Dawson Creek to Liard River Hot Springs

4-5 July 2016 – Dawson Creek BC (Farmington Fairways RV Park)

We started our visit to Dawson Creek at the Visitor’s Center, and picked up the historic walking tour guide. 

The visitor center is in the building in the background

Our second stop was at the dog-friendly Alaska Highway House, a small museum that chronicles the building of the highway. We found a clever geocache that was incorporated into one of the displays. The woman at the desk was very friendly – she provided a red-white-and blue iced cake to visitors in honor of the 4^th of July, came out to take our picture at the original Milepost 0 sign in the center of the intersection, and gave us a small annotated map locating the wooden curved bridge north of town.

The walking tour consisted mostly of plaques on buildings explaining what used to be in that spot; the many murals painted on building around town are also explained in the tour book. One tromp l’oeil mural actually incorporates a real telephone pole into the mural.

Note the telephone pole in front of the "Main Street 1948" mural

All around Dawson Creek we were impressed by the beautiful flowers in planters and hanging baskets – very colorful and cheerful.

The 531-foot long curved wooden bridge over the Kiskatinaw River sits along a section of the original Alaska Highway that is now bypassed by a shorter, less rugged route. It was quite the engineering feat, and is the only wooden bridge from the original highway that is still in use, for vehicles up to 14 tons – no motorhomes! It took from Nov 1942 to Jul 1943 to build, while construction crews used a crude water-level temporary riving crossing.

We still keep getting sticker shock at the prices in BC. Two large loads of laundry cost $14.75 to wash and dry, and basic hamburgers start at $10 or more. The favorable exchange rate doesn’t quite compensate!

Farmington Fairways is a nice 9-hole golf course with some interesting holes and unpredictable greens. We enjoyed playing on $10 Tuesday with no one in front of or behind us for most of the round.

First tee and fairway at Farmington Fairways

6-8 July 2016 – Fort Nelson, BC Triple G Hideaway RV Park

Crossing the Peace River into Taylor, about 30 miles north of Dawson Creek, was our first experience with serious road repair. The steep, 6-10 percent grade, winding 4-mile descent to the bridge is one lane of dirt where the road is being replaced.

Descending to the Peace River on bare dirt

We stopped at the Walmart in Fort St. John to have a brief visit with Diane and Jerry Block, members of the Newmar Kountry Klub BC Dogwoods Chapter who had seen our blog and contacted us. They live in Fort St. John, and Jerry is an oilfields engineering consultant. We always enjoy meeting other RVers who share our love of travel.

The drive from Fort Saint John to Fort Nelson was actually fairly boring. We had the odd sensation that we could be anywhere on a road driving through dense forest. Very few grand vistas, although we did spot an elk cow by the side of the road before she fled into the woods. We saw a big lightning storm off to the west, but only got a little rain as we drove. On both of the first two nights we were in Fort Nelson, brief but intense lightning storms with cracking thunder nearby kept Shelby trembling in Barbara’s lap. The prior week or two had been quite wet, and bugs were out in force. We really could not sit outside at all. We’re thinking we should have bought a screen tent before embarking on this trip!

About the only attraction in Ft. Nelson is the Heritage Museum, which is right next to the RV park. It’s an amazing collection of random stuff that people have donated over time: old children’s toys, antique outboard motors, various mounted examples of BC wildlife, old school and army items – most without any explanation or context. Outside the main display building sit various antique farm vehicles and trucks, and in a big garage is a collection of perhaps 30 or so antique cars, ranging from Model A’s to 1950’s roadsters. Several historic buildings have been moved onto the grounds, complete with their original contents – a trapper’s cabin, a house belonging to one of the Alcan engineers, an old Hudson Bay building.

The blue building in the background was packed with antique cars

9-10 July – Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park

As we started west toward the Canadian Rockies, we encountered very little traffic; I counted about 10 cars coming toward us in the first 30 miles or so. The sun was actually shining, with big puffy clouds not threatening rain – first day of sun in a while.

This 188-mile stretch of road is the most scenic we’ve found since leaving Jasper National Park. In many places the road seems more like a little county road rather than a major highway, as it’s narrow with no shoulder. We again encountered places where the road is being replaced from the dirt on up, one of which was so pot-holed that 5 mph was the best we could do. Several stretches of 8 percent up and downhill grades with 30 mph turns are interspersed with river valleys. All along the way the mountains grew more impressive!

