Our original plans called for another 300 mile day of travel to Watson Lake but we decided to take it a little easier and enjoy the beauty of the Canadian Rockies. It would be difficult to identify any scenery that has not been beautiful, but the Canadian Rockies certainly rate right up there for spectacular scenery. As we climbed the peaks and viewed the valleys below, the breathtaking beauty was almost too much for the eye to behold. It is all so perfect in its beauty except there is a haze that hangs over the mountains which we understand is as a result of forest fires. We were told that no attempt is made to fight forest fires caused by lightening because they are too remote and the cost of fighting them too expensive. As we drove further along the Alaskan Highway we saw a good sized fire which seemed to be gaining strength. In the meantime, we are feeling right at home with Los Angeles air quality though the haze does not “smog” make, but it is enough to remind us of home.
We spent Sunday night at Liard Hot Springs where Ken enjoyed the hot springs. His brief stint in the pools left him relaxed and ready for bed. The Hot Springs are a quaint and lovely spot where lush tropical plants grow surrounded by tall pines and birch. It is difficult to imagine people enjoying the hot springs with several feet of snow all around but the hot springs will beckon “snow or no”. There was a fee to stay in the park but use of the Hot Springs is free.
Our days got longer as we entered Alberta and as we move further North, our days gain daylight until by our “early to bed and late to rise” standards, we are neither sure what time the sun sets or when it rises. Ken said that the sun was shining when he awakened one morning at 4AM, an observation I can neither confirm nor deny. Indeed, our days will continue to gain daylight hours until we reach Anchorage and though we have had no trouble adjusting to daylight sleeping, we miss the sunsets, an evening pleasantry that we have had to forego.
We have enjoyed pleasant shirt sleeve weather, open windows for fresh air and comfortable sleeping with only a sheet until the wee hours of the morning when, occasionally, a blanket is required. As a matter of fact, the weather is downright hot.
Monday, June 21 - Our overnight stop at Watson Lake was relaxing with a walk in the signpost forest which is a forest of signs left by visitors from all over the world. Over 50,000 signs have been erected in the “forest” since the tradition was started by a U.S. army soldier working on the construction of the Alaskan Highway in 1942. Both primitive hastily constructed signs as well as professional signs, brought specifically for posting in the “forest”, embellish each of he sea of poles on which 8 -10 signs are erected.
After our walk through the “forest” we visited the Northern Lights Centre and attended the featured presentation on the Aurora Borealis. It was an interesting presentation of lights but somewhat disappointing. If one has experienced the beauty of an Aurora Borealis, I don’t believe that a man made light presentation could ever adequately recapture that experience. It is a sensation of viewing a majestic “painting” in process. I remember experiencing this phenomena on two occasions, and I shall never forget the awe of my first experience. For an eight year old it was a surreal experience that seemed to underscore the greatness of the unknown and the wonders of the universe.
Tuesday, we continued our journey leaving Watson Lake mid morning and stopped for a travel break and 10 minute to Rancheria Falls for a combination of exercise and sightseeing experience. Continuing on, we crossed over the Continental Divide yet another time and over the Nisutlin Bay Bridge at Teslin which is, according to our Milepost Guide, the longest water span on the Alaskan Highway. Just across the bridge, we stopped and visited the George Johnston Museum which provided a very interesting and informative background on the native lifestyle of this area. It chronicled Mr. Johnston’s personal ambitions and success in pursuing his personal version of entrepreneurship. Johnson, a Tlingit Indian was a man of many “trades” (trapping, businessman, photographer ) who was able to capture the lifestyle and culture of his people through his photography. He was an amazing self educated man of unique accomplishments and independence.
The many rivers and lakes were beginning to lure Ken to fishing. A quick stop and inquiry regarding purchase of a fishing license proved discouraging. The man at the store recommended against obtaining an out of State license because the rivers and lakes are to high and the fish are not biting. Thus, a day of fishing was put off to another time.
