Day 1 of the road trip to Alaska
April Fool’s! Ha ha ha No seriously, we ARE leaving on April 1
I am anxiously waiting Elmer’s arrival. I’ve packed and repacked my clothes so many times, its unbelievable. I’m bringing water, apples, Chai Spice tea, and coconut oil for nourishment to supplement whatever junk food on the road. Oh and chocolate chips (I sleepwalk and bring chocolate back to bed- don’t want NO sleepwalking in foreign places). A sleeping bag and small travel pillow, which I will be leaving with Elmer because I am THAT confident that I will be returning to Alaska. We shall be eating and sleeping on the road.
He arrives with his ‘chick magnet’, Buddy, a teacup yorkie.
Here goes somethin’….
We leave Wellington just after noon, pulling a small boat/trailer in a ‘unique’ homemade camper. On the way out of Utah, ‘Elmer’ makes a couple of quick family visits and then we spend the night in a rest area off the highway in Hamer, ID.
Day 2 of the road trip to Alaska
Next morning we are up way before the sun and are on the road by 7:30 am. A quick stop at a burger king for breakfast where a bunch of old timer locals spot our unusual homemade camper and want to know where we are headed. I tell them Alaska and I’m trying to make it by my birthday, in just 5 days…they cheer me on, and we are back on the road. We continue on into Montana and make one last stop for supplies before heading for the Canadian border…which took fooooorevvvvverrrrrrr.
Seriously, stop and go for over 4 hours, mostly stopped, and at this point I realize my phone no longer has service.
Meanwhile, all thru the morning Elmer has taken various phone calls in which he says he’s on his way to AK and should be there in 10 days. 10 DAYS ?!!!??? I know I checked Google maps over and over. There is no way it should take 10 days. But Elmer claims he is not going to kill himself driving. And I’m like okay, I’ll kill meself driving if it’ll get me there faster than 10 days. LOL But I keep silent because I am ever so grateful to be getting this opportunity.
I am glad to be inside Canada and on the next leg of this journey. Elmer’s phone immediately sends him a welcome to Canada message and how his service will be uninterrupted. Mine is silent. We park amongst 18-wheelers, shower, and spend the night at a Flying J truck stop along side the highway in Nanton, Alberta Canada. Still unable to use my phone because I am so phone/wifi illiterate that I cannot figure out how to hook up to the free wifi that is just across the parking lot at the fast food restaurants. It is stressing me not to be able to contact my family (translation: i really want to talk to mystery man who is in AK) to let them know where I am, that I am ok… and that the ax murderer has not struck yet. Lol Elmer offers to let me use his phone to call/text; but who wants to use someone else’s phone to whisper sweet nothings to a romantic interest? I take the dog for a walk grumbling.
Day 3 of the road trip to Alaska
The next morning we are up early before the sun trying to make it through Calgary before the morning rush hour traffic. Elmer wants a cup of my Chai tea. I explain it has caffeine, (he is of a particular sect that supposedly doesn’t participate in the consumption of certain vices.) He insists he wants to try it, and since it may ‘encourage’ longer driving times, I accommodate….hee hee. Pressing on ever northward passing town after town; we stop in Whitecourt, Canada for Kentucky Fried Chicken where the cashier talks Elmer into a different meal than he originally wants. It ends up being less pieces of chicken and he won’t stop complaining about it, so I only eat 2 nuggets and he boxes up the remainder for later.
On the way out, Elmer talks with some truckers who say the roads are clear all the way past Stone Mountain and so he decides we are good to go farther. Our last gas fill up for the day is in Dawson Creek, British Columbia. As I am out walking the dog, (which has now become my chore at each stop), and taking pics of this famous sign…
Elmer is at the gas station where an observant bystander has noticed one of the wheels on the boat trailer is about to fall off 😲
Fortunately they were able to direct us where to possibly get it fixed. It is after 6 pm and we are headed to United Spring and Brake. The whole way I am asking the universe to get this fixed quickly as possible. I am ever so hopeful that I can still make it to Alaska for my birthday. We get to the repair shop and they are closing, but if we bring it in at 7 am they will get started on it first thing. We are spending the night in a Wal Mart parking lot, and settle down to eat the leftover chicken…only to find out Buddy got to it first…every last bit. 🤣
Here’s to hoping tomorrow will see us on the Alcan Highway 🤞
Cindi