fly2low Posted June 9, 2018 Report Share Posted June 9, 2018 For those who have gone to AK, I have a question. Considering taking the Campbell Hwy to Klondike Loop to Top of the World. Thoughts? Rich and Carol 2007 Dynamax DQ 340 XL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2gypsies Posted June 9, 2018 Report Share Posted June 9, 2018 We've gone on the Top of the World Hwy but didn't use the Campbell Hwy. Here's some information on it. It's a long distance of narrow road; mostly unpaved. http://www.dangerousroads.org/north-america/usa/4816-robert-campbell-highway.html Full-timed for 16 YearsTraveled 8 yr in a 2004 Newmar Dutch Star 40' Motorhome and 8 yr in a 33' Travel Supreme 5th Wheel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly2low Posted June 9, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2018 Thank you for the link Ya gotta love it when a road you are considering is on someone's "dangerous" list I had read that it was prudent to stop in Watson Lake Info Center to check on conditions before starting out on the road Which of your rigs did you take on the Top Of The World? Rich and Carol 2007 Dynamax DQ 340 XL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted June 9, 2018 Report Share Posted June 9, 2018 Here are links to info about the Campbell Hwy: https://www.themilepost.com/highways/campbell-highway/ https://www.ehcanadatravel.com/1-yukon/highways/596-robert-campbell-highway.html I don't know about the road being dangerous. Lots of gravel. 60% of gravel on a total road length of 362 miles gives 217 miles of gravel. Not fun. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted June 9, 2018 Report Share Posted June 9, 2018 About the TOW Hwy. In Aug 2016 we took the TOW hwy and enjoyed our trip. We were not in a rush so we took several days boondocking along the way for the trip. That included two nights boondocking at the junction of the Taylor Hwy and Boundary road (the 10 miles of excellent paved road on the AK side of the border) so we could take a day trip to Eagle, AK. Here is a link to our blog entry for that park of our AK trip: http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/2017/01/tok-to-dawson-yt-via-top-of-world-totw.html Spending a few nights at Dawson City, YT is worth while. If you are going there, you might as well take the TOW hwy. If you do go to Dawson City, and if you like to hike on the tundra and love wide open scenic remote places, consider a side trip up to Tombstone Territorial Park. We found Tombstone to rival Denali NP for wide open tundra covered scenic views and great hiking without the crowds in Denali. Granted it doesn't have Denali Mountain to view (if you are lucky enough to be there when there are no clouds). The park is about 40 miles up the Dempster Hwy, which is a gravel road. Pretty muddy when wet. The Dempster hwy starts north about 10 miles east of Dawson City. Here is our blog entry for that side trip: http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/2016/09/tombstone-territorial-park-yt-august-11.html In the blog entry there are several links to info about Tombstone park and the Dempster Hwy. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2gypsies Posted June 10, 2018 Report Share Posted June 10, 2018 21 hours ago, fly2low said: Which of your rigs did you take on the Top Of The World? We took the 40' motorhome & Jeep on the TOW highway. No problems and no issues on the whole summer trip. Didn't get any damage to either vehicle but we traveled construction/gravel areas slowly. Drive on the top 1/2 of your tank. This trip is no place to seek out cheaper prices. Get it when you see it. Full-timed for 16 YearsTraveled 8 yr in a 2004 Newmar Dutch Star 40' Motorhome and 8 yr in a 33' Travel Supreme 5th Wheel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly2low Posted June 12, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2018 In Watson Lake now. Inquired about the Campbell Hwy. It is under repair, but should be good in August when we will be heading back. Might take it then Rich and Carol 2007 Dynamax DQ 340 XL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted June 12, 2018 Report Share Posted June 12, 2018 7 hours ago, fly2low said: In Watson Lake now. Inquired about the Campbell Hwy. It is under repair, but should be good in August when we will be heading back. Might take it then As long as you are willing to drive 200 plus miles on gravel roads, I would recommend either (or both) the Dempster Hwy going 45-50 miles to Tombstone Territorial Park in Yukon, not far from Dawson City, YT. http://www.env.gov.yk.ca/camping-parks/documents/PlanningaTriptoTTP_binder-online_2014_000.pdf http://www.env.gov.yk.ca/publications-maps/documents/tombstone_broch_2013.pdf More info in our blog: http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/2016/09/tombstone-territorial-park-yt-august-11.html Or going up the Dalton Hwy (the Alaska Pipeline haul road) to at least Coldfoot. This takes you up past the Arctic Circle. Here is our blog entry for that trip: http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/2016/06/driving-dalton-highway-may-29-june-1.html Having driven both of the above routes they look much more scenic to me than the Campbell Hwy. I think most of the Campbell Hwy is driving through a nondescript boreal forest. The main views for much of the route is a low forest with trees 10-30 feet tall. Some pictures of the views on the Campbell Hwy: http://www.dangerousroads.org/north-america/usa/4816-robert-campbell-highway.html Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly2low Posted June 13, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2018 We plan on doing both you roads you have mentioned. Plan going up the Dempster as far as Engineer Creek and the Dalton to Coldfoot We'll see about the Campbell in Aug/Sept Rich and Carol 2007 Dynamax