Hi All, As a new member of the "Dream" family I just have to say what a treat it is to read what you ALL have to say. This is only my 2nd-3rd time to post anywhere as the other RV Forum sites which I have checked out ( no offence to anyone intended) do not have the "friendly" feel I find here when reading. I would really appreciate some advice from you veteran Alaska travelers that have made the extended, or Full Summer Alaska trip. I'm a 62 year old full-timing widower, who has wanted to visit Alaska far back as I can remember. I'm planning to do so this Summer (2010) and have a question about visiting those Inside Passage destinations one cannot drive to.. I plan to drive my rig both ways in & out of Alaska & do not want to tie myself to a rigid schedule by making any reservations, including ferry reservations. So, my question is this, cost aside," what is the feasibility, and drawbacks, of parking the rig at an RV Park somewhere inland then flying into each of those ferry route destinations I want to visit, rent a jeep, and stay in a hotel for 3-5 days while exploring a particular area". Also, in your opinion, what 5-6 of those ferry only (or Inside Passage) destinations would you say is a "must not miss" destination. If you think the "puddle jumping" option is a bad idea, what do you suggest? I read a spirited discussion on some older (2007-2008)posts about Howard & Linda leading an Alaska caravan but did not see where that idea had come to fruition, any updates on the subject? Any input you folks are willing to share with me will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Charley
-- Edited by cbg47 on Wednesday 17th of February 2010 02:56:41 PM
-- Edited by cbg47 on Thursday 18th of February 2010 08:41:28 PM
Luvglass said
01:46 PM Feb 17, 2010
Hi Charley,
It will be interesting to see what kind of feedback you get. I suspect that most of the forum members are more familiar with the locations you can drive to, since most of us have driven up and back.
I do know of one couple that took the ferry part of the way, but they don't monitor this forum. If you don't get any usable suggestions, I can give you their address offline.
I remember them telling me of their trepidation in entering and exiting the ferries, but were pleasantly surprised at the skill of the people directing them. I'm sure you can get information directly from the ferry companies as to any length restrictions.
As an aside, there is an awful lot to see in the places you can drive to, and I don't know anybody who has done the trip that has said, "the next time I want to visit the islands". And just about all want to return sooner, than later.
Fred
cbg47 said
02:53 PM Feb 17, 2010
Hi Fred, Thanks for the reply & info. I plan to be in Alaska no later than mid May & stay there until weather a South Lousiana "boy" just can't handle forces me out. John (don't know if I can/should use his last name) a well known producer of RV travel DVD's, (two GOOD ONES on Alaska travel) told me in a phone conversation a few days ago that by driving the road portion first (which was my plan anyway) and saving the Inside Passage destinations ( Juneau, Wrangel, Sitka, Ketchikan, etc. ) until September would give me more time in Alaska because the coastal areas stay warmer, with better weather, longer. I absolutely want to see all I possibly can from my M/H but I hope to also see at least some of the coastal towns & areas that cannot be accessed directly by any road/highway dependent vehicle. He also said getting on the ferry without reservations could be a problem, thus my idea of flying in to visit these areas. I'm very much looking forward to everyone's input on this idea & will appreciate any helpful info along with the personal opinions of you seasoned Alaska travelers. Charley
mcw50 said
09:10 PM Feb 17, 2010
We made the Alaska trip in 2001, so our info could be outdated, but here's what we did.......we had a 35' MH and towed a car...we drove to Prince Rupert, BC and caught the Alaska Marine Ferry on May 11, heading north. We did have reservations, which needed to be made for each vehicle and each person for each leg of the trip. We purposely made our reservations so that we had three to five days in each place that we stopped...allowing us time to drive the lenghth of the roads, see sights and fish on each island. We stopped in Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, Sitka, Juneau, Skagway and got off in Haines to drive into mainland Alaska. We chose to do the ferry on the way up so that we would not have a deadline date coming home and that our drive on the Alkan would be after the roads had had a chance to be repaired. We returned to the lower 48 in mid-August and had no major problems with our vehicles or with the drive. I don't know what they would ask of you since you are alone, but we had to drive the car and the MH onto the ferry seperately. We had no problems and the ferry guys were very helpful and knowledgeable. They do this all the time and deal with all sorts of big vehicles. 2001 was our first year on the road and my website was pretty primitive, but you can check it out.... www.williams-wanderings.com/may2001 also .../june2001 .../july2001 ..../august2001 (note that the links on the pages do not work properly) We'd like to go back, but somehow just haven't gotten there! Other than the ferry, we had no reservations of any kind in advance for any part of our Alaksa trip...parked at the waterfront campround in Seward in late June for the 4th of July holiday and frequently boondocked in pull-outs.
-- Edited by mcw50 on Friday 19th of February 2010 11:32:13 PM
bjoyce said
09:10 AM Feb 18, 2010
We also drove both ways and really enjoyed it in 2006. At one point we did study the ferry routes and my memories are that only a few campgrounds along the ferry routes can handle even a 40' RV since most who take their RVs on the ferry use smaller RVs like truck campers. The Church's Alaska camping book should help here since they do discuss campsite size.
Charger said
07:51 PM Apr 11, 2010
Let me begin by stating we have a 40' fifth wheel. We've been told that if we travel Alaska, we should probably consider buying a truck camper for in the bed of the truck and leaving the fifth wheel at home.
What are your thoughts from those of you who have visited the great wilderness of Alaska?
Luvglass said
08:00 PM Apr 11, 2010
There's absolutely no reason you can't take a 40 foot trailer up there. You may not be able to fit in every site in every campground, but you can get around just fine.
