End of the Road

This is the final week of our journey to the north.  We left Kitimat and lazily headed east.   It was going to be an easy drive home and perhaps along the way we would find clear skies!

Our first stop was Hazelton, BC and area.  Actually there is Hazelton and New Hazelton.  The original Hazelton is much the same as it was with many of the buildings still the same. 

It was a major transportation stop along the river.  We then crossed Hagwilget canyon on a one-lane suspension bridge - rather interesting I must say - on the way to Ksan.  Ksan is a historical village and museum which replicates an ancient Gitxsan village.

Suspension Bridge

Hagwilget Canyon

Many of the towns along the Yellowhead highway in BC have lovely signs to welcome one to their community. 

Here is a sample of the entrance to Vanderhoof which is right next to a terrific little museum.  They have restored several buildings including an old hotel and have done an amazing job.  So often you can look into the rooms but are not allowed to enter them.  In these buildings, you can go into each and every room - what a treat.

Just west of Burns Lake, BC we cam across a couple of fellows who  had a plan to canoe across Canada and down to Florida.  One young fellow was from Australia and the other was from Victoria.  They were just getting to the top of six mile hill.  We stopped to chat and they needed some water.  We replenished all their containers of water.  They rely on the rivers and streams for water and there is none on the hills. Their plan was to enter the water near Burns Lake, and they would be able to mostly travel by water to Winnipeg and then down to Florida.  I will have to track their progress on the their facebook page.

We stopped at several visitor centres  as they are a great source of information as well as at numerous rest areas.  I must compliment British Columbia as they have visitor centres in most towns and rest areas are not very far apart.  There is always an area to stop and have a break and every one of them have garbage cans.  The visitor centre at Hazelton had some neat statues depicting some local history. 

Then we came across as rest area that had a terrific boardwalk through a rain forest.

We often stayed at BC recreation sites.  There are quite a number of them, often on a lake, all free, sometimes free firewood and while some are better than others, generally they are all terrific.  Our last night was at one just outside of McBride.  It was on a great lake but it also seemed to be a real frog hatchery.  The edge of the water was black with polliwogs and tiny frogs - you couldn't walk without stepping on them - I stayed away!!

Baby Frogs

Tadpoles

On our way through, there really was some spectacular scenery.  Our last night was in Alberta near Innisfree.  What a great view!

Our View

Our trip north has come to an end.    It was a trip of 12,300 kms, one state, three provinces, and two territories.  There really was some unbelievable scenery - the northern tundra, the Canadian shield, the mountains, the valleys, the rivers, and two oceans. 

Mount Robson

The weather started hot but changed quickly.  Very few days were not cloudy and most days we had some moisture - sometimes a few drops, and sometimes, a steady rain.  A sweater was pretty well part of my attire; however, on the most part, it didn't stop us from doing anything or going anywhere!

I would like to thank those of you that took the time to make a comment or two - I appreciate hearing from you!

Thanks for following our journey.  It is time to take a break but I will be back the end of October as we head south for another trip.  Have  a great summer!!

North Western BC

As we were travelling from Stewart, we saw a huge billowing of smoke and a very strong smell.  Further down the road we saw that it came from a forest fire that apparently had just started.  We stopped and watched as the planes flew back and forth dropping fire retardant.  It was interesting to see how the retardant was really working as you could see how the fire was suppressing.

It had been quite a while since we had been in a town of any size so when we arrived in Terrace, BC there were some things that needed to be attended to.  We had been on the road for quite a while, mostly in remote areas, we had to have an oil change.  We go to Walmart and, with empty bays, they tell us that perhaps they could fit us in on Tuesday.  Off to the Ford dealer we go and he can do it right away (this is 3 pm on a Saturday afternoon).  He gives us a quote, we say do it, and off we go to A & W for our free root beer!  We come back to pick up the truck and whoa, they want double what the quote was.  As we discuss this and the reason for it, it is now close to closing time and we are talking to a staff member with no authority (other than to give the quote which he had made a mistake when he gave it).  We pay the bill and leave, very unhappy.

We spend the night in Terrace and head off to Prince Rupert.  It is a wonderful drive with great weather (yes the sun was shining).  We toured through the town.  It seems that every seaport has a fisherman’s wharf – a marina of some pretty nice boats/yachts, restaurants and gift shops lining the edge.  We drove down to the area where they load the big ships but of course, you can get close.  Port Edward, which is a small community just south of Prince Rupert, became our stop for the night.  It was a great spot, up on a little hill, overlooking the inlet. Well it was until 4 a.m. when five long, noisy, freight trains went by.

On our way to Kitimat, we stopped again at Terrace to visit the Ford dealer to speak to a manager, in which we were successful.  We voiced our concerns and responded by saying he would check it out and call us the next morning.  He called and refunded us the overcharge – wow, that was pretty good customer service.

We arrived in Kitimat and found a campsite right on the Kitimat River where there is supposedly great salmon fishing.  The first day we went to see the Squirrel Tree.  There are several “squirell” houses where people provide them with food.  Also, it has become a memorial for fisherman who fished in the Kitimat River and have passed on to another fishing hole. 

Here we met with Gerry’s sister and husband and his nephew and family.  During the week we had a great visit.  We went to see the  giant Sitka spruce which is said to be over 500 years old.  Unfortunately, the top has broken off but it is still quite the sight.  We also took a tour of Rio Tinto Alcan – the aluminum smelter based in Kitimat.   Recent upgrades resulted in some areas that we were not able to see very well as they were still having some issues with driving the bus in some areas.  It was an interesting presentation.  From there we went to buy some groceries at the local No Frills Store.  As we were leaving a lady called: “sir, sir”.  We looked around to see who she was calling when she called again.  It turned out that she was calling us.  They were waiting for someone to pay for groceries with their PC Mastercard, which we did.  The result – a $50 prepaid Mastercard.  What a way to end the week!!

I have always heard that at Kitimat you can catch lots of salmon, see lots of eagles grab fish from the river and see lots of bears catching fish in the river.  Well, I no longer believe that – it didn’t happen I’m afraid.   No fish were caught, saw no eagles and saw no bears!!  Maybe another time.

I don't know how this blog will look on your computer but when I preview it, the type is not consistent.  I apologize for this but I haven't been able to correct it but I promise to keep trying!!

I hope everyone has a great week - hope you stop by next week!!