Final thoughts on the Alaska Adventure

Finally, on the third try we made the trek to Alaska.  For us, it was a once in a lifetime trip and has created memories that will last for the rest of our lives.  I say once in a lifetime because I wouldn't drive it again unless it was in a vehicle that I didn't care about.  I would certainly return to Alaska but probably via cruise ship, train and rental car.  Fuel prices in Canada were less than we actually budgeted for as we paid a low of $4.36 and a high of $6.41 per gallon.  Fuel in Alaska was all over $4.00 per gallon.  The truck performed well and most of the time averaged nearly 10 miles per gallon.

I know that I did a lot of complaining about the roads and while it was justified in my own mind, the Canadian and Alaskan roads aren't really any worse than roads in the lower 48.  The advantage we had by unlimited time and the slow speeds we drove, gave us opportunities to see some awe inspiring vistas.  You'd round a curve or crest a hill and the scenery would be completely different and just jaw dropping in beauty.  Whether it be small mountain lakes, hills and mountains of trees or a glacier fed river, the beauty was incredible.

To anyone who followed us and thought we were impeding them please accept our apologies, but the first word on the speed limit signs is "maximum."  If 70 or 75 kph is too slow for you in a 100 kph zone you probably should have left sooner.  We were there to enjoy the beautiful scenery not to drive like a bat outta hell to get to the next stop.  After all, life is about the journey, not the destination.

A big thank you to our friends, Bill and Peggy and Bob and Ellen, who accepted that we are not fishermen but did indulge us.  We're sorry that you got "skunked" with us along.  We shall not bring bad luck to fishermen again and will confine our catching to Safeway, Krogers, or any seafood market that looks good. :)

Our entire journey was 7400 miles and just about 3 months.  We did everything we wanted to and saw more than we ever expected.  That said, we would have appreciated a little more cooperation from the big bull mooses, especially the ones who posed for the moose crossing road signs.  One of these days we'll get back to Yellowstone to see the big bulls again.  The number of bears that we saw really does make up for not seeing any big bull mooses.  We are grateful for other animals we did see, especially the herd of Bighorn Sheep that hung around and posed for us in Radium Hot Springs.

So, ultimately, I think driving to Alaska is something I will never regret doing and would recommend it to anyone who has the time, and the desire to see some incredible beauty.


Till the next trip, keep smiling.

Back into Canada, eh?

Haines Jct

We're firmly on our way home and now part way through Canada.  We made it through the worst of the Alcan highway which is the 150 miles between Tok, Ak and White River YT.  We stayed at a couple of the same campgrounds so far that we stayed at on the way up.  Our first stop in Canada was White river campground which we enjoyed both times we stayed there.  It is in a beautiful setting and run by some really nice people.  When we left White River we were going to make it a shorter day coming back by staying in Haines Junction.  That was a nice night but learned that when a place advertises "cable TV" you really have no way of knowing what you're going to get.  We had 5 movie channels and one PBS channel out of Alaska.  Still couldn't find anything worth watching so thank goodness for our
collection of DVDs.

Our next stop was going to be in a place called Teslin with a nice looking park on a lake but they had a big caravan** in and the place they wanted us to park was going to take way too much effort to wiggle into, so on we went down the road but the next place we wanted to stop was out of business.  We passed a few spots along the highway that would have been ok to "boondock" in (dry camp) but didn't really get a good look til we were already past the entrance.  So, we ended up in Walkers Resort on the continental divide.  Again, this was a place we stayed at on the way up so we knew what to expect.  It started raining about the time we went to sleep and kept raining all night.  Good for sleepin'

**A caravan is a large organized group of RVs that travel together to a destination.  Most of the Alaska Caravans run about $3500 per RV and that pays for your RV parks and some excursions.  You still have to pay your own fuel and food.  Everything is taken care of as far as reservations, stops, excursions, etc but you have to go where the group goes.  I guess good for some people but too restrictive for us.

All things Jade

Anyhow, after we left Walkers, we had about 85 miles til we turned off the Alcan onto the Cassiar Hwy.  This is just another route that will keep us closer to the coast with a planned stop in Stewart/Hyder to see the grizzly bears fish for salmon.  We knew the Cassiar wasn't as heavily traveled as the Alcan but according to the Milepost Book we should have a better chance of seeing wildlife and some really awesome views.  So far, great view, little wildlife. The first real stop is a little place called Jade City which is an old jade mining area with a free parking lot for RVs to spend the night.  No hookups just a place to park, and they have a Jade gift shop. (nothing is free)  There were jade rock and boulders of all sizes, being cut up, for sale and plenty of jade things.

