Day 18 - Crazy!
We woke up to low gray heavy clouds, a ferocious wind and rain. Mmmm, the Dalton in rain. Well, there is nothing for it but to get going only one road back out so here we go.
It was very slow going as the road now was washboard soup and mud - very slippery, very dirty and very treacherous. We crawled along, pulling over for trucks and admiring the birds, ducks and .... horses? They say that the Tundra will make you crazy! Here is a conversation along the Dalton that proves it!
Oilcan: Hey look there's a horse!
Sparky: A horse? On the Tundra!??
Oilcan: Yes! They must use them for hunting and guiding outfitting.
Sparky: Are you sure its a horse?
Oilcan: Yes, see he's moving in the trees?
Sparky: (Still not seeing what he is talking about) Trees? On the Tundra?
Oilcan: Oh, wait! It's a moose!
Sparky: (Finally I can see what he was seeing and yes it is a moose with very large antlers! Not a horse moving through trees on the Tundra!)
We laughed so hard!
As we moved further south, the weather did not improve. We were so hoping for sunshine in the Atigun pass. I think I forgot to mention the Atigun pass in the last blog going up the highway. The Atigun pass is in the Brooks Range and it feels like you are going up and up and up but the view at the top is breathtaking. It was a little rainy when we went north so we had hoped for better weather. But the clouds were obscuring the mountain on the way up but surprise, surprise, on the way back down we had to pull over for a wide load and a puking dog! We cleaned up after Corona and waited for the big truck to crawl it's way up the mountain and then the sun popped out. Earl was ecstatic and was clicking pictures left and right! From then on, the weather just got better and better with lots of opportunities to click pictures.
By the time we were at the better part of the highway, the weather was sunny and lovely and we felt like we were zipping along at 45 to 50 mph! We stopped in at Wiseman that we didn't see on our way up. It is a very picturesque little old mining town with a population of 16 and a little B&B. We just drove in, took some pics and then headed back out but if you needed accommodation along the highway it would be a lovely place to stop!
We stopped for supper, gas and a break at Coldfoot and then pushed onward so we could spend the night at the Arctic Circle. It was a lovely evening but I'm afraid we just fell into bed (trying hard not to touch the very thick mud on the side of the trailer as we did so) and slept till morning.
Day 19 - On the road again!
In the morning, we slowly got ourselves packed up again and headed back out on the Dalton. We stopped here and there for pictures and had breakfast at the Yukon River Camp. There was a lady there who sells crafts and we looked in and had a chat. She lives up the river with no road in to her place. She makes beautiful birch bark and fur crafts. I bought a lovely bracelet make of birch bark and beads. We then stopped to say hi to Dottie and the interpretive centre and report on our wildlife spotting but unfortunately she was not there and the sign said she would not be back for at least an hour so we had to press on. We saw more moose and birds along the way and the sky just got bluer and bluer the closer we got to the end. We stopped for our photo-op at the Dalton Highway sign at the beginning again (well end for us). The dog, the trailer, the car and us were a little worse for wears but we did it! We conquered the Dalton! And -- no flat tires!
We joined the Elliot highway again, and stopped by the Carlson's and had a chat. They have the most lovely certificates that are hand drawn to celebrate crossing the Arctic Circle so we got two of those! Our poor dog is not feeling well, so we'd better get back to Fairbanks and stop traveling for a day or so for him to recuperate.
We are camped back at Riverview where we were before as it is such a lovely spot. We had a leisurely evening in beautiful sunlight and Corona seems to be perking up a bit so that's good.
We have driven the Dalton - one more thing off Earl's Bucket List (true confessions - it was never on mine!) but that's ok - it was a very interesting trip and we are glad we did it.
Day 20 - Working at the Carwash!
The plan now is to clean ourselves, the trailer, truck and laundry of the Dalton mud and rest for a day then head down the Parks Highway to the Denali and down to the Anchorage, Valdez and Seward.
Well, the laundry is done, Earl had come back from washing the trailer and the truck, its time to put things away and see what other trouble we can get up to in Fairbanks!
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