More photos from the Yukon and Alaska

In reverse order: A sign post in Haines Junction. Ken and Angel on our walk through the metropolis of Haines Junction, Yukon Territory. We were on our way to the bakery.

Second: Home again!

And the first photo: Ken on the Canadian side of the border, I on the US side. It's hard to see, but in the background of the photo at the point of the obelisk is a border line made by cutting down trees. Every year they cut more to increase the visible boundary.

Photos from the Yukon

Thiss first photo was taken in Haines Junction. It's called the "Muffin" because of its base. Close up it looks pretty good. From a distance, it looks like a cupcake or muffin.

The second photo is the Sign Post Forest from Watson Lake, Y.T. I found a Redlands sign, Keep Tahoe Blue, Grant's Pass OR, Lake Isabella (from my high school days), and a sign stolen from Sparks, NV. It was fun to walk through.

The last photo is one of many I took of caribou. They are not as large as moose and a more gentle species. They were not bothered by the cars.

Watson Lake Y.T. to Haines Junction, Y.T. to Palmer, AK

We left Watson Lake at 8 a.m. and headed across the Yukon to Haines Junction. We had originally planned to stay in Whitehorse, Yukon, but it was only 1 p.m. when we got there and we wanted to keep going a few more hours. We stopped in Whitehorse to eat lunch at Mickey D's. No adventuresome lunches. Ken doesn't like eating in places that seem strange. Thank goodness Mc Donalds was not in every town!

The food selection was not great however, so we ended up making our own breakfasts and lunches and ate them along the way.

Haines Junction was majestic. The mountains surrounded the stop. We settled the dog into the motel room and unpacked the car. Then we took her on a walk around "town" to the local bakery. After she ate her dinner, we dined at the Frosty Freeze (someone was being tight with money!). The Frosty Freeze was OK, but I really would have prefered a dinner and not another sandwich. To splurge, I had onion rings (Ken hates them).

The roads up north have "freeze bumps" and the Alaska Hwy. from Haines Junction to the US border and further was the worst. The sign at the US/Canadian border refers to the ride as a Rollercoaster Ride. It was like Gadget's Rollercoaster in Toontown at Disneyland for hundreds of miles. The little trailer we were hauling took more of a beating than the Suburban. There was no way to nod off from boredom or listening to another murder mystery on that road. More than once, my seatbelt kept me in my seat!

The sceney was much the same....tall skinny pine trees that looked sick....could be the ground they were in was much like a bog. The Yukon was just thawing out. The mountains were in the distance and the road reminded me of I-80 through Wyoming.....up and down, except we did see trees and a few caribou.

When we reached the US border, customs was a snap. We were asked if we had meat, fruit, veggies, etc. They didn't ask about the dried dog food, so we got through. The US Customs has a compound there at the border for the customs agents and their families...talk about living in the boonies!

We arrived in Tok, Alaska around 2 p.m. and decided to keep going to Palmer. We arrived in Palmer at 6:15 p.m. When I got out of the car, I was pleasantly surprised by the warm weather. We hadn't had such nice warm temps since leaving Eureka, CA on Sunday, May 10.

When we arrived home, the sunshades and blackout shades had been installed. Good thing, since the sun doesn't go down until after 11 p.m. and is up before 5 a.m. We slept in until 8 this morning then started to unload the trailer and Suburban. We picked up the mail, but have not gone through it yet.

More photos

This photo is one taken at the Signpost "city". I don't know the official name, but this is in Watson Lake, Y.T.

























I am pointing to a Keep Tahoe Blue sign.













Which way to go?





















16 of the 20 rooms available at Bell II Camp

Prince George B.C. to Watson Lake Y.T.

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The drive from Prince George to Bell II Camp was the route for Thursday. This is the more scenic route to Watson Lake and it was not disappointing. After two hours of traveling we were close to changing highways to head north to the Yukon. Around lunchtime we came to Smithers (photo 5). It is a big ski resort town with beautiful mountain views. We had to stop at the GMC dealer to find out why our engine service light came on. We had put gas in the car in Prince George that had ethanol in it. The suburban didn't like it. All we had to do was put fuel additive in and more gas.

Just after the turn off for hwy. 37 or Cassiar Hwy, we were supposed to come to some Native American village that had been around for hundreds of years in a town called Hazelton. We had to drive over a one lane bridge over the Hagwilget Canyon. Ken is deathly afraid of high bridges, especially ones that he can see down below! To top it off, we had to go back over it! Well, there was a town, but the ancient site was marked by plaques, and we didn't see them driving around in circles. Off we went to the next site.

