A must-see destination north of Fairbanks, Alaska on the Dalton Highway.....

[steve2470]

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/alaskaninterior/1518028480.html

Just 5 miles up the road from the (Yukon) river, the Hotspot Café (tel. [phone]), open daily 10am to midnight, offers dining, lodging, a gift shop, gas (usually), tire repair, and Ice Road Trucker gifts. It also operates only mid-May to mid-September.

In 2009 I was there with my son. Roscoe "the beggar dog" wanted to eat my lunch very badly. I wonder if he's still there.

[MuseRider]

1. We wanted to try that road,

I was really excited by it but we had two young sons with us and we were cramped for time so we did not even try any of it.

Heard it was difficult at best, lol. Would still love to try it but not certain about the Atigun Pass.

[steve2470]

2. It's very difficult, many ruts and potholes

Make sure your suspension, shocks, undercarriage etc are in very good condition. It was well worth the trip, despite the jolts and running out of gas (!). Yea yea I know, I miscalculated my gas and there are almost no gas stations whatsoever.

[MuseRider]

3. Hopefully we will make it back

but with my husband's heart problems and our age it might not be the thing for us to try. I would still love to. I loved Alaska and do want to go back.

[steve2470]

4. Make sure you have a 100% full tank of gas before you go....

Make you sure calculate your mileage correctly, so you don't get stuck. Fill up your tank every single opportunity you get.

I think a passing trucker would help you, but that's relying on the kindness of strangers.

I definitely would not try it the first time after October 1st or so or before May 1st.

Cell-phone service, of course, dies outside of Fairbanks. I was lucky I was pretty close to Fairbanks when I ran out of gas. AAA saved my ass lol

[MuseRider]

5. AAA good ole AAA

I figure it would be wise to carry a big gas can full of fuel.

Did you make the entire trip? If so what was that pass like? I am terrified of heights but we have done some freaky roads in Colorado. I hide and whimper, seriously. If not for that and my lack on knowledge about car repair I would do it in a minute. My husband knows as much as I do about car repair, we would be a mess.

Oh but I bet it is so worth it seeing what you see on a trip like that. *sigh* it sounds so beautiful.

[steve2470]

6. We did not make the entire trip, no

We made it to the Arctic Circle, stopped, took a bathroom break and came home.

I think if your car is in excellent repair, you should be ok. You might consider renting a 4 wheel drive vehicle. It was a wonderful trip.

http://www.alaskaroads.com/dalton+pipeline-large.jpg

[MuseRider]

8. Thank you n/t

[Jenoch]

7. I was up that way, north of Fairbanks,

when I was a kid, but it was before the Dalton Highway was built. We drove from Minnesota to Alaska up the Alcan Highway. There were 1,200 miles still unpaved. That was an adventure.