at Gobblers knob
we stop at Finger Mountain Wayside
this is Finger Rock, pointing towards Fairbanks. It was used by early bush pilots to find their way
there is a short trail to the rockformation
at Yukon River Camp you can stretch the legs
there are only 4 vehicle carrying bridges over the Yukon River, this is one of them
the Trans-Alaska Pipeline uses heatpipes to fight the effect of the permafrost
Coldfoot is one of the two truckstops on the Dalton
crossing the Arctic Circle, a small stap for a man........
the road weaves through endless tundra
The
Dalton highway connects Fairbanks with Deadhorse near the large oil fields of Prudhoe Bay,
way up north at the Arctic Ocean.The Dalton was constructed in 1974 to support the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and has a lenght of about 700 km.
The
road is mainly gravel and only open to 4X4's. At some places it gets pretty tricky or outright dangerous for small cars.
There
are only two truckstops, at Coldfoot and Wiseman.
The highway crosses the Yukon River and at the proper place there
is the Arctic Circle Sign to let you know you crossed the line.
Northern Alaska Tour Company offers full day trips on the Dalton highway with the option to fly from
Coldfoot to the eskimo village Anaktuvuk Pass in the Brooks Mountains. From there you fly back directly to Fairbanks, avoiding the
long drive back in the van.
We did this fascinating tour in June 2007.
just north of Fairbanks there is a small trading post called Joy
the sanitary facilities at Joy
and stroll down to the mighty Yukon. Not visible but dominantly present were the mosquitos
these are outhouses with a wide view
truck drivers have their own table here
Patrick our guide explains permafrost, it starts just 15 cm deep.
