Alaska to Alabama in Brutus

[TB58]

Driving at night might be a good idea especially down on 10. Would work well for the wife since she works nights as it is.

 

[Thunder in NWOR]

I like US 97 through Washington and Oregon into Cali and then US 395. Good wide roads, well maintained.
Lots to see. Ofcourse some hills but only steep one is going down into Columbia river and its not too bad.
If you take that route, stop in Bend, Oregon and get a burger and Black Butte Porter at the Deschutes Brewery - It don't get no better...!

 

[TB58]

May just have to schedule a night in bend. Deschutes makes some tasty beer.

 

[TB58]

Did some research tonight on regulations to make sure I'll be legal going through all the states. Looks like as long as it is less than 26,001 lbs and not used for hire I won't need any special license or registration. The big thing I was worried about was the emissions in California. Took some reading but since it is registered as a motorhome I'll be exempt. That one had me a bit worried.
Can't seem to find any restrictions that apply to Canada. Since it is properly registered, insured and I have a valid license I don't think there should be any problems. Anyone know of any problems I might run into?

 

[Blackbear]

You know the basics always work for me,
-Heat Kills, check axles hub temp put hand on hub warm,hot ok but red hot trouble brewing, in between stops check and underneath before and when you leave to make sure nothing is leaking,
or more importantly you know your leaks.
Tires win races. . tires. Check your air pressure at least every other stop until your comfortable.
Plenty of water.
Pillow for you know where, it's a long ride.
oh yeah be prepared to wave a lot.

Cheers good luck

 

[two.fiveM35]

Driving at night might be a good idea especially down on 10. Would work well for the wife since she works nights as it is.

If you drive at night I'd suggest adding a couple magnetic yellow flashing LED battery powered lights to the back of the truck. At night it's harder for others to judge your speed (or lack of). I have a set of these and they work good. http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200466785_200466785. Good luck on your trip and take many pictures.

 

[TB58]

I have about 20gal of water capacity between the internal tank in the living area and jerry cans. I think that will be enough.

Brutus has strobes from its time as an emergency services vehicle. The lenses are clear and amber. I am not really sure how to search the laws to find out the legality of using them as warning flashers. They would certainly make me visible. Also, the front and rear flashers can be turned on independently so I can only turn on the rear if needed.

 

[Blackbear]

Once you star remember to post daily in your diary.... So we can follow. Also if you do end up driving at night which is a good idea, I like the cool night air, bring the windex, plenty of bugs in Texas at night.

 

[turnkey]

Night driving is great ...with the IR lights and a night type camera nice videos to share.....

 

[TB58]

Going to be a lot of bugs killed on this trip. Will probably have to stop more often to clean the windshield than to fill up the tank.
I will post up as often as I can. The first few days I won't have a connection but will certainly be taking pictures.
Unfortunately I don't have a night camera. That would get some interesting video, probably a bit more wildlife than would be seen during the day.

 

[badgimp]

Good luck on the trip! It's a beautiful drive ware your going. I miss the open road. Can't wait to see the pics.

 

[railroadmike]

I'm in Oakland much of the year, I5 is not far away if you need help, have access to fabrication and machine shop if need, I hope I'm not in Nevada when you pass thru.

Going through Mohave VS grape vine and LA is the way to go, done both many times in many different rigs, going the 101 from San Jose is real nice for a slow trip, but there is still LA witch is ok late late at night. You might consider 99 through the Central Valley Stockton south, far more services on that route.

Looking forward to to hearing about your adventure, I told a buddy of mine in AK to buy that rig when it was on CL, have a great trip!

 

[Blackbear]

When's the launch? any day now I expect.

 

[TB58]

We will see. Was supposed to depart On the 31st. I had an outter hub seal break on me while I was servicing the hubs. I had a guy in Anchorage mail me one. It should have been here last Tuesday but still waiting. If we get delayed much longer we may have to cut California out of the plan. I ordered another from the lower 48 And paid overnight shipping. We will see which gets here first.

 

[dmetalmiki]

Good luck and have a safe and enjoyable trip. We are looking forward to reading the adventure, and viewing the pictures.

 

[Jared]

That's quite the trip and it sounds like you've put a lot of thought and preparation into it. I've made quite a few trips to Ft Rucker as a contractor before they moved the group we worked with up to Redstone. Went to Conestoga Steak House on one of the early trips and made a point of going there almost every trip afterwords.

 

[wreckerman893]

Since you have changed your route (maybe) you may want to angle down and hit I-40 to Memphis and then over to Bama on Hwy 72. Then run 157 to 278 which would put you in my AO.
I just rented space in a 360,000 foot warehouse that you can drive up into.
If you need to lay over we can arrange it.
From my place to Dothan is about 5 hours through the woods.

 

[datadawg]

OP, with this long a drive, you should download gasbuddy app on your phone, it lets you search for gas prices along a route, pretty much in real time. It also has a tab for diesel. I routinely see 30 cent difference per gallon within a 15 mile radius. May be worth planning route stops with fuel prices in mind.
If you get pulled over, remember the cop's first concern will be that you are some militant anarchist -- since I doubt you will be speeding. So your first priority is to allay this fear, and make LEO understand that you are a collector of MV and are on an adventure. Most of these guys respect people who served and the courtesy extends to war vehicles. Just make sure they are feeling safe and you should avoid any hassles.

I might also consider calling State police barracks in each state and ask to speak to someone in management just to let them know you are undertaking this journey and ask if there is anything you should do. If you get pulled over, saying "I talked to Lieutenant Jones in Barracks B to let him know I will be driving an old military truck through XX" will make any State trooper appreciate your courtesy.

It's impossible to tell who might pull you over and why, but generally, all states have reciprocity agreements, so if you are legal in AK, you should be allowed to drive your vehicle in other states. This assumes you are a private citizen (not commercial hauler) and aren't doing anything stupid.

 

[TB58]

I got the seal i have been waitin for today at 5. I just signed out on leave and am departing Ft Wainwright now (1223 am 4 June). I expect to reach Washington in about 5 days. My wife has the camera and we will post when we can.

 

[Blackbear]

Here we go the two week mini series, get some popcorn and pull up a chair.