The Alcan 5000

I learned about this event through Josh who has been trying to find the right year to go for the better part of a decade. In my experience, rarely are there right times for things to happen. If we don’t spring for adventures we want to take, life picks other adventures for us. So he signed us up, we worked out work and school and he started researching and ordering car parts and I started ordering winter clothing.

To be perfectly honest, I am quite nervous about driving to the ends of the earth, not quite knowing what to expect. There are accidents that can happen, wild animals, injuries, and unfortunately, due to my interest in true crime, I’m aware that there are serial killers running amok along the exact highways we will be taking. But the photos and videos of untouched pristine snow-blanked nature do look beautiful. And I have never been shy about traveling somewhere new. So Josh’s longtime dream is now shared and we’ll figure it out together.

The Alcan 5000 is a rally that is in its 32nd anniversary since 1988. It happens every 18 months, so there are winter rallies and summer rallies, and we are rookies headed into our first winter rally. This year, we will be driving 5120 miles up to the Arctic circle and back down to Anchorage.

There are 41 vehicles registered for the event with a driver and a navigator. There are six vehicles carrying staff for the event, in case of emergencies and to keep timing and scoring. It’s apparently common for people to drop out at the last minute, but I imagine at least 30 will make it. You can follow us on the official map. Josh and I are A32.

Right now, I have a very limited concept of a rally. From what I understand is that there are all types. There will be days where we compete TSD, or time speed distance, where you have to make it to certain check points within an assigned time, down to the second. We have a rally computer hooked into the car to help us do so. If that fails, it’s down to a calculator and notepad.

One of the things I look forward to seeing is Tuktoyaktuk, one of the last places where indigenous culture is preserved. There is a 73-stretch of ice that forms a highway on the MacKenzie River every year, slowly disappearing due to climate change. There are hot springs–one of my favorite past times. I have my fingers crossed that we’ll be able to see the northern lights.

I’m trying to travel with an open mind (and a LOT of emergency gear) and grateful to make some new memories on a wild adventure with the man I love.