Denali National Park 6/26-6/29/2008

Denali National Park was a big highlight for me when I was planning this trip. On the map, it seemed to be the furthest point we’d reach. It seemed like it would be a milestone of our trip. Also, I am a national park ‘junkie’ and expected this to be at least as chock full of animals and scenery as Big Bend, Grand Tetons and Yellowstone. A few things gave me yet another reminder that expectations can only leave room for disappointment.
First, the weather was cold, raw and gray. I don’t think anything can look spectacular when encased in dull, gray clouds. As we arrived and approached the town, I got the feeling of being in a cheap tourist trap. T shirt shops, fudge shops, and small buildings hawking tours started to line the streets. I felt as if we were driving through a tourist luring gauntlet. The only thing missing was blinking neon lights!
Well, we can rise above the weather, find our own tours to go on, skip the fattening fudge shops, and wear our own T shirts from Albuquerque, Charleston, Yellowstone and other faraway places we’ve seen. I was at Denali National Park and I was going to hike, maybe kayak, and definitely see wildlife.
We scouted out a suitable campground and soon realized that wasn’t going to happen. The few campgrounds in town were muddy (not their fault), tight, and expensive. We went into the park to see if there were any cancellations in one of the 2 National Park campgrounds. One campground was closed because the roads were still iced over (in the end of June!). The other campground was booked, and try as I may, I couldn’t squeeze 2 sites out of the young volunteer behind the desk. So, we left Dominic and our motorhome in the parking lot while Diana, Ralph and I drove their jeep to check out other potential campgrounds. The best we could find was one a few miles out of the park. It had a great view of the river and we had to convince the young Russian clerk who spoke broken English that we wanted to be right on the river. It all worked out, we settled in and all drove off to see Denali National Park. Well, we only got to see 15 miles of it today. That is the furthest point that individuals can drive within the park. Now, this is the largest national park in the United States. We are in Alaska-the last frontier. Why would the rules be so strict here? It made no sense. Actually, it did make sense (to preserve the area and wildlife) but it seemed so incongruous.
In order to see the rest of the park, you are required to take a bus. Now, there are no less than 12 options you have. You can take a tan bus (tour bus) which can take you to 3 or 4 different locations, or you can take a green bus (national park bus) which can take you to approximately 7 different locations. The green buses enable you to get on and off and transfer to another green bus. They are less expensive (fares are generally $25-70 per person) than the tan bus, but the tan bus is more comfortable. The tan busses leave later in the morning (ie less chance of seeing wildlife) and you must stay on your bus all day.
So, I think you can get the picture of the rigidity and rules we were experiencing. Oh, did I remember to tell you that the busses fill early and the reservation desk was a madhouse?
So, we decided to take the earliest green bus we could (more wildlife, more flexibility to hike, etc). This tour would be approximately 8 hours long. No place to eat in park, so you need to bring food, water, etc. Bathroom stops would be scattered along the way. Gee, I’m so glad to be in the wilderness and surrounded by nature!
I guess my visions of a long, leisurely hike to a beautiful lake and encountering a gentle grizzly on the trail were fading very quickly. Instead, we arrived at the bus depot the next morning and got herded into a full bus of camera toting tourists (and we fit right into the stereotype!). I was truly hoping this wouldn’t be the only herd of animals I saw all day!
Wendy, our bus driver for the day, arrived and greeted us with the rules of the bus. She also told us she’d stop if there was wildlife and that her responsibility was to drive-it was our responsibility to inform her of any animals we saw. Oh boy-this was gonna be a long day. As Wendy spoke and the damp clothing we all wore (yes, it was raining again) started to warm up in the bus, the windows began to fog. Wendy passed out paper towels for us to wipe down the windows. Oh boy, a really long day was ahead.
We drove for almost an hour and heard Wendy tell us that owls usually are spotted here (we didn’t see one), then she told us that she has an affinity for wolves. She said some drivers don’t even slow down near the wolf dens but she would. She spoke a lot and offered not only factual and informational words, but also her personal thoughts. This was interesting, and things were picking up a little. As we passed the wolf dens, she slowed down, as promised. But, we didn’t see any wolves. There are moose all over Alaska and Wendy told us we were in a heavily populated moose area. Guess what-they must’ve been at a convention that morning because we didn’t see any! We only had 7 more hours to go on this hot, steamy, crowded bus. I could survive.
