Has anyone driven from Alaska to the states?

[warptman]

How many days are you planning on driving up?

[michael11747]

As for cost, that is very dependent on gas price. I just drove through Ontario, and it was very expensive. It's not even summer yet, and remember, Canadians sell their gas by the liter. Once you do the conversion it is almost $5/ gallon in southern BC. Gas will be much more expensive the further you go north. Once you get into Alaska, price is very high. I saw $5/gallon prices in Healy, AK when the states were at $3, so who knows. But let's say an average of $5/gallon.

If we use Google Map's suggestion of taking the Cassiar Hwy (in my opinion this road is much quicker and MUCH more scenic. You will miss Jasper NP, but you can hit that on the way down), we will get the lowest cost for our trip. I have driven both roads, and I prefer the Cassiar. Beautiful road. Last time I was on it, they were paving it, and there was hardly any washboard.

So our knowns are such:

gas price: $5/gallon
MPG: average about 20 MPG on these mountain roads, some of which are dirt, you might as well go down to 15 MPG if you drive a pickup or SUV.
Distance: 2150 miles

By these calculations, we will be spending $537 and change on gas alone.

edit: if we factor in $6/gallon prices at 15 MPG, which may be a bit more realistic for people, then we calculate a cost of $860 in gas alone. Quite the savings for fuel efficiency!

The trip takes 2 days of daytime driving, all day. I would suggest a week long trip, with many stops, for a hike, a soak in Liard Hot Springs, and some isolated resorts on the Cassiar. It is a pretty isolated Hwy. You will see other cars though. Make sure you fill up at every gas station you pass, as it will also improve your mileage. Fill your tires with the proper PSI, check your engine, change your oil, get a decent spare and patch kit, have a shovel somewhere on your vehicle in case you are stuck in mud, etc. A little prep will provide a lot of peace of mind.

With that said, I drove that road with a broken leg from Anchorage to Bozeman, MT, and was never worried. It was road season so there were workers all over the place. You can pretty much pull over and camp anywhere. We stopped on the side of the road, set up camp, had a nice fire going, and slept like babies. No cars passed us in the night, and the stars were pretty amazing. Definitely stop in Liard Hot Springs, but beware of the giant snapping turtles. You have a great chance of spotting the Aurora while you soak this early in the season.

I stopped in Kluane, Liard, a resort on the Cassiar, one of the encampments along the way, and some other random NP along the Cassiar. Good luck, you'll be fine!