The Wandering Stitch: And We're Off!!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

And We're Off!!

The Roach clan has left Alaska. We were able to leave on June 9th as planned, albeit a little later in the afternoon than anticipated. So far so good. We've followed our usual routine: drive to Palmer, fill up w/gas & get an iced coffee for the road. This is our 3rd trip along the Alcan & we've mapped out the Starbucks along the way. Too bad Kaladi Bros isn't international. My plan is to log our journey as we go & then post when I have access to the internet. I hope you enjoy our travels...

I love this sign. A reader of the blog in 2007 wondered if there is a similar sign w/in Canada that reads "US this way". This sign comes at the junction of the Glenn & Richardson highways in Glenallen. The highway was in rather nice shape & there was very little in the way of construction delays. The weather made for easy visibility with the exception of a significant downpour before reaching Glenallen.

When we travel we limit the amount of eating out we do. This is pretty easy since there aren't many commercial eating establishments along the way. We try to find a nice place to pull over when the weather is cooperating & it's near a mealtime. On day #1 we chose to make dinner (Hamburger Helper) at Mile 1 of the Tok cutoff. The Tok Cutoff takes you from the Richardson highway to Tok, AK. All vehicular traffic must pass through Tok when driving to & from Alaska. (Unless, I suppose you take the ferry across the Gulf of Alaska).

Camp #1: Lakeview Campground approximately 30 miles west of the Canadian Border, around 7 hours from Anchorage. We'd stayed here before during our 2007 trek. It's nice as it gets you close to the border & has NO FEE! The lots are secluded & the lake is beautiful & perfect for bird watching. Orion & I counted 2 Sand Hill cranes, 2 Loons, and 1 Swan. At night you can hear the birds calling which is a pretty neat way to drift off to sleep.