A Carl's Eye View

After a couple of days in the busy, touristy town of Whitehorse we ran two day on gravel and frost heaved pavement to find ourselves in the gold capitol of the Klondike, Dawson City. I tried to get my first Musk Ox burger at the fuel stop but they don’t serve lunch until 11:00 am. The big attraction in town (other than seeing acres upon acres of abandoned iron boilers, steam pipes, heavy machinery, and unidentifiable very large objects made of cast iron than seem to have something to do with the endless chain of rearranged river bottom that stands in endless wales that fold like corduroy across the landscape) is Diamond Gertie’s Casino and Dance Hall, the first legalized gambling in Canada. We are going to have a layover day here to visit the gold fields tomorrow. On Wednesday the trip is supposed to slow down to about 10-15 mph for the day as we take the “Top Of The World” highway over to Tok, Alaska and pass through the smuggler’s entry into the US in a town called Boundry. It seems that is the highest latitude a bus can traverse. Since we are on an early season trip we still don’t know if we will be using the road or the permafrost forest. If you have no reports for a few days, keep the faith. We will be out of touch but in good company. Personally we have been pleased that all of the reports of poor road conditions in the early summer seem unfounded. We have had some gravel and frost heaves but the various highway authorities obviously have been locked in their cabins too long because they take their “spring jobs” very seriously. The volume of clearing and repairing work already accomplished this season far exceeds anything I have ever seen from public servants. They must pay these folks by the pothole or dead limb removed. I consider road conditions to be very good, even superior to New Mexican roads after a full summer of maintenance.

The next report should be from Tok (pronounced ‘toak’ as cloak by the locals). But that depends upon the quality of communications available. We seem to have very slow internet more often than we have telephone service. And slow means please send no files. Some of us have been locked up with partial downloads for days at a time (the customers of AOL and Yahoo). We have done ok so far but our downloads have all come in clean. We do appreciate the mail from home while in the wilderness.

Something New

The sea plane was just outside our window as we were parked facing Muncho Lake for our night there. We had no water or sewer and 15 amp electrical but the view was absolutly fantastic.















Hoover christens the Youkon in his usual way .

From the Yukon Territory

As we move north into in the Yukon Territory we find that the lush forests of British Columbia are giving way to Boreal forests with small Poplars and Black Spruce. The wild flowers are quite spectacular, but forest floors are no longer deep in ferns and shrubs. The soil is dry and rocky, and there are areas where the permafrost inhibits growth of any large trees.

The scenery in BC was over the top. Rivers, streams and creeks flowing out of every nook and cranny as the snow is now melting off rapidly. I had planned a photo of each labeled tributary of the major rivers, and the river crossings, but they are far too numerous and it only took me two days to give up on that quest. Besides I can barely keep up with the other pictures and the journal, and just seeing everything. There is also the ongoing hunt for wildlife to photograph and the fabulous wild flowers so many of which are new to us.

We have been on the road just over a week now and everyone in the caravan was ready for the three night layover here in Whitehorse. The washing machines have been humming in the coaches and the afternoon of our arrival everyone was out to restock groceries and liquor and get a look at the Capitol of the Yukon. Whitehorse is a city with a rich history and the Yukon River along with Whitehorse and Yukon Railroad was the highway to the outside world until the late 1950s.

Yesterday Carl, Hoover and I took a good hike along the river checking out the fish ladder at the Whitehorse power plant, one of the longest wooden ladders ever built. There was also a tour of the SS Klondike, a stern wheeler and the largest cargo ship in use on the Yukon at just over 250ft. Today we plan another hike at the north end of Schwatka Lake, formed by the damming of the Yukon River for the power plant, and then take a boat ride up the river through Miles Canyon where the legendary rapids once roared.

I had hoped to post several pictures, and I will continue to try, but the internet connection here is very intermittent. Perhaps tonight, as I stay up to watch the sun set just before midnight, I will have better luck.

Dawson Creek

June 15 and 16 are spent in preparation for the next 48 days on the Alaskan Highway, (ALCAN as it was once called) and the Wagon Master has given us an additional list of things to do to make ready. Those of us whose coaches have side mounted radiators and AC systems have been advised to cover the intakes with ¼” mesh to prevent damage from things that fly off the road. (You have all seen our windshield.) We got here earlier than most and were able to find a big roll of heavy duty nylon, a roll of plastic tie material and some other goodies at the local home store all for about $20.00 Canadian. (After completing the job we find we have material to do it several more times if conditions make it necessary.) Yesterday evening we heard horror stories from those who were irritated that they had to spend over $50 for their materials. Did the locals see us coming?

During our time here we have also seen the sights and walked the trails around the camp. Hoover was a bit disgusted with the mileage we put in Thursday so we have reduced the walking; we covered most of it that day anyhow, and took off in the Jeep. The Kiskatinaw River Bridge at mile 21 is the only original timber bridge left on the Highway that is still used. It is not recommended that RVs take the loop to access it and we could see why after driving the road in the Jeep.

