Day 82 - Wawa, ON

Both of us didn't feel like moving this morning so we got a late start. Eventually, we got underway but first I had to buy some ice for the few things that needed to be kept cold. We went up and down the hills of northern Ontario looking at the scenery. Its a very overcast day with rain in the works. So not a nice picture taking day.

We made a few stops along the way, one being in White River for diesel.  Did you know this is "Where It All Began". What am I talking about, well it's Winnie-The-Pooh of course. As the story goes...Lieutenant Harry Colebourn of the 34th Fort Garry Horse & Canadian Army Veterinary Corps, was responsible for the care of the army horses while on the steam train that arrived in White River, Ontario on August 24, 1914. Colebourn looked down and saw an orphaned black bear cub was for sale on the train platform. He asked how much, the trapper replied twenty dollars. Colebourn paid the man, picked up the cub and carried it around like a puppy forming a bond with her. Winnie accompanied Colebourn to England where she became the Brigades mascot. Winnie eventually found a home in the London Zoo where she was adored by so many. She was loved by A.A. Milne's son Christopher Robin Milne who enjoyed feeding spoonfuls of honey to Winnie...and the rest is history.

After a brief visit with Winnie-the-Pooh we continued on our way to Wawa, arriving around 2 pm. I've noticed that there is more traffic and people are in such a hurry. I guess we are getting closer to home.

Day 81 - Nipigon, ON

It's just 7 in the morning and it's already hot outside. I'm not going to enjoy driving in this hot weather. Bring on the AC. We made a few brief stops then a longer stop at the Thunder Bay Walmart to get some groceries. Susan went for groceries, I walked and played with the dogs. After packing everything away we were underway again only to stop down the road for diesel.

We arrived in Nipigon and it was hot, hot, hot. I took the dogs out and they didn't even want to stay outside. So back into the nice cool trailer we go and that's where we stayed until later in the evening when it cooled off. We all went for a short walk then called it a night.

I read for maybe 20 minutes then my eyes got real heavy so I knew it was time to go to bed. Tomorrow is another travelling day.

Day 80 - Wabigoon, ON

Today is the day we will be back in our home province of Ontario. Almost three months we have been gone from home and its time to get back. If the wildfires had not been that bad we would have stayed in BC longer. Some of the areas we drove through are now being evacuated. Scary!!!

We left Portage early in the morning, got through Winnipeg and then crossed over into Ontario a couple of hours later. The trip was pretty much uneventful, it's mainly just going from one place to the next. We did stop in Vermilion Bay for diesel and they had the largest Inukshuk I have seen.

The Inukshuk is a figure made of piled stones or boulders constructed to communicate with humans throughout the Arctic. A red inukshuk adorns the flag of Nunavut. For centuries, the Inuit people of Canada’s Arctic stacked rock in human form to create the Inukshuk, a steadfast guidepost that provided direction across the vast horizons of the North. Over time, the Inukshuk became a symbol of hope and friendship, an eternal expression of the hospitality.

We arrived in Wabigoon, ON which is another campground we stayed in on the way out west. I did the outside stuff while Susan did the inside stuff. All done, dogs walked now time to relax. For some reason the road noise is so loud today, I don't remember it being like that the last time we stayed here. Oh well shut the windows and turn on the air. Tomorrow is another travelling day.

Day 79 - Portage La Prairie, MB

I woke to a heavy fog and no visible sun. By the time Susan got up and all the dogs were fed, the fog had already started to lift. Yea I really didn't feel like driving in fog. We got going shortly after 7 am under a beautiful sunny sky with not a cloud to be seen. As we continued down the road there was an ominous looking cloud way off in the distance. My spidy sense tells me it's fog. Living in Saskatchewan many moons ago I have seen this before. Sure enough it's fog. It's almost freaky.

Within no time we were right in the middle of this very heavy fog, no sun now. Actually, we couldn't see more than a few feet in front of us. Transport trucks were right beside us before we could see them. It lasted for over an hour then the skies opened up and it was beautiful blue sky again. Like I said before Freaky!

We drove through several little towns before I quickly pulled over at a local subway and told Susan I was starved. We were in the town of Langenburg, Sk. population 1,000. Now what does this town have that no other has. Just the worlds largest swing named fittingly "Goliath". They also have a volkswagen planters.

