Our Alaska Trip

The end of our Alaska trip.

September 6 - Thursday - Cache Creek to Everett, Washington - Overcast, 65 degrees

There is a convenient, easy in-and-out Petro station located on the east side of Highway 97 just north of its intersection with Highway 1. We began our day by filling our fuel tank with $1.04 per liter ($3.94 per gallon) diesel and driving south on Trans-Canadian Highway Highway 1. This is a spectacular scenic drive. At first it crosses mountainous terrain with many curves and a number of brief 6 and 7 percent grades. The mountains give way to tree-covered hills and then to relatively level farmland. The route follows the Thompson and Fraser Rivers. Traffic, compared to what we had become accustomed to, was somewhat busy with more than a few big trucks towing tandem trailers.

Just outside the community of Abbottsford, highway signs advise motorists that Exit 92 to Highway 11 (Sumas Way) would lead to the U.S./Canada border crossing. Once there, we waited in line for a half-hour to cross into the United States. Some of the vehicles in front of us were searched, others checked by dogs, we lucked out. A friendly Customs Officer asked us a couple questions ... "Where do you live?" ... "What kind of things did you buy in Canada?" ..., gave us a friendly smile, said "Welcome home" and waved us through.

Traffic was heavy on Interstate 5. Cars zoomed, trucks tailgated, travel lanes appeared and disappeared. We were back in the "lower 48" where every lane is the fast lane.

It had taken four hours to get from Cache Creek to the border crossing and a half hour to cross the border. One and one-half hours later we pulled into the Lakeside RV Park in Everett, Washington ($35.00). Our paved, pull-thru site had 50-amp electric, water, sewer and cable TV (with 99 stations). Our satellite TV antenna had good reception and our cellular phone had a strong signal. Surprisingly, the RV park did not have WiFi but there was a dial-up modem in the laundry room.

Our Alaska trip began in Seattle, WA and ended in Everett, WA. It lasted 44 days. We drove 6,744 miles, purchased $3089.79 of fuel, and had a great adventure.

Note: Had we put our motorhome and car on the ferry from Haines, Alaska to Bellingham, Washington and taken a cabin for the journey, it would have cost $4,400.00 plus the cost of meals purchased on board. But we took the ferry from Haines to Skagway and then drove to Everett, Washington. It cost us $233.00 for the ferry, $769.00 for fuel, and $133.00 for campgrounds, or a total of $1,135.00. We left Haines the same day the ferry departed. We arrived in Washington two days after the ferry.

Read a detailed journal of our 44-day Alaskan journey in "RVing Alaska: Insights and Observations"


Return to RV Travel
================================