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Alaska Trip

Each year as I return from our trip to Alaska, I have wanted to write about the experience—especially as it relates to the operation of my Turbo-Diesel.  My wife and I have made the trip to Alaska some 9 times—offering our services, as volunteers, to the National Park Service.  Yes, you are right, working for the Government for “nothing.”  We have each logged over 13,000 hours of US Government volunteer time over the last 13 years.  It has been a mostly positive experience. 

I purchased my first Dodge Turbo-Diesel in 1993, a 1990 model.  As you can imagine, I was bitten by the Turbo-Diesel “bug.”  I bought a “spanking new” Turbo-Diesel in 1994 (1995 model), and I retired from an engineering/scientist position, in the telecommunications world,  in June 1995.  My wife and I started our full-time RV lifestyle later that year.  The 1995 model was used to pull our 5^th-wheel RV for a couple of years—logging 150000 miles.  We have been running with our 1999 model since May of 1999, and have logged 217000 miles.

My Dodge  is “stock,” but I have gauges to display EGT, Boost, Fuel Pressure, and Rear Differential Temp.  I have installed a Mag-Hytec rear differential cover to reduce the differential temp (by about 20 degrees).  My compression brake is a Pacbrake.  I run Amsoil Synthetics in all of the gear cases and engine.  The Grill Guard is a Del Rio Grill Guard with a tow receiver integral to the assembly—I can mount my Warn Winch on either end of the truck—a feature that comes in handy when falling trees or getting out of “stuck” places while elk hunting in Colorado.  My family has become a Dodge TD family—See attached photo.  That’s my 1999 Dodge and my Son’s 1995 (217000 miles on the 1999, and 252000 on the 1995.

We are frequently asked if it is worth it to drive to Alaska, or should they take the ferry, or just fly to Anchorage and rent an RV.  It is our opinion that you miss half the experience if you do not drive.  You miss much of the wildlife, the side trips, the people, the history, the scenery, and the adventure.  And for those who think they have experienced Alaska from a cruise boat— you have had nothing more than a 7-day breakfast-dinner-supper cruise!  Imagine trying to see wildlife from ½ mile away and because most of Alaska is a Northern Rain Forest, the view is clouded by mist or fog a great deal of the time.

 That reminds me of a frequent complaint of visitors to Southern Alaska—why does it rain so much, my vacation has been ruined!  Yes, it rains a lot, maybe 2 out of 3 days, but without water the trees wouldn’t be so tall, the vegetation wouldn’t be so lush, and the wildlife wouldn’t be so plentiful.  Rain makes the Alaska trip a “real Alaska” experience.

I am convinced that the Dodge TD is the ideal truck for the Alaska trip—it’s tough enough to pull the load without modification.  My truck is “stock,”—our present 1999 Dodge has made the round trip to AK 8 times, and has logged over 215,000 miles.  Based upon my experience, a power boast is not necessary.  I get 10.5 mpg pulling my 5^th wheel—unless I have a head wind, then a bit lower.  I seem to get better mileage when traveling in the Northern part of the US, Canada, and Alaska.  This may be result of “hot fuel” as discussed in TDR Issue 57.  When leaving Alaska in September 2007, I noticed that they were already stocked with their winter fuel (winter mixture)—it was marked NO.1 diesel.  I got the same mileage with this fuel as with NO. 2 diesel  that was purchased in British Columbia.  During our trip back from Alaska in September 2007, the diesel price was $2.799 per gallon in Anchorage, and got as high as $1.299 per litre ($4.91 per gallon) for one fill-up in the Yukon.  If you have noticed the Canada-US exchange rate was 1:1 at that time.  Note:  Flying J has now entered the Canadian market as of this year, and has provided some competition for the Canadian suppliers—beating their price by as much as $.15/litre.  We have not been able to figure out why Southern Canadian fuel prices are $.50 to $1.00 per gallon higher than across the border.  The last I heard was that the U.S. gets 25% of our fuel from Canada—go figure!  Now is the time to dispel one of the myths about traveling to Alaska, that is, the cost of fuel is a deterrent (reason) to take a trip to Alaska or anywhere.  For a 4000 mile trip, at 10 mpg, the cost for fuel at $2.00 per gallon is $800, and at $3.00 per gallon the cost is $1200.  That’s 4 times out-to-dinner in most US cities!  The trip to Alaska is worth the money!!

Another myth about traveling the Alaska Highway is—you need to carry extra fuel, tires, spare parts, etc.  The Alaska Highway is a paved two-lane highway, fuel stations are not more than 80 miles apart, and there are mechanics along the way, except for a few hundred miles across the Yukon Territory in Canada.  It’s a good idea to have towing insurance with unlimited towing—just in case you should be the unlucky one and break down in a remote area. 

