After traveling for 18 days and 3688 miles, we have finally arrived in the great state of Alaska. We have spent the last two days in Tok, AK, which is a small community of approximately 1200 people on the eastern side of the state. Tomorrow we plan to head down to Valdez, which is about 250 miles south of here. The drive to Valdez is reported to be outstanding, so we are looking forward to that. On Monday, we have booked an all day boat cruise on Prince William Sound where we will visit the Meares Glacier, and with any luck see some of the wildlife that lives in the sound.
We have noticed a couple of churches along the Alcan highway built out of old quonset huts left behind by the US Army from the highway construction. This one is in Beaver Creek, YT - a few miles east of Alaska.
Only a few more miles to go….
We spent the night in a pull off just west of Teslin, YT at the beginning of the Canol Pipeline Project. In the early days of the Second World War, the Japanese had landed in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska and there was a real concern about the safety of the west coast shipping lanes. To ensure a reliable supply of oil and gas to the Alaska Highway, and to the air fields in Alaska, the U.S. Army started the Canol Pipeline Project to bring oil from Norman Wells, Northwest Territories to Whitehorse, YT, where they built a refinery, and then ultimately to Fairbanks. To move the oil, an 825 km pipeline and road were built in 1943. The project had a cost of $134 million and was shut down one year after it was completed - once the Japanese threat had lessened. Apparently, the Canol road is littered with old discarded equipment such as this.
Just as we were getting on the highway in Whitehorse, YT, this beautiful red fox passed right in front of us. We also spotted a Lynx a few miles up the road but couldn’t get a photo.
Goodbye Yukon… see you on the way home!
Hello, Alaska…After driving 3600 miles, we are on your door step
Lots of snow on the distant peaks
When Alaskans say they are going to cut the grass it has a little different meaning!
The black spruce forests in Tok are very beautiful with lots of different colors
Track Logs:
Day 16 – July 25, 2018, 95 miles
Day 17 – July 26, 2018, 102 miles
Day 18 – July 27, 2018, 298 miles
We are so impressed with this blog! So where are the pictures of the artic ocean and polar bears? Dean, please get a picture of Valerie hand feeding a baby polar bear :-)
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