Boogielander Build

[JamRam]

Day 19 - Arctic Circle!
View attachment 188491
Today we crossed Arctic Circle and camped there.
But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Knowing the harsh conditions of Dalton, I was mentally prepared for it, thinking if the semis can run on it, how hard could it be? Turned out, boy oh boy, I couldn't be more wrong.
My first wakeup call was on the highway leading to Dalton. The crew were regrading the foundation to repave the surface, and dumped a lot of sand and soil. When dry, that wouldn't be an issue, but it turned into a giant mud pit when wet. I had issues with traction and keeping the truck heading straight, and was fighting for traction in 2wd. Situation got better when I threw in 4H, but still was sliding around. The whole section was no more than 1000yard, but it felt like eternity. I was praying so hard to not get stuck or go sideways, because that would be really embarrassing.

I safely passed that section without getting bogged down, and got on Dalton.
View attachment 188486 View attachment 188485 It was around 45F outside, with rain dripping down. Knowing if I didn't air down, the next ~800 miles would be bad for me, so I braved the windchill and aired down before getting on my way.
View attachment 188487
The beginning was decent and I kept my pace. The road was well graded without major potholes, but the rain made it muddy and slippery at some sections. However, it got bad after Finger Mountain at mile marker 96. Potholes that are wider than the truck's track width, potholes that are larger than the contact patch of my 35s, and potholes that are so deep that it can break suspension are scattered everywhere on the trail. Even worse, there are pothole gardens that I couldn't find a safe line to swerve around the potholes. View attachment 188488
View attachment 188489
View attachment 188490
I caught up to the vehicles in the front, and used them as markers to see which line to take.
The tire tracks on the trail are also good indicators of a safe line.
Then, the road got even worse. Fields after fields of potholes that no speed could make it feel better.
After what felt like an eternity, I finally arrived at the Arctic Circle Sign, my first stop for the day.
View attachment 188491
It was 5PM already, and I only covered about 113 miles. My original planned stop was at Wiseman, another 76 miles away.
The potholes drove the energy out of me, and I was done for the day. The coldness and the rain didn't help either.
So I called it for the day.
View attachment 188492
There's a campsite right behind the Arctic Circle Sign, so I claimed a site for myself.

I sat in my driver seat after positioning the truck, a first since I left home on 8/4, 19 days ago. I was tired, sore, cold, hungry, and wet.
The rain was still pouring, and I was in bear country so I didn't want to cook to risk attracting bears to come hangout near me at night. So, I had some jerky and some chips, and drank a can of coke for dinner.
Not the type of dinner I wanted after the last 20 miles of bumping around on fields of potholes.

View attachment 188494
The mud caked on the truck was even worse to deal with than potholes.
These are the sticky type of mud. The mud that will not come off easily. My reverse camera was completely blocked, and the latch covers were stuck shut.
Good thing I put on those covers before leaving.

I setup camp, turned on my heater, started the Starlink, checked weather forecast, and have a decision to make: Extremely high possibility of snow (and resulting ice) on Atigun Pass is in the forecast. Do I take my chance with that 3000ft elevation and steep hills betting on I won't get stuck or slide off the pass just to say I did it, OR, do I play it safe, get to Coldfoot, and turn around?
View attachment 188495
By 9PM, the sun came out. I checked weather again. All sources indicated that weather would not be on my side further north.
As I refill the diesel in my heater, I walked around the truck, and asked if it wanted to keep braving the potholes.

By bed time, both of us agreed that we were done. We will save the Arctic Ocean for Dempster, where we will actually see the ocean instead of having to pay $80 for a shuttle bus to get to the ocean in Deadhorse.



As I am typing this up back in Fairbanks, part of me regret admitting defeat after driving this far for it. But that's just a small part of me. I thought of all the crashed and abandoned vehicles on the side of the road since I got in Canada, those are great reminders of why I shouldn't let my ego get in my decision making.

Afterall, I'm only almost half way done.

I smell a book in the making.....

 

[boogielander]

I smell a book in the making.....

thanks hahahaha maybe one day!

 

[boogielander]

Should of just stuck with those Mickey Mouse puck spacers instead of your fancy suspension setup would’ve really made the drive more epic!

hahahahahaha if my goal was to join one of those piled up vehicles in the ditch!

 

[boogielander]

Maybe a pressure washer to knock some of that mud off before you park for the night. It's one thing to park a muddy vehicle and walk away but when it's your home for the night, you know you're gonna contact that mud over and over again.

oh i was going to but decided to **** it. It's gonna get muddy the very next day anyways.

