The endless CJ5 Road Trip.
brownrxmd
Jeeper
- Posts
- 100
- Media
- 2
- Thanks
- 0
- Location
- Wittmann, Az
- Vehicle(s)
- 1980 Jeep Cj5.
5.3 Vortec
SM465 transmission
D300 Transfer
3.07 gears
In July 2013 I "finished" my CJ5 conversion (never really finished I guess) and was ready to leave on my trip to Alaska.
I bought this trailer from Harbor Freight it cost about 200 bucks after using a coupon. I had it loaded down with just over 1,000 lbs of food, tools, clothes, whatever I could think of taking with me to Alaska.
I left Wittmann Arizona early on a Tuesday, made my thru Vegas by sundown and opted to take a straight line north crossing into Alberta two days later. I made it into Calgary by noon on Day 3. Spent a couple of hours stretching my legs in downtown Calgary.
In Banff I drove by spectacular views of glaciers and even walked up to the Athabasca glacier.
A couple of hours west of Smither BC I turned north toward Alaska again.
There were nice stretches of gravel road, I didn't mind it so much but oncoming campers and traffic kicked up a fair amount of dust.
Eventually I made it to the Yukon Territory. It was daylight until 11pm.
I made Anchorage late Sunday and by Monday afternoon I was sitting in Homer Alaska camping on the edge of Katchemak Bay.
I spent the fall and winter in the remote Alaska native village, Nanwalek. I had always wanted to explore Alaska but never had the time or the bankroll to do it. I'm finally at the point in life (48 years old) where I'm fortunate enough to do what I've always wanted. So I made my way to Alaska to stage myself for my Big Alaska Trip.
I learned alot about my jeep on that drive. I learned that the 30 year old seats suck. I bought new seats. I learned that the heater in the jeep is no match for Alaska cold. I upgraded the heater blower motor. I replaced all the suspension shocks and springs (2.5 inch lift). I installed a roof rack, a new tilt steering column. GPS, Torque Pro Blue Tooth, 21 gallon fuel tank, the list goes on.
This past summer the adventure continued:
I kept my jeep in storage in Homer. A few days before I left the village I went halibut fishing with a local. In turn I was able to secure a skiff ride to Homer about 30 miles away with all of my gear, would be really expensive on a bush plane at .40 cents per pound. When I got to Homer I was asked to tow the 21 foot skiff loaded to a mechanic 10 miles away. The 5.3 pulled it easily however the brakes were challenged.
I left Homer after sleeping in my storage unit. My first stop was in Soldotna to dry run camping. I ended up replacing my tent and air mattress. Also had my front driveline removed, installed LED lights, checked fluids, bled the brakes. You can see my sleeping bag on top of the trailer, the brown canvas thing is massive, I had it custom made by David Ellis in Colorado.
I gold panned my way from Kenai to Fairbanks. I'd never gold panned before it was fun and relaxing.
Went past Denali and found a veterans memorial park.
I spent a few days camping outside Fairbanks and made my way up the Dalton Hwy towards the Arctic Circle.
I stopped at this store just south of the circle. There were two of these limos, in almost perfect condition, the insides were immaculate, they're for sale 500.00 dollars each!
Crossing the Yukon River. You can see the pipeline running alongside the road.
The HotSpot serves a great burger! This was an awesome place to find and eat at. I stopped here both coming and going. They are completely off the grid, running on a generator.
Finally made the Arctic Circle 66:33' north!
After leaving the Arctic I headed to Chicken Alaska. Where they have this great big Chicken. I crossed into the Yukon at Poker Creek the northern most U.S. crossing. A few hours later I crossed the Yukon River on a free ferry and camped in Dawson City.
The next night I camped in Whitehorse and then continued East to Watson Lake where the sign post forest is.
I was making my way down to Banff when the road was closed due to an avalanche I was told I would have to backtrack and make my way to Edmonton. The GPS said otherwise, I found a forestry road! And on this road came upon some Rams.
Bears were everywhere. I eventually stopped taking bear pictures.
I spent a week in Yellowstone! Snow in June!
After leaving Yellowstone I made my way to Wittmann Az. The jeep needed a few maintenance items, new tires, new brake booster. Dropped the Transmission to check the clutch, replaced front wheel bearings, rerouted exhaust pipe on passenger side so I could reinstall my front driveline. New HID headlights. Welded busted joints on the HF trailer. New trailer tires. I also dehydrated vegetables to take back to Alaska and stocked up on food items. Also bought a new Marlin 45-70 gov't hunting rifle. Towards the end of July I headed over to San Diego and started my trip back up north. I arrived back in Homer on Aug 11th. I've been prepping my cj for a winter drive back and in February I'm gonna lay tracks south! So far I've put somewhere between 16,000 and 20,000 miles on the clock.
