Hey, gang!  Gerry suggested I chuck another post/invitation for this 
hair-brained trip up onto the vanagon list, so here it is.

Read up, kids, 'cause this is gonna be fun!  And you'll want to start 
buttering up your bosses now so you can get the time off for this trip 
next summer.  

OK, here's the skinny:

WHAT:	  Vanagon@lenti Top of the World Tour 1996 
          (More commonly known as "The Inuvik Trip")
          (Taking liberty with "Top of the World" bit, since there are other 
          roads going further north, including the road to Prudhoe Bay, 
          AK which is finally open to the public -- even though it only goes
          a little over 100 miles further north...)

WHEN:	  July 22 - August 14, 1996 (leaving/returning Vancouver, BC)
          (I suggested these dates, heard from 10 people, and all but 2 
          could make it... and MAYBE those two could finagle an 
          appearance???)
 
WHERE:	  To Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada (near the Arctic Ocean)
	  This is the farthest north one can drive in Canada, the 
          northernmost country in the world.  Yeah, sure, the Dalton Haul
          Road in Alaska goes a few miles further north, but, well, I'm 
          Canadian, so you'll have to bear with my choice of 
          destination...   

WHY:	  You tell me. 

DURATION: 24 days return from Vancouver, B.C., Canada
          Maybe less if it works out that way, but I thought we should 
          plan on the long side so we don't feel rushed at all.  There's
          more to travelling than driving, after all.
       -> This still allows time for 3 days transit each way between
          your home and Vancouver.  People from SoCal, for example should
          have no problems getting to Vancouver in 3 fairly substantial 
          driving days on the interstate.  People from elsewhere (say, 
          the U.K., for example) could fly in and rent, which brings me 
          to...
       -> I'm looking into the possibilities of EUROVAN or VANAGON WESTY
          RENTALS either here or just over the line in Washington state.
          The trick will be finding an agency that is ok with renting a
          vehicle for nearly 3,000 kms of unpaved roads!  (Funny, that.)

STYLE:    We'll be staying at campsites exclusively, and will be free
          camping whenever possible -- which will be most of the time.
          The B.C. Forest Service operates terrific little free sites
          with "primitive" services (meaning more or less level ground
          and a latrine somewhere).  This is porta-potty country, kids, 
          so get a good one like Steve Johnson's diesel model.  The Forest 
          Service sites are typically located on alpine lakes, next to 
          waterfalls, or next to rivers or alpine streams.  Fresh fish 
          should be plentiful! (yum!) The Forest Service sites are often 
          several miles off the main road, accessible by dirt logging 
          road.  Off-road vehicle modifications should not be necessary, 
          although anyone with a front air dam may want to remove it 
          before starting the trip.  While we should plan to be as 
          self-sufficient as possible (including water and 
          shower/bathing equipment), we will stop every few days 
          somewhere where Martha can have a hot shower.  :)  
          VW MAG T&A discussions will be strictly off-line, and civil.  ;-)
           
WHO:	  Anyone with a VW bus.  Currently, the roster contains... well a
          bunch of folks, and I have to confess I haven't been keeping
          track of all the inquiries so far.  Here's a partial list, and 
          apologies to those of you I've missed (no offence intended!):
       
          Tobin Copley & Christa Ovenell
          Martha & Sarah Rubin
          Ron Lussier & his Dad!
          David Schwarze 
          Bob Hoover
          Bill Abbott
          Michael Wagner & family
          Paul Uusitalo
          Edmund Hintz
          Dennis Carr
          Done Kane, wife, and 3 (!) kids
          Chris Grant, Leilani, and baby Connor
          Gregor Durstewitz
          Bette Vidrine
          Johnny Stutsman                    
          Sean Roberts
          (others...)

MORE INFO:  Ron's Inuvik page: http://www.chaco.com/~coyote/vw/trek
            The Inuvik mailing list: inuvik@zuni.chaco.com
               To subscribe, send the following message to 
               Majordomo@chaco.com:
 
                   subscribe inuvik "Your Name"

            Why not call these numbers for some very nice information 
            packages?  Tell the nice people what the planned route through 
            their area is, and they'll fix you up.
 
                   Tourism BC: (800) 663-6000
                   Tourism Yukon: (403) 667-2915
                   Heritage Canada, Yukon: (403) 667-3970
                   Tourism NWT: (800) 661-0788
                   (I had numbers for Alaska Tourism, but misplaced 'em.  
                    Directory assistance call help you there...)

THE SCENE:

This is some of the most beautiful, desolate, and remote country you 
could ever expect to drive to.  The days will be long, but the Northern 
Lights should be visible late at night in the less-far-north portions of 
the trip.  Temperatures will likely be between 45 and 75 degrees F in 
Inuvik, and may be substantially warmer in Northern B.C and the Southern 
Yukon.  July and August are typically fairly dry in the Far North.  Bugs 
(mostlt mosquitoes and black flies) will be a problem, but will not be 
neary as bad as in late May - July.  I would hope we could take the short 
bush plane flight from Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk on the Beaufort Sea for day 
trip.  Cost for the one day flight to Tuk is $95.00 CDN per person (1995 
price). 

THE STATS:

Summary of the planned route and mileage (distances in km):
  
Vancouver to Prince George		738 km (via Whistler, Lillooet)
  Hwy 16 W to Hwy 37 nr. New Hazelton  	482
  Hwy 37 N to Watson Lake, Yukon	756  (approx 120 km unpaved)
  Hwy 4 NW to Carmacks, Yukon		588  (approx 550 km unpaved)
  Hwy 2 N to Dawson City, Yukon		357
  Hwy 5 N to Inuvik, NWT		777  (Dempster Hwy: all unpaved)
 
Return:
  Hwy 5 to Dawson City, Yukon		777  (  "  )
  To Beaver Creek, Yukon 		970  (via Tetlin Jct AK 479km unpaved)
  Hwy 1 E to Whitehorse, Yukon		457  (Alaska Hwy)
  Hwy 1 E to Watson Lake, Yukon		454  ( " )
  Hwy 97 S to Fort Nelson, BC		525  ( " )
  Hwy 97 S to Prince George, BC		815
  Hwy 97 S to Vancouver, BC		738

TOTAL:	     			       8424 km / 5235 mi from Vancouver
 		      Unpaved distance 2703 km / 1676 mi
 

OK, folks, let's go!  You've got the winter to prep the bus, so pick up 
that wrench!  (It's the metal thingy with "10" on one end and "13" on the 
other.)

Northward ho!
 
Tobin

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tobin T. Copley                  Only Somewhat          =============  
(604) 689-2660                    Occupationally       /_| |__||__| :| putta
tobin@freenet.vancouver.bc.ca      Challenged!        O|             | putta
                                                       '-()-------()-' 
Circum-continental USA, Mexico, Canada 15,000 miles... '76 VW Camper! (Mango)