DALTON HIGHWAY
for road conditions see bottom of page.
THE MYTH AND REALITY OF THE DALTON. JAMES W.
DALTON HIGHWAY IS A SPECTACULAR ROAD TO THE NORTHERNMOST POINT OF AMERICA DRIVABLE
BY PRIVATE VEHICLE - A DRIVE DEFINATELY WORTH THE DETOUR!
James W. Dalton Highway is
a haul road from just north of Fairbanks to Deadhorse (population 25 permanent
+ thousands more depending on oil production), a small town close to the
Arctic Ocean and Prudhoe Bay where oil fields dominate the landscape.
It runs parallel to the Trans Alaska Pipeline which transports oil 800
miles from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez. This road was built in only five months
in 1971. In the early nineties it was opened up for public traffic. Tuesday, July 19: We left Fairbanks
at 8:00 am and hit the Elliott Highway north to connect with the Dalton.
Rolling hills with dense forest eventually gave way to spectacular mountain
scenery and dramatic river and valley vistas. Our first stop was the Hot
Spot Cafe where we bought gas for a whopping $3.39. We had to start a
compressor on a trailer next to the pump (pic2). This is one of only two
gas stations between Fairbanks and Deadhorse, so we couldn't be picky. The next morning greeted us
with sunshine and lots of mosquitoes. We had heard horror tales of dark
clouds of mosquitoes that will make it hard to breathe without inhaling
some bonus protein, but this assault was way less dramatic. Not long after
we got in the car, we were hit with some bad news: smoke coming out of
the engine! We realized that the serpentine belt was torn, somewhat surprising
since we had just replaced it before our departure in LA. However, we
came well prepared and Sven quickly replaced the belt with the spare we
carried - only to find out that the serpentine idler pulley was wobbling
due to a broken bearing, which had caused it to rip the belt. We did not
carry a spare pulley! Luckily, we were close to the DOT station at Sag
River (pic7) and walked there to seek help. The folks at DOT were extremely
helpful and forthcoming and assisted us in arranging for the part to be
transported south from the automotive store in Deadhorse via one of the
countless truck drivers. He was supposed to reach us around 9pm; when
he hadn't shown up by 11pm, we settled for the night. The next morning,
we called Deadhorse again where they were surprised the part hadn't showed
up and suggested that the driver might have dropped off the part in a
hurry without making contact with anyone. A thorough search of the premises,
gate and mailbox area proved that this was not the case. Several more
phone calls revealed that the part had been "misdirected" to
Fairbanks and was on its way back north. Frankly, we think the driver
just got in his truck and rode the same route he always did, forgetting
to stop at the DOT. So the part, which was only 110 miles from its destination,
made a detour of 608 miles! Summary: Disclaimer: |
pic1 pic2 pic3 pic4 pic5 pic6 pic7 for more pics click here |
Detailed Road Conditions | |
Miles | Description |
0 20 25 62 92 113 114 118 160 178 179 193 198 199 210 261 262 277 283 305 316 320 343 361 412 414 |
Dalton
begins Pavement starts Pavement ends Hot Spot Cafe, gas station unleaded only ($3.39) Pavement starts Pavement ends Pavement starts Arctic Circle 66°33' Occasional gravel patches, up to one-mile long stretches around this area Coldfoot, visitor info, gas ($3.29) Pavement ends Turnoff to Wiseman Pavement starts Pavement ends Nice campsite at Middle Fork Koyukuk River 3 Pavement starts Pavement ends Short pavement stretch Fist-size, sharp rocks on road around this area Sag River DOT Station Pavement starts, some gravel on asphalt Pavement ends Pavement starts, first few miles lots of gravel portions on asphalt Pavement ends Pavement for 1/2 mile Dalton ends at Deadhorse |