The City of Dawson Creek is full of history, and they are anxious for all to see and enjoy. The locals are most hospitable to the tourists (90% of the people in town are tourists) so we had a grand time at the farmers market this morning. We have enjoyed trying local fruit jams as we travel and go to as many farmers markets as we can. Today along with organic greens, herbs and baked goods we found some Saskatoon (a local berry) jam. We shall let you know the verdict.

North to Alaska

Now that we are out on the road again I thought it might be time for an update.

We enjoyed a cool and wet spring in Lyden after we made our jump north from Las Cruces at the end of March. On May 17th, the day before John and Chamisa’s departure for their most recent trip down the Grand Canyon, we departed Lyden to meet up with Marc in Las Vegas. After a few days in that fantasy world we were ready to get back on the road and into our own world again. ( FYI: Don’t miss Cirque de Sole’s LOVE if you get to Vegas, it is unbelievable.) Marc was a great and patient passenger as he learned what it was like to travel with an OCD mother; a tech oriented driving fool, and a 70lb. puppy. Fortunately he did not seem too scared by his trip through nowhere Nevada, (However Hoover, aka: Dr. Niles Crane, may never be the same after his walks with Marc.) the Snake River valley in the south west corner of Idaho and then across the Columbia River Gorge of Oregon. We arrived in Silverton to find Christine was just finishing up the plantings in her totally redone back yard. Obviously hours of planning, and even more hours on her hands and knees has produced something to rival the Oregon Gardens.

After tours to the Pacific coast, through the Willamette Valley, and around Portland, Marc was delivered to PDX and hopefully has recovered by now that he has spent some time in the normalcy of OK City. Our coach and car were finally retrieved from the various dealerships after receiving their pre trip services and Carl, Hoover and Lisa have now set off on the great trek “North to Alaska”.

Day one was the cruise north through WA and our encounter with “traffic from hell”. The day started well as Chris joined us for a farewell breakfast in the coach at the Silver Spur RV park, our west coast base, and a pleasant drive out to I-5 past Cooley’s Iris Farm’s acres and acres of fields blooming in a rainbow of colors. Through Portland was a breeze and all moved well until we arrived in the Tacoma area. Traffic crept along for hours until we were through Everett, the northern suburb of Seattle. On to Bellingham and the Bellingham RV Park to spend a quiet rainy afternoon. Day two was filled with securing the last minute supplies for the coach, and the water pump fittings only available from a marine supply store. We managed, as advised by all, to finish the last of the produce, except for one lime, some garlic and two shallots. We had already left the contents of our liquor cabinet with Christine in preparation for the over rated boarder crossing into Canada.

Laboring to consume the produce and content of the liquor cabinet proved to be a waste of time as we approached the border to receive the Queen’s wave to advance. The biggest concern was that since we are gun owners in the US we were aware of the strict gun laws. (All our personal information is apparently tied to the vehicle license.) The officer actually laughed when we confessed to be carrying 4 beers and two miniatures.

The drive north took us along the bank full Fraser River and on the evening news we learned that the rivers had just crested at near record levels. Our path north is not affected and I am sure they will have the mud slides to the west cleared off BC 16 before we are due to pass that way on our return. We did not stop at Hell’s Gate, the narrowest point on the Fraser, due to the high water and also the volume of RVs in the parking lot. We plan to take the tram ride in the fall, on our return, to see the fish ladders full of Salmon. Cache Creek was our first overnight, (A short day not knowing if the boarder crossing would take long.) and after a stop at the state liquor store and grocer we were set in for the night at the Brookside RV, after a detour west to see the Thompson River and the Walhachin Valley.

Next leg was between Cache Creek and Prince George, where we spent an extra day to see the sights, the city park and Ft. George gardens and the confluence of the Fraser and Nechako Rivers. Most of the park was closed due to flooding, but we found an area on the Fraser where Hoover was able to take a quick eddy swim while still on his lead. .

We are now in the “Mile 0” campground in Dawson Creek, BC and have been officially welcomed by our Wagon Master and Tail Gunner. For those who are not aware we will spend the next 50 days with a “Mother Goose” caravan through Fantasy Tours out of Gunnison, CO.

Yesterday we traveled over the continental divide and through some spectacular geology and landscape. Al though we did not see any Moose, (We were watching as per the road signs.) we did see black bear twice, just grazing by the road side, and deer and assorted birds of prey. Sorry, no photos, it is hard to focus the camera at 90km/h although there are promises that we will be driving more slowly in the future.

We have strong and fast internet here in Dawson Creek, but that will end when we get on the road up the Alaskan Highway. I may be able to pull down mail with the Verizon card and get notes out but we have been warned the signals are poor until we get into Fairbanks on June 28th. We are here until Sunday morning, the 17th, when we head off to Fort Nelson, BC, Muncho Lake, BC, and Watson Lake, YT, in that order. Will keep notes and send details when we get back on line.

PS: For those of you asking for pictures of the Northern Lights, please note it must be dark to see the Aurora Borealis unless they are fantastically bright. We are approaching the Summer Solstice and are currently at N56 Latitude and heading towards the Arctic Circle. We promise to take pictures of the Midnight Sun.