Since we arrived early for the bus, Dominic and I were able to get seats in the first row. This meant we had a full view out the front windshield as well as out the side window. We drove for an hour and worked really hard to see something on 4 legs when all of a sudden Dominic jumped up and yelled “GRIZZLY”! Wendy responded by immediately stopping the bus and asking Dominic to describe where…the paper towels came out, the bus rocked as everyone went to the side Dominic described and cameras started clicking. The bears in Denali are honey colored, and there was the cutest golden sow (mama) bear being followed by 2 bouncing cubs. They were on a mountain and visible with naked eyes, but definitely more defined when viewed through binoculars. Wendy made sure everyone saw them and got all their pictures before moving on. I was elated we saw them and proud that Dominic found them. We drove on a while more when once again he stood up and yelled “There’s another one!”. Wendy stopped again (I truly think she doubted him this time since no one saw it at first). Again, Dom had to pinpoint it for us all and then we saw a mound of honey fur curled up and sleeping on the mountainside. It was the cutest bear I’d ever seen-certainly not a good representation of a ferocious predator. Again, out came the paper towels and cameras. We were starting to get the hang of this now.
There were a few more sightings (caribou, Dall sheep) by the Animal Magnet and by now, as soon as Dominic stood up, Wendy stopped the bus immediately. The gal behind us might have been related to Dominic because she was also finding these hard to see critters as we drove past them.
Each time we saw an animal, Wendy would record it and kept a running count. We saw 2 fox (one stayed perfectly still for quite some time and actually seemed to pose for us). I never saw one so close – they are beautiful animals. All in all, we ended up seeing golden eagles, dall sheep, caribou, 2 fox, 16 grizzlies, porcupine, and a ptarmigan).
The last sighting was made as we turned a precarious curve toward the end of the day-there were 3 bears right on the road in front of the bus! It was amazing. Wendy stopped the bus 15 feet from them and we just waited and watched them. Again, it was a sow and 2 cubs. They slowly walked away from the bus and all I could do was get ‘butt’ shots in the camera. I didn’t know if I should shoot pictures or just watch them. I could see their huge paws, their incredibly long claws, their pointy faces and their little round ears. The sow was large and healthy looking and all 3 had bright, unmatted, thick fur. I watched them waddle away and then for some reason, the sow turned around and headed toward us! The babies obligingly followed and I got some wonderful photos of them full faced. They came so close that Wendy told everyone to close their windows and she even closed hers. Then I saw her pull her camera out to get a few shots for herself. What a wonderful way to end a wonderful day!
The day before, when we were deciding on which bus to take, Ralph met a couple who had just come off the same bus we took today. They were beaming from ear to ear and so animated when they told us of the wildlife they saw. As we left the bus, I felt we all had the same ear to ear grins as those 2 did only 24 hours earlier!
Once again, I must reiterate that expectations and preconceived notions are usually a big waste of energy. I hope I can remember in the future to put that energy into being mindful of enjoying what is happening in the moment.

Mt. Mckinley 6/29-7/2/2008

Leaving Denali on such a ‘high’ could have left us open for a disappointment. We weren’t quite sure where our next stop would be as we headed south toward Talkeetna and Anchorage. We wanted to stay in a cozy pull off near a lake, river, or spectacular scenery. We felt we’d know the perfect spot when we found it. Decided to leave Denali early (5am) to see wildlife on the road, to be able to get to any ‘first come first served’ campgrounds, and most important, to have a full day at our new destination. Our thoughts are that we can always sleep when we return to the lower 48!
It was cold, cloudy and gray. I called my mom as soon as we left Denali because I wasn’t sure if we’d have phone service further down the road. Since we’re 4 hours earlier than Florida, there was no problem calling so early. It was a great call! Mom has had a lot of good things happening lately (including an 84th birthday last week) and her health is flourishing. I could ‘hear’ her huge smile across the 4900 mile phone call. What a super way to start my day. As we spoke, the clouds began their now familiar daily dance. The skies are a brilliant blue here and the clouds are always white, puffy and a sharp contrast to the azure background. As the winds up yonder pick up, the clouds meander playfully across the many, many mountain peaks above. This creates a dynamic display of blue and white that changes with each passing moment. So, I reveled in Mom’s upbeat mood, the playful sky and the prospect of a new adventure ahead.
We saw 2 big bull moose, a sow moose and her cub before 7am! We stopped at a few rest stops, thinking they might be where we’d want to spend an evening, but each fizzled out, once we pulled in. When we reached a state park named ‘Denali View North’, we pulled in and hoped the reality lived up to its name. (Mt. McKinley was originally named Denali, and the locals refer to it either as “Denali” or “The Mountain”). Well, we saw a paved parking lot, large sites, a campground host, and a view of the Alaska Mountain Range and decided this was the place to spend the night. We read the display signs that showed a schematic of each peak and immediately got into a big discussion as to which high snow covered peak was The Mountain. There was some dissension among us, but we got our binoculars, cameras and spotting scopes out to find this elusive mountain. We learned that only 1 out of every 5 people that come to see it actually do see it. She’s so high (20,230 feet) that she makes her own weather. She’s often (usually) encased in those big, white, beautiful clouds that don’t really seem so beautiful when they are blocking the highest peak on the continent.