We took another detour to a town, and I use the word loosely, called Gitanyow. Here there was the largest collection of totem poles in B.C.(photos 3 & 4). Only a few had some paint (red and black) on them. The others were well weathered, but in good shape. I photographed all of them. From Gitanyow we drove three hours to Bell II Camp (photo 1 & 2). What a nice place, but there was only one restaurant and it was really expensive. The coffee shop had some sandwiches left, so Ken bought one and I ate the other half of my lunch. This place is known for its Heli-skiing. We stayed in nice cabins that were heated with ceramic stoves...wood, kindling and matches provided. Our dog had a great time digging in the snow and romping through it. The snow was anywhere from 2-4 feet deep, but much was melted. The camp was in a setting like I would imagine a Swiss Chalet would be.

On our way to Bell II, we saw 5 black bears. They were nonplused with us, just looked and sauntered off. Angel barked her head off each time we slowed down to prevent hitting one as it crossed the highway.

After a relaxing night in the mountains, we left at 8 a.m. to head north to Watson Lake. After 3 hrs. on the road, we had seen quite a few caribou and a huge bull moose. We didn't see any black bears today, but numerous Canadian Geese. The Milepost, traveler's Bible, suggested a stop at a site where jade is mined. I couldn't resist buying a moose! We found out that this area of B.C. mines 90% of the world's jade. They ship much of it to China and China sends back some finished articles. There aren't enough craftsmen left in Canada to do the work. The figurines and jewlery are carved using diamond drills. That bored Ken no end, especially when I wanted to buy something.

The drive was scenic with miles and miles of large, wide rivers, acres of harvested forests. The Canadians make sure you know the forests have been reforested. There are signs all around stating the date the forest was cut, prepared and replanted. The road was rough. I would say at least 100 miles of the 400 hundred we drove today were unpaved and lumpy, bumpy and full of potholes. We were looking forward to getting to "civilization" at Watson Lake. What a shock that town was. We were really in the wilderness. One restaurant was recommended to us for dinner, "Bee Jays." One should not judge a book by it's cover! The food was good, but the building was so rough looking. The weather is so harsh here, that most buildings are made to withstand the harsh climate. No aesthetics! It has not really thawed out here like it has in Palmer. The trees are just getting their buds.

In Watson Lake there is a sign post city. I will post some photos. It was really fun walking through it. There were numerous license plates from NV, CA and OR. Germany was dominant. It started in the 40's when the Alcan Hwy was being built to supply Alaska by road in case the Japanese invaded Alaska. This way AK would not be cut off and could be supplied. Reminds me of the Russians trying to supply St. Petersburg during WWII.

I have to post more photos in a separate blog to follow.

Happy Trails!

Hi,

We made it to Prince George, BC by 5:30 p.m. today. The drive was nice, but long. We covered terrain from lush mountains and valleys following the Fraser River and driving through the canyons. Then near Cache Creek we entered an arid section that looks a lot like the dry mountainous areas of NV or AZ. Low scrub brush, few trees, lots of red dirt and rocks even with the Fraser R. flowing by. The next area was a lot like the east side of OR where there are lots of trees and meadows. Nothing eventful happened today, but yesterday the Canadian customs agent told Bart to be ready next time we get to the border. I had suggested we get our passports out (they were in our backpacks in the back of the Suburban). Of course he found his, but claimed I was giving him the wrong directions to find mine. Our backpacks are identical in makeup! The agent was so frustrated with us that he said, "Be prepared next time!" OUCH!

We are now trying to decide if we want to take the scenic route or the more traveled route. Serious map reading later tonight. It looks like the scenic route is shorter, but it also has about 100 miles of unpaved road. Since we have been really lucky with good roads, I opt to not have my brains rattled by the bumpy road or chance doing something to the trailer.

We visited with Kristen's grandmother and went to lunch with her. She is 85 and doing well. She is still going up and down three flights of stairs rather than wait for a slow elevator.

The second photo is just outside Hope, BC and the first is entering China Bar Tunnel which is supposed to be one of the longest tunnels in North America. When we entered and saw the end of the tunnel right away, we figured we had both been in longer tunnels.

Since I started this blog, we have eaten dinner and conferred with a friend in Incline who has taken ".... the road less traveled." and we are going to do that one too (called the Cassair Hwy number 37). It's over 800 miles from Prince George, BC to Watson Lake, YT so it will take two days. After that it will take us a day to get to Whitehorse, YT then another day to Tok, AK and home for a total of 5 driving days. We should be home by Monday. WHEW!

That's all for now.