Well, we made it 50 miles down the Cassiar, not even to Jade city, and pulled into the first rest area we came to to discuss turning around!  THE ROAD SUCKED!!!   Frost heaves, break ups in the asphalt, expansion cracks a foot wide and 6 inches deep.  It was about 2:30 and we were both wiped out and beat up.  So, we set up and poured a beer, with the intent that we would boondock one night and head back to the Alcan in the morning. It was just us in the rest stop, with the new generator, camping like we were in our right minds!  We decided that we would try and find someone who knew the road and get a status report of what is to come.  A guy from British Columbia came by and told us that the road would get better now until we got about 160 km down the road to Dease Lake then it would be a good road the rest of the way.  I'm glad we talked to him because the road has been better and the scenery is beautiful.  We now only have about 400km to go on the Cassiar and we're both happy we stayed the course.  This highway is just about 700km long so the worst is behind us.

Iskut

This highway is not very populated and has fewer camping spots. After leaving the rest area, we bounced along for about another 155 miles and stopped at a place called Iskut and surprisingly a very nice camp spot on a lake. In fact, one of the better ones
we've stopped at.

The Bus

Next stop we left the Cassiar and headed toward the coast to two towns of Stewart, in BC, and Hyder, 6 miles away in AK. They are 41 miles down a narrow canyon, very lush and the walls are running with numerous waterfalls. It was very rainy and the rivers were swollen. In Hyder, a small stream is teeming with spawning salmon and the black bears and grizzlies come to feed on them. There is even a viewing platform set up to observe but not be too close. Our first visit we didn't see any bears, just tons of fish. That by itself is pretty cool. So we went back into "town" and had lunch at The Bus. Fresh seafood dishes cooked by a local woman and her bus. Then we went back to the viewing platform and luck! First, a black bear came below the platform, through the bushes and ate on the berries. We waited a while longer, I was away from the end of the platform and I heard someone say the grizzly was back. I scooted back to the end and was luck to get some photos. He was walking back and forth across the river, not feeding just looking, but it was still very cool.

And with seeing the bears, we saw and did what we wanted to on this trip. With the exception of actually catching any fish. We do have fish from Alaska, but our friends gave them to us! The last of our 4-5 days in Canada will be just driving south to enter back into Washington. Then the big task of thoroughly cleaning the trailer and truck, inside and out, and putting things back together after all the jostling on the not so smooth roads.

We had a blast.

Denali and Fairbanks

This leg we continued north toward Denali and Fairbanks with  one night stops in Portage Valley and Willow, halfway to Denali. We cruised into Denali park town, which is just a strip of a town with hotels on one side of the highway and food and souvenirs on the other. Our camp is 6 miles north of the town and is typical of all the camps we've found in Alaska. It's pretty small, crowded with caravaners and mostly gravel. Not much you can do to spruce things up up here.

We planned a hike in the park, so went down to the visitor center and found free shuttles to get around. It took us 13 miles into the park, which is all the farther you can drive your car. There are bus tours in farther, the end of the road is 92 miles and a 13 hour tour. No guarantee you will see the mountain or wildlife. Kinda like fishing. We have seen the mountain before and all of our time here it has been cloudy. Even though the hike was fairly easy and short, only 2 miles, it was along the Savage river and a nice day. The terrain up here is pretty stark, few trees, scrubby bushes and rocky mountains. You can really see the effect of permafrost on plants, everything seems stunted.

Denali in the clouds

With a tour saver book we picked up, we took in a dinner theater at the Princess lodges chalet. Big salmon and rib dinner, family style and entertainment afterwards. Even hit some of the souvenir stores. The weather was not conducive to many outdoor activities but we did pick some wild blueberries just back of the campground. Their fate is probably a cobbler.  "And it was tasty" said Bill!