Since we’ve been getting up early (very early) every morning, we decided we needed a down day to just rest and catch up with ourselves and our chores. So, I plunked myself in the driver’s seat, Dominic sat in the other front seat and we quietly watched the cloud/sky/mountain dance right outside our front window. For any of you who wonder how we can live without a house and a yard, I think this might be an answer. Today, our front yard is the mighty Mt. McKinley. Tomorrow it might be a river filled with salmon going upstream in Talkeetna..as they say, “the world is our front yard”.
Back to our search for this elusive hill-we waited, we watched, we speculated where she may be hiding-but, we didn’t see her. The day flew by and we took lots of pictures of another peak (Deception Mountain) in hopes that it might be McKinley. Can you guess why they named this imposter mountain Mt. Deception? We heard it said that when you see McKinley, you’ll know it. Well, the mountain started to show herself somewhere after dinner time. Dominic spotted a small white snow covered piece of mountain behind the clouds. It was hard to distinguish where the clouds ended and where the snow began. Soon, there were less clouds and more mountain appearing. It was awe inspiring. We felt so fortunate to see even the little we were seeing. The clouds came back, covered her up, as if to keep her warm and protected. Then, as if to introduce her beauty to the many who were waiting to see her, she appeared again. This went on for hours.
We stood and watched and oohed and aahed with others who came and went. As I was peering through the binoculars, I was aware of a 5th wheel RV that pulled in. I wasn’t aware, however, of a woman calling out for assistance. It seems that the men in the RV went out and left her and another elderly woman in the RV without pulling out the entrance step for them. It was too high off the ground for her to jump out, and she needed someone to open the step. I went over to help and we started talking about their Alaskan experiences and I also shared some of mine. They were traveling with her daughter and son in law who soon came over to join us. After only a few short moments together, the young couple began telling us of their wedding and how Helena (the bride) honored her deceased father during the wedding ceremony. It was so beautiful to hear her remember her dad, that it literally brought tears to my eyes. I thought of how special it was to her, and also feeling how my Dad was with me in spirit at my wedding also. I felt very honored that they shared this special part of their lives with us, and immediately felt a connection with them. We talked a while more, explaining how we each felt about life and I truly saw a light shining around them. I felt so fortunate to have met them. We exchanged emails and I hope to keep in touch with them. It was a memorable experience for us.
Way back in Toad River, Dominic and Ralph bought T shirts that said “I SURVIVED THE ALASKAN HGHWAY”, but they decided not to wear them until we had the proper ceremony to celebrate the accomplishment. Since we’ve been going, going, going each day, we didn’t have the time to celebrate. Last night seemed like the perfect time. The camp host gave us firewood (although it was still light out, we used it to ward off the mosquitoes), Ralph and Diana broke out the champagne, and we toasted our trip’s accomplishments with The Bubbly and toasted marshmallows.
There were 3 men at the next fire pit a few yards away who came over to ask if we’d like to try some salmon that they caught. Normally, I wouldn’t feel comfortable eating a stranger’s food like that, but for some reason, I grabbed a plastic fork and we all joined in – eating right off the aluminum foil pan it was cooked in.
I chatted with one of the guys, Diana & Ralph spoke with another, and Dominic spoke to the slightly older fellow who was wearing denim overalls. I learned the 2 younger boys were brothers and were traveling with their dad in Alaska. We soon finished the fish, said our thanks and goodbyes. The guys packed their car to leave (they had an early morning tour in Denali National Park) and we walked back to our motor homes. As we did, Dominic told me about his conversation with Daryl (the father). He recently had 70% of his colon removed. His dream was always to come to Alaska, and his sons gave him this incredibly special trip as a gift. As Dominic was telling me this, the clouds began to lift and again The Mountain shone through. I went back to the 3 men and invited them to come see the unveiling through our binoculars and spotting scope. They literally ran over, not knowing how long this gift would linger in front of our eyes. When Dominic handed Daryl the binoculars and he saw Mt. Mckinley for the first time, he said (almost to himself) “I’d never thought I’d ever get to see this”. My heart both broke and flooded at the same time. It was a moment I will never forget-to see how happy he was will always be ingrained in my memory.
After a while, the guys left saying they had to get up early in the morning. We all had huge smiles on our faces and after hugs for everyone they left…it was only moments later that I realized I never got an email address or phone number from them. The only connection I’d have would be that miraculous moment with Daryl that will forever be etched in my memory.