What a fun town. We continued on our way reaching our next destination of Portage La Prairie. We had to go into town for some groceries, ice, and diesel. Portage is not a big town but it has everything you need or want. Canadian Tire, Walmart, grocery stores, restaurants, and so on. You get the picture. We got what we needed then headed back to the campground. I took the dogs for a long walk around the park and a beautiful one it is. Seasonals really take pride in their properties at this campground.  

Day 78 - Colonsay, SK

The day did not start much better then the way it ended. It was overcast and rainy. I guess a cold wet front had come through the area and made life miserable for everyone. One day we have the fireplace on in the morning the next it's the AC. 

Anyway, before leaving Lloydminister I researched why half the town was in Alberta and half in Saskatchewan. On September 1, 1905, the government of Canada officially created the provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta. They were carved out of the Northwest Territories. The two provinces share the 110th meridian west as their common border, with Alberta to the west of the line and Saskatchewan to the east. Lloydminster was founded on November 25, 1903, predating the two provinces by nearly two years. When the provinces were created Lloydminister straddled the line leading to a town in Alberta and a town in Saskatchewan. And that's how the two towns came to be.

The day got a little better but it was still overcast and dull. No rain until we got to Colonsay, SK. We stayed at Painted Rock Campground, the same place we stayed on the way across Canada. After checking in I found out the campground is up for sale. The owners husband is now in long term care so she can't take care of it on her own. Hopefully it stays as a campground because its a great place. 

Day 77 - Lloydminister, AB

The day started off real lousy. It had poured rain all night and was still raining this morning. The only good thing was I didn't have to hook up the truck it was already done. We broke camp and left later than normal...9 bells. It's Susan's birthday today so she got to sleep in and I gave her coffee in bed. Then I told her to move her butt because it was another travelling day.

Once we were on the road we were driving through a major downpour. So much so, I had to slow right down and put my four way flashers on. Eventually the rained slowed. We arrived in Lloydminister, AB our next stop and the sun was shining. I quickly set up camp, detached the truck, and told Susan not to make supper because we are going out for her birthday. She is always happy when she doesn't have to cook. We went to a place called The Canadian Brewhouse. The food was fantastic.

Something real funny happened while we were sitting there eating our meal. Both of us were watching something different on the TVs they had. She was watching golf, I was watching football. We both realized that we had not watched TV in almost 3 months and we hadn't missed it until now. We managed to pull ourselves away and headed home. I took the dogs for a nice walk while Susan did some laundry. Eventually we called it a day. 

Day 76 - Edmonton, AB

These days it seems to be all about the driving from one campground to another. Not what I really wanted to do. When there is so much smoke in the air it just makes it less enjoyable to be outdoors and more sense to drive out of it.

I have never been in Jasper before, so this is going to be a first. The drive was great no real hills or valleys and the road was absent of potholes. Nice.

If I have learned anything from my travels in the Yukon and Alaska its when you see cars on the side of the road you slow down because you know there will be wildlife. Sure enough, there he was a big male elk on the side of the road just minding his own business. You can see the smoke in the background.

We watched as he trotted along side our truck and fifth wheel only to continue on down the road. People were following him.What a nice sighting.

Continuing on down the road through Jasper, we spot female Bighorn sheep and their young. Again, people were being stupid by going right up to them. I stayed in the truck and got great pictures.

We arrived in Edmonton set up camp, then I took the dogs for a long, long walk. Thankfully there was no wildfire smoke in the air. I can breath again, yea. 

Day 75 - McBride. BC

We got a later start only because we were travelling 130 miles to McBride, BC. Why such a short distance, you ask. Well, it's the weekend and I tried half the day yesterday to get a site closer to Jasper. No such luck. I must have called 10 campgrounds, all totally booked. Even the National Park was totally booked. So we settled for a short drive.

I was thankful to leave Prince George with all that smoke in the air. I don't know how they do it year after year. The further we got down the road the better it was. Unfortunately, we still couldn't see the mountains nor the sun . The smoke hadn't cleared that much.

We arrived at Beaverview RV Park, which is on the east side McBride. We got all checked in and set up. There was no one in the campground which was perfect. We had a large grass field right beside us which the dogs absolutely loved. It's the first bit of grass we've seen in a long, long time. They played and played until they couldn't run any longer. Charlie just fell over and laid there. She was exhausted, so was Calusa. They both crashed and burned once in the trailer.

As the day moved along, the smoke started getting really bad again. Not quite as bad as Prince George but bad. The campground also started filling up, so we called it a day. Went inside out of the smoke, relaxed and looked for another campground for tomorrow night. Our original plan was to stay in Jasper a couple of days but with all this smoke it would not be enjoyable. You can't see anything, do anything, or just sit outside and enjoy the outdoors.

