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Archive 2013 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus

  
 
Charlie Shugart
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Back when the Canadian section of the Alcan was dirt and gravel- rainy days gave us sleepless nights.
"Us" means those of us who drove (and narrated) these Greyhound-built buses- filled with tourists- between Whitehorse and either Fairbanks or Anchorage. Two-day tours. Six days a week for 4 months.
I did this five summers. It was the scariest job- and one of the best times I ever had.
Rains gave us eight inches of the slipperiest mud in the world (glacial silt).
The Alcan was 18-feet wide- with no shoulders and had a high crown.
The buses were 8-feet wide plus mirrors.
Passing long-haul trucks coming at you were 8-10 feet wide, and it was a real game of chicken. If you got too close to the edge, your rear wheels would slide off the road and take you into the muskeg. But if you didn't get close enough, you risked being hit by a 26-wheeler (In Canada, the 18-wheelers had 26 wheels ).
We bus drivers called it "Pucker Tours," and I don't mean puckering your mouth.
First image:The beauties of our lodge in Beaver Creek- half-way between Whitehorse and Fairbanks.
Second image: A tiny sample of life on the muddy Alcan- 300 miles per day in the mud, every other day. Four months a year for five years.
What fun.



Charlie Shugart 2013

Alcan Highway at our Yukon Lodge





Charlie Shugart 2013

Alcan Highway at our Yukon Lodge




Oct 19, 2013 at 10:03 PM
mhayes5254
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Thanks for the description. Three of us took a motorcycle trip from NJ to Denali in 2010 and the Alaska highway was one of the more enjoyable parts of the trip. Of course it is paved these days, except for the extensive sections under repair. Only the last 100 miles heading north to the US border was really rough.


Oct 22, 2013 at 06:21 AM
Dalmas
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Great description and shots, I can really feel what it must have been like


Oct 22, 2013 at 10:57 AM
Charlie Shugart
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Thanks MHayes and Dalmas.
The highway has been straightened and paved, so the driving conditions are quite different;
But it's still an adventure highway through the wilderness- for about 1500 miles.
Charlie



Oct 22, 2013 at 12:44 PM
bobl
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Thanks for the memories!!! I was very VERY glad there was a wash crew in Beaver Creek, Whitehorse, Skagway, Eagle, Dawson City, Fairbanks and all the other places where we overnighted.


Oct 22, 2013 at 12:44 PM
aubsxc
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Thank you for sharing, Charlie. Brings back many memories.


Oct 22, 2013 at 05:37 PM
Tim Kuhn
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Wow Charlie, I had no idea you did that. Talk about a manly job! My hat's off to you, that really must have been something. I also find this to be rather timely, I have been looking into doing the Alcan next year. Sure it's paved now but I'm betting it's still an adventure. Cool shots, I really enjoyed the post

Tim



Oct 28, 2013 at 12:18 PM
Charlie Shugart
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Thanks Bobl, Aub and Tim.
We had wash crews on the turnarounds in Whitehorse, Fairbanks and Anchorage- but nowhere else.
They got them in Beaver Creek after I'd been driving.
I never had them in Dawson City or Skagway or Valdez.
They also got mud flaps the year after I stopped.
I carried a long-handled brush/squeegee and bucket of water with me all the time, and cleaned all the windows during coffee and lunch breaks.
But hey- I was making minimum wage- so I had no reason to complain .
Charlie



Oct 29, 2013 at 09:42 PM
voltaire
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Love the photos and the story behind it even more, Charlie. Thanks for sharing.

Voltaire



Oct 30, 2013 at 04:04 PM
IndyFab
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Great backstory, and pictures.. I am sure there will be some young adventurous bucks who see this and say, hey, I wouldn't mind doing that for a couple years..

Always the next generations turn..



Oct 30, 2013 at 10:00 PM
Charlie Shugart
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Here's a shot of the northern end of the Canadian section of the Alcan.
The last 100 miles of that part were being prepared for paving (straightened, widened, etc.).
The construction held up traffic, and then released a dozen or so at a time- here's the first of a group trying to get some separation to reduce the dust and flying rocks.

But back to the bad old "muddy days." I was pretty good at playing the game of chicken- but a friend wasn't.
On a particularly slippery day, his motor coach slowly slid off the road and into deep mud- where it sank down to the axles. Calmly, my friend checked to see that all his passengers were okay (they were), and then grabbed his camera and jumped into the ooze to take a few pictures.
What the hell- waiting for a really BIG tow truck was going to take several hours- why not make the most of the photo-op?
Charlie
PS we were a cheerful lot



Charlie Shugart 2013

Yukon Section of Alaska Highway- Long Ago




Nov 01, 2013 at 03:29 PM
ScottHM
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Alaska Hwy----Driving a 40-foot bus


Great shots Charlie...I'm sure things were a lot more wild in those days as well...not as well known, less intrepid travelers, or needing to be. Probably a whole lot different experience.


Nov 02, 2013 at 01:27 PM





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