We packed up the equipment and went into the motor home for the night. Only a few minutes later Dominic yelled “There’s a bear in the campground!”. I looked out our dining room window and saw 6-7 feet of black fur on its hind legs standing in front of the garbage can about 10 yards away. After we finished eating Daryl’s salmon, Dominic threw the foil in that can, and I guess the bear could smell it and wanted to sample what we ate. So, we immediately ran out of the coach, camera in hand to get some close ups. We were soon joined by other campers and then by this sow’s cub. So, more pictures, more excitement, more super special memories!
Again, we came into the coach to settle in for the night with huge smiles and thoughts of an incredible day.
We woke up the next morning to a small sheet of paper on the windshield..it was from Daryl and his sons. They decided to drive 40 miles down the road to get a different view of the mountain and wanted to let us know where that view was. They took pictures and gave us their email in case we wanted to write to them and get the pictures! So, now I felt complete-I would be able to stay in touch with this warm and loving family.
Can it get any better than this?

Whitehorse, Yukon Territory 6/7-6/10/08

Again, another 6am departure. We planned on driving about 140 miles today. The roads were a little straighter, a little less hilly, but a lot less paved. Shortly after we left Watson Lake, we traveled in loose gravel for what seemed like hours. Dominic slowed down to about 25mph in order to keep the gravel off the coach and the dust out of our engine..I felt like Pigpen in the Charlie Brown cartoons-we had a huge dust cloud around us. It was easy to see oncoming traffic because they, too, were surrounded by the dust their own tires kicked up. It was lovely. I travel with a cup of coffee in a cup holder near the dashboard-each time I drank from it, I imagined all the road dust I was ingesting…I wonder how many calories in a pound (or liter?) of dust?
Again, we stopped at rest stops for pictures and sightseeing. We saw a moose, a bear, and finally, a caribou (we’d never seen one before). The road ran parallel to a few different rivers for a good part of the day and the rivers were framed by huge snow capped mountains. We admired the immense beauty around us and say-“Hey, that looks like Alaska!”
We had another ‘must-do’ today, this time in the way of MUKLUK ANNIES. This is a campground, restaurant, boat trip, car/rv wash all rolled into one. The ads say ‘free camping, free rv wash ‘. Annies is known for her delicious salmon bake. So, we pulled in and were going to stay the night-what could be so bad having a free night of camping, a good meal and another adventurous ‘must-do’. But, it was early (almost noon) and the campground was as dusty as the entire road we just drove through. We took a group vote and decided to move on. There were, however, a few sights that I wanted to see in town that we missed because of it. Since we’re passing through this area on the return trip, we’ll give it another try.
So, on to White Horse-the capital of the Yukon. We arrived at the campground with no reservations (we haven’t made any since we started the trip) and were told they had no room at the inn! So, we’re dry camping (no electric, no water, no tv, no sewer) for the night and will get a full hookup site tomorrow. We drove into town, stopped at the visitors’ center, chatted with the gal about Hillary vs. Obama, prices, taxes and how the USA is perceived by Canadians. She also gave us points of interest in the area, we saw a short movie on the natural beauty of the Yukon and the name of a good Chinese restaurant to go to for dinner.
It’s now 8:30pm. It’s still light out and will be for at least another 4 hours. That makes it so difficult to go to sleep, but it’s been a long few days and my body doesn’t know the sun is still shining…
We’ll probably be in White Horse 2-3 days and I’ll continue to tell of our tales of travel as they progress…until then, the sleepiness has overruled the daylight and I’ll say good night for now…
The weather was cold, raw and gray. We went into the campground office and the man behind the counter asked if it started snowing yet. We laughed and joked back, chatted a while and then went back outside. Well, we quickly learned that he wasn’t joking-the snow was falling quickly and the flakes were large. The ground was soon covered and I felt it was so ‘right’ to have snow while we were in the Yukon Territory-very appropriate, indeed! We found out later, that this is the first time they’ve EVER had snow in Whitehorse in June!
We went into town and explored. We stopped in at the brewery (where else to go on a wintery day in June?) for a much advertised free 2 hour tour (complete with free samples). We arrived just as the tour of about 10 people was starting. The young tour director was barefoot and made a point to apologize for his lack of shoes. It seems he was partying too much the previous night and left them somewhere in Whitehorse, but he can’t remember where! So, we are getting to experience and appreciate the laid back, friendly manner of the folks up here. I found it very refreshing and a reminder for me to take life a little less intensely.
