NOTE: I haven't driven the Alcan for years so please don't send me email asking for current road conditions or status. Thanks.

What follows are pictures and commentary from my trip up the Alcan Highway on July 16-18, 1997. Click on each image for a larger, higher-quality version.

This page is mostly intended for an audience of fellow owners of the Merkur XR4Ti (a sporty German car sold by Ford in the 80s), but all are welcome to read it and get from it what they will.

The Route

Map of Route from Blaine, Washington to Fairbanks, Alaska (highlighted in yellow) Maps scanned without permission from 1997 MILEPOST Trip Planner

I had a few main purposes for this trip: Deliver the beautiful mint-condition Merkur XR4Ti I bought in Sacramento, CA back home to Fairbanks in the best condition possible Get myself safely home to Fairbanks in time to resume work on Monday, July 21 Enjoy myself driving the Autobahn-bred XR4Ti on a long highway trip

Departure: Vancouver, British Columbia

I left my friend Kristen's house in Vancouver at about 11am on Wednesday. In this photo, my beautiful Merkur XR4Ti is still shiny and has never been exposed to dirt in its lifetime. That is about to change.

Hope to Cache Creek, BC

Photos from the highway near Hope, BC. Highway 1 / 97 from Vancouver to Cache Creek is mostly multi-lane highway with smooth, well-maintained pavement, with lots of hills and gentle curves.

Mountain roads between Yale and Lytton, BC.

Mileage Log: 282.9 Miles, 22.37 M/gal (Miles in this log are actually between Blaine, WA and Cache Creek, BC., including some driving around the suburbs of Vancouver)

Cache Creek to Prince George, BC

I stopped for a break and ate lunch in Cache Creek at 3:30pm. Highway 1 breaks from highway 97 at this point, narrowing down to a single lane in each direction. The quality of the roads is excellent with wide shoulders, gentle curves and lots of hills.

Pretty scenery. Fortunately I had slowed down to take this photo, because a revenue enhancement officer was using instant-on radar just over the next hill.

Stopped for half an hour at a construction site outside of Williams Lake, BC.

Traffic was backed up a little after being freed from construction holdups. Good opportunity to practice passing maneuvers.

I played leap-frog with a full-size Ford pickup for 50 miles or so after passing all the construction traffic. I'd lead for a while, then he would. Finally he decided he wanted to lead and set a nice pace for the last hundred miles of smooth, gently hilly road approaching Prince George. Best Heat Shield/Trooper Scooper I've ever had. I wonder what kind of mileage he got on that leg!

Mileage Log: 276.5 Miles, 21.68 M/gal

Prince George to Dawson Creek, BC

I had a nice dinner at the Denny's in Prince George. The service was good (unlike at Fairbanks Denny's) and I was ready for more driving. I travelled this segment at night, departing Prince George around 11pm. I was very impressed with the high beams on my car. They lit my way very effectively, helping me to keep my eyes peeled for deer and moose. I didn't see any of those but I did see wolves on the side of the road on two occasions. The road remained fairly wide and of good quality, with the occasional hairpin curve thrown in for good measure. I took a rest stop at the gas station at Chetwynd. I should have filled up the gas tank there, because it turned out that gas is a lot cheaper at Chetwynd than at Dawson Creek, official beginning of the Alaska Highway and tourist trap. As I neared Dawson Creek, fog descended (or I descended on the fog) and reduced visibility to maybe 30 feet. I found that the XR's foglights look way cool, but don't really help in fog. In fact they're pretty useless. There were a number of hairpin turns to negotiate in the fog, thankfully marked by flashing warning lights. I took it slow and fortunately there were no animals in the road.

Mileage Log: 255.2 Miles, 20.75 M/gal

Dawson Creek to Fort Nelson, BC

Dawson Creek: True starting point of the Alaska Highway. I hated this place. The gas prices were outrageous, it was the middle of the night and very dark, and the fog was as thick as pea soup, making driving very harrowing and stressful. My intent had been to skip this town altogether, but it was late at night and I figured I wouldn't be able to buy gas if I took the preferred route through Hudson's Hope. (See Prince George-Dawson Creek map)

A sea of clouds. Here are a couple of photos taken just before dawn at the top of a long, steep hill descending back down into the fog. The photos don't really do the scene justice. I had to take the photos quickly because I heard a very large truck that I had recently passed just about to crest the hill.

At about 4:45am I was getting very tired, despite the rockin' tunes on the CD-changer. I pulled off at a rest stop and slept for 4 hours in my comfy driver's seat. It was cool enough outside that I was comfortable with the windows rolled up, keeping the bugs out. Continued on my way at 9am, Thursday.

Mileage Log: 283.8 Miles, 20.59 M/gal

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