Day 42 Ends @ Big Delta SHP

When we left Summit Lake, we figured we’d boondock somewhere along the Richardson. But Mui had taken a nap and felt refreshed enough to drive the 75 miles or so back to Delta Junction. That worked with my desire to camp at the Clearwater State Recreation Site, which the Milepost described as having some of the prettiest campsites in Alaska. Hah!

The drive north was uneventful. We had a light summer shower for a mile or two ... the sun never stopped shining. We made a few stops, but we’d already dallied along the road on the way south, so I didn’t take very many photos.

When we arrived in Delta Junction, we stopped off to top off the fuel and propane, dump the tanks, and take on potable water. Then we put the Clearwater SRS address in the GPS and got on the road. I sensed something was wrong when the GPS told us to get on the Alaska Highway! Hmmmm. Maybe there was another entrance. So we went along with Ms GPS’s instructions.

Turns out, the GPS had routed us down the long way. Not only that, it said we had arrived when we reached a junction in the road, with no SRS in sight. Luckily, a friendly woman who told us she was used to helping RV’ers get “un-lost” in their quest to reach Clearwater, gave us directions.

In the end, we arrived at the SRS ... and to total disappointment. Not only were the RV campsites no different than any others — just tucked into the woodlands — but also the one-way loop hole was horrendous ... and I mean really horrendous. With no choice but to keep going, we hoped against hope that we’d get to the “prettiest sites” eventually. No such luck. Perhaps tenters have better sites.

So, we got back on the road, this time using the diagram in the Milepost, to get back to the Richardson. Now what? We had not seen anywhere in Delta Junction to boondock, except maybe in a parking lot somewhere. And we didn’t feel like going to the campground we’d passed on the Alaska Highway.

By this time, it was 8:30p. So, we headed north on the Richardson to the Big Delta State Historical Park, which offers overnight RV parking. We planned to explore the park anyway, so this worked out for us.

Now, we’re settled into the site near the fee station — $20/night. This place is little more than parking lot camping, too. But the setting is nice, with woods on the patio side ... a fire ring, and a picnic table. We have the best site and the whole place to ourselves. The remaining sites are back in ... every other one blocked off with a picnic table ... rather narrow. More back-in RV sites are across the gravel road ... no amenities. The rest area on the side road has a dump and potable water. Life is good.

We’ve decided to stay an extra night here and explore the area from this base before moving on down the Alaska Highway.Read more