After arriving in Whitehorse, we picked up our rental SUV and settled into our Airbnb at Raven’s Ridge before heading straight to the Yukon River for our first evening walk along the Millenium trail and a little fishing. The next morning started early at Fish Lake, where we spotted several bald eagles and Trevor caught his first Arctic grayling. We spent the rest of the day exploring the area, hiking Miles Canyon (so beautiful!) before driving to Carcross, where we explored the town and grabbed a cup of Caribou coffee. We followed the hwy into Northern BC but decided to skip the Suspension Bridge after realizing we’d already crossed the unique (and free) bridge at Miles Canyon earlier that day. On the drive we spotted our first black bear of the trip along the side of the road, hiked through the Carcross Desert on the way back, and finished the day with another evening of fishing at Fish Lake.
Kluane National Park to TOK, Alaska
The next morning we left Whitehorse for Tok, making several stops along the Alaska Highway. We visited the Haines Junction Visitor Centre before hiking the Rock Glacier Trail in Kluane National Park. We stopped for a picnic lunch and some fishing at Kathleen Lake, spotted Dall sheep high on the mountainside, and stretched our legs again with the Soldier’s Summit hike. The roads got rougher the farther north we drove, with long stretches of frost heaves that made for slow going. We filled up in Destruction Bay before continuing toward the border. Along one of the construction zones we spotted a grizzly bear running off the road. He stopped just off the shoulder long enough for us to get an incredible look at him—the closest we’ve ever been to a grizzly in the wild. We also learned that there’s about 30 km between the Canadian and U.S. border stations, which felt a little strange as we drove through what seemed like no-man’s land before officially entering Alaska. We finally rolled into Tok late that evening and checked into a motel that had definitely seen better days, but after a long day on the road, we weren’t too picky.
Fairbanks
We were back on the road by 6:30 the next morning on our way to Fairbanks. Nothing was open that early, so by the time we reached Delta Junction everyone was starving. Breakfast ended up being what we jokingly called “PB Banana Dogs”—bananas in hot dog buns with peanut butter. Would it even be a family road trip if we didn’t make at least one random meal out of whatever we could find in the car? The wildlife didn’t disappoint either. We spotted a huge moose eating along the side of the road that ended up running beside us for a short distance. Later we found another cow moose with two calves, and by the end of the day our moose count was up to six.
Before reaching Fairbanks we made a stop in North Pole, Alaska, where we wandered through the Christmas-themed shops and a town in full holiday spirit in the middle of summer. We still had some time before we could check into our Airbnb, so we found a park along the Chena River for a picnic lunch and, naturally, did a little fishing. Trevor spotted what looked like a better fishing spot on the opposite side of the river, so we followed the GPS to see if we could get there. That decision turned into the most unexpected adventure of the trip.
Somehow the GPS directed us straight to the entrance of a military base. Before we knew it, we were in line at the security checkpoint. We explained that we’d taken a wrong turn and just needed to turn around, but that wasn’t quite how it played out. After seeing our Canadian driver’s licences, they had us pull over for “paperwork.” Our licences were taken, we were questioned about why we were there, where we lived, and about the rental vehicle, and then military police arrived. They asked for our passports and interviewed each of us—including the kids—while they completed background checks. With military police standing at each window, things became intimidating very quickly. About an hour later, after taking photos of the vehicle and each of us, they finally let us leave. It was definitely a reminder to pay close attention to where your GPS is taking you, especially near military bases.
Once we escaped our accidental military adventure, the rest of the day was much calmer. We picked up groceries, checked into our Airbnb, went for an evening walk through Pioneer Park, and after dinner introduced the girls to euchre. It was the perfect way to end a day that none of us will ever forget.
Day four started a little slower, which was a nice change of pace. For the first time on the trip I actually slept past 4:00 a.m.—all the way until 6:30. We enjoyed coffee, played a few games of crib, and let the girls sleep in. After breakfast we squeezed in another game of euchre before heading out to Chena Hot Springs. Along the drive we spotted another moose grazing beside the road and made a few fishing stops along the Chena River, where the mosquitoes were so bad they practically carried us away.
We arrived at Chena Hot Springs planning to visit the Ice Museum and spend the afternoon in the hot springs. To be honest, the resort was a little more run down than we expected. We had about an hour to wait for our Ice Museum tour, so we wandered around the property, had a picnic lunch, and checked out the hot springs. The Ice Museum was neat to see, and the kids loved looking at all the ice sculptures. They even decided they had to lick the ice—despite being told not to! After seeing the condition of the hot springs, we decided to skip buying admission and head back toward Fairbanks instead. On the drive home we added even more moose to our growing tally, including a cow with two calves. We made a few more fishing stops, explored the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center, and finished the evening with a walk through Creamer’s Field, where we spotted several sandhill cranes wandering through the wetlands.
Just when we thought the day was over, we got one last adventure. Around 1:30 a.m., the carbon monoxide detector jolted us awake from a deep sleep. We grabbed the kids and evacuated the house while the fire department and the homeowner came to check things out. Thankfully, they confirmed there was no carbon monoxide and that the detector itself was faulty. Standing outside in what was somehow broad daylight at 1:30 in the morning was a pretty surreal experience and one of those “only in Alaska” moments. After all of the excitement, we were more than ready to pack up and move on from Fairbanks the next morning.
The Travelling Herrons 