Road signs as well as advertisements in the Milepost Director promoted the benefits of a stop at Mukluk Annies Salmon Bake. A boat ride and free camping was available if one chose to “dine” there. Our curiosity overcame us and we decided to give it a whirl. Dinner was very good. Simple mountain grub served family style with a wonderful fresh salad bar and though not a “gourmet experience” it was an adventure into the culture of our surroundings and a pleasant experience. After dinner, I did our laundry while Ken did some “coach chores” and we topped off our evening with a ride across the lake on a boat captained by Mukluk Chuck, Annie’s husband. Chuck and Annie visited Alaska on their honeymoon, thirty seven years ago. They returned home to Minnesota and set into motion their planned relocation. They decided on the Yukon because of its less populated area and they have been in the Yukon Territory 31 years. They have eight children, all of whom live within 100 miles. In addition to the real estate that they own, they have built a restaurant and RV park on the lake which is open less than three months of the year. They are an interesting, hard working and innovative couple whose business practices seem to reflect their professed religious faith. They seemed to put their customers’ interests and needs above their own financial gain and it appears to work for them. They deserve their success and if you are ever in this area, we highly recommend a stop over at Mukluk Annies. Here, as well as throughout our trip, we found the mosquitoes a distraction and, in spite of Ken’s many attempts at home spun mosquito abatement, they have proven to be challenging as well as pesky.
Wednesday we drove the 100+ miles into Whitehorse the capital of the Yukon Territory located on the Yukon River. It is a city of some 22,000+ people (the Yukon has a total population of just over 30,000). It is a thriving little town with spectacular scenery, interesting history and “traveler friendly”. The City issues a one time three day parking permit to visitors who apply and wherever you go, people are helpful, pleasant and friendly. Upon arriving we were uncertain whether we would go on into Skagway or spend a few days in Whitehorse. We decided to park in Wal Mart’s parking lot which is a courtesy provided to their customers. We have found the parking lot option to be s a handy convenience for an overnight stop when we are traveling through a city en route to another destination. We return the favor by doing as much of our shopping as we can at Wal Mart as do many other RV travelers. After doing an overview of things we wanted to do and see while here, we decided to stay over a few days and moved into a RV Park where we are nestled in among the trees in a private secluded spot. A selling point for this particular RV Park was wireless inter-net but so far, I have been unable to get my system to work. Nevertheless, it is an ideal place to spend a few days of “down time” to relax and recharge.
Today, Thursday, we took a boat trip down (or was it up?) the Yukon River for a brief trip back in time to learn something of the history of White Horse and the contributions of the Yukon River to the development and taming of this wonderful area of the world. It is hard to imagine the large stern wheelers navigating the rapids of this mighty river as they brought people and supplies to the gold fields of the Klondike in 1898. According to our river guide, as many as 22 such boats navigated the treacherous waters during the heyday of the great gold rush. We closed our day with a presentation of the “Folies” at the local theater which was interesting, entertaining and well attended. With a day off to do our “chores” relax and rest, we will travel to Skagway on Saturday, the 26th of June.
We are experience record heat for this area (it has been into the 90's since we left Alberta) with no end in sight until next week according to news reports. We expect it to be more comfortable in Skagway . We met a couple from Huntington Beach who has decided to stop in Skagway on the way home. The man jokingly said he wants to get to Alaska before all of the glaciers melt. We have met several interesting people. One lady, from Walnut Creek, California, is traveling alone to Fairbanks, where she will be joined by her husband who does not like to travel by car.
Until next we meet with the written word according to Pat, our enthusiasm for the wide open spaces continues and the beauty of this land is redundant in its magnificence. We do miss our family and wish that they could enjoy this adventure with us. Take care.
Friday, June 25, 2004
Monday, June 21, 2004
Sunday, June 20, 2004- FATHERS DAY - Revised
In my rush to post before departing Fort Nelson, I inadvertently posted a draft that had not been edited. My mother warned me, “haste makes waste”. She was right.
Our first night in Canada was spent in Lethbridge at a nice RV park on the river. The next morning Ken visited a local bank and returned chuckling. The "teller" wanted to know where we were headed. When he responded Alaska, she said she was taking a poll as to who the Alaska bound travelers were supporting in the US election. After Ken gave his response, she said you have two choices, a "war monger" or a "sissy". She went on to say that Canada's choice was much simpler. They just try to choose the least "crooked" from all of the crooks on the ballot.
It was raining when we drove through Calgary and that prompted us to alter our plans for an overnight stay. We drove on to Pine Lake half way between Calgary and Edmonton. The RV Resort was a beautiful spacious park with a lovely golf course and clubhouse. We enjoyed dinner at the club house where Ken had fish and chips which he said were very good while I enjoyed poached salmon with garlic mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables.