 

[boogielander]

When you finish this epic trip it would be interesting for you to double back and discuss what you like, dislike and would do differently with the truck. Given that some of the components and mods were expensive, were they absolutely necessary? Or, perhaps you didn't go far enough and felt like you needed more robust suspension and larger tires. How about the electrical mods, the RTT, etc.?

oh yeah. i'm taking a 0 day today so I can do some of that now. then do another one after Dempster. then do a summary at the end when i get home.
one goal of this trip is to see what works, what doesn't, what's worth the money, and what's not.
i think comparisons of how I think before, during, and after will be good summaries and help others be better informed!

 

[JamRam]

thanks hahahaha maybe one day!

"One day".....lol.

You are not that kind o guy (I say that with all confidence).

You are already writing the book, you will only need to edit and compile when you return.

Do it while the memories are fresh.

 

[firecadet613]

Excellent thread, thank you for taking us along on your trip!

 

[boogielander]

Day 20 - Admitting Defeat
Even though I've decided to turn around at Coldfoot, the whole day I've been second guessing myself with that decision because the weather's letting up.

I packed up at 10AM, and what a mess this is.

Stopped by Arctic Circle sign again, because I wasn't really pleased with the pictures from previous day.
Having redone the pictures, I headed north to Coldfoot.

First stop, Arctic Interagency Visitor Center. This is the visitor center for all the national parks in northern Alaska that are not reachable by vehicle. Knowing I probably will not visit those parks due to the logistics involved, I stamped all 3 of them on my NP Passport. Here, I also bought some souvenirs: some patches, a Dalton Highway T-shirt, and my new travel companion: a grizzly bear stuffed animal. They have foxes, caribou, and moose, and all of them are so cute. But, I don't have enough money to get all of them.
Then, I fueled up in Coldfoot. Gas was whopping $7.99/gal here, and they only have 87 and diesel. I was sitting at half tank, and knowing I was turning around, I only put 10 gallons in. Enough to make it back to town, I thought to myself.

Leaving Coldfoot, I saw this. A rainbow right in front of me. The end of rainbow seems close enough, so I went looking for my pot of gold.
Unfortunately, the end of rainbow was in a controlled area: the airport and state trooper HQ. Maybe the pot of gold I was looking for was the adventure all along!
With lodging setup for the night, I took my time and spent some time taking pictures on the way.

These pipelines look a smaller than they are. They are HUGE in person.
Seeing these in person made me appreciate the oil workers more. They are the people who keep this country going, braving the extreme cold in winter. 'MERICA!

Found a random side road and took advantage.
Cloudy days are not ideal, but definitely better than full sun at early afternoon.
Before long, I was at Yukon River again. This is the only place where you can get close to the pipeline with no gate.

As I crossed over the last mountain pass and headed toward Fairbanks at 8PM, the sun came out. What a difference a mountain pass can make.

I was greeted with this. A welcoming sight to see.

Goodbye, Dalton Highway.
Goodbye, Arctic Coldfoot.
Goodbye, Arctic Circle, until we meet again in Canada.

I got to my hotel at 930PM. Then it hit me... I am nearing the end of my Alaskan portion. Day 21 will be a 0 day where I stay in and relax, but I'll be crossing the border in 4 days.
Alaska has been good to me. I almost don't want to leave.

 

[TSL]

And of course, Boogielander Cafe shot


And then we arrived at Independence Mine

They say only 30% of the visitors to Denali get to see the mountain.

WELL DONE ! We numbered ourselves among the 70% our our trip up there :-( Mountain was out there somewhere but we never saw it.
I remember Independence Mine. It's not too far from Wasilla, you probably passed through or near Wasilla. It's a ho-hum sub-urban sprawl town, feels just like any other American suburbia...apart from the views which are stunning on a clear day.
My wife's brother lives there. He joined the airforce out of school, worked his way up to being a Chief Mechanic on the F15 jet. I understand he would have had his name on the plane he maintained. Did a few tours of duty ( including Iraq I think ), and finished up in Alaska. He loved it there and when he got out of the AirForce he settled here. Lives in Wasilla and works in a Ford dealership these days ( sorry for mentioning a bad word on a RAM forum !) He's a transmission specialist I believe, works in the shop on the complicated stuff. He has little respect for the majority of the techs that work there, says he'd never recommend anyone bring their vehicle to a dealer for service . anyways, in the unlikely event you need a decent mechanic ( knock on wood you do not ! ), I have a contact up there who's pretty solid. Based on your itinerary you won't be back that way I don't think though. Are you going across "top of the world highway" to Dawson city ultimately ?

