ALCAN in March?

[Biscuitsjam]

I'll probably get orders to PCS around March from Fort Wainwright, Alaska.

The good:
- block heater, oil pan heater, battery warmers, etc,
- generator modified to work in extreme cold
- three sources of heat (electric, propane, engine auxiliary)
- all the clothing I need to survive arctic cinditions.
- 100-gallon fuel tank
- satellite messaging device
- all the tools to change a tire

The bad:
- my tires have no traction on ice
- unpredictable weather (possibility of lots of snow/ice)
- almost no services open along the highway
- if it's like Alaska, the snow is plowed onto the shoulders, leaving few places to pull over out of the roadway

So, is there any way I could safely tackle this? Even if all my heaters failed, I have warm enough clothing - I'm not worried about the cold. I'm worried about traction on ice, breakdowns, lack or services, etc.

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Biscuitsjam

I'll probably get orders to PCS around March from Fort Wainwright, Alaska.

The good:
- block heater, oil pan heater, battery warmers, etc,
- generator modified to work in extreme cold
- three sources of heat (electric, propane, engine auxiliary)
- all the clothing I need to survive arctic cinditions.
- 100-gallon fuel tank
- satellite messaging device
- all the tools to change a tire

The bad:
- my tires have no traction on ice
- unpredictable weather (possibility of lots of snow/ice)
- almost no services open along the highway
- if it's like Alaska, the snow is plowed onto the shoulders, leaving few places to pull over out of the roadway

So, is there any way I could safely tackle this? Even if all my heaters failed, I have warm enough clothing - I'm not worried about the cold. I'm worried about traction on ice, breakdowns, lack or services, etc.

The only thing I can think of is to either buy a set of chains for the tires or a set of studded tires. Hope that helps.....

M

[Booyah45828]

I'm pretty sure chains are mandatory in certain parts of Alaska, so that's what I would be buying.

You can also look up better tires for snow/ice. I know Continental makes a tire that is engineered for winter in 11R22.5.

But chains are the major item. Regular chains, I don't know if I'd be trying to use spot chains in this situation.

[Sleddgracer]

Originally Posted by Biscuitsjam

I'll probably get orders to PCS around March from Fort Wainwright, Alaska.

The good:
- block heater, oil pan heater, battery warmers, etc,
- generator modified to work in extreme cold
- three sources of heat (electric, propane, engine auxiliary)
- all the clothing I need to survive arctic cinditions.
- 100-gallon fuel tank
- satellite messaging device
- all the tools to change a tire

The bad:
- my tires have no traction on ice
- unpredictable weather (possibility of lots of snow/ice)
- almost no services open along the highway
- if it's like Alaska, the snow is plowed onto the shoulders, leaving few places to pull over out of the roadway

So, is there any way I could safely tackle this? Even if all my heaters failed, I have warm enough clothing - I'm not worried about the cold. I'm worried about traction on ice, breakdowns, lack or services, etc.

I never had trouble with snow tires on my dual wheeled one tons when I traveled that highway - best to pack a good set of heavy duty chains though - NOT the cable type

[Biscuitsjam]

A quick google search showed tire chains for sale at a ballpark of $300/pair. How many and which tires? When should they be on versus off on the ALCAN? If I see dry pavement, take them off and hit an ice patch, it could potentially be a bad day.

Last winter, I lived on a hill and drove up and down a half-dozen times a day with never a problem using my truck and blizzak snow tires. When I drove the bus, it was a white knuckle ride and I almost slid off the road a couple times. I'm pretty good at driving on ice, but those bus tires are abysmal with ice. I'm assuming bus snow tires are extremely expensive (all-terrain tires look like $500-800 each tire).