There is so much to say I don’t even know where to begin other than: We made it! Our winter in Alaska adventure is happening!

This crazy Winter in Alaska plan I hatched back in January has officially begun.

The journey north was fast, but uneventful, safe, and without any unexpected challenges. We drove much, much faster than we would have liked, taking just nine days and racking up 3,000 miles on the Dodge. But it’s over. We are here. And it’s time to prepare. Winter is coming!

First Night: Big Timber, Montana. The Sweet Grass County Fairgrounds has terrific boondocking.

The Alaska Highway had fewer animals on it this time year. But we did manage to see several herds of buffalo along the way.

They really don’t care that you’re checking them out. But don’t get too close and be an idiot touron!

We knew we were getting close to Alaska when the state bird came out to greet us.

Mile Zero in Dawson Creek is a Must Stop.

Everyone stops here, and takes each other’s photo. It’s an exciting point in the journey north. But it’s also a daunting reminder that the best is yet to come. That’s because after Mile Zero, it’s all about how well you handle the unexpected.

From Dawson Creek north, the odds of some kind of challenge rise exponentially. Since we shared the driving about 50/50, we always had fresh eyes on the road, even when we put in 8 hour driving days.

The Yukon remains one of our favorite spots, and the photo below shows why. We happened to find this off-the-beaten path location and camped out for a single night. Like the rest of the trip, there were no bears or other wildlife. Tourists do a good job of scaring them away by this point in summer. It would have been nice to stay longer, but we had to move on.

Camping in the Project M was an incredible, worry-free experience unlike anything that our previous RVs have given us. We’ll share more about that in another post. Lots more!

As always, the road through Destruction Bay was bumpy, wild, and full of wet weather. But it was nothing compared to our trip north five years ago.

This time, I took the wheel between Haines Junction and the Alaska border, feeling empowered and courageous when we actually made it through the horrendously awful stretch without incident.

It amazed us that the stretch between Tok and Willow was even more spectacular than the previous 2500 miles.

Alaska just gets better and better the further north you go. We have tons of video and photos coming, all that share the beauty of the nine days we enjoyed getting up here. We wil share all that fun real soon, but for now, it’s a relief to stop moving. We can breathe again, and rest easy knowing that we are home for a while.

Our cabin is more than we could have ever hoped for. What a great surprise!

The house is snug, solidly built, and gorgeous inside. We got here half expecting rodents to have taken residence, but nope. The owner and her husband built this place themselves, and did it with first-class materials and design. With indoor plumbing, a Toyo oil stove for heat, and first-class fixtures, this is living large in the North Country! It’s one of the best houses we’ve ever stayed in, and it will be extra nice when it’s sub-zero outside.

With a big housing crunch and lack of rentals here in the Mat-Su Valley, we feel very, very fortunate to have secured this place for a while.

Summer is still in all its glory up here in Alaska. The sun isn’t setting until after 10 pm. So with that in mind, I’m going to take Nellie out for a little run, and get some Alaska miles under my feet. What a great feeling!