Well, today was quite the adventure!
There are only two auto repair shops in Seward. We took it to the one in town, but they couldn’t look at it until next week. So we booked it into the one out of town for 1.30pm.
He took a look and said he’d have to drop the fuel tank to see what was going on. Earliest he could look was next week. But if we needed a new tank we could be waiting months because we’re in the middle of nowhere. He said our best bet would be to get a tow to anchorage, 2.5 hours away.
We asked if it was safe to drive, he said, no , definitely not. There was a strong fire risk. It was lucky we had decided not to drive on the previous day and discovered it was leaking!
So we rang roadside assistance and they said they would organise a tow truck for the next morning. So we booked into a very expensive camping ground costing us $75! And our tank was leaking even more since the guy had fiddled with it. It was very fumey and I didn’t want to sleep inside the van.
We had just finished our much needed showers when the tow truck company rang saying they’d pick our van up tonight in 2.5 hours!
No problem, we thought, we’d just book a hotel in Anchorage for the night, but this proved impossible. Booking.com was showing nothing. So I rang a few hotels and all were booked out. In a major city!
We thought we could sleep in our car at the auto shop but we were advised against it, not being safe. So we were in a bit of a pickle!
And this is where it gets interesting. A few days ago while we were waiting for the tunnel in Whittier, I got talking to a lady in the queue. We chatted for a bit, then I went back to my van.
Then she came over and chatted to us some more because she was bored. Then she went back to her car. Then shortly after, she came back over with her phone number and address, and said if we needed anything while we were in anchorage, then to give her a call.
At the time we thought it odd and did not think we’d need anything, but how things change! So I gave her a call. She then invited us to come stay, and sleep on her couch.
So accommodation sorted for the night, we just had to get there. The tow truck arrived in Seward up at 7pm, but he’d been told we were a normal van, not a camper van. So we were heavier than he thought. We had to empty our waste and water tank to lighten our load.
It took over 3 hours to tow Rodger to anchorage as we had to go quite slow. We are thankful we had roadside assistance and they are covering the $1000 fee!
Our tow truck driver was very nice and acted like a tour guide and told us all the good places to go. He even stopped at a pizza place for us to get pizza! He gave us his card and told us to call if we need anything other than a tow. It must be an Alaskan thing!
It was a stunning drive into anchorage, with the sun setting as much as it does. We arrived at the garage about 10.30pm, put our key in the drop box, and caught a taxi to our new friends place. She said she is usually up until midnight so not a problem being late. it was about 11pm by the time we arrived and, of course, still daylight!
Darci is really nice, probably mid-40s and lives with her elderly father and teenage daughter. she said it’s not uncommon for all hotels to be booked and don’t even try getting a rental car. Her father has kindly offered the use of one of his cars, but hopefully we won’t need it.
Hopefully our tank will be an easy fix.