Large slide on left mountain; interesting butte beyond

Tetsa River valley -  all along the way were mixed forests of aspen and spruce

Tetsa River

Stone Mountain - very aptly named

Stone sheep ram and doe

Part of the stone sheep herd that was licking minerals from the roadside; note the baby lying nonchalantly right beside the road.

Very narrow, curvy road through one of the few cuts along the Alaska Highway

MacDonald River- named after a Cree Indian who helped plan the route for the Alaska Highway

Emerald slopes; the highway crews periodically burn off the growth so  that new shrubs will grow to feed the stone sheep during the winter. Note the narrow road with  grass encroaching on the pavement

Toad River Settlement nested in the Toad River valley

Folded Mountains - a result of continental collision eons ago

Folded mountain detail

Centennial Falls

Layers of misty blue mountains with rain

Muncho Lake with mountains in background

 We stopped at the Northern Rockies Lodge at the north end of Muncho Lake to top off our diesel – big mistake! We knew we’d be running the generator at Liard River Hot Springs, and were sitting just below half a tank. This was the most expensive fuel we’ve bought since we were in Newfoundland -$4.81/gallon for 51 gallons; we should have bought 40 liters instead of 192.

Adding a passing land and rebuilding road north of Mucho Lake

Liard River

Liard River Bridge - the last original suspension bridge on the Alaska Highway

Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park is a lovely campground, with sites separated by trees and shrubs. Dry camping, but that’s why we have water/holding tanks, propane, and a generator. 

Site 27 at Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park

Sunday morning we put on our suits and went to the hot springs. A 0.4 mile boardwalk crosses an extensive marshy area full of boreal forest plants and little fish. The upper pool at the hot springs is really hot – over 125 deg F, while the lower pool is a more moderate 105-110 deg. The upper pool has a gravel bottom and is clear turquoise, while the lower pool has a muddy bottom. Early in the day, it’s clear, but by mid-day enough mud has been churned up by waders to turn it milky. We found that after acclimating to the lower pool we could enjoy the cooler end of the upper pool – toward the hotter end at the inlet, is too hot for most people, us included.

At the hot springs - this is the clear upper pool - the far end is too hot to enter

Kamloops, BC to Farmington (Dawson Creek), BC

30 June 2016 - Kamloops to Clearwater, BC

We began our adventure heading north on BC-5, paralleling the North Thompson River and railroad tracks. Ironically, this was the exact route we traveled on our Rocky Mountaineer train trip several years ago. The weather soon became cloudy with some rain, so not the best for picture taking. Our destination was the Dutch Lake Resort and RV Park in the small town of Clearwater, BC, at the junction of the Clearwater and North Thompson Rivers.

The day started sunny - North Thompson River north of Kamloops

We enjoyed a tasty lunch on the deck of the Painted Turtle restaurant overlooking Dutch Lake.

We revived our geocaching hobby, with several finds along three different trails, one near Dutch Lake, one on a bluff above the North Thompson river, and one in North Thompson River Provincial Park. At the provincial park, clouds of mosquitoes sent Barbara scurrying back to the car, while Tom signed the log and replaced the cache!

View from the deck over Dutch Lake, with Trophy Mountain, 8455 ft, in the background

Barbara replacing a cache after signing the log - this one had a hole drilled into a rock, with a bison tube hidden behind a plug, with the plug side of the rock facing down.

01 July 2016 – Clearwater BC to Tete Jaune Cache, BC

Tom drove from Dutch Lake to Tete Jaune Lodge & RV park on the Fraser River just west of the junction of BC-5 and CA-16. Easy drive but unfortunately, it was cloudy and overcast when we prepared to leave, and then sputtered rain the whole trip. We needed long pants for the first time in over a week. The campground was full of people celebrating Canada Day.

The RV park sits right on the banks of the Fraser River; it was too cloudy to see the surrounding mountains or appreciate the true color of the rapidly flowing river:

We had dinner at the park restaurant, but since it was cool and wet, we elected to eat indoors rather than take advantage of the view from the outside deck. Excellent buffet dinner that included desserts – we were stuffed!

The sun finally peeked out, but the mountains were still shrouded. Tom took Shelby for a walk to the nearby Tete Jaune Cache bridge and got this photo looking back at the BC-5 bridge over the river, which we had crossed earlier in the afternoon. Note the little tree establishing a foothold on the rock in river.

02 July 2016 – Tete Jaune Cache, BC to Grande Cache, AB

Barbara drove east from Tete Jaune on Hwy 16 along the Fraser River into the mountains. And mountains they are! Words are insufficient to describe these rugged, almost vertical slopes.

