Heading South (Saturday, August 29, 2009) Another early start in the rain, a little past 7 AM, and we were traveling north, up the 11 mile, 11% grade. Using 3rd gear, we experienced no problems with the climb, and once we reached White Pass, the rain stopped. We made it through Canada Customs with no problems. Instead of driving all the way into Whitehorse, we took the Taggish Scenic Loop, cutting off several miles, and true to its name, it was scenic. We stopped for fuel, both for the motorhome and us, at Jake’s Corner, where we turned south for trip home. Notable for this entire leg of travel was the change in colors of the shrubs and trees as they had begun taking on fall hues.

The drive was uneventful, though we had rain on and off the whole day. We reached the Baby Nugget RV Park at 3:15 PM, filled up with gasoline, set up the motorhome, and drove to the Sign Forest at Watson Lake where we took photos of friends Jerry’s and Ann’s sign from a couple of years ago, and to make sure our sign was still there.

Now that we’re reaching the end of the trip, it all seems like a whirlwind; after all, we were at Watson Lake on July 13 and 14, some 6 weeks ago, and much has changed since then. I remarked that on the way up, I was so cowed by the road, its history, and the mystique surrounding it, while on the way down, it seems much easier.

Caravan Adventures Tomorrow, we anticipate some RVs will leave the caravan, not wanting to make the trip down the Cassiar Highway. The Top of the World Highway and the road from Tok to Valdez was just too much for them, and the reputation of the Cassiar Highway is not a good one. We have just about completed all of our planned activities and Les Potteiger has done an incredible job, way beyond our expectations of what a caravan entails. His scheduling of activities was right on target, not too many on any given day, but not too much free time. Also, his excellent planning and leadership resulted in no hiccups; everything was ready when it was supposed to be. Frankly, we don’t know how he pulled it off given the diversity of businesses with which he dealt, and the differences among caravan members. One thing for sure, Gulf Stream (the RV manufacturer providing the corporate sponsorship for this caravan) may not realize how brand loyal their customers are, due to rallies, caravans, etc.; if they ever lose those networking activities, their business may suffer beyond recovery. More about the caravan in a later journal, but kudos for Les!

Kay’s Take We didn’t see any bears or moose on the road, but we did see a few beaver in some ponds busily working away. It was kind of funny going to the Sign Post Forest; we found Jerry & Ann’s sign immediately. We couldn’t remember at first where our caravan sign was. It took us 5-10 min. but we finally found it. I have no idea how many signs are there, but it’s got to be in the 10,000s. Maybe more. It was great to travel and not have any frost heaves. How to explain one? It’s like a road roller coaster but some dip too quickly and your backend will ‘bump or hit’ if you don’t slow down enough. Especially if you’re in a long vehicle. They’re not too bad in our little Saturn, but the higher and longer you are the harder they are to take. We heard from some friends that they broke their axle and their cabinets dropped in their rig when they hit too hard. They are not to be taken lightly. Some are marked by orange flags and others aren’t marked at all. I think they may be the worst in April and May just after the thaw because the road crews haven’t had the time to repair them all by then. By August many repairs have been made. They say in Alaska that they have two seasons: winter and construction (road). LOL. Donald had a quiet birthday – sixty sits well on him. Our anniversary (9th) is this Wed. and we will be in Smithers, BC. That’s our next to last day with this caravan. We will be heading down to the ‘lower 48’ this Friday as fast as our rig will allow.

I know it’s time and I’m glad but also sad. This land grows on you. We drove for miles and miles today with no one on the road but us – mountains, lakes, ponds, and fall is descending every hour. It was magical – such a big picture and we were just a minute part of it all.

Our Recommendations for Watson Lake, YT See our entry for July 13 and 14.

Campground Baby Nugget RV Park is among the newest along the Alaska Highway. Nevertheless, it is gravel like most of the rest. We had electric, water, and cable TV. Wi-fi was $5, too expensive for us just to read email. Baby Nugget RV Park is very nice, and most convenient for our trip down the Cassiar Highway tomorrow. The Downtown RV Park in Watson Lake would be our first choice, but it is 22 miles down the road, necessitating a 44 mile round trip if traveling the Cassiar Highway from the north. We have decided that on our next trip, we will stay at provincial parks most of the time while in Canada and US Forest Service campgrounds or dry camp in Alaska, stopping at commercial parks every 4 or 5 days to do laundry, fill with potable water, and dump the tanks.

Driving Statistics
Beginning Mileage: 15,575.7
Beginning Time: 7:00 AM Pacific DST
Ending Mileage: 15,879.4
Ending Time: 3:00 PM Alaska DST
TOTAL MILEAGE FOR THE DAY: 303.7
CUMULATIVE MILEAGE: 6,487.9