Q: We have been watching Ice Road Truckers on TV and wondered if we can drive the Dalton Highway in a standard SUV. We would plan on doing the trip in June. It looks really cool on TV, but is it worth the trip? Will it be as cool without all the ice? Do they still run trucks in the summer, or is it only in winter? Can we get accommodations on route and at Prudhoe Bay? —Sean

A: I was talking with a friend just last week about how I first drove the Dalton Highway back in 1988. It was supposedly closed to private traffic at Atigun Pass, where there was a checkpoint. I remember thinking up what I was going to say to the person manning the checkpoint—but when I got there, he was asleep. So I drove straight through. I did it in a Subaru station wagon at the time. And the road's improved a lot since then. So no doubt you can drive it in a standard SUV.

Here are answers to your questions:

• Yes, it's worth doing! It's a real adventure. It will give you an appreciation for the scale of Alaska, and its changing topography: forest, hills, mountains and then the vast expanse of emptiness at Deadhorse, right by Prudhoe Bay. You'll spend hours driving the road, and when you look at a map to see how far you've driven, you'll see it's a small line compared to the vastness of Alaska.

• If you’re renting an SUV, make sure the Dalton is allowed. Most rental agencies in Alaska won’t let you take their cars on gravel roads, or go all the way to Deadhorse. Here are two that do:

• Arctic Outfitters, which specializes in independent travel packages in Alaska's Arctic, and offers car rentals ranging from $179-$249/day. They can also help you book lodging and activities, too.
• GoNorth Alaska Travel Center, which rents SUVs for a daily rate of between $139 or $159 in June; they also rent out camping kits.

If you want an escorted tour on this route—riding in a van, or covering some legs of the trip by plane—there's a company in Fairbanks called >Northern Alaska Tour Company that does tours up and down the Dalton Highway.

• June would be a great month to do this. There will be some snow in the high country but the road should be clear. Trucks run the road all year long, because they are bringing supplies to Deadhorse. Plus, it will be light all night long in June.

• Where to Stay. You can stay at one of a few options near Coldfoot, which is 250 miles, or about halfway, from Fairbanks. There’s Coldfoot Camp, which acts as hotel, restaurant, fuel stop, tire repair shop and starts at $219 a night. And there are also two lodging spots in Wiseman, 14 miles north: Boreal Lodging, a four-room lodge ($90/night); and the B&B-style Arctic Getaway ($95 - $195/night), which offers three kitchen-equipped log cabins.

After that, there’s nowhere else to stay until Deadhorse, which has a campground and one hotel, the Arctic Caribou Inn ($190/night).

• Some advice: Get out and hike. There are no maintained trails along the Dalton, but it’s all fair game—and the Brooks Range is great hiking country because it's generally free of brush. Near Coldfoot, you can do a hike within the border of the Gates of the Arctic National Park. Between Coldfoot and Deadhorse, you can hike to the border of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. I really recommend getting out of your car to do some hikes, just to feel that wilderness in your legs.

• Two last safety issues. Pack a tool kit: simple spare parts, a jack and two spare tires mounted on rims. A simple flat tire out here can become a huge hassle, as the few service stations cater mostly to trucks, so ordering basic parts can be expensive, not to mention trip-changing in terms of time. Also, don’t forget to drive slowly—50 is the top speed out here, and for many turns, you don’t want to go over 15 mph. All the better for enjoying the drive, too.