My trucks have only been towed three times, while logging over 360K miles.  One of those was because I filled the tank with unleaded vs. diesel—the truck ran to the first stop sign, died, and refused to start.  No damage to the engine!  Two times I was towed with a failed front wheel bearing—obviously a weak point of the truck.   I am on my 4^th injector pump:  the first failure was when the truck was new (< 5000 miles); and the 2^nd and 3^rd were do to a lift pump failure (both times sucking too much air into the fuel, overheating the pump).  Only one happened on our trip along the Alaska Highway—I was able to “limp” into Anchorage and get the truck fixed.  Of course I had to replace the lift pump several times!  I installed a fuel pressure gauge after the last injector pump failure and was able to avoid another injector pump failure (I replaced the lift pump when the pressure would drop to 7-8 lbs when accelerating).  At about 160000 miles, I installed a FAAS pump which provides >15 lbs pressure, even when pulling hard or accelerating.

That brings me to another myth about a trip to Alaska—that is, you don’t need a compression brake!  These comments also apply to mountain driving in the lower 48, as well.  I have not counted the times one traverses down to a river and then back up on the Alaska Highway, but I’d estimate that there are at least 50 up and downs—and many of them are 300-500 feet at 5-10 % grade.  There is an 11% grade somewhere in British Columbia—now that’s pretty steep.  That’s a lot of wear on the old Dodge’s front brakes!  If I shift down, I can usually traverse to the bottom of the valley without hitting the Dodge’s brakes, unless the grade is over 8%--then help is required from the Dodges’s brakes.

Since owning my first Dodge TD, I have had a manual transmission—currently I have a 6-speed in my 1999 Dodge.  I guess I’m just an old “country boy,” but I like to shift when I want to, not when the truck wants to shift!  It sure makes it easier to negotiate those hills—especially the downhill sections.

Are you ready for some more myths?  I have been told that you should not take your “good” RV on the trip to Alaska—you will destroy it!  They insist that you should buy slide-in camper, or a “junker” RV for the trip.  I have pulled my 5^th wheel on 9 round trips to Alaska and the RV shows little wear and tear—I can point out a couple of “nicks” that you would probably miss, however.  But then most of them are a result of travel in the lower 48.  I repack my wheel bearings every 2 trips to Alaska (about 20000 miles), and have the brakes checked each year by someone who is familiar with trailer brake systems.  Note:  I replace the back plate, brake, and brake shoe assembly with new assemblies—it’s cheaper than buying the brake shoes and brake magnetic assemblies! 

There is another reason to take your “good,” RV on the trip.  The BUGGS!  Mosquitoes are a minor problem, the black flies and chiggers are worse.  Believe me, you need a place to escape the insects, especially when traveling the interior of Alaska and Canada.  The problem with mosquitoes is minimal along the coast, but the little black flies (the locals call them “whitesocks” because of their white legs and feet).  The chiggers can be anywhere, and I got bit real good this summer while doing some diamond willow whittling one evening when “boon docking” along a lake between Delta Junction and Glenallen, Alaska.  The chiggers made a line of bites around my legs just above the sock line—and the bites (and itching) don’t go away for 2 weeks!

Myth No. __?  Is not a myth at all—you should have some protection on the front of your rig.  A tow vehicle behind a motorhome is most at risk, but with a Dodge pulling a trailer one should provide some type of protection for the head light and radiator area.  I attach window screen in front of my radiator and clean the bugs from the screen frequently.  In addition, I have insertable (and removable) screens (a part of the grill guard) over the head lights.  I  did lose a driver-side window from a rock that popped up while meeting another RV—I had this happen to the passenger side window in Texas due to a stress fracture (a scratch from the clamp-on mirrors I used for a short while).  See attached pictures.

RVers can camp overnight anywhere in Alaska, however, the Yukon and British Columbia have closed the gravel pits to RVs—It was noted that RVs were dumping their tanks, and making a mess!  After some 18 traverses of Alaska and Canada we have found some spectacular places to stop along the way—the list includes, Muncho Lake, Steamboat Mountain area, Tetsa River, Toad River, Liard River, Teslin Lake (at Mukluk Annies “free” RV Park), Swift River, Smith River, Pickhandle Lake, Buckinghorse River, Destruction Bay, Kluane Lake, Tetlin Nat’l Wildlife Refuge, Iron Creek, Bougie Creek, Contact Creek, Coal River, Hyland River, Telegraph Creek, Stone Mountain Summit, Tanana River, and many others.  Stopping for the night, at an RV park or just a nice pull-out is an opportunity to show off you rig—if you are the first to stop, you will soon be joined by others.  It seems that some folks feel safer camping among neighbors.