We could see the bottom 2/3 of Mt Robson with a hanging glacier on the upper right (click on picture to enlarge). The base of Mt. Robson (12,972 ft) fills the entire center of this picture.

 Emerald Ridge over Moose Lake was quite spectacular, with fresh green growth covering what look like slide areas.

We saw what looked like a large house perched up on a ridge in Jasper National Park; upon enlarging the photograph, we discovered it was the terminus of the Jasper Skytram to Whistlers Mountain. On a sunny day the views must be phenomenal!

The Athabasca River originates at the toe of the Athabasca Glacier in the Columbia Icefields in Jasper National Park. Flows 765 miles to Lake Athabasca. Eventually flows into the Peace River, the Great Slave Lake, and finally into the Mackenzie River system that empties into the Arctic Ocean.

As we descended toward the Athabasca River after passing Jasper, traffic was stopped in both directions, parked on both shoulders, with people crossing the road without regard for vehicles. A small herd of elk, with about 6 cows and a single velveted bull, were grazing between the river and the road, and folks were photographing them without regard for personal safety!

Again the mountains surrounding the Athabasca River valley awed us with their solid impenetrability. Note the dry cirques that used to contain hanging glaciers:

Just west of Talbot Lake traffic was again stopped by two bull elk with magnificent antlers in full velvet who were grazing right at the road’s edge. Here's one of them:

After failing to find the Flying J truck stop in Hinton that was indicated on our map, we pulled into what looked like the truck lanes at a Petro Canada station. Tom went inside to get instructions, and found that those lanes work only with the Petro-Pass cardlock card. Barbara pulled back around, and into a tight set of very busy pumps. Tom made another trip inside when the pump insisted on having a PIN for our credit card, even though it is chipped. The clerk insisted that credit cards require a PIN, something we've not encountered before or since. We were finally able to use our debit card, which did not require a PIN. Go figure! Turns out the Hinton Flying J is no more.

Alberta Highway 40 between Hinton and Grande Cache alternated between fairly good road and truly awful pavement: crumbled asphalt and a couple of rough dirt crossings where culverts were being replaced. We now have first hand knowledge of the need to slow way, way down when there's a little red diamond sign or www sign at the edge of the road! Both the driver and the passenger have to keep a sharp lookout, as failure to slow results in major jostling. Grande Cache Muni Campground was a nice surprise, with long pull-through sites completely separated by shrubbery hedges. Bear warning signs were posted, but we did not see any bears. Our vehicles were in sorry shape after all the rain and mud of the past few days, so Tom took the time to wash them. After dinner, we hunted for the geocache at the park entrance, which Barbara had failed to find while Tom was vehicle washing. He found it in short order!

03 July 2016 – Grand Cache, AB to Farmington (Dawson Creek), BC

Just north of Grande Cache, we encountered a large coal mining operation that was dismantling the hillside above the Smokey River. Their sign claims that they are environmentally conscientious – who knows? 

All along AB-40 were signs of oil drilling; we were passed by many large tanker trucks that apparently service the collection pads that line the road. Lots of mud!

As we descended into the valley around Grand Prairie, beautiful bright yellow fields of rapeseed appeared. This seed is the source of canola oil – we figure that the term canola was created because marketing rapeseed oil might be a challenge! Rapeseed is a brassica, the family of plants including cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, horseradish, and many others.

We stopped for a quick lunch of left over pizza in the parking lot of the Beaverlodge Area Cultural Center, which is marked by a 15-foot tall beaver perched on a 19-foot log. This sculpture was installed in 2004 in hopes of encouraging travelers on AB-43 to stop in town. Unfortunately for them, we didn't spend any money here!

We were surprised to see herds of Elk enclosed in high fences along the way - in one field, about 20 bull elk were resting in the grass, with their magnificent antlers looking like a strange sculpture. A quick web search revealed the Alberta has a number of elk ranches, and that elk is a popular meat in the area. We went by too fast for Barbara to get a picture - Tom is much better at quick snaps!

We arrived at Farmington Golf Course and RV Park in mid-afternoon in sunshine with scattered clouds and no rain! Our stay in Dawson Creek/Farmington will be covered in our next posting.