So, the tour was kind of light (he was, remember, recovering from a rough night!) but he did, as promise, offer us free samples of their many different varieties of beer. Seems there was no real limit to what we tasted. Since I’m not much of a beer drinker, I took a glass for myself, took a sip and handed it to Dominic. As we stood around drinking the samples (large samples, I must say), we started to take life a little less intensely and feel more like a true Yukonite (is there such a word?). As we moved through the different beers, we started chatting with Louise and her husband, a couple from Quebec. We soon found her accent and frequent pauses to remember how to say a particular word in English very amusing. She had a bubbly personality (I don’t think it was from the beer) and a real ability to tell a story. She told us of places they traveled and we compared notes with our tales. Her enthusiasm soon captured us and we listened to her adventure in a town south of Whitehorse called Carcross. She loved the drive down there the day before and told us we must go. She kept saying it was “Cute, no really Cute. Very cute, cute, cute”. So, on Louise’s suggestion, we decided to venture toward Carcross the next day. The weather was dreary (again) and it seemed like a plan.
Carcross was about as large as my motor home. Our first stop was at the Carcross museum. We arrived just as a few busloads of tourists came. As we pulled in, Dominic noticed white mountain sheep on the hill behind the museum. I quickly pulled out my camera and started clicking away, as were many folks getting off the bus. After a few minutes, we realized these were fake animals. Then, we went to the museum, which wanted to charge a lot of money to walk in the gardens (it was raining) and even more money to see the archives. So, feeling dumb and violated, and after seeing the tour buses and fake animals, we decided this wasn’t a place we wanted to be. We continued on to the actual town-we were waiting for it to become ‘Cute, Cute, Cute’. In town, there was a great old store that had that musty smell when you walk in that old stores usually have. Here was a mixture of authentic old stuff mixed with authentic new souvenirs made in China. It even had the required expensive ice cream cones that all tourists love.
So, we left and continued our search for Louise’s cute, cute, cute place. We walked the street (the only street) in town and saw small, colorful houses on blocks (not sure why they were lifted like that) and also saw a post office. I like to photograph the many different styles of post offices that we see in our travels, so we went over and went inside. The entire building was small, but there were 3 women working there. Not sure how it all came about, but they started asking us our birthdates. They were celebrating the year of the rat and it seemed that Dominic and Ralph both had ‘rat’ birthdates. So, all 7 of us in this tiny building were laughing and kidding about the rats when one woman disappeared and returned with some plastic rat noses and ears. She told the guys they needed to put them on-and surpisingly, they did! Our cameras came out and we all had a good laugh.
While in Whitehorse, we also hiked to Canyon City, walking across a suspension bridge to get there. In typical Yukon laid back style, there were no trail markings or maps except for a very simple one at the entrance to the trail. We walked and walked along the river looking for the ruins of Canyon City. We never saw them, but rather saw a plaque that depicted where the city had been!
Whitehorse was a small city, Yukon style with a slant toward tourism. It offered me just a taste of the Klondike, but I felt it had become a tourist haven and not ‘the real thing’. I expect (hope?) we’ll see more a authentic Yukon as the miles progress.

Watson Lake 6/6-6/7/-8

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In all our research for this trip, and in all our conversations with others who have travelled it before us, as well as in discussions with people we have met that either live in BC or work here, EVERYONE and EVERY guide book says ‘A trip to Liard springs is a must”. It actually became a joke between Dominic and I. It’s happened so many times in the 3 ½ years we’ve been on the road that we have been excited about seeing an attraction or visiting a ‘must see’ place and then end up being disappointed. Perhaps our expectations were too high, based on pre-conceived notions. We’re trying to just accept things as we see them and let strong recommendations become just gentle suggestions so we don’t get a false build up. Well, with Laird Hot Springs it was difficult to soften everyone’s vehement chant that we must go. To be honest, I wasn’t really thrilled to be in a communal pool with 30-50 strangers with what I assumed to be all degrees of cleanliness. My mind went to the fact that warm water breeds germs, and I wasn’t sure if these springs would be the only source of bathing for some ‘backwoods’ campers. So, I had kinda decided I would just go and see them. Dominic, feeling the same way, wasn’t even sure he wanted to stop. Diana and Ralph were wishy-washy (no pun intended) also.
But, how could we go home and tell the millions of people who told us it was a ‘must-do’ that we didn’t do? So, peer pressure prevailed and we stopped at the springs. We parked the rigs across the highway, walked approximately 10 minutes on a boardwalk over wetlands (ie..mosquito infested swamp) to the springs. We hadn’t worn our suits, since we were sure we wouldn’t go in…well, whoda thunk? The springs were in a beautiful, serene, lush setting. There were only about 6 or 7 people in them, and they were crystal clear and clean (the waters as well as the people!). So, off we went – back on the boardwalk, back through the swamps (they really were pretty, I am just using poetic justice to make my story more appealing!), got our suits and returned to the pools. What a wonderful surprise. The water was very hot at the surface, but actually quite comfortable just a few inches below. If you created a little swirl around you, and brought the deeper water up, you cooled off. When you stopped swirling your hands or legs, you brought back more warmth, etc. We chatted with some very interesting folks and enjoyed every minute. Lesson be learned….take each of life’s offerings as they come, with no expectations, either positive or negative. But, you can rest assured---if I meet someone who is planning a trip to Alaska, I will tell them Laird Hot Springs are a ‘must-do’!
