How to get to Fairbanks Alaska?

I needed to find a way of getting from Vancouver Canada to Fairbanks Alaska without breaking the bank. I'd considered hitch hiking. This can be a hit and miss (and some would suggest risky) method, especially with the quietness of the northern roads plus the cold temperatures I may have to encounter.... A ferry would cost over $300 and a flight was out of the question. I looked in to Drive-away deals where vehicle logistic companies and car hire firms allow you to drive their cars cross country to deliver them in to different states, but none were going my way. Jenn mentioned 'Craig s List'. Craig s list is a website used predominantly on the west coast of Canada and the US. It has everything from classified listings to car pools, ride shares, dating and lots more. I checked out the ride share category and found a few folks heading North.   I fired out a few email enquiries then got on with my day.

Couchsurfing at Jenn's was great. She had two lovely boys, Dylan a real character who was almost 5 and Liam who was 8ish and autistic. On day two Jenn's child minder called in sick. Jenn was going to have to take the day off work. I offered up my services. I baby sat for Dylan from 11.30am, then picked Liam up from school at 3pm. Jenn was home for 5pm. The boys were well behaved and pretty much amused themselves for the time they were with me. I was content with being able to offer something back in return for Jenn's kindness and generosity. She'd even given up her bedroom for me, and was sleeping with the boys, babysitting was the least I could do. To help out as much as I could I also cooked on two of the evenings I stayed. I do love a home environment, and being back in a kitchen was a real treat for me.

Day three Jenn suggested I add a 'Ride Request' on Craig s List stating that I was looking for a ride from Vancouver to Fairbanks. This journey is over 2,100 miles.... It's a long way.... If you drove without stopping it would be 43 hours of solid driving. It's the equivalent of driving from John O'Groats at the tip of Scotland to Land's End in Penzance and back again, then heading back down south 500 miles to Leeds!!!

I posted my request, stating that I would be more than happy to share the driving duties and then took one of Jenn's old bicycles down in to Vancouver and headed off to explore Stanley Park.

The weather was stunning. The cherry blossoms flashed pink in the corners of my eyes as the old undersized mountain bike crunched and clanked down hill from 12^th Avenue towards down town Vancouver. I stopped on Cambie Bridge to drink in the views of Vancouver city. I woman walking by smiled and said, 'Beautiful isn't it?' Simple things like this made me feel content. The bright blue sky reflected off the water, whilst the tall
beautiful modern sculpted buildings stood proud against the skyline.

Tulips

Iron

I cycled down by Granville Park along the sea wall. Beautiful tulips were blooming along the bordered pavements. I then arrived at a wonderful set of bronze laughing sculptures. I ditched the bicycle and went closer to inspect this wonderful work of art This bronze sculptures, called A-mazing Laughter was donated during the 2010 Olympics, and were at risk of being removed by the original artist back in 2012, as they had only been part of a temporary attraction. A local business owner donated 1.5 million Can dollars to keep the attraction in place. 

Yue Minjun kindly dropped his original price by 3.5 million to cement the deal. The sculpture has a real happy feeling about it, you can't help but smile when you're in it's presence. I continued my journey along the sea wall to Stanley Park. I followed a bridle path in to some pretty ancient looking moss covered trees where woodpeckers and black squirrels frequented my path. I also spotted a tiny hazel coloured hummingbird which I later discovered to be the Rufous Hummingbird, so so tiny. The bridle path was so peaceful, just the tapping of woodpeckers and the creaking chain of the bicycle. I explored every little track I could find, one of which lead to Beaver Lagoon, a disappearing forest lake.

Lions Gate Bridge Vancouver.

By the time I returned to Jenn's house at 2.30pm I'd been gone over 5 hours. I'd had such a wonderful time cycling around the beautiful city and parkland of Vancouver.

