August 5th - 7th

Wednesday morning and once again, we are on the move.  We left Valdez in the rain, it seems to be following us, and headed toward Tok.  We did not know if we would get that far but decided to go for it because it really was a dismal day.

One aspect of this was the smoke.  As we drove further north toward Fairbanks, the smoke got heavier and heavier, and at times it was like driving in fog.  There are many fires right now in the interior of Alaska and NWT because it has been a dry, hot summer. 

As we drove north, we made some phone calls to see if anyone could fix/replace a slide motor.  We have been cranking it out and back in by hand and this is getting old in a hurry!  Nobody (as in RV Dealer) had one in Anchorage and would require 2 – 3 weeks to get one.  In Glenallen, neither of the two shops worked on slides.  In Tok, we found a person to work on the slide but we arrived too late in the day for him to diagnose the problem so he was kind enough to let us dry camp on his lot so we could be his first customers in the morning.

The next morning, as we were first in line we drove right into the shop when he opened.  He checked several things before announcing the motor was shot.  Not a surprise but we had hoped there was a wiring problem but not to be.  At least we now know what the problem is.  Bill made about 6 calls to his suppliers in Anchorage and Fairbanks where no one had the motor in stock and it would take 2 weeks before we could expect it.  So while we liked Bill and his lot (especially the price), we said thanks but no thanks.  While were waiting for other shops to open he also fixed the grey water pipe for us… we re-routed it as it was a leak waiting to happen.  Not certain what the RV Engineers were thinking when they designed this set-up but it was terrible.

We were able to get on the internet so I started calling RV dealers in Whitehorse and found one that could have the motor shipped in from Vancouver with arrival (all being well) on Monday and they could take us right away.  Off we go towards Whitehorse. 

Since we did not have to be in Whitehorse until Monday, we decided to stop at a pullout on Lake Kluane.  This is the largest inland lake in the NWT and the native translation is "Big Fish".  Apparently, there are a lot of large lake trout caught here.  It was a beautiful spot right on the lake with absolutely no one else around.  In fact, it was so nice we decided to stay an extra day.

On Friday, Arda was feeling much better so decided to wash the trailer and the truck… they were really dirty but when Arda started cleaning is became evident how dirty they were.  Wow, what a difference!  She did such a great job I think I will keep her around a little longer.  And oh by the way, she also cooked some fresh halibut for dinner that was just delicious!

Did you know?  The salmon hatchery in Valdez incubates, rears, and releases 230 million pink, 18 million chum, and 300,000 king (silvers) salmon eggs every year.  Survival rates (adults returning from fry released) average 4% for pinks, 2% for chums, and 10% for kings (silvers).

A few pictures located at  Alaska Tok

Take care and keep the loops open.