Day 74 - Prince George, BC

We were all up at the crack of dawn and out the door by 7 bells. Not sure why, it's probably because we had a great nights sleep. The weather was perfect not too hot not to cold (never to cold).

The trip to Prince George was uneventful with one exception, we were seeing wildfire smoke again. Not bad but definitely visible. We arrived at the campground only to find the caravan leader had pulled in just before us. That's okay, this is their last stop we won't see them again after this.

I got my campsight, started setting up when all of a sudden a monstrous motorhome was literally dragging a car down the road behind it. I yelled, she stopped, cars okay, and life goes on. Not sure what happened. I think her friend put it in gear while she was checked in. Yes, it was the caravan leader.

I finished setting up, then went into town to the Dodge Ram dealer. It was oil change time. So I go through their quick lube, ask for synthetic oil, lube, filter, and fuel filter. He said it would take about 45 minutes. I thought to myself, yea right. Sure enough 45 minutes later everything was done plus they vacuumed the inside and gave me a complimentary deluxe car wash. Maybe they felt sorry for Precious (my truck). Now that's service.

I drove back picked up Susan then went to the grocery store to do some much needed shopping. Can't get much...no fridge remember. We were back at the campground having an early supper when I noticed the wildfire smoke getting really heavy. By the time we went to bed you couldn't even breath outside. My nice clean truck was covered in wildfire ash. Lets hope tomorrow is better.

Day 73 - Smithers, BC

Leaving Stewart, I felt a little sad only because we did not get a chance to see a grizzly bear. Oh well, we can come back. Nice to be retired, you can plan other amazing adventures just like this one. It was cloudy but still the scenery was stunning. Glaciers, mountains, and bears everywhere. Yes black bears, we passed 6 before getting to the junction of the 37 & 37A. No pictures because they were gone before I could get the camera out.

The trip to Smithers was pretty much unremarkable. Didn’t see any more wildlife however we did see some nice backdrops. We arrived at our destination which was Glacier View RV Park. Named appropriately because across the road was a glacier.

The story of Smithers began in 1913 with the railroad. The federal government in Ottawa was eager to extend its trade and transportation routes across the country. The plans were underway for the railway to extend from Manitoba in the east to Prince Rupert on the west coast. Smithers was named after the highest official of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, Sir Alfred Smithers.

Not having a fridge is really tough, it just means you have to eat out allot more. Easy for Susan, very hard for me, I love home cooked meals. Tonight it's Pizza Hut, now we're talking.

Day 72 - Stewart, BC/Hyder, AK

Today I hope we get to see grizzly bears. Susan is aware that we have to be at Fish Creek around 6 or 6:15 am to possibly have a chance to see them. We arrive at 7 and just missed our chance at seeing one. It had come, caught a fish, and left 5 minutes before. All we saw was the bear scat left behind on the road. Hopefully another will come by. So we pay our admission $5 U.S. or $6 CDN and we wait. It was pretty cool out. I know because Susan kept reminding me. She does not like the cold.

Fish Creek is located in the far southeastern part of the United States's largest national forest, the Tongass. Spanning 500 miles and encompassing 16.7 million acres of land and 11,000 miles of shoreline, the Tongass National Forest is the largest temperate rain forest in the world. Mild temperatures and an abundance of rain characterizes temperate rain forests. Each year more than 16 feet of rain falls in some areas of the Tongass. The forests of the Tongass are chiefly comprised of Sitka spruce, western and mountain hemlock, and red and yellow cedar.

Forest service employees are on site 6 am to 10 pm daily to provide information about the bears and salmon, enforce site rules, and to answer any questions you may have. Grizzly and black bears come to feed on the spawning chum, coho, and pink salmon during July to September each year. Forest service help provide a safe environment for people to watch the bears.

The area is so beautiful with or without the bears. I watched a black mink cross into this pond.

The raised boardwalk allows the viewing of bears without interfering with them, safety for both.

Chum Salmon

Otter Family

Fish Creek

Common Merganser

After an hour Susan was getting impatient and cold. So we headed back to the trailer but not before we stopped to take some pictures.

Three kilometers from Stewart is the town of Hyder, Alaska. Hyder bills itself as the “friendliest ghost town in Alaska”. Today, Hyder had a year round population of 60.

