Alcan is the preferred route for a lot of RVers. Since it's basically one lane each way, you can be stuck behind a "land yacht" for quite some time. To avoid the RVs as much as possible in the summer, travel in late May or early September, or keep driving after dinner when you'll have the road to yourself (and plenty of light).

But there are many more roads which are less traveled, more remote, and will give you a greater feeling for the wide-open spaces of the north. The Yukon has several interesting roads, as does Alaska. Try the Cassiar Highway as an alternative to the Alaska Highway if you are traveling to or from the West Coast. The Top of the World Highway from Dawson City to the Alaska Highway is a great drive, as is the Dalton Highway which heads north from Fairbanks across the Arctic Circle and toward Prudhoe Bay.

But don't forget to get out of your vehicle and explore. Sure, you can see lots through the windshield, but if that's all you are doing you might as well go see the IMAX "Alaska" movie and save yourself some bucks!

What to do, where to go, etc.

• Driving to and around Alaska. My thoughts on the Alcan, what to see in Alaska, places to eat and sights to see, and highways in the Yukon and British Columbia.
  
• About our trips. Some notes on what we drove, what we took with us, and our routes from the east coast of the U.S.
  
• Tourism Yukon's site. Info on what to see and do in Canada's wonderful Yukon Territory.
  
• "Yukon Road Trips": Good info on road trips and traveling in Canada's Yukon Territory (slow-loading page).
  
• Gruff's Alaskan Feedbag resource: A collection of reviews of eating places along the Alcan and in Alaska. Usually updated every year, give or take. Compiled mostly by Alaskans. A great resource when traveling - print it out and take it with you!
  
• Bureau of Land Management info on the Dalton Highway (Haul Road) and surrounding lands. They are responsible for most of the land along the haul road.

Road resources

• The Milepost
  The "must-have" book for anyone driving to or around Alaska or the north, The Milepost is a mile-by-mile log of every major (and most minor) roads in Alaska, The Yukon, northern BC, and even the Northwest Territories. Worth every dime! Be sure to get the current edition as it's updated every year. Lots of good info at this site.
  
• Current road conditions in British Columbia
• Current road conditions of the Yukon section of the Alaska Highway. Usually updated daily with construction zones and other hazards.
  
• Current road conditions of Alaskan highways
• Driving distance calculator: A great utility courtesy of The Milepost, with distances in the north as well as from major cities Outside (4649 miles from New York to Anchorage, for example)
• A handy distance chart for the Alaska Highway in the Yukon (from Whitehorse)
  
• A history of the Alaska Highway
• Current gas prices in Alaska, B.C., and Alberta. Prices in the Yukon will be a bit higher than in Alberta and B.C. Don't forget that Canadian gas prices are per liter (roughly four liters equals a US gallon).

The art of surviving construction zones

(Left: A nicely graveled roadbed in the Yukon.)

Road construction in the North entails tearing up the highway and then routing traffic right through the construction zone (there is no place else to go). Construction zones may be anything from nicely graded gravel (like above) to muddy muskeg. Sometimes the gravel road-bed will be better than the blacktop you've been driving on!

Actually, it's not asphalt, it's "BST" (also called chipseal) which is a unique process for road building in the North. Check out this interesting discussion of road building with BST, so while you are sitting waiting for the pilot car you can explain everything to your friends and family and sound really smart!

See the above links for current road conditions of the Alcan/Alaska Highway and other roads in the Yukon and Alaska. Plan ahead for those construction zones! Some construction survival tips:

1. Be patient. They will send you through as soon as possible, but you may have to wait up to an hour to get through. Turn off your engine. Get out and chew the fat with the person behind you. Take a picture, look for wildlife, etc. Where are you in such a hurry to get to? This is the land you came to see!
2. Don't go too slow or too fast. Too slow and you risk the chance of getting stuck in soft soil, too fast and your vehicle will get pretty beat-up. Don't stop in the middle of the construction.
3. Be nice to the flagger. Talk to the flagperson if you can. Often they are students from all over Canada working for tuition money, or locals with good stories. How would you like to stand around all day with no one to talk to? Usually they will walk up to your car to tell you how long the wait is or to give instructions. Roll down your window before they get there and give them a smile (or a cold soda!).
4. Pilot car etiquette: sometimes you will follow a "pilot car/truck" which will guide you through the construction. Don't tailgate, and when you get to the end of the construction watch for the pilot to pull off the road or make a u-turn.
5. Beware of construction equipment. Road building equipment can be huge! Always give them the right-of-way, and assume that they can't see you.
6. Don't complain. Chances are, when you get home you'll brag about all the rough roads you've driven!

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