Big pots everywhere

We continued on to Fairbanks and stopped for a week. Fairbanks is a smallish town, but has the necessities. Everyone seems to live in clearing in the trees. You don't see subdivisions, just lots of trees. We found a couple of brew pubs, HooDoo and Silver Gulch. The food at Silver Gulch was good, we enjoyed a club sandwich with a cheese pizza as the crust.. There are roads north of Fairbanks one can take, the Dalton highway (Ice Road truckers) to Prudhoe bay, but it's almost 500 miles of dirt, no thanks, to Circle, but it's almost closed, and to Manley hot springs, again all dirt and a ways. We opted for the paved road to Chena hot springs and it was a good day trip. The hot springs was very hot and very nice. The drive was scenic, except for all the smoke and we spotted 3 moose. We almost took a river dinner cruise, but the last thing we felt like eating was another big salmon bake dinner. Time to cut back on eating.

AHHH

Our campground was actually in North Pole and of course we visited town cuz that's where Santa is. Got pictures of reindeer, a sleigh and the house for the little granddaughter.

And along one of the highways is a pull out to see the pipeline. Pretty interesting and not all is above ground.

The time here in Fairbanks has been nice as we've prepared for the trip back to the lower 48.  Restock the larder and get the equipment ready for the road back.  Plus having a week of down time has been good for the body.  I think we're ready for the days of driving now.   This will be our last blog from Alaska.  Depending on what we have for phone signals or wifi at the Canadian RV parks will determine what we can send on the way back.

Kasilof and Kenai

Low tide marina

When we left Homer we headed a few miles back north to the town of Ninilchik.  Not really much of a town but famous for charter trips to catch huge (up to 300 lb) Halibut.  Dave and Ellen Smith, whom we met at Escalante this spring, have a summer home there and invited us to fish with them on their little boat.  We stayed closer to shore and fished in 40' of water.  We had to launch and recover the boat, down a river during high tide so were only able to fish for about 2 hrs.  When we got back empty handed, Dave said that was the first time he'd ever been skunked.  Hmmmm, could it have been us?  Ellen did have some freshly canned salmon that she turned into salmon patties that were delicious!

Homer, the peninsula and Ninilchik have a strong Russian influence. There are other Russian named towns and churches still remain, and are still "working" churches. Besides fishing, there isn't much else to see in Ninilchik.

Next, we moved north again to Kasilof which is about 12 miles south of Kenai and Soldotna. Across Cook Inlet, that part of Alaska is roadless. Four volcanoes mark the shoreline and are the start of the Aleutian island. We had beautiful views of Mt Iliamna and Mt Redoubt. Both have erupted in the last 10 hears.

Fishing the Kenai

Russian Orthodox church

We spent 6 nights there and were able to catch up with Bill and Peggy Deal, whom we met when we wintered in Texas, and  they have their summer home just north of Soldotna.  We were able to spend some time with them and  they even took us to their cabin along the Kenai River.  Now the Kenai river, for all of us non fisherman, is the primo spot to catch salmon when they're running up stream to spawn.  They provided us with their fishing gear and expertise and turned us loose.  A few  fish were actually hooked but nothing landed.  They said they had never been skunked before, so now, we're pretty sure it's us.  Don't ever take Bill and Gail fishing unless you want to get skunked!!  It was still a great afternoon and they grilled some fresh frozen salmon for us for dinner.  The only down side to Kasilof was that we had our 2 gas cans stolen off the truck.  Thieves have been hitting the State Park down the road and I guess it was just the time for them to expand their crime spree.  It could have been worse.

We visited a couple of breweries, Kassik, very good and St. Elias, ok. We walked the beach agate hunting at Captain Cook state park but it was more fun plopping rocks in the mud flats at low tide. All of the Cook inlet and Turnagain arm have mud flats and very low tides. It is very dangerous to walk out on them at low tide as it is like quicksand. Quickmud and you will disappear. Tossing rocks in is like watching mud pots burble at Yellowstone. 

Plopping

Mt Iliamna

Mt Redoubt

Camping on the peninsula is different and not to our liking. Everything revolves around fishing and those people just want to pretty much step out the camper and fish. Consequently, most campgrounds are just gravel parking lots, RVs stacked side by side and in the middle of town. Not inviting. At Kasilof we found a quiet, wooded campground, but 15 miles from Kenai/Soldotna town. We got quiet a surprise when we went to the Kenai Walmart on a Saturday. Pretty empty parking lot and inside practically all the food shelves were empty! I mean completely empty. Everything was bought up by the tourist the last weekend of the season.

