I've had lot's of questions about the Dalton Hwy and what is it really like? Will you like it? Is it dangerous? What's the weather like? etc etc
Well, I'll be as honest as I can and say in my opinion it's one of the scariest roads you'll ever ride but in a really good way. It's not because it's hard to ride or the conditions are so bad, it's because you are miles from anywhere, no phone signal, no AA van, no burger bar. If you break down, have puncture or fall off you are on you own so you have to make contingency plans i.e carry spares and puncture kit, 1st aid kit extra fuel etc etc.
It's a really exillarating experience being up there knowing how remote it is but you have to be aware of the issues about you. In reality, riding in a group up there is the way to do it and it will be 100% fine but you need to know it's not a blast round a green lane on a Sunday morning. If you really don't want to tackle it on this trip that's no problem and I'll design a nice little 3 day road ride in the area.
Some specific questions answered:
Mileage: It's approx 1000 mils from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay and back and we will do it in 3 days. 1 - Fairbanks to Wiseman approx 250 miles 50% tarmac and 5 hours. 2 - Wiseman Prudhoe Bay Wiseman approx 500 miles and a mixture of everything. 12 hours. 3 - Wiseman to Fairbanks. The first 100 or so miles from Fairbanks is really good tarmac with lovely sweeping corners.
Fuel: There is gas at the Yukon crossing (90 miles from Fairbanks), Coldfoot (250 from Fairbanks) and Prudhoe Bay (500 from Fairbanks). Most bikes won' t make the last stretch so we will carry extra.
Luggage: We will take off the panniers etc and leave them in Fairbanks as there is no point taking a fully loaded bike. Wash bag, camera, Deet and a pair of clean undies is good enough. We will have 2 nights in a place called wiseman halfway up the Dalton.
Food: Carry plenty of water and energy food as there are restaurants in Coldfoot and Prudhoe Bay.
Wildlife: You will see Deer, Caribou, an occasional Moose and the odd Arctic Fox. You may be lucky and see a bear or two. Mosquitos are the big thing up there and carry plenty of deet. Those feckers are enormous and can really spoil your day if you don't take precautions.
Tyres: I will be on Heidenau's or TKC's. You can ride it on Tourances etc but I like the safety and security of knobblies. It's hard enough without wobbling about like a new born foal.
Weather: It can be 90+ in Fairbanks and freezing on the Atigun Pass and in Prudhoe bay. One minute you are sweating buckets and 5 minutes later you are wet and cold so layers and waterproofs are essential.
Road conditions: They range from good tarmac to gravel to dirt. The hardest bits are when the roads have been freshly graded and they are soft so if you see a grader, take extra care! They put some sort of cement dust down and when it's dry it's fantastic but when it rains it's like slippery treacle so be warned. It sticks to your bike like sh*t to a blanket and sets like concrete. It does wash off though so it's not the place to be if you like a clean bike at the end of the day.
Trucks: You will here horror stories of trucks trying to run you off the road and you should pull off when you see one to avoid the flying gravel. In my experience, the truckers are top guys and gals and can't believe anyone chooses to be there. If you see one coming, pull over slightly to the right and they do the same to give each other room and they always wave. If you have a break down, chances are they will stop and check you are OK and radio ahead to other people. They don't hang around though so do not get in their way!!
Speed: In the right condition you can cruise on the dirt at 55 but if it gets wet, this will slow dramatically.
It's a brilliant road to ride and getting to Prudhoe Bay has to be in most people's list of places to go. There's nothing there really but there is something about being 300 miles north of the Arctic Circle which makes you glad to be alive and believe me, it's worth every hard mile of the road.
Here's a little taster from 2009
<object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/B8ZmHUYj-xU?fs=1&hl=en_GB"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/B8ZmHUYj-xU?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object>