Alcan Travel by Ken Soule Traveling the Alcan is a serious task, no matter what time of year you plan to travel, but in the winter it is especially daunting. Interior sourdoughs should have no problem relating to the challenges involved, but for those not used to our kind of cold, driving the alcan would seem to especially perilous. Nevertheless, if you find that you do need to travel to the Outside during winter months, be assured that it is a very doable undertaking.
A good resource for information about traveling the Alcan is http://WWW. AlcanSeek.com. You can post questions and get responses from those who travel regularly on the Alcan. There are a few more items that are must have supplies. Don't forget to have a spare tire and jack. Flats are common. I have had to change tires twice in four trips over this road.
A tow strap or chain is advisable. If you don't need it to be pulled, then you may be able to use it to pull someone else out of a tricky situation. Travelers in the Northland are good about helping each other out.
My last trip up, I thought I was really well prepared. I got about half way and thought to myself, 'I ought to have a spare fan belt.' As luck would have it I lost my fan belt about ten miles from my destination and had to call friends to come get me. I decided that a spare belt would go on the 'must have' list for my next trip out. If I had lost that belt on one of the many isolated stretches on the Alcan, my family and I could have been under our blankets for hours before we could have gotten the car running again.
One or two full gas cans are also a good idea, just in case you need a little extra fuel to get to a town large enough to have year round services. If you donĚt need it you may find someone else alongside the road who didnĚt plan as well as you and you will be glad you had extra. The alternative could be cramming several cold travelers into your already full vehicle (space is always a problem on this trip, at least for my family.) and driving them to the nearest settlement where they can buy fuel. I, for one, would just as soon sell them five gallons of my fuel and be on my way.
Weather shouldn't be that big of a factor because you can always plan on two things - Cold and snow. If you're from here, then you're already used to those. If you do run into some especially heavy weather, it is a good idea to stop for a motel and wait for daylight to run those especially tricky stretches of road. Especially the stretch between Watson Lake and Fort Nelson. Waiting also gives the highway crews more time to clear the roads so that you are in less danger when traveling.
A lot of people think that a four wheel drive vehicle is a necessity for traveling the Alaska Highway, but this is untrue. I have made the trip four times in winter conditions with a two wheel drive minivan and have always found that the roads are well maintained.
In fact I have twice navigated the Alaska highway in snowstorms with no incident, only to get to the Idaho panhandle and have seriously slick roads and scary near misses. The Alcan is a pussy cat compared to some of the lower 48 highways in winter. The snow up here is colder and therefore not as slick as what most people from the outside expect.
With winter here for keeps it is best to stay close to home and hibernate, but if you must go to the Outside, then , by all means, go. DonĚt let the fear of driving the Alaska Highway keep you stuck here.