Kenai Peninsula/Homer

We've spent the last couple of weeks on the Kenai Peninsula and have had a wonderful time.  Our first stop was the town of Homer for 5 days.  We were in a nice park on the north edge of town.  Because we're a bit on the long side we were put into one of their 10 pull through sites with full hookups.  Pretty nice except that the pull throughs didn't have cable TV and it was British Open weekend so my golf fix was relegated to what I could read on the internet.  Fortunately I did find the final round on ABC on Sunday afternoon so even though I knew who the winner was, we still enjoyed watching.  Homer is a really nice little town just about straight south of Anchorage with great views of the Cook inlet.  There is a spit that runs out into the bay with lots of RV parks we could have stayed at but because we wanted to stay near out friends Ron and Carolyn we opted for Oceanview Park.  It's probably a good thing because every time we went to the spit the wind was howling!

Kachemak park

We did have an all day kayaking trip scheduled for Friday but as we were headed to the water taxi, the owner called and said the trip was cancelled because of the wind.  Good thing too!!  We did reschedule for Saturday and this time we were treated to a great day of kayaking.  We took a water taxi across the main bay to Peterson Bay which is where St. Augustine Kayak Adventures is located.  Our guide Kenny was a wonderful young man with a Masters degree in Environmental Science.  Very knowledgeable and accommodating.  The Cook Inlet has some of the greatest tide fluctuations on earth, 20+ feet per day between low and high tide.  We launched in our double kayak off of a floating dock at just after low tide.  As we were paddling we were stopped near a small island waiting for the tide to rise a few inches so we could cross between the island and the shore and not have to go around the island.  As we were sitting there we saw a little harbor seal pop his head up a pretty good ways away from us.  He just bobbed there watching us for a while then went under.  A bit later he popped up behind us, but closer to the kayak.  This up and down and getting closer just kept going on for a while and as the tide got in enough for us to continue our trip he came up only about 5 feet behind us and followed us across the little gravel bar that was now deep enough to paddle over.  I wonder how close he would have gotten if we'd have just sat still for a bit longer?  Oh well, it was still cool and Kenny said he'd never seen that behavior before.

On our adventure we saw lots more seals and lots of sea otters.  The otters are really fun to watch.  They just float along on the surface grooming, eating or sleeping.  Some of the older ones we saw were used to the kayaks and we could get closer to them than the younger ones.  In addition to the mammals we saw lots of seabirds and even some Bald Eagles.  Very Cool!!  Our paddle ended with a float through an arch in the rocks, so a good day was had by all.  We ate lunch at a small beach as the tide came rushing back in. Our trip back to the spit was not nearly as fast as out trip over because the wind had come up and things got a bit choppier and huge swells.  Everyone on the boat survived and no one "chummed" over the side:)  After that long day we treated ourselves to dinner out at the Cosmic Cafe, whose marquee offers "Breakfast, Lunch, and Mexican".  We had HUGE Mexican burritos!  Good Times

Tide out

Tide in

Seward

July 13


We landed in Seward 2 days ago for a 5 night stay.  We're in a park about 5 miles north of the actual town of Seward.  Like most of the RV parks in Alaska it's pretty much just an overpriced field with water and electric hookups.  This park does however have 50 amp service which was a bit of a surprise. The most popular campgrounds are right down on the water and just big parking lots. Important if all you want to do is fish but not for us.

There is plenty to do here and yesterday we spent the day at Exit Glacier in the Kenai Fjords National Park.  We had beautiful day of weather, hiked a lot.  The ranger told us at the entrance that because of the amount of water in the river we wouldn't be able to get right up to the "toe" of the glacier, so we just followed the trail up to the edge of it for photos.  As we were descending the trail we saw a group of people at the "toe" and figured we could get there too.  So, we found the trail to the outwash area and after stepping through the water on rocks and climbing through a bunch of bushes on a narrow trail along the river we made it out to the "toe" of the glacier.  We both decided that the effort was definitely worth it.  Got some really interesting views of the ice and were able to see the massive amount of water that melts off the glacier.  Amazing!!
 This glacier is just one of many off the Harding icefield, above the glacier and covering the mountain range. Many glaciers reach down to the ocean like tentacles and some you can drive to.

