Hey Barndog, Hey Alaskan Travelers...Hey Buddies!!!

[FatMan]

So here's the plan...Mrs FM and I are packing up the Travel Van RV thingy on May 19 and heading up to Alaska for 10-12 weeks or more. Alaska is the only state that I have not been to. We're taking 19 days to get to Anchorage where we will meet our children who are flying up and staying with us for a few days and then up by Denali for a few days. Plans with the kiddies include some Whale watching, glacier hiking, hiking in Denali, and brewery crawls. Plans are made and confirmed to this point. On June 12 the kids fly back home and then Mrs FM and I plan on hanging out in Alaska for indefinite amount of time. Could be two weeks, could be four weeks. Right now I have nothing planned. Got some ideas though.

And that is where you buddies come in. What should we do for four weeks in Alaska? We prefer asphalt roads but willing to do a few miles on gravel or solid dirt if necessary to get to a cool place. Our rig is 24 feet so we can get in and out of most places, but not all. Also, Mrs FM says no ferries. I'm all ears and appreciate all your input.

[MacGyver]

I believe Barndog has a cabin he rents out…I’m sure he’d give you a reduced rate for just parking your motorhome.

[BigMark]

His money folds, not jingle jingle.

[surfinx]

Get two spare tires….just in case. Take more food with you than you think. Buy lots of mosquito repellent.

Kenai peninsula, Russian river or Kenai river. Worth a few days, worth more if you fish. Do a river float down the Kenai. Awesome fun, especially fishing.

Wander down to Homer. Worth a day or two, more if you fish. Go kayaking. Good fun that, esp glacier kayaking.

Do flattop right outside of anchorage. Hundreds of miles of hiking in the anchorage bowl area. Pick a spot. Remember, moose are dangerous, and seriously big. Don’t fuddernutter with a baby. Mom will kill you.

Up by bdoggie, lots of good fishing, hiking, shooting, camping grounds.

You could drive up to Fairbanks. Maybe up to Arctic circle just to say you’ve been there. Traffic will be slow, everywhere. I haven’t spent much time up that way. If you go, make sure you stop at Skinny Dicks Halfway Inn, at least for the photo.

Take the wife to the antique gallery on 4th street. Trust me, this place is worth every penny. Buy her a bauble or two, get yerself a gun or a coin.

Have an awesome trip. Post CR style!

[cullenbryant]

Came to post homer. When i was there, there's natural clay deposits clean enough to make pottery right out of the earth. i took a night and made things and fired them right there on the beach.

[Barndog]

what surf says is good. What he sort of said but didn't say is CARRY a useful gun if you go hiking. Hell you should carry one everywhere everyday anyway. Moose can be aggressive in the summer if you get between momma and calves. Bears will eat you.

Homer is great for fishing excursions if you want to be able to say you caught some Halibut. But it won't be a giant fish. Tourists go on chicken runs and you will catch two small fish, be able to eat them or pack them, might luck into something over ten pounds, but probably not. Views are outstanding. Real fun is taking a day cruise (4-8 hours depending on your goals) and seeing all sort of wildlife like Puffins, Otters, Whales, etc. And you get to see some glaciers close up (yeah, they haven't melted away). I have been on these day trips with visiting relatives and they are pretty cool. If you get seasick, don't depend on Dramamine. Get something like Scopolamine patches so you aren't sick the whole trip

Some people like heading N on the Glenn Hwy to see the Matanuska Glacier. You can hike on that thing and see some cool mountains along the way. You can drive to ANC to the glacier and back all in one day. On the Matanuska River, if you are into this Elmo, you can do a float trip that won't kill you. Mrs BD has taken relatives to it more than once (I don't go into water unless I am fishing or hunting). Something like this: https://www.novalaska.com/trip/lions-he ... t-sun-run/. She loves that trip and has taken old people, fat people, and kids. All survived, so your odds are better than 50% survival too.

Talkeetna is a fun area for tourists. You get some good view of Mt McKinley (now just called Denali) along the way. Then you can choose something like an hour or so flight viewing trip with K2 Aviation. You can even land on glaciers and mountains and stuff depending on your choice of tour. These are the Alaskan pilots who know what they are doing and don't want to die at work. If weather cooperates, it can be a blast.

If you want the tourist experience in July of catching salmon, grab a decent guide now for a walk in or guided float fishing trip. You may each be able to keep 6 fish a day, depending on what happens with the limits this summer (red salmon = Sockeye = the most popular target on the Kenai Peninsula's Kenai River). Can be a 2-8 hour experience depending on your goals.

There are even salmon trips in the Kenai Peninsula where you fly from Kenai across the Cook Inlet to small lakes and fish for landlocked salmon. You will get to see bears close up too. Frigging blast.

Don't be afraid to just drive around when you are north of Anchorage and north of Palmer or west of Wasilla. There are always cool things to see if you like mountains, random animals, etc. If you have interest in gold and want to see and "learn" about an old gold mining area, visit Hatcher Pass (15 minutes from me) and they have a small museum, lots of trails, and an old and a supposedly-active gold mine there. Hikes readily available at your leisure, pretty much 24 hours a day in the summer (bring a gun, always). If you do that, you will drive right past Marty Raney's property (made famous to the lower 48 people by those Alaska TV shows). You won't see his house, but you will drive right by it and think it is nothing more than a fence with a curtain on it.

