It’s been six months and this was something I was determined to post right after our return from the 2016 summer road trip. Well, finally, here it is – the mileage chart from the trip that sent us out to Western Canada, the Northwest Territories and back through the Rocky Mountains and the north central United States.

I tried my hardest not to be confusing when it came to the purchase of gasoline in two different countries, with two different forms of measure and with two different currencies. The prices in the chart remain what they were on the sign in front of the gas station. Everything in Canada is per litre and everything in the United States is per gallon. To be a bit helpful, prices for gas bought in the U.S.A. are highlighted in red.

Total gas purchased has all been converted to litres. Cost is in local currency. When the numbers are highlighted in green, that purchase is in U.S. dollars. While we were away on this trip, the Canadian Dollar was valued at anywhere between 75 and 79 American cents.

See below the chart for more info.

2016 Summer Road Trip Mileage Chart

Notes

The fill-up in Wynard, Saskatchewan was discounted by a coupon. If you were going over the numbers with a fine tooth comb, you’d notice that the total cost is lower that the price times the quantity.

If you stop at one of the CO-OP gas stations littered throughout Saskatchewan, they are full serve only. This is great, except they would stop pumping at the first click of the nozzle. With our van, this meant the tank would be no where near full.

If you plan on driving to the Northwest Territories, you should note that gas prices defy logic. Fort Smith was the cheapest gas we found in the territory. Fort Smith is the better part of 300 km east of Hay River on an often gravel road that dead ends just south of the town in Wood Buffalo National Park. Also, the gas was cheaper in NWT than in British Columbia, north of Prince George.

For Canadians traveling through the United States, be careful at some of the gas stations. In Iowa, I almost put in some very inexpensive gas – until I noticed it was 85 octane. From what I’ve read, this stuff is a bit of a scam and does nothing for your vehicle or gas mileage.

2004 Honda Odyssey

All this was done in a heavily packed 2004 Honda Odyssey minivan. Just prior to leaving, this van was given to us. It had belonged to my father who passed away just a short time before. It was a toss-up whether we’d use this van or the not much newer 2005 Pontiac Montana SV6. I’d sunk thousands into the Pontiac over the early months of 2016 but there were still issues. The main problem was that the air conditioning defied repair.

The Honda ultimately won out because of the excellent AC and the stow and go seating making for an overall better fit for all our stuff, and the two kids. The tires were new but lower quality than the Pontiac so the road noise was a little (lot) higher. Also, I missed the Pontiac’s outside temperature display and digital compass.

However, the Odyssey made the trip without problem. We gave her just one oil change, in Prince George, British Columbia. Much of the time, she was caked in a thick layer of dust, adding to the already stressful weight on the rear shocks. The windshield got dinged pretty bad in NWT when a rather large rock was kicked up by a passing vehicle. On an emotional side, I felt that my Dad and my Mom were on the trip with me.

The image above is the Odyssey at the summit of the Powder River Pass in Wyoming. The pass is tops out at an elevation of 9,666 feet above sea level. The van didn’t struggle at all going up or down. The image directly above is the damage from the rock hit in the Northwest Territories.

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