Haul Road - Coldfoot Camp

Coldfood Camp is a remnant from the pipeline constructions days, when it -- and a number of other camps -- housed the thousands of workers who built not only the pipeline but the Haul Road itself. Coldfoot is near the half-way point, and was left here (I'm told) as a mid-trip service center -- perhaps oasis -- for truckers and travelers to and from Prudhoe Bay. There are always a number of large trucks parked in the huge lot.

The big rigs generally have immense fuel tanks that are sufficient for the round trip, but for the rest of us Coldfoot is an important fuel stop. I also found a small dog yard, though I have no idea how they may be employed.

As you might imagine, construction worker lodgings are spartan affairs, and these have not been improved since their original use. My faithful Mac is doing his best to provide us with some entertainment, but it is still pretty modest accommodation.

A cold beer did little to sway Rob into finding the place idyllic, though I suspect that he was partly bummed out about not getting to meet Lisa, his favorite "Ice Road Trucker." We leave early in the morning to continue north... Stay tuned!

Haul Road - Day 1

We left Fairbanks in proper form this morning and made our first stop at another pipeline viewing station and visitor center, mostly because they offered coffee. I pointed to the sunrise/sunset sign, and warned Rob that the sleeping trouble he was having in Fairbanks due to it being light so late was going to get even worse when we were in 24-hour daylight above the arctic circle. This is, after all, the summer solstice.

When we reached the proper start of the Haul Road, we stopped for the mandatory photo and regretted that we didn't have any stickers to add to the collection. Almost as soon as we started rolling, we passed this sign and Rob gave me a sideways look. I think he was finally figuring out what kind of trip he had signed on for!

The pipeline is your constant companion on the Haul Road, as are the big rigs which hurtle down the road and pass you at every opportunity. The road itself is paved in a few stretches, but is mostly hard gravel with lengthy patches of dirt/mud thrown in for good measure.

All of which explains why Darth was already looking pretty colorful by the middle of the first day. We also stopped for the mandatory photo at the arctic circle, but mostly we just motored on the seemingly endless road through endless expanse toward Coldfoot Camp.

Here are a couple of video clips from our first day of driving the Haul Road:

The Haul Road

The James W. Dalton Highway, usually Dalton Highway (Alaska Route 11) is a 414-mile road in Alaska. It begins at the Elliott Highway, north of Fairbanks, and ends at Deadhorse near the Arctic Ocean and the Prudhoe Bay oil fields. Once called the North Slope Haul Road -- or simply "The Haul Road" -- it was built as a supply road to support the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System in 1974.

The highway, which directly parallels the pipeline, is one of the most isolated roads in the United States. There are only three towns along the route: Coldfoot (population 13) at Mile 175, Wiseman (population 22) at Mile 188, and Deadhorse (25 permanent residents, 3,500-5,000 or more seasonal residents depending on oil production) at the end of the highway at Mile 414.

Despite its remoteness the Dalton Highway carries a good amount of truck traffic: about 160 trucks daily in the summer months and 250 trucks daily in the winter. The highway comes to within a few miles of the Arctic Ocean. Beyond the highway's terminus at Deadhorse are private roads owned by oil companies, which are restricted to authorized vehicles only. There are, however, commercial tours that take people to the Arctic Ocean. All vehicles must take extreme precaution when driving on the road, and drive with headlights on at all times. There are quite a few steep grades (up to 12%) along the route, as well. (From Wikipedia)

I have wanted to drive The Haul Road since the moment I first learned of it over 30 years ago!

Rob and I will hit the road in the morning. Our "plan" is as follows:

Day 1 -- Fairbanks to Coldfoot Camp
Day 2 -- Coldfoot Camp to Prudhoe Bay
Day 3 -- Prudhoe Bay to Coldfoot Camp
Day 4 -- Coldfoot Camp to Fairbanks

We will be relying on trusty Darth to carry us -- hopefully without "incident" -- over 900 hard miles... Cheer for Darth and wish us luck!