Alaska has changed from what it was 30 years ago, both with the roads and the RV parks, these scare stories are just myths. Are there state parks where you won't be able to fit? Sure, but it's a huge state and you will not have any trouble in the majority of places.
Charger said
08:06 PM Apr 11, 2010
Thanks Fred, I believe we'll give it a shot. Guess should stay no later than mid Sept?
-- Edited by Charger on Sunday 11th of April 2010 08:07:27 PM
Colorado_Kid said
08:30 PM Apr 11, 2010
I spent two summers working at Denali National Park and there you can see frost as early as the first week of August.
If you are really feeling adventurous you can go to Fairbanks and take a jet to Barrow, Alaska however that is pretty exspensive.
Sunseeker said
10:22 PM Apr 11, 2010
We drove to Price Rupert and took the ferries north in 2008. You will fit anywhere necessary. Our blog is at http://carpediemadventrues.blogspot.com. Start reading July 29, 2008 - June 30, 2008. Read the Church's book. The southeast is an interesting adventure. We took the ferries on the northward journey because the weather was supposed to be better than later in the year. Who know? Just go with it!
Early reservations are necessary on the ferries. Flying to each port would be a different experience, not one I would chose, but your experience may be different.
We're returning for another 5 months to Alaska this summer but are not doing the southeast coast this time.
-- Edited by Sunseeker on Sunday 11th of April 2010 10:23:56 PM
-- Edited by Sunseeker on Monday 12th of April 2010 10:59:01 AM
Luvglass said
06:37 AM Apr 12, 2010
I'm afraid you won't have much choice, everything closes down by mid September. We literally were the last campers in Border City Lodge & RV Park at the border in Tok on September 11 and they closed for the winter when we left.
The season is pretty short, mid May to mid September, and you can get some pretty bad weather at either end.
Charger wrote:
Thanks Fred, I believe we'll give it a shot. Guess should stay no later than mid Sept?
-- Edited by Charger on Sunday 11th of April 2010 08:07:27 PM
Hi All,
As a new member of the "Dream" family I just have to say what a treat it is to read what you ALL have to say.
This is only my 2nd-3rd time to post anywhere as the other RV Forum sites which I have checked out ( no offence to anyone intended) do not have the "friendly" feel I find here when reading.
I would really appreciate some advice from you veteran Alaska travelers that have made the extended, or Full Summer Alaska trip.
I'm a 62 year old full-timing widower, who has wanted to visit Alaska far back as I can remember.
I'm planning to do so this Summer (2010) and have a question about visiting those Inside Passage destinations one cannot drive to..
I plan to drive my rig both ways in & out of Alaska & do not want to tie myself to a rigid schedule by making any reservations, including ferry reservations.
So, my question is this, cost aside," what is the feasibility, and drawbacks, of parking the rig at an RV Park somewhere inland then flying into each of those ferry route destinations I want to visit, rent a jeep, and stay in a hotel for 3-5 days while exploring a particular area".
Also, in your opinion, what 5-6 of those ferry only (or Inside Passage) destinations would you say is a "must not miss" destination.
If you think the "puddle jumping" option is a bad idea, what do you suggest?
I read a spirited discussion on some older (2007-2008)posts about Howard & Linda leading an Alaska caravan but did not see where that idea had come to fruition, any updates on the subject?
Any input you folks are willing to share with me will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Charley
-- Edited by cbg47 on Wednesday 17th of February 2010 02:56:41 PM
-- Edited by cbg47 on Thursday 18th of February 2010 08:41:28 PM
Thanks for the reply & info.
I plan to be in Alaska no later than mid May & stay there until weather a South Lousiana "boy" just can't handle forces me out.
John (don't know if I can/should use his last name) a well known producer of RV travel DVD's, (two GOOD ONES on Alaska travel) told me in a phone conversation a few days ago that by driving the road portion first (which was my plan anyway) and saving the Inside Passage destinations ( Juneau, Wrangel, Sitka, Ketchikan, etc. ) until September would give me more time in Alaska because the coastal areas stay warmer, with better weather, longer.
I absolutely want to see all I possibly can from my M/H but I hope to also see at least some of the coastal towns & areas that cannot be accessed directly by any road/highway dependent vehicle.
He also said getting on the ferry without reservations could be a problem, thus my idea of flying in to visit these areas.
I'm very much looking forward to everyone's input on this idea & will appreciate any helpful info along with the personal opinions of you seasoned Alaska travelers.
Charley
also .../june2001 .../july2001 ..../august2001 (note that the links on the pages do not work properly) We'd like to go back, but somehow just haven't gotten there! Other than the ferry, we had no reservations of any kind in advance for any part of our Alaksa trip...parked at the waterfront campround in Seward in late June for the 4th of July holiday and frequently boondocked in pull-outs.
-- Edited by mcw50 on Friday 19th of February 2010 11:32:13 PM
Let me begin by stating we have a 40' fifth wheel. We've been told that if we travel Alaska, we should probably consider buying a truck camper for in the bed of the truck and leaving the fifth wheel at home.
What are your thoughts from those of you who have visited the great wilderness of Alaska?
-- Edited by Charger on Sunday 11th of April 2010 08:07:27 PM
If you are really feeling adventurous you can go to Fairbanks and take a jet to Barrow, Alaska however that is pretty exspensive.
Early reservations are necessary on the ferries. Flying to each port would be a different experience, not one I would chose, but your experience may be different.
We're returning for another 5 months to Alaska this summer but are not doing the southeast coast this time.
-- Edited by Sunseeker on Sunday 11th of April 2010 10:23:56 PM
-- Edited by Sunseeker on Monday 12th of April 2010 10:59:01 AM