The World Famous Alaska Highway

For the ultimate wilderness road trip, this guide is indispensable. From the southernmost community of Homer to Deadhorse, the northern end of the road that meets the Arctic Ocean, the guide details routes, driving conditions, unique people, and all that awaits the adventurous traveler along the way. 90 full-color photos and 6 maps.

Referred to by travellers as "the bible of North Country travel" since it was first published in 1949, The Milepost is an essential travel companion for anyone planning or taking a trip to Alaska, Yukon Territory, Northwest Territories, northern Alberta or northern British Columbia.Travellers will find detailed mile-by-mile road logs and maps of all northern routes, including the famous Alaska Highway. The Milepost is updated annually by experienced field editors, providing accurate and up-to-date information on attractions, activities, food, gas, lodging and camping. Details are provided for every city and town along the way.Travel by air, ferry, cruise ship, bus and rail is also covered. Every edition of The Milepost includes Alaska State Ferry and B.C. Ferries schedules, important information on crossing the border, a calendar of events, a pull-out Plan-a-Trip map, litre-to-gallon conversions and dozens of other travel tips.Special features highlight side-trip destinations, gold rush and highway history, and places to eat and things to do.With its wealth of detail, The Milepost is a wonderful resource for anyone interested in the North, whether it is the trans-Alaska pipeline, bird watching, Native culture, or glaciers and wildlife viewing, to name just a few attractions. This classic travel guide is a must for every Northland traveller.

On January 1 of 2016, Stefanie Payne, a creative professional working at NASA Headquarters, and Jonathan Irish, a photographer with National Geographic, left their lives in Washington, D.C. and hit the open road on an expedition to explore and document all 59 of America's national parks during the centennial celebration of the U.S. National Park Service - 59 parks in 52 weeks - the Greatest American Road Trip. Captured in more than 300,000 digital photographs, written stories, and videos shared by the national and international media, their project resulted in an incredible view of America's National Park System seen in its 100th year. 'A Year in the National Parks, The Greatest American Road Trip' is a gorgeous visual journey through our cherished public lands, detailing a rich tapestry of what makes each park special, as seen along an epic journey to visit them all within one special celebratory year.

Calling something ""World Famous"" doesn't make it world famous, but the Alaska Highway actually is known around the world. Mention the name or its familiar nickname, ""The Alcan,"" and somebody in the crowd has driven it or has always wanted to ""do"" the highway. And why not? This amazing road through the northern reaches of Canada and into Alaska has cast a spell on the motoring public for more than sixty years, ever since it was hurriedly built in 1942. After World War II, with the opening of the road to civilians, Alaska was finally a drive-to destination, and the stream of tourists hasn't stopped. The Alaska Highway spans the northern reaches of Canada into Alaska. This illustrated guide highlights this amazing stretch of road that has cast a spell on the motoring public for more than 60 years.

In 1942, the west coast of North America was under threat after the attack on Pearl Harbor, prompting the US government to build a military road from Dawson Creek, BC, to Delta Junction, AK. Renowned as a driving challenge and for its remote scenic beauty, the Alaska Highway opened to the public in 1948. It was the beginning of the golden age of the automobile. Silvertip, Swift River, Silver Dollar, Krak-R-Krik, Chickaloon and other quaint and quirky establishments sprang up along the highway, offering travellers coffee, gas, conversation and a place to spend the night. During the roadhouse heyday, owners and employees lived on the frontier and earned good wages. Some were looking for a life-long commitment and a place to raise a family, others relished the isolation. Aside from truckers, today most people travel the Alaska Highway in fuel-efficient cars and self-sufficient RVs—the demand for lodge services has diminished and the businesses struggle to survive. Since December 2014, Yukoners Gontard and Kelly have been visiting operating and abandoned lodges, recording the unique culture of the Alaska Highway before it disappears completely. The book includes the recollections of Gay Frocklage, whose parents, Doris and Bud Simpson, ran one of the oldest roadhouses on the highway, Mile 716 Rancheria Lodge, Yukon; and Bud and Pam Johnson, who met at the Mile 1318 Tok Lodge, Alaska, were married six months later and ran the lodge for three decades; as well as Ross Peck whose parents, Don and Alene Peck, operated Mile 200 Trutch Lodge, BC, as a highway lodge and hunting outfitting base from 1950-1963. Featuring both archival and contemporary photographs, Beyond Mile Zero explores the evolution of Alaska Highway culture and will be of interest to locals and travellers alike.

In December 1941 the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and seemed to be poised for their most audacious attack yet - the invasion of North America via its least populated region, the Far Northwest. No one doubted that this threat was real, certainly not the U.S. military command. In an act of speedy co-operation, unmatched before or since, the governments of Canada and the U.S.A. agreed to the military's request to build a road, post-haste, across the vast wilderness of the North, so that troops and armaments could be moved rapidly from the continent's heartland to its vulnerable edge in Alaska. Ten thousand soldiers under the command of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers rushed north to push a pioneer road 1,500 miles long through the forests and mountains and over the muskeg, the permafrost, and the many icy rivers of the Far Northwest. Fast on their heels came an equally large "army" of civilians - eager to do their bit for the war effort and to earn the colossal wages offered - to build a permanent highway in the pioneer road's muddy tracks. Seven and a half months later the highway was ready for war duty, just as the threat that initiated it collapsed. But their effort was not wasted. The Alaska Highway gave the towns of Fairbanks, Big Delta, Whitehorse, and Fort St. John road access to the South for the first time, and many smaller communities sprang up along its path to service the truckers and tourists who plied the highway. For immediately after the war, driving the highway became a popular vacation for intrepid tourists. Despite the great improvements to the road that have been made over the years, the highway has lost none of its appeal nor any of the romance that surrounded itsbeginnings. In 1992 the Alaska Highway turns fifty, and Ken Coates has written North to Alaska to commemorate the work of those men and women, soldiers and civilians, who endured the bitter cold, the blackflies, the mud, and the murderous mosquitoes to build the road and defend their homeland. The Alaska Highway remains the world's most remarkable highway - remarkable for the speed in which it was built, its military origins, the binational co-operation it symbolizes, and for the spectacular natural beauty and rich history of the land through which it passes. Today it still offers the unique adventure of a 1,500-mile drive through the mysterious North into the land where men once moiled for gold.

This is the first detailed account of the 5,000 black troops who were reluctantly sent north by the United States Army during World War II to help build the Alaska Highway and install the companion Canol pipeline. Theirs were the first black regiments deployed outside the lower 48 states during the war. The enlisted men, most of them from the South, faced racial discrimination from white officers, were barred from entering any towns for fear they would procreate a "mongrel" race with local women, and endured winter conditions they had never experienced before. Despite this, they won praise for their dedication and their work. Congress in 2005 said that the wartime service of the four regiments covered here contributed to the eventual desegregation of the Armed Forces.

Traveling across the great northern expanses from Dawson Creek, British Columbia, to Delta Junction, Alaska, the 1,500-mile Alaska Highway remains one of the greatest driving adventures of all time. Inside you will find details on gas prices, where to camp, how to prepare your vehicle for the journey, and insightful driving tips. Tips scattered through the guide tell you where to spot wildlife, let you in on a few favorite fishing holes, and highlight important destinations. Brimming with full-color photography, Guide to the Alaska Highway is the most stunning, the most complete, and most thoroughly researched book on the market today. This invaluable guide will help travelers tailor a safe, pleasant, and enjoyable drive through some of the most scenic and rugged landscape on Earth. This guide is perfect for the adventure lover.