Adjectives for AWESOME?

To catch up after two extra days in Prince George (motor home is now in tip top working order!), we traveled three days in a row, about 6 hours a day, staying one night each in Smithers, Stewart, and Dease Lake, BC and finally, a two night stop in Teslin, Yukon Territory. We’re still in BC, but we had lunch in ALASKA, crossing the border into Hyder.   If you have not looked at a map yet, note that there is only one road into Hyder – and no road out, so we had to return to BC to continue our drive.  (note:  Lack of cell or internet service in these remote areas means that writing and posting of this blog are not always synchronous.  Bear with me!)

When I left Chicago, I worried that I would miss my beloved spring and summer flower garden, but as the unbelievably huge and prolific lilac bushes of British Columbia gave way to flowering raspberries, fairly slippers, and endless lupine along the road, I realize that our tour of western Canada and Alaska will provide me with an every-changing garden of sensational sights. 

Fairy Slipper

In fact, we’re running low on adjectives for “awesome” as every day has been a blink-and-you-might-miss-it journey.  David’s mastery of big rig driving is as inspiring as the scenery.  We’ve seen eight black bears, one brown bear, one bald eagle, two loons, one coyote, five deer, two foxes, two caribou, three otters, a buzzard, and one man and a bike (with dog). While we admired the otters and the buzzard on various morning walks, the other wildlife sightings required David to slow down, speed up, and point dramatically while negotiating this 42 foot behemoth (plus car in tow) that we call home on mountainous and winding mountain two lane highways.  The man-bike-dog also required David to control said behemoth while we all burst into uproarious laughter as we realized that the moose-bear-caribou (!!!) we were sighting was a much more mundane, but still impressive man riding his bike up a mountain pass while his dog trotted alongside.  Around every hair pin turn, at the crest of every impossibly steep ascent, and on the thank-goodness-we-made it flat at the end of each 8% grade, a glorious new vista awaits.  

The drive from Prince George to Smithers provided magnificent views of the Omineca Mountains, the Lake Country, and the rollicking Fraser River.  Our camp ground in Smithers, aptly named “Glacier View” faced the imposing sight of Evelyn Glacier, and our afternoon walk to Twin Falls revealed Kathlyn Glacier from which the icy grey-green falls cascaded dramatically.  I wanted to dip my toes in the water, but a handful of the stuff left with me with toes that shriveled into my Birkenstocks and refused to let go. 

Fraser River

The next morning brought us crisp blue skies for a quick stop at K’san Haida village, where we walked around the captivating longhouses and totem poles in mystical silence before the visitor’s center had even opened.  But the most jaw-dropping sites were yet to come.  Bear Creek Canyon, complete with grandiose views of snow-capped peaks and waterfalls shooting from rocky roadside cliffs culminated with the icy blue face of majestic Bear Glacier – out of this world!  

Totems and Long Houses at K'san

 

A rainy day drive into Stewart BC/Hyder AK gave us ghostly views of mountain peaks with clouds drifting across their faces.  Southeast Alaska’s annual 92 inches of rain create an unbelievably lush atmosphere – moisture we greatly missed as we drove on to the Yukon down a dusty gravel highway that has coated our cars and RVs in uniforms of sandy grey.

A million years ago – okay, maybe 20 – I came to the inside passage of Alaska on a cruise ship.  The cruise was lovely, and the views of the ocean, whales, dolphins, and all were great.  And, I didn’t get to SEE the country the way we are seeing it now.  This is stupendous!