The 400 mile round trip yesterday to retrieve my credit card from a gas station turned out to work in my favor. The route I had chosen, as I thought it was the original Alcan Highway, was to make it Whitehorse, and then take the Klondike Highway to Dawson City, ending at Delta Junction, the end of the Alcan Highway. Unfortunately, the Klondike Highway is closed due to forest fires and flooding. Just like back home in California.
Therefore, I had to find a new path to Fairbanks. Evidently, there are 4 Alcan itineraries listed in the Milepost (the official guide to the Alcan Highway and all of its connecting highways. It turns out that Itinerary 1 follows my route to Whitehorse, and then takes a western highway to Fairbanks Alaska. The drive is only 10 hours long. I have traveled 250 miles today, and am one hour from the Alaska border. After driving 5 hours, with about 75 miles of repaired, pot-holed roads, and an undulating surface, I kept bottoming out my rear shocks and having me rear storage box hit the road (I think). I learned how to travel 50 mph and then slow down when approaching repair areas or undulated surfaces.
I did find the holy grail of rivers crossing the highway. A perfect Grayling stream, the Jasper River, with fishing access right at the parking lot (Milepost stated poor to fair grayling fishing). A couple stated that they each had caught a fish right at the parking lot.
I got my gear on, sans waders and fished by the parking lot a little while. I then hiked the highway and noticed an angler, catching and releasing Grayling in a very picturesque setting. I didn’t go down to the water because of no waders, and that the local mosquitoes tattooed my forehead very painfully. The full, new can of mosquito repellant did not have any aerosol, so a teaspoon of repellent dripped out, ending the dispensing life of the bottle.
Later, I drove past the very large Silver Lake, expecting tributaries galore filled with fish. However, the tributaries were trenched and sided with gravel walls, with only trickles of water entering the lake. 50 to 100 miles up the road I crossed two more beautiful sites, one creek and one river, but neither had access to fish other than jumping off the bridge into the water.
As I cross into Alaska tomorrow, I’ll be near the end of the Sockeye Salmon run on the Russian River. One of my best friends ever, and greatest neighbor / fisherman you could meet, fished the Russion River Sockeye run 30 years ago and it was one of his greatest fishing experiences. I’d like to fish the river even if the run is over.
I’m staying at a nice RV park ((31.50 CAD, about 25 US). I didn’t cross the border today because I have no American money with me, and I may have to go to a bank to get money. The debit machines, and then the Internet all over Canada went down last Friday and has just recently returned.
The Alcan trip so far has been beautiful, but uneventful as to fishing. However, I’ll spend 39 days fishing in Alaska before I am to be in Anchorage on August 15 for the Silver Salmon run. I think I’ll probably catch some fish in the next 6-7 weeks.
So, all you “fish porn” people who want to see pictures of large, fresh fish, will not have to wait much longer. Thanks for hanging in through this “boring / no fishing blog” for so long. Fish Pics are on the way.
Tight Lines!