North To Alaska!

I was thinking recently that it's been far too long since I've embarked on an epic road trip. The idea of hitting the highway and seeing the world from behind a windscreen has an almost primal appeal. And since it doesn't get much more epic than Alaska, the idea moved from concept to reality quite rapidly.

For the record, it's been 8 years since I've spent the summer in the 49th State. My folks still live there of course, and Tonya and I both have sisters there, along with some very dear friends. I've never driven the Alaska Highway and Tonya's lone trip was in 1989. What's more, we're already "halfway there" from the perspective of our Lower 48 neighbors. So with all that in play, it was pretty obvious that a trip was in order. So, we're packing up the Jeep and heading out early tomorrow morning.

According to our trusty copy of the 2010 Milepost, it's 2160 miles from Calgary to Anchorage. We plan to take it in three driving days. Day 1 will take us through Alberta into northern British Columbia and an overnight stay in Fort Nelson. We'll head from there to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory on the second day and cross the Alaska border and down into the southcentral part of the state for some long overdue catching up time.

We plan to stay 8 or 9 days and then head back to Calgary, but by a slightly different route. We'll head down the Cassiar Highway into the heart of BC and see parts of the province neither us has experienced to date. And perhaps we'll get our hands on some terrific Okanagan wines in the process too!

Be sure to stay tuned for the occasional travel post. And all my legions of radio fans, don't despair. I'll plan on returning to the CJSW airwaves upon my return to Calgary in August. Of course I'll still be working in the wee small hours but hey, it's a great gig regardless.

So until then, wish us ¡Buen viaje! and safe travels eh!