Day 63 Tok to Chicken
Trip Start
May 07, 2008
1
71
205
Trip End
Nov 22, 2008
Tok,
Alaska,
United States
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Before we left to head out of Tok we spent some time searching for some extras for the Castle, With the conflicting reports we had received about the Top of The World road, being rough with sharp stones and be prepared for a puncture, to "it is not too bad, a few gravel patches and take your time" As a precaution we decided to go find a jack and wheel brace, (no we did not have one, we were told that all we had to do was ring for road side assistance. YEAH RIGHT on the Top of the World Road!) so this was a little insurance policy just in case. Well even that turned into a fun thing, for starters we had to work out how to get the wheel trim off the wheel to test the wheel brace size. That created a challenge to find someone to explain to us how that should happen, then back to the auto store to buy the jack, a shifter, and wheel brace and some chocks for the wheels.
The Castle at the Top of the World Highway
Earnie required some special security screwdrivers to fix the door on the Castle, (it had been jamming a little) and gee the screwdriver set will fit the bull horn in the park at Bulli, (method in his madness?) Also a blinker light bulb required attention, after the bit of TLC on the Castle we set sail for Chicken ( a town named as Chicken because when the goldminers arrived they wanted to name the town after a small bird around the town called Ptarmigan, but because the miners had trouble spelling the word they decided to call it Chicken. Ain't the world a funny place?)We drove up the "highway" to Chicken, gee wouldn't you love to live in Chicken, The road was sealed until around 10 miles short, it then turns to a gravel road that requires a tender care travel speed.
We stopped in Chicken for lunch and asked a few questions about the Top of The World Road, again slightly differing reports from 2 hours to the border (only open between 8am to 8pm, ) and 2 hours from the border to Dawson city. One guy suggested we might not get to the border in time, (the time was presently 12:30pm) boy what have we let ourselves in for?
