Heading to Valdez... (Anchorage, Craig: fit in, house, wedding)

[tigre79]

I think I've mentioned this once or twice, but I've got a job lined up at the salmon hatchery in Valdez for the summer, and will be looking for something permanent after that to keep me up there year-round (hopefully in Valdez, but if not, I'd at least like to stay on the road system). I'll be staying with my boyfriend for now until I figure out what I'm doing after this job ends.

So in order to get there with my stuff, I've got a heck of a road trip coming up. I'm getting rid of everything that won't fit in my Frontier, so no pulling trailers. I will have a couple of mountain bikes on the roof, so that will hurt my gas mileage a bit, but shouldn't be too bad.

My boyfriend is coming down here a bit early, staying a few days, then driving with me to my mom's house just outside of Fort Worth TX. Then he's got a friend's wedding to go to in NY, and will come back to TX on May 29th and we'll take off on the 30th. He's got to be back at work on June 9th, so that constrains our plans a bit. He also has friends in Phoenix and Whitehorse we're going to stop and see, so that determines two of our stops.

I've driven from Tampa to TX half a dozen times, so that part's easy, but I would like some opinions on the rest of the trip. Here's a link to my route on Google Maps: Roanoke, TX to Valdez, AK. Before anyone says it, I do have last year's Milepost and will probably get a new one before we head out.

We'll probably spend an extra day in Phoenix, and maybe in Whitehorse as well. I'd like to spend a little extra time in the Banff area, but still want to leave a little cushion so we're not getting back right before he has to go to work. The first and last days are long (especially with that border crossing, but I put both crossings early in the day), but the drive to Phoenix is all flat freeway with high speed limits, and not that much to stop and see (aside from good New Mexican food). The last day will be a haul, but that's the part he's most familiar with, so it should be okay, and we'll be somewhat well rested if we take an extra day in Whitehorse. With two people driving, both of whom are accustomed to long drives, I think it won't be too much of a problem, but I'd like to know what you guys think about the feasibility of the trip.

Also, any advice about Valdez itself would be much appreciated. It's going to be quite a change from where I'm at, and that's a good thing! My guy grew up there, so that will be helpful I know, but I'd like to get some input from other people as well.

[AKStafford]

Kudo's on getting the The MILEPOST: Alaska Travel Guide and Trip Planner.

[warptman]

I modified it a little. Since you will be driving by it, might as well drive through it. It's the Craters Of The Moon National Monument & Preserve in Southern Idaho. This is a very neat place and I drove through it in 2007 and I'd love to drive through there again.

Craters Of The Moon National Monument & Preserve - Craters Of The Moon National Monument & Preserve (U.S. National Park Service)

Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho, USA

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve : visitidaho.org

Apollo Astronauts Visited Craters of the Moon | National Parks Traveler

Roanoke, TX to Valdez, AK - Google Maps

[warptman]

You might want to put some sort of topper for your truck, this keeps everything nice and dry. Check Craigslist for a used one.

[warptman]

YouTube - Craters of the moon

[tigre79]

We'll try to make it out there, warpt.

I was looking at toppers, but I've got one of those short bed crew cab Frontiers, so they're near impossible to find used and I don't really want to spend the money on a new one. Plus that would keep me from using the tailgate extender (making the bed very small indeed). I have several Rubbermaid bins, and I think strapping those down real good and putting a fitted tarp over it should work fine. I've driven through pretty serious rainstorms with those in the back before and they've worked well, and I can always use some liquid gasket on the bins to help keep water out.

BTW, do you know anything about the Roosville border crossing? That seems like the best way to go if I want to avoid Calgary traffic and go through Banff and Jasper.

[warptman]

The only place I've crossed into Canada was at Sweetgrass and various places in Washington State.

[tigre79]

Okay, cool. I'm planning on shipping my guns to Anchorage on Alaska Air cargo, but I'll have some reloading components and a dog. I look pretty non-threatening and I'll be very polite, so hopefully they'll let us through without much hassle. If they do need to go through my stuff it'll be easy for them at least.

[warptman]

You do have a passport, right?

[tigre79]

I put in my paperwork a couple of weeks ago, and the guy said they've been coming back in about four weeks, so I should have it soon.