Bike, Ski, and RV: Yukon to Southeast Alaska

Follow Zanny & Peter’s Route:

We started and finished our trip in Whitehorse, Yukon, and drove a loop including two beautiful ferry rides in Alaska. Some highlights and recommendations:

• Dyea Flat (Skagway, AK)
• Mendenhall Glacier (Juneau, AK)
• Haines Pass (AK / Canada border near Haines, AK)
• Kathleen Lake (Haines Junction, Yukon)

PLAN AN RV TRIP

Zanny & Peter’s Pro RV Tips

An RV might be the perfect base camp for adventuring: imagine a small hotel room on wheels, with all the amenities, parked right at the trailhead. Considerably more comfortable than a tent in any weather, with zero setup time, and complete with a bed, fridge, stove, running water, and all-important bug-nets in the windows.

But there are also a lot of ways in which RVs are decidedly not hotel rooms—they’re much smaller, and there’s no housekeeping service to clean it while you’re away. Here are a few tips to keep in mind to make the most of your RV for adventuring.

1. Look for trailheads where you can camp! Staying multiple nights in one campsite brings on another level of comfort and relaxation, and being able to decompress from the day without driving anywhere is amazing. Whether you’re skiing, climbing, hiking, or biking, you’ll love waking up or falling asleep at the trailhead.
2. Not all trailheads allow camping, and not all campsites have great access to trails or mountains or beaches—but we promise it’s worth looking for places that have both!
3. The nicest times of day are sunrise and sunset. Waking up a couple hours earlier will make your whole day—especially if you chose your campsite well. Compensate mid-adventure with a nap someplace further from the road.
4. Managing wet stuff is challenging, but extra important in a small space. Designate a space for hanging wet gear (we used the bathroom, since it’s waterproof and easy to clean.) Run a fan and keep the windows cracked for good air circulation, and you’ll be surprised how well things dry.
5. We can’t believe we have to say this, but if you’re staying at campsites with bathrooms, don’t poo in the RV. That’s your gear-drying closet! The outhouse isn’t as far as you think, and you could probably use the fresh air—save the bathroom inside your RV for when there’s not an outhouse handy.
6. Storage is everywhere. Organize your equipment by activity and by dirt-factor, to make it easy to keep track of that one last clean pair of ski socks.
7. Pay attention to the orientation of your camper! Think about where the sun will set and rise, and park accordingly. On a hot day you’ll appreciate afternoon shade cast by the RV, and in bad weather it’ll make a great windbreak.
8. Finally, the RV doesn’t end at its doors. Treat it like a closet, a kitchen, and a place to sleep, but don’t mistake it for the star of the show. No matter how comfortable you are in the RV, the whole point of traveling in an RV is to maximize your adventure time, and you won’t regret spending more time outside.