I checked my emails and facebook page only to find a message asking if I was the Mark looking for a ride to Fairbanks, and that this guy was leaving Olympia, Washington in the US right now. He was just looking for company over the long drive. The time on the message showed it to have typed half an hour before. I replied to the message hoping it would be picked up. It was. We threw back and forth a few questions with regards to sleeping arrangements and destinations. James told me he had a 5^th wheel. What's that I asked? A trailer for sleeping in he told me. Great, so sleeping arrangements were sorted too. I'll be with you in an hour he replied Wow! I was expecting to be a few more days in Vancouver, but I couldn't miss this opportunity. I I quickly packed my backpacks and prepared to leave. I thanked Jenn, said goodbye to Anne (the Liverpudlian child minder) and the boys then went outside and waited.

James with the truck and the trailer enroute to Alaska

James pulled up in a big old V8 Toyota Truck with what the Americans know as a trailer, and we know as a caravan. Brilliant!!! We shook hands and began the epic drive to Fairbanks Alaska.

It was 7pm when James picked me up. At 10pm we found a rest area on the North side of Hope, knocked some food together and rested up for the night.

I woke early. James knocked together a bacon and egg breakfast, not my normal fair, but when camping you eat what you can. It tasted fantastic. James used to be a cook (Marine, Rafting River Guide, Bouncer amongst other things) so was handy over the stove. The eggs were perfect.

We were on the road by 6.45am. I'm not going to go in to the various highway names and towns, along the way, but to say the scenery was stunning would be under selling.

James had decided to leave his life in Olympia and start afresh in Talkeetna working as a driver for the river guiding company. He was driving everything he owned.

A full tank of petrol cost in the region of £55 (75p a litre in Canada and Alaska).... this would get us 250 miles. It was going to cost James in the region of £400 in fuel costs to relocate for the Summer. But once he got to where he was going, living costs would be cheap!

On our first fuel stop of the day at Williams Lake, during late morning James handed me the keys to the beast. The conversation went like this.

'When was the last time you drove?'

'Three months ago.'

'Ever driven a V8?.'

'No.'

'Driven with a trailer before?'

'Yeh, with a boat....'

'When was that?'

'14 years ago.'

'OK.'

'How do I get this truck out of park?'

The rest was history.

We stopped to make a sandwich at lunch time, then I continued to drive until the evening when James took over again. That evening I made a vegetarian chilli. James was confused (at the lack of meat) and delighted (the flavour and texture) at the same time. He couldn't believe chilli could taste so good without meat.

A cold night ensued, but my clothes and a donated sleeping bag kept me on the good side of hypothermia.

Day two another delicious fried breakfast. I offered to drive, as James had pointed out he'd normally be sleeping only for the fact that I wake so early. We were on the road by 7am. Lunch was left over chilli wraps.

Our road trip took us from beautiful swampy areas toward mountains surrounded by frozen lakes covered in blankets of snow. I drove until late afternoon before James took over. I enjoy driving, especially when surrounded by natural beauty.

Can't remember which town the forest of signs was in...

The afternoon drive turned into a few hours dodging potholes and huge dips (like the switchback on the Isle of Man for those followers who live there) followed by more huge dips, enough to toss a fast moving vehicle in to the air and off the road. It was a tough drive. James hit a couple pretty heavily I hit a couple pretty heavily. They were almost invisible until you were right on top of them. It was a tiring drive due to the intense concentration required to keep truck and trailer in one piece and attached to one another.

Day three we entered in to the Yukon.

Before we hit the road I heard James shout, 'Oh sh*t, hey Mark get out here. See what's missing?' He said. I looked.... at some point amidst the previous days big dipper escapades we'd departed company with a 15 foot awning pole that ran along the side the trailer above the windows and doors! Whoops!

The drive through the Yukon was simply stunning.