After the springs, we were relaxed, clean and rested. We decided to have breakfast at the local lodge before heading back on the road.
Not sure how far we would drive or where we’d spend the night, we climbed in our coaches and proceeded to head north on the highway.
We pulled over and stopped at various rest stops to see the incredible scenery and most times met some folks that we have been seeing along the way who were doing the same thing. A few pictures of the sights, and few words shared with these new friendly strangers, and we were off again.
We drove from British Columbia into the Yukon Territory today. It truly brought tears to my eyes. I think I felt we were finally in the wilderness! I felt as if we had arrived. It was special entering British Columbia also, but entering the Yukon-ahh, that’s a real accomplishment. I didn’t realize we would leave the Yukon and re-enter British Columbia 6 more times before this part of the trip was over.
We ended up at Watson Lake, the next big(?) town on the highway. It’s challenging to pick a campground out purely by reading an ad or a description in a book, but it’s even more challenging pulling a 42’ motor home and towed truck around from campground to campground to look for the best one. So we threw a dart and landed at Downtown RV Park. We were still a little scarred and gun shy from our last electrical experience and still cognizant that we needed to evaluate the quality of the campgrounds we pick. So what did we find? Downtown RV Park, which sounded good in the book, was nothing more than a dry,dusty gravel parking lot with hookups…if this was going to be a deciding factor on the continuation or cancellation of our trip, it wasn’t looking too good that I’d get to Alaska! Well, the owner had a wonderful personality and as we teased and chatted with him, we told him of our bad electric at the last campground…even though that was 320 miles away, he knew which campground we were talking about. He assured us he had clean electric and that we didn’t have to worry. I felt a little better, but still not sure which way we would decide-to continue on or to backtrack to the USA.
Watson lake is famous for it’s Sign Post Forest, and it is exactly what is sounds like. There are more than 61,000 signs on wooden poles in a large square block in the center of town. The forest was started by an Army soldier who was working on the construction of the Alaska Highway in 1942. He was homesick and decided to hang a sign from his hometown of Danville, Illinois. Today, visitors are encouraged to leave their own signs. It’s an amazing site to see as you walk up to see the colorful signs and the names of towns and families in all shapes, sizes and styles.
We had a special plaque with our name and address on it that our friends Don and Carol Werner gave us as a new coach present. Don is a woodworker and made a wooden plaque in the shape and color of our motor home. We ceremoniously hung it in Watson Lake where it will hang proudly. We know of other friends who left their signs, and although we looked for them, we didn’t see any familiar names.
Next, we walked across the street and went to the Northern Lights Centre. Not sure what it was, but Diana had read about it in the travel books (and we had a $1 coupon), so we decided to go. There was an anteroom with information about NASA and the CANADARM that was built for the space station as well as information on the Northern Lights (Auroro Borrealis) phenomenon that occurs here in late summer through spring. We waited for a short time before the movie presentation started, and were let into a planetarium type theater with recumbent seats and a large domed screen overhead. Saw 2 movies-one about the vastness of the universe and the other an informative explanation and example of the Northern Lights. Although the show was interesting, the seats were extremely comfortable, we were semi-reclined, and it was about 8pm after a long day on the road…needless to say, most of us dozed for a few seconds during the melodic display of the magic lights that hover over the dark skies at Watson Lake.
So, we walked back home and got ready for another early morning departure on roads unknown….
PS…the electric was solid, as promised. The day was wonderful, I had the opportunity to do all my laundry, we watched some US television, and somehow the meltdown of the previous day faded into a memory. There seemed to be no question that we were definitely Alaska bound.

Toad River, BC 6/4-6/6/08 aka: THE MELTDOWN

Toad River

The ride today was incredible. The scenery and terrain seems to change with each successive mile we drive. We left the town of Fort Nelson and also left signs of any towns and homes. The road rose as we traveled west through the North Canadian Rockies for the next 200 miles. We were enveloped in lush green forests with rivers that meandered in and out of our view. We were beginning to feel as if we were in the wilderness that we had envisioned during our many months of research and planning. We knew there was wildlife just beyond the tree line and we kept our eyes peeled to catch a glimpse of anything that was brave enough to venture onto the bright green grass that separated the forest from the highway.
