In my drives up and down the ALCAN, I found many Canadian gas stations close at night. Just an FYI.


Aviator

I lived "North of Number 7" during the summer.  If you were exceptionally stupid, the locals would say that you "lived north of Number 7," the TC highway.  I drove parts of it every Thursday and Sunday nights.  No. 7 is hardly a highway for some of its length.  It's like a Route 40 in the states.  There are lots of little motels and eateries.  And the truck traffic is wild.  My suggestion is when you get to Marmora, head south to Sterling and then pick up the 401 to Thousand Islands.  The 401 is a great road, and the scenery near TI is worth it.  Try to hit it in the daylight.

I'm trying to plan accordingly, so that I don't find myself "needing" to stop for gas in some remote and possibly poorly served location.

And I'm using my wife's Chevy Cruze for this trip, which has a 15.5 gallon tank and averages about 35 MPG on the highway (as opposed to my Trailblazer SS, which has a lot more room overall, but only averages 16 MPG highway).

Fail. You drive a bunch through Nebraska and Kansas and completely miss Colorado.

I used t work 1 week a month in Loveland. Explored the state from top to bottom and even managed to do two 14s (I was much younger then). Almost bought a home in the Durango area, at one point.

OK, you are excused. However be prepared for suckitude. :p
I was just in Loveland yesterday...

My condolences...


Actually thinking about spending most of the time in western Canada and then a day and a half in SD, then just power drive the 1600 miles home from there.in two days or less.

I grew up there. It's awesome. Wait.. no , it sucks, everyone stay away!

It would be crazy not do drive through Canada ...the exchange rate is hugely in your favor . Lots of great hotels along the way

You should drive through Kelowna though, and spend the night in wine country , then continue through Vernon to Revelstoke, where you would be back on your original route if you had gone through Kamloops

The drive is spectacular through the Rock Mountains ( Kicking horse pass and Rogers pass ) . You can see the spiral tunnel between Field and Kicking horse where the train actually loops right through the mountain

Needless to say the drive through Yoho and Banff national park is awesome

If you want to save some time, you should take the Coquihalla Hwy towards Kelowna  / Kamloops since its much faster and 2 lanes all the way . The more scenic Highway 3 is nice but its hard to pass slow vehicles  in lots of areas

You are not giving up too much, since the Coqhihalla route is pretty scenic .

PM if you want some hotel recommendations. I have made the Vancouver to Calgary drive more times than I can count

Don't worry about net access.....every Starbucks, Tim Hortons etc has Wi Fi . Surprisingly good cell coverage along entire route . All the park visitor centers have wi fi

So given a choice you think I would prefer a day in the Kelowna area to one in Kamloops?  

Thanks for the info on Wi-Fi and cell coverage.

And if you have suggestion for decent hotels to stop at and/or specific places to eat I shouldn't miss, they would be appreciated.

You have no real need to head up to Kamloops once you head out of Kelowna.
You will tire of the traffic in the Okanagan this time of year and be happy once you hit the TCH and head east at Sicamous.
From there it's an easy 6 hour drive through the Rogers Pass and The Kicking Horse Pass where you cross the Continental Divide.
You will love the scenery !

I would do one or the other, not both.  I'm presuming that Kelowna is a better place to spend a day?

Yeah...but you're on fire right now...

Hwy 2 would take you across the Cascades into Eastern Wa.

Be aware that while it is a pretty spectacular drive..Hwy 20   can be a bit tricky. nmd  see what you mean by "northern loop

well, no sane person willingly drives to Philly.  Through it is bad enough.

You are correct.
Let me know when you are coming through Calgary, it's very nice here in August and you will probably want to spend a night here.
I can point you out to some good food and drink spots.

You live in NJ  [/irony]

Looks like my son might fly out to Seattle and join me for the road trip back. Would be nice father/son experience. He's 22 and in college so I don't know how many more chance we would get to do something like this.