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Published: June 21st 2015
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We started our drive today at 6 AM. That meant getting up at 4 to shower & get “my face on” in case a photo op came along😊 We wanted to get an early start to make sure we were able to get a site in the campground we had chosen, & we had heard the condition of the road north through the Yukon to the Alaska border was pretty rough due to permafrost, & boy was it ever. This section of road was built on permafrost, which partially thaws & gives way each year, causing havoc with the road surface. One of our bathroom breaks today was at the Historic Canyon Creek Bridge, a very old wooden bridge as the picture shows. We did have some stretches that were good going though & decided to drive farther than we planned, so we ended our day’s drive in Tok, AK! We drove 9 hours & put 395 miles on the odometer. There is not a lot of traffic up here, which helped with the 10 mile stretches of gravel when we could only drive 30 mph. Most of the rough spots were marked, but some were not, so we never really
knew how much we should slow down. So, Mario (Mike) slowed for all the spots that looked bad. He did a great job of driving in such conditions & was very patient😊 Our pickup & camper are filthy again. There is a RV wash here at the campground, but there were 4 rigs in line waiting to use it when we arrived, so we will wash our’s in the morning before leaving. I am happy to report that we arrived in Tok with no tire problems, glass problems, or necessary RV repairs. At the border, we met a couple from Tucson driving a motorhome, which had a busted out window due to flying rocks from a semi on the gravel portion of the road. After getting set up, a thunderstorm began & it is raining nicely as I write the blog. They need rain desperately here as there are many wild fires burning, evidenced by the smoke filled air. Hopefully this rain will help put the fires out so the air clears & we will be able to see Mt. McKinley later in the week. We are staying here one night & driving to North Pole, AK & Fairbanks tomorrow
for 2-3 nights; will see what we think. Most exciting news of the day is that we saw our first grizzly bear!! She was eating in the road ditch & after posing for nice pictures, she ran across the road in front of us; very cool! We also got our first glimpse of the mountain ranges in Alaska. We enjoyed sunny skies today, except for the smoke in the air, & warm temps. It was 80 when we arrived. Mike is grilling brats & hash browns tonight, which he will need to do under the awning so he is out of the rain. After such a big day, we should sleep good tonight! We are excited to spend the summer solstice in Fairbanks tomorrow, which will be our farthest north destination in Alaska, with sunrise at 2:58 AM & sunset at 12:47 AM! I have read Fairbanks really throws a party; wonder if we can stay awake that late!!
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margaret colmer
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hello!
I had tried several times to retrieve your blog, without success, but this morning I was able....through FB. It is a treat to read and see the pictures! Enjoy your every minute!