Dominic (Mr. Animal Magnet himself), spotted the first black bear cub. We saw his little butt as he scurried back into the safety of the forest-he was too quick to catch in a photo. The next bear was more visible and cooperative. Since we left early (6am) the traffic was almost non-existent, we were able to slow down for photos. Then the bison appeared on the other side of the road. Then, we saw another black bear, then the stone sheep showed up for the party. We didn’t know where to look first. Oh, I forgot to mention-we had to pull over shortly after the 2nd bear quickly ran into the forest. Remember those animal alerts I mentioned in a previous blog (we bought super-duper ones to stop animals from running out in the road in front of us), well we felt they were working too well and the animals were getting spooked, not giving us an opportunity to see them long enough. So, Dominic pulled over and taped the front of the alerts so we could ‘sneak up’ on the animals quietly (as quietly as 2 motor homes pulling trucks could be!).
The road was hilly, curvy, full of animals, and extremely scenic with snow capped Rockies looming at every curve. So, the ride was thrilling, but slow. We travelled 70 miles in 3 ½ hours…ahh, how nice to stop and smell the roses (and crisp, fresh air).
The campground we pulled into (Toad River) was on a good sized lake and we were able to pick out our own campsites. Since we left at 6am, and arrived at 9:30am, and the campground had cleared out of overnighters who were moving on up The Highway (that’s what us ‘locals’ call the Alaska Highway). Needless to say, we chose 2 larger sites and pulled in to face the water. We hadn’t eaten breakfast, and the campground office/café/gift shop/post office/internet hot spot was still serving breakfast. We couldn’t pass up the opportunity so we ordered up eggs, sausage, potatoes, and lots of good, hot coffee. The gal behind the counter (and the postmaster/cook/waitress) was friendly and chatty, as was another fellow who worked there. After many cups of coffee the fellow asked us what campsite we were in-when I told him #19, he said Bullwinkle was in our front yard…well, I haven’t run that quickly in many years! I was out of my seat and in the coach to grab the camera in a split second…by now the moose had meandered to the water where about 6 of us gathered, snapping photos and whispering OOHS and AAHHS so as not to scare her. She came out of the water and walked through the campsite..it was amazing to see her grace and gawky manner. She was beautiful and really goofy looking at the same time. It was a real treat to see her.
We returned to breakfast to pay the bill and then decided to drive 35 miles up the road to see more critters and visit Muncho Lake. This area is nicknamed the Serengeti of the North and rightfully so. I’ll quickly say we saw more moose, a Bald Eagle, stone sheep and a few large waterfalls before we got to the beauty of Muncho Lake. It was amazing to see nature in its natural environment. Muncho Lake, as if to keep up with the other sites, appeared as a combination of an emerald green and sapphire blue gem against the white capped alpine mountains. The air was crisp, the sky was blue, and I realized God has created this magnificence and also blessed me with the ability to experience it…It was quite a moment for me..
The ride home from the lake was equally fruitful-another moose and more stone sheep greeted us on the road before we returned to the campground.
But, the day wasn’t over….before sunset began at 10:30pm we viewed 4 moose in the lake (I set up the spotting scope on the steering wheel of the coach and watched from my own front windshield), and 3 beavers building a huge dam in the pond. Can it get any better?
The next day was a ‘catch up’ day-Dominic cleaned the coach, I am caught up on my logs and editing the 1018 pictures I took yesterday! Hopefully, the pictures and the blog will give you all a sense of the wonder we are experiencing in British Columbia…
Can’t wait to see what the Yukon and Alaska have to offer!

Additional Comments on the day:
After I wrote this log, we experienced a “meltdown” as such. The meltdown applied to both us and the motor home. Our coach is an electric junkie. We have a lot of systems on it that require constant power. Our refrigerator is a residential style just like you have in your home, our entertainment system is always on, and draws a lot of amperage, as does our ionic breeze air cleaner, automatic leveling system, and even our toilet is electric! Needless to say, the more power we can give this puppy, the happier it is. Well, the campgrounds in British Columbia and the Yukon (as well as Alaska, I’m told) are older and don’t have sufficient power. The campground we’re in now is so remote that it generates its own power. Well, it doesn’t do a very good job. We have a system on our coach that monitors and displays the electrical usage as well as power coming in at all times. We started seeing extremely high (130+ volts) immediately followed by extremely low volts (109v) followed by a quick 119v. Each time this happened, we shut off all electric appliances to avoid frying them. After checking our electrical pole, checking our friends’ pole, and notifying the owner, we decided to pull the plug and just run our own power through the generator. A real waste of money (it runs on diesel) when we paid for electric at the campground. In addition to that expense, we were concerned that we may have harmed some appliances (the washing machine was whining, the hot water heater was slow, etc). so, now WE had a meltdown. We aren’t used to ‘roughing it’ and discussed the possibility of turning around and going back to the states-abandoning our trip. We’ve learned when things aren’t going right, then something is amiss and we need to rethink what we’re doing. Our motto is that life shouldn’t be so difficult. So, we went to sleep deciding to give it a few more days and see if this would be the trip of a lifetime, or the trip from hell..