DQ 340 XL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted June 13, 2018 Report Share Posted June 13, 2018 Another road of interest is the Steese Hwy just a few miles NE of Fairbanks. There are two good boondocking spots, the first at MM85.5 and the second, Eagle Summit at MM107. Eagle summit has a plaque stating that for 2-3 days around the Summer Solstice, you can view the sun NOT dipping below the horizon. Because of the altitude and the atmosphere bending the rays of the sun you have the view of the sun not setting even though you are quite a few miles south of the Arctic Circle. A few more details in our blog: http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/2016/07/fairbanks-and-steese-hwy-may-19-june-2.html Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill w/bus Posted June 13, 2018 Report Share Posted June 13, 2018 Never have driven the Campbell Highway. However, TOW is a great drive if somewhat slow at times. Take the road to Eagle, RV not recommended. Steese is a good road as it is graded every two weeks in the summer. There a BLM campground about two miles before the turn to Eagle. If memory serves it was $5-6 dollars with the white hair card. Nice spot. In Dawson City we spent three nights camping on the south side of town, maybe two plus miles. Heavy equipment repair and sales with parking up on the elevated back part of the lot. Good breeze so no bugs. I did use his pressure washer to wash the coach and toad. TOW had alternating dry and wet conditions. Enjoy, Bill Bill & Lynn Baxter MCI102A3 Conversion, Detroit Diesel S50 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted June 13, 2018 Report Share Posted June 13, 2018 40 minutes ago, Bill w/bus said: Never have driven the Campbell Highway. However, TOW is a great drive if somewhat slow at times. Take the road to Eagle, RV not recommended. Steese is a good road as it is graded every two weeks in the summer. There a BLM campground about two miles before the turn to Eagle. If memory serves it was $5-6 dollars with the white hair card. Nice spot. In Dawson City we spent three nights camping on the south side of town, maybe two plus miles. Heavy equipment repair and sales with parking up on the elevated back part of the lot. Good breeze so no bugs. I did use his pressure washer to wash the coach and toad. TOW had alternating dry and wet conditions. Enjoy, Bill We also stayed at the industrial area mentioned above. Dry camping only, water is available. At about MM711 look for a small sign on the south side of the Hwy 'RVs $10 Off Road' GPS locationN64.04124 W139.37616. This is just a large gravel lot. Decent view on the elevated section all the way at the rear. We spend a quiet 2-3 nights here. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly2low Posted June 16, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2018 Just got off the Dempster Hwy and sitting in DC. Need to seriously wash the RV and TOAD. Especially the Toad. Having a ball Rich and Carol 2007 Dynamax DQ 340 XL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly2low Posted June 16, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2018 Thanks for the tips guys. The Dempster, though gravel, was smoother than the Klondike loop Rich and Carol 2007 Dynamax DQ 340 XL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly2low Posted June 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2018 If anyone is reading this for tips, the Top of the World is definitely worth the effort. The Dempster to the Tombstone campground is a good grave road. Beyond that point it gets a little rough Noticed that the Canadian portion of the Klondike loop is in better repair than the US portion. It is a limited sample, but the roads I have taken through Canada to get here are in better shape than many I have driven in my home state(WA), and throughout the Western states, and I am not even considering how many of our bridges are considered substandard. It makes me wonder about the future of a country that lets its infrastructure fall apart. Rich and Carol 2007 Dynamax DQ 340 XL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted June 19, 2018 Report Share Posted June 19, 2018 9 hours ago, fly2low said: If anyone is reading this for tips, the Top of the World is definitely worth the effort. The Dempster to the Tombstone campground is a good grave road. Beyond that point it gets a little rough Noticed that the Canadian portion of the Klondike loop is in better repair than the US portion. It is a limited sample, but the roads I have taken through Canada to get here are in better shape than many I have driven in my home state(WA), and throughout the Western states, and I am not even considering how many of our bridges are considered substandard. It makes me wonder about the future of a country that lets its infrastructure fall apart. Totally agree, the Klondike Loop in YT is in better shape than in AK. The gravel TOW hwy in YT is quite a bit wider than the gravel Taylor hwy heading to Chicken from the AK/YT border. Also the hwy from Whitehorse to Dawson City is in better condition than the paved part of the Taylor hwy from Chicken to the Alaska Hwy near Tok. A lot of this is probably because the paved Taylor hwy to Chicken doesn't get that much traffic and is closed in winter. Whereas the Hwy from Whitehorse to Dawson City is going to a much larger town (Dawson City) and is also serving several towns in YT along the way. It is also open in the winter, weather conditions permitting. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bthomforde Posted June 21, 2018 Report Share Posted June 21, 2018 We did the TOW last summer, LOVED it!! was one of the highlights of the trip. We did it in a 45 class A with toad. 2017 Allegro Bus 45OPP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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