Pappy's Adventure Aurora Borealis

[Pappy]

Just the numbers.

Truck: 2025 TRD-OR/6MT with Dirtbox Overland canopy-camper, 285/70-17 tires. Some lift, no idea how much. Other stuff.

Left home July 26th
Came home Sept 16th
Days: 53
Nights camping: 50
Total miles: 13,179
Combined MPG: 17.3. No idea how. I thought it would have been closer to 16.
Ferry crossings: 8
Flat tires: 1
Car washes: 4
States/Provinces : NM, CO, UT, ID, MT, AK ... BC, YT, NWT.

Bucket list:

1. See the Northern Lights!!!!!! Realistically, this was bucket list boxes 1-100.✅️✅️✅️
2. Dip my toes in the Arctic Ocean (Dempster Highway). Bucket list boxes 101-150.✅️
3. See the Salmon Glacier. ✅️
4. Get lunch at The Bus in Hyder, AK.✅️
5. Visit Chicken, AK. Just because it's called Chicken (Top-of-the-World Highway).✅️
6. Photograph, some how, Denali Peak. May the clouds part, please.✅️

British Columbia track.

Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Alaska track. Note a track is missing.

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[Pappy]

The pictures.

 

[Pappy]

More.

 

[Pappy]

 

[Pappy]

 

[Pappy]

 

[Pappy]

Aurora.

 

[Chance3]

Looks like you had an AWESOME adventure!! Thanks for sharing! Any worries regarding fuel range along the way? Great images, by the way.

 

[bluecrush.taco]

Amazing looking trip. How did you plan the route and camping? Was it mostly dispersed free camping or developed campgrounds? Did you have trouble with running out of gas in remote places?

Any recommendations or tips that you learned from this trip?

 

[Pappy]

Looks like you had an AWESOME adventure!! Thanks for sharing! Any worries regarding fuel range along the way? Great images, by the way.

Fuel range sucks on this Tacoma. I have 30 gallons onboard with my 4Runner. I never have gas anxiety with that truck. Three times on this trip fuel was an issue.

 

[Pappy]

Amazing looking trip. How did you plan the route and camping? Was it mostly dispersed free camping or developed campgrounds? Did you have trouble with running out of gas in remote places?

Any recommendations or tips that you learned from this trip?

I just answered the fuel question. I will add when you get into remote places in Yukon and NWT, you are fueling from "card lock" stations. They are unattended (mostly) places that are nothing more than a giant tank of fuel with a credit card reader in a shack. I think I had more issues with fuel in AK. The Dempster, and most of Yukon, were no issue. Even northern BC was no issue.

I was up in this area in 2021, but because of COVID I was unable to travel through NWT, and AK. So, I had some knowledge. I HIGHLY recommend the Milepost guide for that area. DO NOT TRAVEL UP THERE WITHOUT IT. It's a lot of advertising, but it also has mileages and POI's. It's a great source for pre-planning, and a good on-the-road guide. Milepost also has a website.

Camping was a mix of campground and dispersed . I dispersed when I could, but I'll tell you what. The campgrounds are nice. Not cheap ($20-23CN), but super-duper. Some are small, others large. Most of the campgrounds in Yukon had free firewood. Campgrounds in BC usually charged for firewood. I found the placement of many Provincial/Territorial campgrounds to be very timely when I needed a place to stay, so I just took advantage of them. The Yukon has a great listing, and map, of their campgrounds. I didn't find one for BC. The BC Forest Service campgrounds suck. I'll leave it at that.

https://www.amazon.com/MILEPOST-2025-Alaska-Travel-Planner/dp/1892154595/ref=sr_1_1?crid=MQHKLG6Z9RSP&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.1g860dZKGOa-HKgCvtQBDMLDdMJGZf7am3EXlAu9K7WvfeGITLhLCUXPOGOdEKl-mSUwQwxbTTH6Ko_9RS3yFJCgsHSPXtR1WcJrlzEoVoP2I5Zm75T0atDS3HaxVo5mlHP1V1apogN0RAKS3FKN-Z3yY92wAydpc3PdBp15Ji2LqQDcRcutDq1b2xyruGcDdo-eXteEvM_3nWH9G4MWyG0PnZh69cYY2kjD93HiAC0.NirLXI2V0nyWnqm1FCddPzvfPbCHM7x9PSiymkRDc3U&dib_tag=se&keywords=milepost+alaska&qid=1759427438&sprefix=milepost+alask,aps,273&sr=8-1

 

[Pappy]

Any recommendations or tips that you learned from this trip?

One other thing I will add. Paying for stuff. I went up there with a ton of CN cash. I also have a travel credit card that doesn't charge fees on foreign transactions. I wish I had far less cash. The exchange rate on the CC was very good, vs purchasing paper at my bank. About the only time I needed cash was for campgrounds.

 

[gofastdan]

What a great adventure! I've been planning a similar trip, leaving Seattle, going through BC to Alaska, over to Anchorage and around to Fairbanks and back down through the Yukon.

It sounds like you mainly stayed in campgrounds in Canada. Did you ever need a reservation or were they pretty open? In the states I almost exclusively find dispersed sites but it seems that may be more difficult in Canada? I use the Dyrt app and it works great in the Western US but I'm not aware of any equivalent for finding dispersed sites in Canada.

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