The glaciers that reach to the water are accessed best by boat and that's what we did.  On Sunday, we met up with friends from Tucson and joined them on a 7.5 hour boat tour around Kenai Fjordes National Park.  What a wonderful trip and we saw so many things.  We saw sea otters playing and swimming in the bay and Stellar Sea Lions lounging on the rocks and playing in the water.  We also saw 2 Humpback whales that the onboard NPS
ranger described as a mother and calf and what a show they put on for us.  They swam very close to the boat and a couple of times even breached for us, one time even coming completely out of the water.  WOW!!

The captain took the boat close to the tidewater glaciers and we heard them cracking and saw a couple of them calve off some ice.  Then some of the crew fished a big chunk of the glacial ice out of the water and made drinks with it.  So Gail and I shared a margarita made with ice that was older than us :)  Pretty tasty and the bartender was generous with the tequila.  Woo Hoo!!  We were also treated to a wonderful lunch of prime rib and fresh salmon on the boat.  Overall it was money well spent and a great way to spend the day!

Monday, we spent the day at the Alaskan Sea Life Center.  It's a non profit organization that teaches about the sealife of Alaska as well as rehabilitating injured or orphaned animals.  They have several Stellar Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, Birds, Fish, and even a couple of orphaned Sea Otters.  It was fun watching the staff interact with the animals, especially those little otters.  They get fed hourly, then play a while, then they get groomed to include getting their fur blow dried.  They're really cute little guys, who will eventually go to a zoo somewhere, because with the human interaction and missing the teachings of their natural mother they won't be able to hunt for themselves.  Another day well spent!

North to Alaska

July 5, 2013


AND WE FINALLY MADE IT!!  We're now in Tok, Alaska for a day or two before we make our way down towards Anchorage.

The truck and trailer held together and got us here in one piece.  We ran into our worst roads for about the last 400 miles.  Construction, gravel, mud, dips, frost heaves, and places where the road is falling away and sinking in the middle.  A lot of areas of 35 mph, some of 20 mph and a few of 50 mph.  I will admit that I drive slower than most but the way some of these guys drive I'm surprised we didn't see some broken trailer springs along the way.  Oh well, they probably have time constraints and don't suck!

We did come across the aftermath of a couple of accidents though.  First we saw several cars, a motorhome and an ambulance along the road and really didn't know what happened but later heard that someone hit a buffalo calf and that was probably it.  Then yesterday on a gravel stretch we saw a Gold Wing and it's little tow behind trailer  in the ditch and a Mountie doing an accident report.  Hopefully the riders are ok.

Mac is turning into a pretty good little rider but he sure likes the days when we are not moving.  He fusses a bit and tries to hide in the closet when the slides start coming in.  On the day we were in Grande Prairie he stepped on the window button and escaped from the truck while we were in the office getting checked in.  We came out and he was on the ground under the trailer pretty freaked out.  I think he scared himself and hasn't done that again.  We also fashioned a cardboard cover for the window buttons and now turn the truck off too.

Snoozing

July 9, 2013

We've moved on from Tok and have now settled in Palmer for a few days.  Our trip down from Tok was split into 2 travel days so we spent the night half way in Glennallen. (about 145 miles each day)  The shorter drive days are really nice here because you run into bad roads and it is exhausting!  For example, between Tok and Glennallen, we ran into a stretch of about 45 miles where we actually pulled over and discussed whether we really wanted to keep going.  I'm talking broken asphalt, huge areas where the road is caving in in the middle and some generally big frost heaves.  If we get on a stretch where we can do 50 we're doing good.  When you do run into a spot that is under construction you wonder how bad it must have been for them to finally commit the resources to rebuild it.

MOOOOSE!

From Glennallen to Palmer most of the way was pretty nice and smooth.  The road had been straightened and rebuilt along the Matanuska river.  I imagine it was done because there is an area which would be about 125 miles north of Anchorage that appears to be a real popular spot for riding ATV's.  All along that drive we saw some beautiful vistas and with the new road there were plenty of turn outs.  We also saw our first Alaskan Moose.  I think it was a cow running alongside of us next to the trees.  While I complain a lot about the roads they do keep a wide area on either side of the road between the asphalt and the trees.  That way if you do see an animal you should stand a good chance of seeing it and avoiding it should it decide to cross the road.

