Don Kane, August 13th
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So I left off yesterday arriving back in Dawson with my starting problem fixed by hotwiring it, but still getting about 10 mpg. The missing in the upper RPM range seemed to get better at about the same point coming down the Dempster as it had begun going up, which added some more complexity. Also, the plastic melting trick by Bob Hoover was starting to fail, and I was leaking coolant again. No big deal, as it was only a temporary fix and I had a new coolant tank coming from Volks Cafe.
We stayed that night with most of the rest of the group at the Yukon River campground across the river by ferry from Dawson. It was a very nice Campground, almost bugfree and some great caviar provided by Coyote. Most of the group would be leaving the next morning for Alaska on the Top of the World Highway while we stayed behind in Dawson waiting for our parts. It was sad knowing we wouldn't be traveling with or seeing all our new friends again, but there are worse places than Dawson to be stuck for a few days.
The next morning we gathered to see of the caravan as they headed West, then we went back across the ferry to Dawson. We had to make reservations at the El Dorado Hotel again so we could be certain to receive the parts sent, in case they we had to pay any duty or tax. Turns out that was unnecessary, as Kyle at Volks Cafe had any such charges billed back to them. I can't say enough about the help Kyle gave me. He found the quickest way to get it up there, arranged the least amount of hassle for me at the receiving end, didn't even ask about payment (we'll settle up tomorrow), and will take back any parts I don't need. He also sent 2 waterpumps along at the beginning of the trip for us to use and pay for later, or return at trips end. Fortunately no one needed one.
Back in Dawson I noticed a rattle that i had heard on the Dempster, but sounded like gravel being kicked up under the van. But it was still there on paved roads (boy do paved roads feel weird after 1,000 miles of the Dempster. It actually feels like something is wrong with the Van, everything is so quiet and smooth). I put my foot on the muffler and the rattle went away. If there is an exhaust leak before the O2 sensor, that could mess up my mixture. Well, it was the O2 sensor itself. I guess i hadn't tourqed it down tight enough when i switched the original one back on, and it had rattled very loose. I put the new one back on and the van ran like new again. Hooray!! FedEx had no idea where my package was, even with a tracking number. It was a holiday in BC on Monday, so they thought it was sitting in an airport in Vancouver, and might not get to me til Thursday. Not good, as I had to back at work in the SF Bay Area by Monday. I decided to see if I could reroute it and meet it somewhere in between, so I JB Welded the expansion tank, hoping it would get me to where i could meet my new one. Tuesday morning the JB Weld was dry, and FedEx was going to call me back to see if they could find my package. A minute later the front desk calls and says the package is in. I didn't even put the coolant tank in, jsut knowing I could if the JB Weld failed was all I needed. We loaded in the Van Tuesday about 2:00 PM and took off.
Tuesday night we pulled next to Tobin and Christa (Asleep at Midnight)at Johnson's Crossings and their world famous cinammon buns and shared one more night and part of the next day with the group. We stayed with Tobin til Watson Lake. He was having alternator problems, and the rest of the group had oly gone to Whitehorse. At Watson Lake most of the group converged, including Jack Stafford who had a spare alternator with him. We took off hoping to make Stewart that night, a total day's drive of 635 miles after starting at noon, and a 3 year old on board.
[End of part 2]
In the next dispatch: the rest of the story, including the Stewart B.C., Hyder Alaska, and the worst road and most impressive sight of the trip, the Salmon Glacier.
