Alaska Highway prepare · Prepare in Alaska Highway
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Prepare in Alaska Highway
Prepare in Alaska Highway
Give your car a good mechanical evaluation before you attempt this trip. Sign up for roadside service such as AAA/CAA, but verify that they will cover the entire cost of towing you long distances. Many services will cover only a few hundred dollars, which is not sufficient.
You should carry enough emergency supplies to last yourself one or two nights. Most of the highway has NO mobile telephone service. The nearest tow truck can be 1000 km (650 mi) away. It is even more important to carry emergency supplies in winter to avoid hypothermia and death. At the very least, bring food, water, blankets, a first-aid kit, and spare tires. Wintertime temperatures can dive as low as -40 C / -40 F. Bug repellent may be very nice to have in the summer.
For winter driving, you need winter or all-weather tires and low-weight oil (5W30 or as recommended by your manufacturer).
Be sure to verify that you have the appropriate entry documents for Canada or the United States, depending on your direction. Note that Canadian immigration can request that you show proof of enough funds to cover your trip and an emergency. A bank/ATM receipt, a few credit cards, traveler's checks, or cash will suffice. They will refuse entry to Canada if you do not demonstrate enough funding for your trip.
Gas (petrol) stations in this part of Canada are frequently not 24 h, especially in winter, and most of them do not have a pay-at-the-pump mechanism. Many stations have very long distances between them. You should keep your tank as full as you can and be prepared to wait for a station to open if you arrive in the middle of the night.
Cellphone coverage is very sparse. Do not count on using your cellphone in an emergency.
The highway may be in various states of repair. Be prepared to wait long periods as road crews continue to maintain the road. Winter frost is extremely hard on the roads. Do not be surprised to see deep fissures across the highway.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Alaska Highway
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Alaska Highway - updated May 2024
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WHERE TO TRAVEL NEXT IN 2020
Alaska Highway Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.