Watson Lake to Haines Junction

The drive is getting better and signs of spring are starting to appear.  Unfortunately, it is still too early in the year and nothing is open …. So all the things on my spreadsheet – the reason I needed the extra time to see it “all” – aren’t happening and now I’m about 2 weeks ahead of schedule.  I would just sit and wait it out, but my tanks are full and there is nowhere to dump.

I am currently staying at a truck stop about 20 miles east of Haines Junction.  The restaurant food is good; they told me that if it wasn’t the truckers wouldn’t keep stopping.  I had a burger and salad yesterday so I could use the wifi.  I also washed my bedding ($11).  It is $10 for a shower …..

There are a few (very few) places along the highway that are open all year, this being one of them.  I have been seeing these “cargo containers” with doors and windows cut out of the sides. Well, apparently the employees live in these in the winter and then move to their personal RV or trailer in the summer.  I would love to look inside one. They must be well insulated to withstand the winters here.

I drove into Haines Junction yesterday morning, thinking it was a town.  It is a gas station, church and a small grocery store.  They have about 800 people living in the area.  At the store I bought a loaf of raisin/cranberry bread (homemade) that is really good, a small tube of Neosporin, some cheese and a small container of oatmeal ($30 total).  Nothing had a price tag and I didn’t ask the price of the produce.  When I mentioned to the clerk that I image it cost an arm and leg, her response was “well we have to bring it up from California.”  Jeez, I could have brought her some.  

Haines Junction was once a base camp for the US Army engineers who in 1942 built much of the Alcan Highway (now known as the Alaska Highway) that links Fairbanks in Alaska to the south of Canada.

But, chronologically, I’m ahead of myself.

The road from Watson Lake to Whitehorse was sketchy in places (ice and potholes), but all-in-all it was an improvement over the iced roads I’ve been driving on.  It was snowing, but nothing alarming.  I was so concerned about protecting my Jeep windshield and its front end …. The Jeep is fine but I have two chips in my coach windshield so far.  Lots of semis heading south ….

I intended to spend some time in Whitehorse, but there wasn’t a campground open, so I had nowhere to stay.  I did spend the night in the rest stop, so here is how my two days in Whitehorse went …

I wanted to stop at the Visitor’s Center for information and to see what was open.  The available RV parking was full of cars, so after I drove around town looking for someplace to park I finally found three meters together that were clear and parked there.  Luckily, I have some Canadian money with me from my prior trip, so I could feed the meters and walk over to the visitor center.  The lady at the counter said the only open campground was at Takhini Hot Springs, about 20 miles up the road.  She called to be sure they were open and off I went.  When I got there (the road into the campground wasn’t plowed and I was concerned about getting stuck), they were full and I had to back out to leave … which meant unhooking the Jeep, turning around and then re-connecting the Jeep.  While turning around I found a large rock/boulder in the snowbank.  Why do campgrounds have decorative boulders at the turn points?  I have read so many comments in the RV groups of getting dents from these rocks.  So I finally get back to the road and head to Whitehorse and the rest stop. 

The next morning I had cell service, so I made some calls and found an RV dealer in town that was willing to run a hose and give me water (my water tank was empty).  He couldn’t let me dump, however, but the water helped.  I also found a do-it-yourself truck wash and an open gas station.  Great.

The first stop was the truck wash:  The bay wasn’t long enough for both vehicles, so I disconnect the Jeep, drive into the bay, wash what muddy ice I can off the coach (by the minute again)… while I pay the attendant to wash my Jeep; and then I back out and reconnect the Jeep.  $45 well spent.

The next stop is the RV dealer.  I filled my holding tank with water, thank them and start to drive around the back of the building to leave.  What RV dealer doesn’t have a turn-around?  I again unhook the Jeep, back out of the lot, and reconnect the Jeep.  If someone thinks I need the practice hooking up the Jeep, I assure you I don’t.

I was told Diesel would get cheaper in the Yukon because there is less tax.  They lied.  It’s up to $1.36/liter (4 liters to a gallon).  I'm curious to see what prive Alaska has.

So, because there is no place to stay, the few things that are open in Whitehorse and the day trip to Skagway are off the table.  Off to Haines Junction ….

I now have a long list of things to see “on the way back” but I don’t think I have enough time on the way back to stop.  Unfortunate, but I can at least repeat this part of the trip another year, maybe add it to the end of a summer trip to the Northwest.

I hope I’m able to do this lifestyle for many, many years because I keep adding additional trips/years onto my spreadsheet and am currently up to 10 years of “travel” before I slow down to smaller “circuits” with friends.

When I was in Quebec/Gaspe the summer before last, I had some trouble finding DEF for my coach and ended up driving 400 miles in my Jeep to a NAPA to get some.  So this trip I picked up a bottle at NAPA in Junction City, just so I have some with me.  I paid $5 for the 2 ½ gallon bottle.  Well, DEF is pretty easy to find (always in the bottles, not at the pump like Flying J), but I’m paying $20 or $25 for the 2 ½ gallon bottle.  Between that and the price of Diet Coke, my next trip to Canada will have my car packed with both!

So …. I’m currently staying at the truck stop.  My holding tanks are full so I can’t stay here much longer.  It is about 500 miles to Fairbanks, with nothing I can find open between here and there.  If I could find someplace to dump, get some more water and have wifi, I could just sit for a couple weeks and enjoy nature.  I’m frustrated with myself for the poor planning, but it has also been a good experience …. Mostly though I’m embarrassed; I expect more from myself.  I just can’t seem to get my brain around this “weather” stuff!