America's Most Dangerous Highway, Part 2

It’s a job that’s anything but easy: driving up and down Alaska’s infamous Dalton Highway, with truckers facing dangerous road conditions and hours of isolation every time they get behind the wheel.

A normal work week for drivers involves six days spent on the road. When they’re driving 414 miles of the treacherous Haul Road each trip, it adds up to around 80 to 90 hours a week.

Along with this largely inactive lifestyle behind the wheel of a truck, the challenges associated with driving the road are so stressful to its drivers, Robert admits his health has taken a turn for the worse.

“It can age you very quickly,” said Robert. “I’ve had a lot of stress issues the last couple of years, that I don’t think I would have had working somewhere else.”

Despite the issues, Robert is happy, having finally found his way to the Haul Road after years working in restaurant management and construction.

"I love it,” Pennick said. “I love driving a truck and right now I really wouldn't want to do anything different.”

Driving the truck allows Robert to support his wife and two daughters who live in Arizona, yet another hardship that Robert faces. He goes home only three or four times a year for about a week, but he still maintains close contact with his family through various methods.

Robert says he talks to his wife at least once a day, and always feels connected to his daughters because they loaded up his iPod with music to keep him company during the lonely hours he spends driving.

"It's nice because when I'm listening to the songs I know they're listening to the same songs and so it's a connection,” Pennick said.

For Robert, it’s his wife’s voice and the lyrics of his daughter’s favorite song, “Float On” by Modest Mouse, that make him feel as if it isn’t too far from home, inspiring him to do just that: And we'll all float on alright/Already we'll all float on/Alright don't worry even if things end up a bit too heavy/We'll all float on alright.

Editor’s note: “America’s Most Dangerous Highway” is airing on the Channel 2 Newshour during the week of Feb. 4-8, 2013.

Contact Blake Essig