 

[TSL]

Well done on getting to Artic Circle and Coldfoot. I think you made a wise choice given the weather and going solo. I looked at my pics - we did a bus tour up to Coldfoot. What a difference a dry road makes, we had dry and dusty. Potholes, yes, but no mud. The tour bus ( a smaller mini bus ), went about 25mph most of the way, boy was it tedious. But, we got pics at the article circle, lunch at Coldfoot and we got to learn about the Pipeline from the driver. Did you notice those circular things like radiator fins on top of the posts ? They put those there, we were told, to disperse any heat getting into the metal support structure because they really really don't want to soften the permafrost the pylons are bedded into. That could be bad. The engineering of that thing is just incredible. Like you, I salute the workers who work up there year round.
This might give you a laugh : the TFL Truck you tube channel did a thing a couple years ago where they drove an F150 Lightning clear up to Deadhorse. Along the way they passed this particular wreck in the ditch off the highway. It may have been there a while. But. someone had put a "For Sale" on it, and written on the sign " No low-ball offers" 🤣

 

[boogielander]

WELL DONE ! We numbered ourselves among the 70% our our trip up there :-( Mountain was out there somewhere but we never saw it.
I remember Independence Mine. It's not too far from Wasilla, you probably passed through or near Wasilla. It's a ho-hum sub-urban sprawl town, feels just like any other American suburbia...apart from the views which are stunning on a clear day.
My wife's brother lives there. He joined the airforce out of school, worked his way up to being a Chief Mechanic on the F15 jet. I understand he would have had his name on the plane he maintained. Did a few tours of duty ( including Iraq I think ), and finished up in Alaska. He loved it there and when he got out of the AirForce he settled here. Lives in Wasilla and works in a Ford dealership these days ( sorry for mentioning a bad word on a RAM forum !) He's a transmission specialist I believe, works in the shop on the complicated stuff. He has little respect for the majority of the techs that work there, says he'd never recommend anyone bring their vehicle to a dealer for service . anyways, in the unlikely event you need a decent mechanic ( knock on wood you do not ! ), I have a contact up there who's pretty solid. Based on your itinerary you won't be back that way I don't think though. Are you going across "top of the world highway" to Dawson city ultimately ?

can always try again to be part of the 30%! wait... if you were in the 70% and then become part of the 30% then what does that make you my math is no good LOL
I can see why he chose to end up in Alaska. This is a magical place. I'd stay here if it wasn't for the cold winter and lack of authentic Asian food (most places are just "good enough when on a road trip" for someone who grew up in Asia for 18 years lol) i'm not going down that way. a rec would be helpful for Anchorage because I crossed my 5k miles mark there after my previous oil change lol I ended up finding a shop with decent reviews to have them do a drain and fill. I was going to go see an outfitter while in Anchorage and potentially see how it is working there, but didn't have time LOL

I am crossing via Top of The World in 4 days to get to Dawson City and do Dempster. It's bumming me out that I am leaving AK in 4 days already. I like Fairbanks more than Anchorage for some reason.

 

[boogielander]

Well done on getting to Artic Circle and Coldfoot. I think you made a wise choice given the weather and going solo. I looked at my pics - we did a bus tour up to Coldfoot. What a difference a dry road makes, we had dry and dusty. Potholes, yes, but no mud. The tour bus ( a smaller mini bus ), went about 25mph most of the way, boy was it tedious. But, we got pics at the article circle, lunch at Coldfoot and we got to learn about the Pipeline from the driver. Did you notice those circular things like radiator fins on top of the posts ? They put those there, we were told, to disperse any heat getting into the metal support structure because they really really don't want to soften the permafrost the pylons are bedded into. That could be bad. The engineering of that thing is just incredible. Like you, I salute the workers who work up there year round.
This might give you a laugh : the TFL Truck you tube channel did a thing a couple years ago where they drove an F150 Lightning clear up to Deadhorse. Along the way they passed this particular wreck in the ditch off the highway. It may have been there a while. But. someone had put a "For Sale" on it, and written on the sign " No low-ball offers" 🤣

oh yeah if it was dry i'd be in deadhorse tonight according to my original route plan.
i can deal with the potholes, but not the mud... the mud was so thick and sticky that it actually "sanded" off the Steel It paint on my slider, and took out some decals on the driver side. I can't deal with 25MPH lol my minimum is 35-40 even when crossing fields of smaller potholes. The big ones are the ones that i slowed down to swerve around or just embrace for impact. I got to Coldfoot past 1PM, and decided to try to get back to Fairbanks while I still have dinner options. That plan fell apart quickly LOL

I was wondering what those fin-like things were! Thanks for explaining! There were quite a few wrecks on the route... great reminders for not F around to find out lol