This country's hard on people. You can't stop what's coming.

[TOGIE]

I really could never have predicted how much I would come to really regret us inhaling that bag of Doritos. Like really really regret. Hindsight is always 20/20. I still blame myself, it truly was a preventable conundrum.

We made the push for Coldfoot, praying we'd make it in time for the dinner buffet.

Coldfoot, the front door of the Brooks Range. A primary hub of air travel for hunters and adventurers, a point of safety and warmth for Haul Road truckers, and a classic van group tourist logistics hub. If anywhere on earth has perfected the blended vibe of a hunting outpost/launchpad, a summer camp, and a truck stop, it is Coldfoot.



Sometimes I felt like this is what I made the entire trip out here for, and some levels, it was:



Semi earned at this point. At this point my wife has mostly just received pictures of food I am eating on this trip. I get a text: "So, like, are you guys eating or hunting out there?"

Pffft.

Breakfast was even better:



Whatever man, I send this one to my wife too.

I'm enjoying the bottomless coffee hoping for good timing and opportunity to use a real bathroom one last time, for a while, maybe.

Success.

We gas up the U-Haul. Seems like we're always trying to push to the North Slope. We'll get there, I think.

If there were any more stops with food after this it would be hopeless.

I guess Deadhorse has food... right?

 

[SerialScience]

4/5 stars so far needs more Shania Twain

 

[TOGIE]

On one hand if feels like we've made significant progress on the Haul Road, but, an equal true reality is that we have a lot of ground left to cover. Today was a true driving day.

The drive remains as interesting as ever. The Haul Road can be nail biting at times, or actually most of the time. It's important to give Haul Road trucks as wide of a berth as possible, sometimes there is only enough room for one vehicle at a time. There are also stretches of recently graded road base and even some significant stretches of asphalt that can quickly cause you to drop your guard. Then, without warning you're careening towards a grouping of 12 Mariana Trench sized potholes.

We don't have a spare tire on this thing. I think about that a lot.

But mostly, I'm enjoying the drive.