Around lunch time we arrived at the US border. I was invited in to the building whilst James pulled over to wait for me. I completed the necessary paperwork, had my photograph and finger prints taken and was interrogated as to my plans in the US by the immigration officer. He took himself very seriously indeed, and showed absolutely no respect to me as a fellow human being during our conversational interaction. When he asked how long I intended to stay I suggested in a questioning tone that I have 90 days in the US from when I enter? 'You'll stay as long as I decided, it may be one day or one week. Now how many days do you intend to be here? What date will you leave?' I asked if he could just stamp me for the maximum, he said no and that he wanted dates... Our interaction continued for the next 5 minutes. It was a high pressure situation! Eventually he stamped me through giving me the full 90 days entitlement that according to US law I'm entitled to, without all the fuss caused by a jumped up immigration's officer on a power trip. What can you do?

On the border....

Reminder of the huge forest fires caused by lightening just before the US border.
We drove for 10 miles through this.

We reached Tok at midday and I had a decision to make. James decided he was going to head to Anchorage to meet a friend, so I needed to either jump out at Tok Junction then try and hitch a ride 200 miles (4 hours drive) north to Fairbanks, or head west with James on the Tok Highway toward Anchorage. This would leave me 327 (6.5 hours drive) miles from my destination, basically heading backwards.....

It was a beautiful day, we'd just pulled over at a place where we were able to do laundry and have a hot shower, things felt pretty good. I knew we had the ingredients for a fantastic fajita meal that evening and If I went west with James I got to stay in his company for another 20 hours or so, eat well, sleep well and see some more great scenery. I decided to remain with my new compadre.

That evening we found a place to eat by a beautiful ice covered lake. The sun was casting a cascade of pastel shades across the water as it dropped below the mountains whilst James prepared a fajita feast on his outdoor grill. It was magic. 

After Sunset

Sun Sinking

Before Sunset

After food we hit the road for another hour then found a gravel track leading up to a secluded spot off of the main road over looking a vast line of snow covered mountains. When I say main road or highway, I'm sure motorways from the UK or highways of middle America probably spring to mind.... This is not how it is in the North. You'd be lucky or unlucky to see between 10 and 20 vehicles in 13 hours of driving! That's if it gets busy. It's wonderful.

The air was cold that night, the furnace was turned on to stop us freezing.

View from the Trailer.....

Day four we rose early and caught the rising sun turning the sky pink. I asked James if he'd like porridge oats and apple for breakfast, 'Is there meat in that?' He asked chuckling to himself. He wolfed it down telling me I was getting him to eat and enjoy foods he'd never normal let past his lips.

We'd been driving twenty minutes or so when we realised the actual time was an hour earlier than the truck clock was telling us. Alaska had us gain an hour. Jame's call of nature had awakened us at 5am. We were already on the road and it was only 5.45am. Our earliest start yet.

Caribou

Moose, behind the wing mirror.....

Half an hour later as I was driving I spotted a huge moose coming out the trees, I began to brake, the moose continued to come out on to the road.... I applied more pressure to the pedal but the weight of the trailer and truck didn't allow for a speedy reduction in speed, 'Hold on' I said. Mooses are the size of a very big horse, you don't want to hit one. They crumple cars and smash windscreens every year. People are also killed each year by moose/car collisions Over 243 moose were killed by motor vehicles around the Anchorage area over the past 12 months. I missed the moose by a couple of feet as it turned back and trotted the way it came. A very close call.

Other animals we encountered were beautiful Caribou and Elk..... Also two road kill porcupines..... oh and plenty of prairie dogs around one stretch of highway.

At 10.30am a vehicle pulled up alongside and waved me to the side of the road. We pulled over. The trailer had blown it's back right tyre (there are two sets of wheels on either side at the back), it was absolutely shredded. Half and hour later after a bit of crawling around and playing with a screwdriver (no Jack hook to turn the Jack) and Jack, we were back on the road.

Twisting Nuts....

Shredded

James and I would be parting company around midday. I'd be hitching my way from Palmer to cover the next 320 miles to Fairbanks. We pulled over at 11am and James made a delicious pasta and tomato sauce, whilst I made a 'Fairbanks' sign to stick to my backpack. I had a feeling I'd be needing all the carbs I could get for the hitch hike to Fairbanks! At 12.15pm we pulled over on the Anchorage road, my Highway, Highway 3 to Fairbanks was running over the top of it. Before I got out of the truck James passed me a fold away knife, 'For personal protection.' He said. A very kind gesture, though I knew I wouldn't be using it! Well not on anyone! We said our goodbyes and I set off up the grass bank to Highway 3 past the 'Cyclists & Pedestrians Prohibited' sign. 