Preparations for and travels before our Alaskan Trip - 2016

After spending the winter in Bothell, WA at the Lake Pleasant RV Park, we had appointments to have our motor home serviced in Oregon the first week in June. The coach work was to be done in Junction City and the motor and generator just up the road on the northeast side of Eugene, OR. Originally we had planned on staying in Bothell until the end of May before moving down to Oregon the week before our appointments in order to spend some time with Barbara's two sisters in Stayton. As usual, plans got changed. During the winter, we got to know and made friends with some good people at the Lynnwood Elks, including fellow Seahawks fans, golfers and a camping group. We joined the latter and went on several camp outs (what we call rallies) with them. Since one of these camp outs was to be held in Prosser, WA (east of the Cascades in the Yakima Valley) starting on 19 May, we thought that rather than come back to Bothell, spend a week, then turn around and travel back south to Oregon, we would instead spend some time in WA wine country and in the Cascades of northern OR. Again, plans changed when we looked at the weather forecast (cold!!) for the Memorial Day weekend in the mountains near John Day so we took a short detour to Walla Walla, WA before heading over to the Willamette Valley.

After saying our goodbyes to our camping group in Prosser, we spent part of one day and the night at one of our favorite wineries, Kiona vineyards in Benton City, WA before moving down to Kennewick for a night at the Tricity Elks.

Sunset over the Rattlesnake Hills - view from Kiona Vineyards, Benton City, WA

Mt Adams at sunset - view from Kiona Vineyards, Benton City, WA

While in Kennewick, we made contact with our good friends and fellow NKK members, Mike Carol Lowry and had dinner with them. From there we moved further east to Walla Walla and stayed 3 nights at the Elks lodge there – more sight seeing and wine tasting.

Famous dog statue on the street corner in Walla Walla, WA

RV parking at the Walla Walla Elks Lodge 287 - six 30 amp hookups

Leaving Walla Walla our next destination was the Elks lodge in Keizer, OR just north of Salem. Our route took us along the Columbia River – a little windy but a nice day. 

Mt Hood - view from I-84 west bound along the Columbia Gorge

Sailboarding on the Columbia River

We spent a week in Keizer, visiting Barbara’s sisters in Stayton (about 20 minute drive), shopping in preparation for our Alaskan trip and wine tasting. As our foam mattress had lost its memory, we ordered a Sleep Number mattress, which we found had to be shipped to a physical address – Barbara's sister Nancy agreed to receive it for us, so instead of heading from Eugene to Bend, we returned to Keizer.

While in Junction City, we discovered two other Newmar Fulltimers getting their coaches serviced, so we had a good visit and the promised to see each other again at the International rally in Colorado. Also while there, Barbara’s sister Nancy her husband Carl drove down and we had lunch at one of the largest Oregon wineries, the King Estate winery south of Eugene. Wonderful experience! It was great to have one-on-one time with them, as we usually meet at big family events.

King Estates Vineyards & Winery near Eugene, OR - view from entry road

Our view at lunch at the King Estates Winery near Eugene, OR

Back in Keizer we installed our new mattress and experienced one of the best nights of sleep in a long, long while.

Keizer, OR Elks 2472 - front entrance - note RVs beyond - over 40 full hookups

Keizer OR Elks RV park - our motor home 3rd on left

Before we could officially start our journey north to Alaska, we had to fulfill our commitment to participate in the 3-day RV Owner’s Lifestyle Seminar at the Okanagan College in Kelowna, BC the last weekend in June. From Keizer, we took OR-22 and 20 to Suttle Lake, then east to US-97 and north to Moro, across the Columbia River and over to Yakima. From Yakima we continued on US-97 to the Wenatchee Confluence State Park, north to Omak and across the border and up to Kelowna. 

Suttle Lake at the Suttle Lake National Forest campground - note Mt Washington just behind the hill 

Entrance to the Yakima Elks and Golf Course - Lodge 318 - beautiful golf course

Yakima Elks Lodge 318 RV parking - 38 sites with 50 amp power & water and 18 hole golf course

Kittitas Valley east of the WA Cascades - view from I-82-W looking north just outside Ellensburg, WA

Wenatchee River flowing into the Columbia -  nice 8 mile loop trail crossing both rivers

Confluence State Park, Wenatchee, WA -  one of the nicest state parks that we have stayed in - although pricey at $53 for one night with all the added charges for reservations and out-of-state fees.

After we gave our two well-received 90 minute sessions in Kelowna, on June 27^th we drove to Kamloops for a two night stay. 

Kamview Hts. RV Campground - east of Kamloops - note it's uphill - OK park but some noise from the Trans Canada Highway and trains just below the park.

Leaving Kamloops on June 28, as we crossed the Thompson River on northbound BC-5 we felt that we were truly starting our Alaska adventure. Another blog entry will follow soon, depending on our access to the internet, so stay tuned. 

Shelby with Tom and Barbara