Ferry Tales

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Lao-tzu, a Chinese philosopher who lived from 604 to 531 BC is supposed to have said that (or maybe he didn’t; some details may have been lost in translation).
In any event, Lao-tzu was not trying to get from Texas to Alaska. When you start from Deep in the Heart, you can make a journey of a thousand miles still be in the same state. And you still have a whole lot further to go.
We went anyway. We spent more than three months on the road, traveling north by ferry and south by way of the Alaska Highway. We had a great time, overcame a few problems, and learned some things you won’t find in the guidebooks.
“We” are Dick, wife Beverly, and our Border Collie Penny. All three of us (including Penny in dog years) had surpassed retirement age. As a present to ourselves for achieving this milestone, we decided to drag our fifth-wheel trailer to Alaska and back. 
This is a report of that trip. We went north by ferry, south  by the Alcan, had a good time and found some things the usual guidebooks don't mention.  We hope you enjoy it as much as we did.