Starting the Hitch to Fairbanks....

This is a link to a little video clip James took as I sauntered off, 

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10203894628074862&set=vb.1496052823&type=2&theater

This Highway was more of a UK motorway. Large trucks and cars whistled by at high speed for an hour. My backpack was becoming overly heavy, my shoulders and neck were beginning to ache, so I climbed back over the metal barrier and down the grass bank towards an adjoining road. I hoped the slow moving vehicles here may be more likely to stop. An hour later, sat in the warm sunshine I was no further on. It was 2.15pm and I was beginning to think that Alaskans don't pick up hitch hikers.... I lugged my load on to my chest and back and walked another half hour to the next junction. A car pulled up to the edge and I jumped in. Yay!!! James a young guy working for the military got me to Wascilla, a mere 10 minutes along the road. But hey it meant that some people do stop. My spirits were lifted. I grabbed my bags and walked another 15 minutes along the highway, which by now had fallen from two very busy lanes each side to one much quieter lane each side. A small Toyota truck came to a halt 50 yards ahead of me.

This guy was headed to Talkeetna (where a program called Northern Exposure was filmed during the late eighties early nineties, I used to love it when I was 16 years old) this was a good 45 minute drive. The driver was your '30 seconds abs' guy from the movie 'Something About Mary'. He ranted about Obama, about how terrible the government was in the US, about the CIA interviewing him with regards to the trillion dollars which the government Mafioso had stolen from his Grandfather's estate, and how he wants out of it. He's heading to the wilderness, off the grid.... It was an intense 45 minutes. I agreed with him a lot, and that's the art of hitch hiking! He dropped me at a junction with a petrol station and told me to wait for a lift here rather than walking anywhere. He shook my hand, wished me luck in the future and drove down the road to Talkeetna. It was only 20 minutes before a car crawled it's way toward me from the gas pumps. It didn't come right up beside me, so I mosied my way over to the passengers side window. I young guy with a nose ring, face tattoo and a cap which struggled to contain a mop of long blonde dreadlocked hair replied, 'Fairbanks'. I grabbed my bags and squeezed in to the back seat alongside another hitch hiker they'd picked up 10 minutes earlier. The hitch hiker was a native Alaskan, and was absolutely drunk out of his mind. All our luggage was in the back seat so it was a real snug fit. As Aaron my 25 year old chauffeur swigged a mouthful of whiskey from a miniature bottle I thought to myself this could be a very long journey (or a very short one!).

The next 5 hours were interesting. The native eventually fell asleep after 4 hours of constant incomprehensible burbling, and Aaron and Johnny told me about their musical interests, whilst continuing to swig whiskey. Johnny plays all over Alaska in a blue grass band, a type of Alaska/Irish folk band. He plays the Ukulele whilst his other band members play the fiddle and bass guitar. He may be playing in town on Friday so I'll be searching him out. They were both great guys.

The Boys....

We arrived in Fairbanks at about 9pm. I was welcomed with open arms by John and Kathy (our friends from our South East Asia travels in Laos) and brought in to their beautiful home in Goldstream.

The road trip distance in total with my detour to Palmer (enroute to Anchorage) was 2,486 miles. It took a total of 96 hours including filling with petrol, eating and sleeping and hitching.... Four full days from start to finish. This was driving for between 11 and 13 hours every day. Like I said, it's a long long way!

If working on the salmon fishing boats doesn't happen I've decided I'm going to cycle back from south Alaska back to Vancouver. Twenty fives days cycling at 8 hours each day should do it... Wow, that plan excites me already!

I'm looking forward to being settled for a few weeks..... There won't be much to write about, but when there is I'll update. For now I'm going to relax, catch up with work. Sort out my photographs, submit articles and explore.