In Edmonton, we visited the West Edmonton Mall, billed as the largest mall in the world. I thought the mall in Minnesota was the largest but if it is, the Canadian brochures overlooked that fact. This mall complex has an ice skating rink large enough for hockey games (in fact the Edmonton Oilers regularly train there), a galaxy of amusement park type rides, a major theater complex including a motion based theater (Ken thinks one of the McFadden units that his company built was installed here but we felt too pressed for time to pursue a further "look"), a major food court, bourbon street restaurant complex (Hooters, Old Spaghetti Factory, Boston Pizza and several other major restaurant chains), two hotels and a giant water world with beaches, waves etc. This amazing complex covers 48 city blocks, and allegedly will fit 115 football fields inside. I couldn't believe that we were visiting a mall as a sightseeing event but it was billed as one of the top ten attractions for this area and it turned out that it is interesting, large and impressive. We enjoyed a scenic view of Edmonton, the capital of Alberta with a population 666,000. Calgary is the largest city in Alberta and the province has a total population of 3 million. Alberta seemed advanced in its planning and affluent in appearance. Their roads seem better designed to handle heavy traffic than some in Los Angeles.
On Thursday, we stopped overnight in Edson Alberta for a visit with old friends from our past, Dick and Vi Jackson. Dick welcomed us and proved to be a most gracious host. Unfortunately, Vi was attending a political event in connection with the elections and was on the road. We were disappointed but inasmuch as her boss is a candidate for reelection, we certainly understood the importance of her presence on the campaign trail. Dick kept us in stitches with his "story telling" talents. Dick has an uncanny way of merging fiction with threads of truth that entertains as well as stimulates curiosity.
Our stop over in Edson launched our second week on the road. We departed Edson for Dawson Creek where we spent Friday night. We traveled from Edson via Highway 32 into Highway 2 and continued a sightseers delight of visual beauty as portrayed by the many large affluent appearing farms and ranches along the road. Farming, logging and gas and oil exploration is the primary source of economic support for this area.
In Dawson Creek we visited the visitors Center and a pioneer village consisting of early homes and business buildings pre Alaskan highway. The Dawson Creek area has a population of 12,000. The Alaskan Highway, built in 1942 when Canadian and American leaders realized that the North American borders needed to be secured, starts here. With the outbreak of World War II, America and Canada realized that a highway needed to be built into Alaska to protect our North American borders. The Alcan (as it was known until 1943) was renamed the Alaskan Highway. It comprises some 1,500 miles and was built at a cost of approximately 140 million USD. It has undergone a constant improvement process since completion and is "allegedly" paved all the way, a fact that we shall confirm during our progress the next few weeks.
A businessman that we visited with told us that he comes to Dawson Creek the first of June and spends two months and one week selling his wares (antler carvings). He said that after the first week of August, it is over. Everyone going North has gone and those who are returning have completed their explorations. He lives on Vancouver Island and he returns there to enjoy the rest of his summer. He has been doing the Dawson Creek pilgrimage for eight years so it must be economically justified. Whether it is or not may be moot, it is a beautiful area.
From Dawson Creek we entered the Alaskan Highway and proceed through the Yukon into Alaska. Our trip thus far has been full of visual beauty and wide open spaces. We have completed one full week on the road and now look forward to entering the Yukon Territory.
We drove from Dawson Creek into Fort Nelson (approximately300 miles) where we spent Saturday, June 19. We are learning the wisdom of advice that we received. If you are an outdoor person, this land is God's land. If you are a "people" person, it is “no man’s land”, beauty not withstanding. The weather and temperatures have combined to give us a near perfect trip climatically speaking. Clear blue skies with temperatures in the mid to high 80’s have accompanied us throughout the trip. We hope that our good fortune will continue’
We send our love and best wishes for a very happy birthday to our son, Gary, who will be celebrating a major birthday on June 23.
In my rush to post before departing Fort Nelson, I inadvertently posted a draft that had not been edited. My mother warned me, “haste makes waste”. She was right.
Our first night in Canada was spent in Lethbridge at a nice RV park on the river. The next morning Ken visited a local bank and returned chuckling. The "teller" wanted to know where we were headed. When he responded Alaska, she said she was taking a poll as to who the Alaska bound travelers were supporting in the US election. After Ken gave his response, she said you have two choices, a "war monger" or a "sissy". She went on to say that Canada's choice was much simpler. They just try to choose the least "crooked" from all of the crooks on the ballot.