Canada Customs in background

Day 71 - Stewart, BC

We were on the road again pretty early knowing the road will be similar to yesterday. The road surfaces were not the problem, it's the hills and switchbacks. There's no pictures because Susan can't hold on and take pictures at the same time. I can't because I'm driving and trust me there's no place to stop to take a picture. Let me give you a typical example...you descend into a river valley, it's a 10% grade going down 3 - 4 miles, there's a 180 switchback while crossing a river bridge at the bottom, then you climb for 5 miles a 9 - 10% grade. All of this and then they have the nerve to welcome you to the Stewart-Cassiar Highway.

The road into Stewart was absolutely breathtaking. We followed a raging river through the mountains into Stewart. The snow covered peaks were above us with numerous glaciers in the folds of the mountains beside the road.   

We arrived in Stewart the same time as a whole caravan was arriving. We found our spot got backed in and set up before half of them could figure out where they were going. Forget them it's time to explore.

Stewart is located at the head of Portland Canal, a narrow 145 km/90 mile long fjord. The fjord forms a natural boundary between Canada and the United States. Stewart is Canada's most northerly ice-free port.

Gold and silver mining caused a rapid growth in the early part of the 20th century. As many as 10,000 lived in the area but wartime caused a mass exodus. The ore that made Silback Premier Gold Mine, one of British Columbia's richest gold-silver mines was discovered in 1916. This mine would support Stewart and Hyder until the 1950's

Until the 1970's the only connections to the outside world were by water and air. With the construction of Highway 37A, Stewart has become an important port for northwest British Columbia.

Portland Canal

Ship docked in Stewart

At the first hint of gold and silver, two mining brothers arrived in Stewart in 1903. They staked a homestead on 72 acres of dry land above the high tide line. Later arrivals were forced to establish a small commercial camp over the tidal flats built entirely on pilings. These early residents called the town Portland City.

The pilings remain where a town once existed

Public dock - Portland Canal

Someone's house

Another public dock & another house with green space

The 805 meter long raised estuary boardwalk at the head of Portland Canal allows an up close chance to explore the tidal flats in Stewart. These flats are frequented by a variety of birds and ducks.

A large piece of driftwood just sitting on the road

Hopefully, tomorrow we will finally get to see some grizzly bears...I'm hoping.

Day 70 - Iskut, BC

We were up at the crack of dawn and on the road by eight. It was already getting warm. Yes, I said the crack of dawn. We now have darkness at night. This is nice because the last time we were through this area it was light all night and very hot. We know sooner turned onto the Stewart-Cassier Highway and found ourselves crossing into British Columbia.

So far the road had been good, no construction, potholes, or big hills to deal with. Several beautiful little lake made the drive even better. We stopped for a pit stop at this one. Obviously there had been a wildfire at one time. 

We made a stop at the only sign of civilization along the route so far, Jade City. This place I guess is pretty famous. There's a TV show about mining for jade, I've never seen it and their on season 5. Who'd thought.

When we drove in I was told to move my rig down further because a helicopter was going to land on the road. And sure enough within a few minute one landed right where I was parked. They had to medivac someone that was really sick. And yes the caravan is still following us, you can see the yellow sticker on the big rig.  

Further down the road and getting closer to Dease Lake the air quality really deteriorated. We could see new wildfires in the hills right by the road. It was a little disconcerting. At times the visibility was almost zero. From the next picture you can see the poor air quality. And this was good.

Just after I took this picture a fire helicopter few overhead. We passed Dease Lake and the road to Telegraph Hill. Later, we found out Telegraph Hill was being evacuated and one house was burning. That's getting real close. 

We were held up with road construction for about a half hour. During that time the flag girl came to talk to us. I was coughing so bad from the smoke she had to leave so I could roll up the window. Not 10 minutes down the road there was no smoke at all. We had already decided that if it was that bad in Iskut we would continue on. But it got better, way better. We pulled into the campground and found one of the nicest if not the nicest campground we have stayed in so far, the mountains, the lake, the owner, and no smoke made it that amazing. 

Shortly after supper, as the campground was filling up we could see this ominous cloud coming towards us from the north. Oh no, wildfire smoke.

This is the beautiful view we had from our rig. I got my binoculars out to see if I could see and mountain sheep or goats. Nope nothing.

This is the view we had within an hour of the first signs of wildfires coming our way. Lucky for us, the smoke stayed above us in the mountains and not in the valley. We couldn't smell it at all. The owner kept us aware of what was going on, if we had to evacuate. Tomorrow on to Stewart, hopefully no smoke.