I bought this trailer from Harbor Freight it cost about 200 bucks after using a coupon. I had it loaded down with just over 1,000 lbs of food, tools, clothes, whatever I could think of taking with me to Alaska.
I left Wittmann Arizona early on a Tuesday, made my thru Vegas by sundown and opted to take a straight line north crossing into Alberta two days later. I made it into Calgary by noon on Day 3. Spent a couple of hours stretching my legs in downtown Calgary.
In Banff I drove by spectacular views of glaciers and even walked up to the Athabasca glacier.
A couple of hours west of Smither BC I turned north toward Alaska again.
There were nice stretches of gravel road, I didn't mind it so much but oncoming campers and traffic kicked up a fair amount of dust.
Eventually I made it to the Yukon Territory. It was daylight until 11pm.
I made Anchorage late Sunday and by Monday afternoon I was sitting in Homer Alaska camping on the edge of Katchemak Bay.
I spent the fall and winter in the remote Alaska native village, Nanwalek. I had always wanted to explore Alaska but never had the time or the bankroll to do it. I'm finally at the point in life (48 years old) where I'm fortunate enough to do what I've always wanted. So I made my way to Alaska to stage myself for my Big Alaska Trip.
I learned alot about my jeep on that drive. I learned that the 30 year old seats suck. I bought new seats. I learned that the heater in the jeep is no match for Alaska cold. I upgraded the heater blower motor. I replaced all the suspension shocks and springs (2.5 inch lift). I installed a roof rack, a new tilt steering column. GPS, Torque Pro Blue Tooth, 21 gallon fuel tank, the list goes on.
This past summer the adventure continued:
I kept my jeep in storage in Homer. A few days before I left the village I went halibut fishing with a local. In turn I was able to secure a skiff ride to Homer about 30 miles away with all of my gear, would be really expensive on a bush plane at .40 cents per pound. When I got to Homer I was asked to tow the 21 foot skiff loaded to a mechanic 10 miles away. The 5.3 pulled it easily however the brakes were challenged.
I left Homer after sleeping in my storage unit. My first stop was in Soldotna to dry run camping. I ended up replacing my tent and air mattress. Also had my front driveline removed, installed LED lights, checked fluids, bled the brakes. You can see my sleeping bag on top of the trailer, the brown canvas thing is massive, I had it custom made by David Ellis in Colorado.
I gold panned my way from Kenai to Fairbanks. I'd never gold panned before it was fun and relaxing.
Went past Denali and found a veterans memorial park.
I spent a few days camping outside Fairbanks and made my way up the Dalton Hwy towards the Arctic Circle.
I stopped at this store just south of the circle. There were two of these limos, in almost perfect condition, the insides were immaculate, they're for sale 500.00 dollars each!
Crossing the Yukon River. You can see the pipeline running alongside the road.
The HotSpot serves a great burger! This was an awesome place to find and eat at. I stopped here both coming and going. They are completely off the grid, running on a generator.
Finally made the Arctic Circle 66:33' north!
After leaving the Arctic I headed to Chicken Alaska. Where they have this great big Chicken. I crossed into the Yukon at Poker Creek the northern most U.S. crossing. A few hours later I crossed the Yukon River on a free ferry and camped in Dawson City.
The next night I camped in Whitehorse and then continued East to Watson Lake where the sign post forest is.
I was making my way down to Banff when the road was closed due to an avalanche I was told I would have to backtrack and make my way to Edmonton. The GPS said otherwise, I found a forestry road! And on this road came upon some Rams.
Bears were everywhere. I eventually stopped taking bear pictures.
I spent a week in Yellowstone! Snow in June!
After leaving Yellowstone I made my way to Wittmann Az. The jeep needed a few maintenance items, new tires, new brake booster. Dropped the Transmission to check the clutch, replaced front wheel bearings, rerouted exhaust pipe on passenger side so I could reinstall my front driveline. New HID headlights. Welded busted joints on the HF trailer. New trailer tires. I also dehydrated vegetables to take back to Alaska and stocked up on food items. Also bought a new Marlin 45-70 gov't hunting rifle. Towards the end of July I headed over to San Diego and started my trip back up north. I arrived back in Homer on Aug 11th. I've been prepping my cj for a winter drive back and in February I'm gonna lay tracks south! So far I've put somewhere between 16,000 and 20,000 miles on the clock.
Rod
outta me. The top I had was really thick, looked like it had a cutout for a moonroof even. The windows were good, the hatch needed some adjustment and it had a few extra holes drilled in it. I've seen a manufacturer that still makes hardtops and doors but they're pricey as you can imagine.