Driving to Alaska

Thanks for the tip.

I should cross tomorrow afternoon at Osoyoos.

 

Wrong wrong wrong... The streams are 30° but because it is running water it does not freeze in the summer....... LOL

 

I don't suppose many native Alaskans know how to swim because of this!

 

BT/DT to all of the above. I fully agree.

Fuel prices at Tesoro in Sutton are reasonable and they also give a .05 cent discount (IIRC)to truckers.

I've also camped behind Home Depot in Anchorage, and behind WalMart in Fairbanks numerous times with no issues.

In Tok there's plenty of parking at Fast Eddies resteraunt and they have great food and free wifi. Motel and beer store right there also, if you're doing a 34.

Even with these limited options regarding fuel and parking, you still will not miss a peelot. LOL

 

Summer intrastate freight should be busy. I wonder if any carriers need help and will use outside carriers for hauling flatbed loads to the slope.

 

I am not sure what kind of truck you have and how it is spec'ed, but the road is horrendous right now. I just talked to a friend of mine today who just came back from doing an oil load up to Prudhoe Bay. Our freight up the haul road is all contracted out to not destroy our equipment. There are a lot of custom trucks that run that road.

Check with Carlyle, Lynden, Weaver Bros, Sourdough, Fairchild, Sleipner, and there are some other ones I can't think of until I see them going down the road.

 

Good info.

Lift axles are illegal in AB also, and I believe we have the same restriction on wide-base singles.

However, just as an FYI, we have been using tri-drive trucks and tridem trailers in AB and BC for many, many years and there is probably more heavy haul work done in these two provinces (especially AB) than anywhere else in N.A. There is definitely no lack of ability to move loads of any size. As to the difference of spread weights and vs. tridem... I have no clue, haven't really looked into it. We also use a lot of "wheelers" (axles with eight tires on them), which I believe are not recognized in most (if not all) states.

 

What are the latest length requirements for 4 axle tractors in AB and SK? I've been looking into buying a 7 axle rig to run mostly the lower 48. The tractor will have two driven axles, self-steering auto lift before the drives, and 20000lb steer axle with those same wide steer tires being used on the lift axle rated at 20000lb. Is Canada out of the question with this setup? I really don't have any need for the extra weight, cost, and maitenance needs of a tri-drive.

 

With the that setup you'll be limited to tandem axle weights. The length will depend on your trailer wheelbase and what you can permit but for a decent RGN you'll be limited to 244" wheelbase. The thing with tridrives is unless your going to be moving heavy loads in the mud and #### like they do in AB there's no need for the extra weight without needing the extra traction.

 

Hey rockyroad did you make it to Alaska? I rolled into Fairbanks about 15:00 this afternoon and got one drop of early. One more in the morning and than I am off to Wasilla, Eagle River and Anchorage.