Brooks Range, Alaska


In the midst of an Alaskan summer, when wildfires cast a smoky shroud over Fairbanks, I decided it was time to escape. With my trusty yellow lab, Tule, by my side, I packed up my Ford F150 and hit the road, leaving the choking haze behind. Our destination? The rugged expanse of the Brooks Range, a place of untamed beauty and endless wonders.


Day 1:

As the tires of my truck ate up the miles, the smoke began to dissipate. The road stretched on, carrying us past familiar landmarks like the Yukon River Bridge, a spot laden with memories of moose hunting trips. But this time, we ventured farther, deeper into the wilderness.


Amidst the tundra and rolling hills, glimpses of majestic mountains teased us from the horizon. With an audiobook playing softly in the background, I watched the landscape change, occasionally pulling over to capture the scenery through my lens. We found a secluded spot by a river to make camp, far away from the Dalton Highway. In my mind, I was trying to get away from the road to avoid people. But what this also meant, is getting further into a remote area where there might be bears. I set up a cot in the back of the truck, we ate dinner, I poured myself a glass of wine, grabbed my fishing pole and began casting into the river while Tule explored. I walked halfway across the river to a sandbar and noticed fresh grizzly tracks. Although I had my Smith & Wesson .44 handgun strapped to my chest, I thought this may be a bad idea.


We decided to turn in for the night, and were cozy under the truck topper. Although I set up a bed for Tule on the floor of the bed of the truck, she decided she had a better view and cozier spot on my cot near my feet. We were woken up throughout the night with noises but nothing too alarming.

Day 2:

We woke up early, packed up, and hit the road again. We were getting closer, and closer to the mountains. We made it to Coldfoot around 11 am and stopped at the gas station. Although I packed extra gas with me, I felt more comfortable filling the truck up there. Regular unleaded gas was $7.40/gal (that's how much AV Gas was costing at the time). We hit the road again and found a great pull off to have lunch and break out the fishing pole. Tule got to play in the water while I casted.


As the day wore on, our surroundings became more awe-inspiring. With each passing mile, I found myself compelled to stop to take more and more pictures. There was light traffic, and every so often we would pass someone, but it felt like we mostly had the place to ourselves. We drove all day and made it past the Chandalar Pump Station. I wanted to continue going north, deeper into the mountains, but never having gone before and being by myself, I didn't want to push my luck. We turned around after a full day of driving and found a great big gravel bar for Tule to run around and swim. I made Backcountry Pantry's Pad Thai (all-time favorite), cracked a beer, and read a book under the HOT midnight sun. It was wonderful.


After hanging out in the sun for a few hours, I decided to keep driving south to help make my next day's drive, shorter. We drove for a few more hours and made camp around midnight. I felt more comfortable in this second location because I could see for quite a way around the truck versus my first camp spot where a bear would've been practically in my truck before I saw it.


Another car drove into the area, and Tule went nuts. I was thankful to have my big, scary guard dog near me warning people to leave us alone. I woke up a few times throughout the night and noticed the smoke rolling in.

Day 3:

We woke up about 8 am, had breakfast and hit the road with a cup of camp coffee in a thermos. We made the somber back to Fairbanks, where the air was progressively getting thicker with smoke. Driving home, we saw one bull moose in full velvet, a cow and calf, and one lonesome black bear. The most animals I had seen the entire trip!


This was a great trip and am already planning on how to do it again, even better, next year. I would love to bring the airplane up and base out of it to start our adventures. I would highly recommend more time as well. I'm also grateful I had a cab over the truck bed, or my gear would have been filthy. I'd recommend only using a truck with a topper or SVU for a trip like this.