Following The Pipeline

Our plan -- insofar as we have one -- is to follow the Alaska pipeline along its entire route, from Valdez all the way to Prudhoe Bay. The first, relatively easy leg of this journey is from Valdez to Fairbanks on the Richardson highway. I've driven much of this route many, many times, but only in winter. So, once again it was fun to see the scenery in broad daylight and not covered with snow.

It was also fun to stop at some of my "old haunts" -- such as the lovely Paxson Inn shown here -- and see what they're like in "the other season" as well. We made another important stop at a pipeline viewing area along the way, where Rob got his first "up close" look at the thing. I didn't tell him that the "562" sign meant we still had 562 miles to go to Prudhoe Bay, nor that most of them would be along the famous -- infamous! -- "Haul Road."

Valdez, AK

I picked Rob up at the Anchorage airport and we headed east, then south to Valdez. He took a turn at the helm, and it was fun for me to be a passenger for a change. The scenery is even better when you don't have to keep your eyes on the unpredictable Alaskan roads!

Valdez is know for two things: fishing and oil. The town is pretty basic, but the fishing business is still fairly robust. The oil facilities across the bay are immense, serving as both the terminus of the Alaska pipeline and the origin of supertanker transport to distant ports.

Like all Alaskan towns, Valdez has its character and its characters. Rob is a huge fan of coffee, and when Miss Peggy came by our camper park he just had to have some. As you can see, he was a good sport about it!

Anchorage Tourist Traps

Marty and I returned to Anchorage with some time to spare before his flight. We made the mandatory rounds of the downtown tourist traps and took the mandatory tourist photo.

With that, our week together came to end. It was the first time I've traveled with my "brother" Marty, and I hope to do it again soon!

I'll be hanging out in Anchorage for a few days, waiting for my good friend Rob to arrive. He and I have quite the itinerary planned for wrapping my my Alaskan Summer travels... Stay tuned!

Kenai: Salmon Fishing

Next up for us was fishing on the famous Kenai river. We met our guide at the ridiculous time of four o'clock in the morning and set out for an entire day on the river. Catching wild king salmon is not easy, but our hopes were running high because of the success that others had on several previous days. I had seven "hits" and got four fish to the boat. I couldn't keep three of them due to rules, but the one I could keep was a pretty nice fish. Sadly, not everyone in the boat got a fish.

On the way back to the camper, Marty shouted "Stop!" and jumped out of the truck while it was still moving. He crashed a ways into the woods and took the moose photo you see here. He was so excited to see a moose, almost up close and personal. You can tell you're with an avid hunter when his very next photo is of the poor animal's scat!

Kenai: Seldovia

We decided to mix some touristy stuff into our outdoor theme today, and started with a water-taxi ride across the bay to Seldovia. We made an unexpected but enjoyable stop along the way at a tiny, remote island so a guy from the power company could read the meter at the only cabin on the island. The cost of the reading had to be as much as the bill!

At the pier near Seldovia, we got a ride into town from a local guy who is just as loony as they come around here. I thought Marty was going to bust a gut trying to keep from laughing! Seldovia is pretty much a dump, frankly, despite being the chain saw sculpture capital of the world. (If you're in the area, you're far better off visiting the truly charming and delightful Halibut Cove instead.) The best I could do in Seldovia was get thrown in jail.

We took a short plane ride back across the bay, augmented by a very nice fly-over of some nearby glaciers. Thankfully, the pilot was a normal guy!

Kenai: Homer & Halibut

My "brother" Marty in Pennsylvania is an avid outdoorsman and hunter, so I invited him to join me on the Kenai peninsula for some fishing and other shenanigans. After an arduous set of flights from the east coast, he arrived in Homer just before midnight, astonished to see that it was still quite light out. Despite the time on his "body clock" he was good to go for a beer at the Salty Dog Saloon, and to add his dollar to the literally thousands that are tacked all over the inside of the joint.

We headed out this morning for some halibut fishing, for which Homer is world famous. We had pretty good luck, though that's not saying much because catching Halibut in Homer is pretty much an automatic. What happens in Homer stays in Homer, but I will report that Marty didn't quite catch all the fish you see him with here!

Homer, The Moose!

I pulled into my campground in Homer, Ak, and look who came by to greet me! As we often say in Alaska, "You can't make this stuff up!"