It was raining when we drove through Calgary and that prompted us to alter our plans for an overnight stay. We drove on to Pine Lake half way between Calgary and Edmonton. The RV Resort was a beautiful spacious park with a lovely golf course and clubhouse. We enjoyed dinner at the club house where Ken had fish and chips which he said were very good while I enjoyed poached salmon with garlic mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables.
In Edmonton, we visited the West Edmonton Mall, billed as the largest mall in the world. I thought the mall in Minnesota was the largest but if it is, the Canadian brochures overlooked that fact. This mall complex has an ice skating rink large enough for hockey games (in fact the Edmonton Oilers regularly train there), a galaxy of amusement park type rides, a major theater complex including a motion based theater (Ken thinks one of the McFadden units that his company built was installed here but we felt too pressed for time to pursue a further "look"), a major food court, bourbon street restaurant complex (Hooters, Old Spaghetti Factory, Boston Pizza and several other major restaurant chains), two hotels and a giant water world with beaches, waves etc. This amazing complex covers 48 city blocks, and allegedly will fit 115 football fields inside. I couldn't believe that we were visiting a mall as a sightseeing event but it was billed as one of the top ten attractions for this area and it turned out that it is interesting, large and impressive. We enjoyed a scenic view of Edmonton, the capital of Alberta with a population 666,000. Calgary is the largest city in Alberta and the province has a total population of 3 million. Alberta seemed advanced in its planning and affluent in appearance. Their roads seem better designed to handle heavy traffic than some in Los Angeles.
On Thursday, we stopped overnight in Edson Alberta for a visit with old friends from our past, Dick and Vi Jackson. Dick welcomed us and proved to be a most gracious host. Unfortunately, Vi was attending a political event in connection with the elections and was on the road. We were disappointed but inasmuch as her boss is a candidate for reelection, we certainly understood the importance of her presence on the campaign trail. Dick kept us in stitches with his "story telling" talents. Dick has an uncanny way of merging fiction with threads of truth that entertains as well as stimulates curiosity.
Our stop over in Edson launched our second week on the road. We departed Edson for Dawson Creek where we spent Friday night. We traveled from Edson via Highway 32 into Highway 2 and continued a sightseers delight of visual beauty as portrayed by the many large affluent appearing farms and ranches along the road. Farming, logging and gas and oil exploration is the primary source of economic support for this area.
In Dawson Creek we visited the visitors Center and a pioneer village consisting of early homes and business buildings pre Alaskan highway. The Dawson Creek area has a population of 12,000. The Alaskan Highway, built in 1942 when Canadian and American leaders realized that the North American borders needed to be secured, starts here. With the outbreak of World War II, America and Canada realized that a highway needed to be built into Alaska to protect our North American borders. The Alcan (as it was known until 1943) was renamed the Alaskan Highway. It comprises some 1,500 miles and was built at a cost of approximately 140 million USD. It has undergone a constant improvement process since completion and is "allegedly" paved all the way, a fact that we shall confirm during our progress the next few weeks.
A businessman that we visited with told us that he comes to Dawson Creek the first of June and spends two months and one week selling his wares (antler carvings). He said that after the first week of August, it is over. Everyone going North has gone and those who are returning have completed their explorations. He lives on Vancouver Island and he returns there to enjoy the rest of his summer. He has been doing the Dawson Creek pilgrimage for eight years so it must be economically justified. Whether it is or not may be moot, it is a beautiful area.
From Dawson Creek we entered the Alaskan Highway and proceed through the Yukon into Alaska. Our trip thus far has been full of visual beauty and wide open spaces. We have completed one full week on the road and now look forward to entering the Yukon Territory.
We drove from Dawson Creek into Fort Nelson (approximately300 miles) where we spent Saturday, June 19. We are learning the wisdom of advice that we received. If you are an outdoor person, this land is God's land. If you are a "people" person, it is “no man’s land”, beauty not withstanding. The weather and temperatures have combined to give us a near perfect trip climatically speaking. Clear blue skies with temperatures in the mid to high 80’s have accompanied us throughout the trip. We hope that our good fortune will continue’
We send our love and best wishes for a very happy birthday to our son, Gary, who will be celebrating a major birthday on June 23.