Matanuska glacier

We're in a nice park on the outskirts of Palmer.  Pretty much just a big open field with full hookups but the price was decent.  Yesterday we ventured over to the neighboring town of Wasilla who has the nearest Walmart.  Woo Hoo!!  We looked but don't really think we saw Russia :)  We also splurged and saw The Lone Ranger.   Funny


 Tis the season for fishing and we think we've found a fishing guide to take us out for a full day of salmon fishing later in the month.  It's a full day trip for Sockeyes and we've been told that they will probably increase the daily limit from 3 to 6 fish.  That makes it a bit more affordable per pound of fish.  They furnish the fishing equipment but we'll have to find some hip boots or waders.  (Craigs list should provide what we need)  More on that later.

Thursday 7/11 we head toward Seward with a quick stop in Anchorage. Planning some tours on Prince William sound, maybe sea kayaking and brewery sampling!

Into the Yukon

June 30

We’ve moved along and are now about 1/4 of the way along the Al-Can.  We’re spending 2 nights in Laird Hot Springs.  The hot springs are in a Provincial Park but it was full for camping so we’re at a commercial park across the road.  We’ll still be able to access the hot springs but will just have to pay a day use fee.  Aside from a place to park and a small lodge there’s nothing here, not wifi, no TV, no radio, no phone service.  Thank goodness for our collection of DVDs.

We left Ft Nelson yesterday morning. The Milepost (Alaskan highway guide book) advises rough and improved road for the next 138 miles. We have the 2008 version but it was still applicable. Pretty bumpy and uneven road most of the way, several patches done and none of it is smoothly blended. The drive was through mountainous areas, passes and canyons, very scenic. Some of the highlights were a stop at the Cinnamon Bun Center of the Galactic Cluster, Testa River camp, for hot fresh cinnamon buns. In the middle of nowhere, this RV camp and lodge makes fresh bread and cinnamon buns daily and everybody stops. They were very large and extra gooey. We ate 2 there and took 2 to go for another breakfast!

And today for the first time, all the warning signs about wildlife came true. We hit the bonanza on seeing animals. Stone sheep, looks like a mountain goat but somewhat darker, small like a sheep, were all over the road and just eating on the shoulders. A couple of deer along side the road, some caribou and for some reason bison live up here. This is not prairie country so go figure. We saw 1 along the road but then a ranger car herded it, police lights included, across the road and into the woods. We only saw it being chased away.  No doubt making it a safer road for the people in a hurry.   A road sign at our current stop promises animals ahead. But we still want/need to see the moose and more bears.  Actually, we had some excitement in the park as a resident bison sauntered in to munch some grass.  Apparently, we're told, this particular fellow likes to charge people.  So, for excitement we got to get a couple of photos and then the locals started scaring him away with explosives (?)  Actually, it sounded like gun shots but I really don't think anyone was trying to hurt him.  It just seemed funny the way the people were scurrying around trying to protect the tourists. 

Being at the Laird Hot Springs meant we had to take a dip, of course. A 1/4 mile boardwalk took us through the warm water swamps and forest to a pool built around the hot springs. It flows out of the hill like a river and is very hot, about 110. There are two pools so it cools farther downstream. The walk back was a fight with the mosquitoes.

We followed lots of rivers, easiest path for the highway builders to follow, one side of the divide they were very muddy and the other pretty clear, but turquoise. And boy are the mosquitoes out in force, and HUGE. This is good preparation for when we get to Alaska and have to combat the really, really huge ones.  We lather daily now with our special Australian repellent and carry OFF in the car for stops. It’s pretty annoying.

Sign forest Watson Lake

July 1, Happy Canada day

On the road again.  Left Laird this morning at our usual time (10:00 am) and headed toward a campground about half way to Whitehorse.  We really had another animal bonanza today as we saw lots of buffalo and quite a few black bears just hangin' out and munchin' along the road.  It was a good day.

Yukon

I was quite concerned about the condition of the road but so far have  been pleasantly surprised.  Sure, we do run into bad patches where we have to slow down to 35 or so but for the most part the roads are good enough for us to maintain 50-55 (thats miles per hour for our kilometer based friends).   Today, we had a long stretch that was being rebuilt and they had it down to a gravel road base.  We had to follow a pilot car for part of the way and it was very dusty, and of course the dust gets through the slide seals  and all over the inside of the trailer.  A nice white coating. After we got through the dust, we hit a hard rain storm so now we're completely coated with mud.  Hopefully, in Whitehorse, the park will have a wash bay. A thorough inside cleaning will have to wait till we are done.