There is likely way more to do than I could write about in an hour. The further north you go, the lighter it gets for longer periods of time too. If you don't mind burning fuel, go north of the Arctic Circle so you can say, "been there, done that".

LMK if you want more or specific info or thoughts/opinion on anything you plan on doing. And flip off all the commies you see (aka Canadiens)

[MacGyver]

[Barndog]

LOL

We will be a commie neighbor soon it seems, sadly

[walmann]

Talkeetna is a fun area for tourists. You get some good view of Mt McKinley (now just called Denali) along the way. Then you can choose something like an hour or so flight viewing trip with K2 Aviation. You can even land on glaciers and mountains and stuff depending on your choice of tour. These are the Alaskan pilots who know what they are doing and don't want to die at work. If weather cooperates, it can be a blast.

The river with Denali in the background really is impressive. This was the only place we took some guided tours, air and then one river. The river guide was a former Parks employee and as the tour made stops for walks along the banks, it turned out to be the wife's favorite area.

[FatMan]

Great stuff guys. I really appreciate it. What are the laws about carrying a gun through Canada. I figured that would be a no no. I know all about moose. Had a run in with one in Maine when I canoed the Allagash many years ago. I live with black bears as neighbors which are harmless. A brown bear encounter would be a first time for me. I've got some bad ass bear spray but figure a big sucker would laugh that off. Based upon this looks like a gun is in order if I can get one there. If not at least Mrs FM will be safe. She runs much faster than me.

[cullenbryant]

learn some russian and bring extra levis its 1988 up there (alaska). Canada is 82

[PerryHall]

Great stuff guys. I really appreciate it. What are the laws about carrying a gun through Canada. I figured that would be a no no. I know all about moose. Had a run in with one in Maine when I canoed the Allagash many years ago. I live with black bears as neighbors which are harmless. A brown bear encounter would be a first time for me. I've got some bad ass bear spray but figure a big sucker would laugh that off. Based upon this looks like a gun is in order if I can get one there. If not at least Mrs FM will be safe. She runs much faster than me.

A .22 pistol is adequate for bear protection. If you encounter a bear while hiking, just shoot your wife in the kneecap and quickly walk away.

[PerryHall]

Seriously, if I thought there was a chance of encountering a grizzly bear, I would carry a 12ga. pump shotgun with a 18" or 20" barrel and loaded with slugs. Get a sling so you can carry it on your shoulder.

[ArtificialStupidity]

Seriously, if I thought there was a chance of encountering a grizzly bear, I would carry a 12ga. pump shotgun with a 18" or 20" barrel and loaded with slugs. Get a sling so you can carry it on your shoulder.

Don't forget the double ply Depends.

[MacCrimmon]

Sounds EPIC! Enjoy, and stay safe.

Get something like Scopolamine patches so you aren't sick the whole trip

This times a jillion!

Me and a buncha guys from T.I. drove down to Corpus back in 1984 to go fishing for Kingfish and Mahi mahi, or whatever and the smart ones put on the Scopolamine patches when we left about 10pm Friday night. Saturday morning dawned with 6-8 foot seas at times and the guys with patches had no problems. The Israeli engineer who went along sez "I've been on the Sea of Galilee many times and I will not need any patches" ..... you betcha! He was puking into the Gulf most of the 12-hour trip.

One guy told him to get back here at the stern; we need smoe extra chum for the fish.

[Barndog]

Great stuff guys. I really appreciate it. What are the laws about carrying a gun through Canada. I figured that would be a no no. I know all about moose. Had a run in with one in Maine when I canoed the Allagash many years ago. I live with black bears as neighbors which are harmless. A brown bear encounter would be a first time for me. I've got some bad ass bear spray but figure a big sucker would laugh that off. Based upon this looks like a gun is in order if I can get one there. If not at least Mrs FM will be safe. She runs much faster than me.

there is a travel group on Facebook called Driving the ALCAN - Alaska Canadian Highway that you might join and learn about routes and rules. Pretty sure Canada is restrictive, but not sure how much so. I have avoided it for 59 years and shall continue to do so. You could have your kids bring one of yours for you and hand it to you when you arrive. Then you could ship it back. Avoid Canadian law altogether. or something

[Rollo Tomassi]

Just had an Estonian MD.

Looked it up. Estonia seems good.

https://www.mircorp.com/travel-guide-to ... altic-sea/

[FatMan]

Just had an Estonian MD.

Looked it up. Estonia seems good.

https://www.mircorp.com/travel-guide-to ... altic-sea/

Very helpful Rollo. Thanks for contributing.

[Rollo Tomassi]

Just had an Estonian MD.

Looked it up. Estonia seems good.

https://www.mircorp.com/travel-guide-to ... altic-sea/

Very helpful Rollo. Thanks for contributing.

What? You've PAID IN ADVANCE ????