We woke up the next day a little less frustrated, a little more realistic, and a little more positive.
Onward we trudged……

FORT ST JOHN, BC 6/1-6/3/08

We arrived in Fort St. John yesterday after a long (?) 47 mile drive from Dawson Creek. We decided to stop at FSJ so that we can visit a nearby town (60 miles away) called Hudson's Hope. We were told the trip to HH would be scenic and we'd see lots of wildlife. In addition, there are 2 dams in HH that we wanted to tour. We arrived at FSJ and we all realized Ralph and Diana (who drove over 3000 miles from Pennsylvania to British Columbia in 10 days) needed a rest. We spent the 1st day in FSJ picking up a few staples (did I mention that food is EXTREMELY expensive here?) and finding the least expensive fuel station (did I mention that fuel is EXTREMELY expensive here?). Fuel prices have continued to rise with each successive town we visit. This seems to be the pattern, which is over and above the normal daily price increase, there is also a price increase as you move further north on the Alaska Highway.
Which leads me to another point. It dawned on me that many of you might not understand the geographical logistics of our trip. It took me a long time and lots of maps before I actually understood the route our trip would take. So, I'll try to explain it...
We entered Canada about 60 miles east of Vancouver in a small town called Abbottsford. The highway we took from the border up to Dawson Creek is called the Trans Canada Highway. We traveled approximately 700 miles on it. Dawson Creek, Canada is the beginning of the Alaska Highway, which continues for more than 1500 miles through British Columbia, the Yukon, and eastern Alaska, ending at Delta Junction, AK. There’s some dispute that the highway actually ends in Fairbanks, Alaska by locals. So, you’ll see pictures of 2 different monuments that claim to be the end of the highway, and they are actually 95 miles apart!
There is much history regarding the building of this highway, which was accomplished in the 1940's. It was a combined effort by the Americans and Canadians and, needless to say, quite a difficult undertaking due to the extreme weather and remote aspect of the area. The distances on the highway were noted with mileposts and to this day, although the physical posts no longer exist, the attractions, landmarks and towns are still denoted by them. Funny how Canada uses the metric system (liters, kilometers, etc), but the highway uses miles..hmmmm.
So, there's a lot of history, national pride, points of interest and beautiful vistas along this 1500+ mile trek. But, this will only be part of our trip. We are expecting the total trip (in the motor home) to be approximately 5000 miles from Seattle, Washington, with many more additional miles to be traveled with the truck. We are discussing taking the Dempster Highway up to the Artic Circle, a trip that is both rugged (guaranteed to cost you a new tire or two) and scenic. We're not sure if we're ready for it, but we're discussing it!
So, back to today's adventure.....
We left at 6:15am in order to try to see some wildlife on the road. The best time to find animals out and about is dusk and dawn. Well, silly us, we awoke before 5am and it was already light. We missed sunrise by more than an hour. Since we are so far north, we have extremely long days...the sun sets well after 11:30pm and rises at 3:30am...And, I understand the days will get even longer as our trip progresses. The summer solstice (June 21st) is the longest day of the year, and in Fairbanks, there’s more than 22 hours of daylight, and the other 2 hours of the day are actually twilight, not darkness.
I keep digressing, back to today's story.
We were fortunate to see a coyote in a field as we drove to the first of the 2 dams. We have visited quite a few dams in the USA, and unfortunately, since 9/11 you can't get too far into them anymore due to security precautions. We were fortunate to be able to get into the powerhouse today. The first dam, the smaller of the 2, had a wonderful visitor center and film about the making of the dam. This dam (Peace Canyon Dam) is fed from the other, larger dam (WAC Bennet Dam) upriver. We decided to visit the smaller one first and then headed up to the larger one (about 15 miles away). We took a bus tour 500 feet underground to see the actual working of the dam. This is the season where electrical demand begins to diminish in the Province and therefore, a time when maintenance is able to be done on the inner working parts. We were fortunate to see a lot of the ‘guts’ of the dam, which helped me understand much more easily how water produces electricity (too long of an explanation to get into here).
At the end of the dam tour, the guide told us we could drive along the rim of the dam-it was quite awesome to drive it, and be atop a facility that harnessed immeasurable gallons of water so that we can flick a switch and turn on a light bulb.
So, the day was eventful, educational and a great opportunity to see another part of British Columbia…
Tomorrow we head 260 miles down the Alaska Highway to Fort Nelson