Sunday, June 13, 2004
The Road North
Our trip through Idaho and Montana has been spectacular. Perhaps this beauty is magnified because of the time of the year but the views were awesome. The snow capped mountains that surround the beautiful green valleys promoted idealistic dreams of a perfect life, free of smog, crowds and bureaucratic red tape. If one could discount the severity of the winters, the beauty of these two States presents the appearance of a near perfect tranquility amid crystal clear skies of the clearest blue offered by our good earth. Of course, as a farm girl, turned city slicker, my heart is "land" oriented.
My assessment of the land that borders Highway 15 may be considered by some as bordering on "over exuberance". However, to see first hand the beauty of our country and the good people who greet friend and stranger alike with a smile, or reasonable facsimile thereof, validate my belief that good hearts abound in our country.
As we made our way into Great Falls, we watched the great Missouri as it flowed gently along its banks. The river flows Northeast from Butte to Great Falls which I found "unorthodox" but the river did not ask my permission to flow so I must accept its "right of independence".
This area is part of the great Lewis and Clark trail. Tomorrow we plan a brief visit to the local museum for further enlightenment of this expedition of the early 1800's. Several years ago a friend suggested a movie based on the experiences of this great American expedition. I pooh poohed her suggestion. After today, I am no longer so certain of my initial reaction. However, for sure I do not have the capability of writing the screenplay that she paid me the great honor of suggesting that I should try. However, for someone who has the ability to grasp the pioneer spirit and see the greatness of this vast area, it could be a wonderful epic. Perhaps my editor and partner, would be willing to take on this erstwhile challenge and I plan to pose the suggestion when I return.
We joined Highway 15 in San ?Bernardino and traveled through Nevada into Utah, Idaho and Montana . We will cross the border into Canada just beyond Shelby, Montana and in Canada, the road becomes Highway 4 until we reach Lethbridge, Alberta where it becomes Highway 2. Our next planned overnight stop will be Calgary Alberta and then on to Edmonton and hopefully, a visit with old (years known not age) friends in Edson Alberta. Until next written word and visual affects meet, have a good day.
Our trip through Idaho and Montana has been spectacular. Perhaps this beauty is magnified because of the time of the year but the views were awesome. The snow capped mountains that surround the beautiful green valleys promoted idealistic dreams of a perfect life, free of smog, crowds and bureaucratic red tape. If one could discount the severity of the winters, the beauty of these two States presents the appearance of a near perfect tranquility amid crystal clear skies of the clearest blue offered by our good earth. Of course, as a farm girl, turned city slicker, my heart is "land" oriented.
My assessment of the land that borders Highway 15 may be considered by some as bordering on "over exuberance". However, to see first hand the beauty of our country and the good people who greet friend and stranger alike with a smile, or reasonable facsimile thereof, validate my belief that good hearts abound in our country.
As we made our way into Great Falls, we watched the great Missouri as it flowed gently along its banks. The river flows Northeast from Butte to Great Falls which I found "unorthodox" but the river did not ask my permission to flow so I must accept its "right of independence".
This area is part of the great Lewis and Clark trail. Tomorrow we plan a brief visit to the local museum for further enlightenment of this expedition of the early 1800's. Several years ago a friend suggested a movie based on the experiences of this great American expedition. I pooh poohed her suggestion. After today, I am no longer so certain of my initial reaction. However, for sure I do not have the capability of writing the screenplay that she paid me the great honor of suggesting that I should try. However, for someone who has the ability to grasp the pioneer spirit and see the greatness of this vast area, it could be a wonderful epic. Perhaps my editor and partner, would be willing to take on this erstwhile challenge and I plan to pose the suggestion when I return.
We joined Highway 15 in San ?Bernardino and traveled through Nevada into Utah, Idaho and Montana . We will cross the border into Canada just beyond Shelby, Montana and in Canada, the road becomes Highway 4 until we reach Lethbridge, Alberta where it becomes Highway 2. Our next planned overnight stop will be Calgary Alberta and then on to Edmonton and hopefully, a visit with old (years known not age) friends in Edson Alberta. Until next written word and visual affects meet, have a good day.
Our departure was delayed from Monday until Thursday. Nevertheless, we are now on the road and tonight, Saturday, June 12, 2004, we are in Big Foot Idaho. We traveled this same road about this time last year, but I had already forgotten the awesome beauty of the route. The beautiful green valleys surrounded by snow covered mountains were awesome. Our land is truly beautiful.