Today we left Stewart around noon. We had not had phone service in forever but today we got to talk to Mike on Skype. Our washing machine gave up the ghost and flooded the kitchen and laundry room. Sibley alerted Mike and Lisa before in got the den. Mike and Lisa went and got us a new one. He got to shoot his .45 Model 1911 at a rat snake the other night a good time was had.
After talking to Mike we went and got gas and a few groceries. In spite of the late start we still got in 248 miles today. The Tioga continues to get good mileage at 9.68 mpg on this tank. That will decrease some as my speeds get over 60 mph with improving roads.
The drive out of Stewart is on a spur of Hwy 37, the Cassiar highway. That stretch is know as the Glacier Highway because it has so many Glaciers on it. Some come right down to the road. It is a beautiful drive.
Later in the day we stopped at two native villages about 10-15 miles apart to look at totem poles. The village of Gitanyow had a large collection of nice totems scattered over 1/2 a block. The village itself was run down. The village of Gitwangak had fewer totems but they are very old original totems. Sadly three of the old ones were on the ground with weeds growing around them while they waste away. They should be cared for by someone.
Within a couple of miles of the totems we completed our journey on the Cassiar Highway and turned on to the Yellow Head Highway, Hwy 16. The road conditions are much better than what we have seen for quite a while. Consequently speeds are a little faster also. The downside is the drivers are crazy on this road. This will take us on to Jasper National Park and the Ice Fields Parkway. From there we will make our final push to re-enter the US in eastern Washington about Monday. More miles tomorrow!
Thursday, July 29, 2010
The camera cannot show the sheer magnitude of this glacier
are flowing with the melting taking place. With binoculars you can see
water streams running down them and into holes as it falls to the river
below.
Native Indian Village
road to the center line. But they had a lot of totem poles. Go figure.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
July 27 HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO DEATRA
July 27, 2010 Deatra and I celebrate 42 years of marital bliss!
The big new is that today we celebrated our 42nd wedding anniversary. It doesn't seem possible that we have been married that long. It has been a few downs and an innumerable amount of good times. We are looking forward to even more good times.
We had a big day that started in Stewart BC. We went to town and walked around a bit. It is a very small town with almost no traffic. We visited the harbor on the way to Hyder. Next to the visitors center they had a real nice boardwalk over the marsh where you could look for birds. The entire boardwalk must have been 1/4 mile long. It had no rails or any protection on the sides. You would not get away with that in the States. It was a real nice walk as the weather was sunny and warm. Guess what? Shorts and T-shirt weather again.
We then went to Hyder, Ak just 3 miles down the road. All the streets are dirt. It looks just like an old west town. A lot of stores have closed down on the main street. Just a few General Stores scattered about, a restaurant in a bus, a couple of souvenir stores, and a bar. Deatra talked to a woman that owns a souvenir store that sells wood from this area to a man in Pilot Mountain that is a well know Dulcimer maker. She had several Dulcimers their and played a little on each. She was an interesting individual.
We drove out to Tongass National Forest to watch for bears on Fish Creek. Immediately as we got to the walkway a female grizzly bear came running down the stream after a salmon. We watched her catch and eat it, then go look for another. She caught another one and went into the bushes. A little later a female black bear came along found a salmon another bear had left and went into the bushes with it. That was all the bears. We watched the salmon swimming in a stream that looked too shallow for them to swim in. Sometimes their backs and tails would be out of the water. One pair was spawning and another male came along. The first male kept ramming him until he chased him off. A pretty neat place with incredible sights.
We came back to Stewart and had dinner at the Silverado Cafe. It was a little local place with good food. We are staying in Stewart tonight and heading out tomorrow. About one more week in Canada it looks like. It will be good to get back in the USA!!!
The big new is that today we celebrated our 42nd wedding anniversary. It doesn't seem possible that we have been married that long. It has been a few downs and an innumerable amount of good times. We are looking forward to even more good times.
We had a big day that started in Stewart BC. We went to town and walked around a bit. It is a very small town with almost no traffic. We visited the harbor on the way to Hyder. Next to the visitors center they had a real nice boardwalk over the marsh where you could look for birds. The entire boardwalk must have been 1/4 mile long. It had no rails or any protection on the sides. You would not get away with that in the States. It was a real nice walk as the weather was sunny and warm. Guess what? Shorts and T-shirt weather again.
We then went to Hyder, Ak just 3 miles down the road. All the streets are dirt. It looks just like an old west town. A lot of stores have closed down on the main street. Just a few General Stores scattered about, a restaurant in a bus, a couple of souvenir stores, and a bar. Deatra talked to a woman that owns a souvenir store that sells wood from this area to a man in Pilot Mountain that is a well know Dulcimer maker. She had several Dulcimers their and played a little on each. She was an interesting individual.
We drove out to Tongass National Forest to watch for bears on Fish Creek. Immediately as we got to the walkway a female grizzly bear came running down the stream after a salmon. We watched her catch and eat it, then go look for another. She caught another one and went into the bushes. A little later a female black bear came along found a salmon another bear had left and went into the bushes with it. That was all the bears. We watched the salmon swimming in a stream that looked too shallow for them to swim in. Sometimes their backs and tails would be out of the water. One pair was spawning and another male came along. The first male kept ramming him until he chased him off. A pretty neat place with incredible sights.
We came back to Stewart and had dinner at the Silverado Cafe. It was a little local place with good food. We are staying in Stewart tonight and heading out tomorrow. About one more week in Canada it looks like. It will be good to get back in the USA!!!
Two male salmon fighting
attacked him repeatedly until he ran him off. Pretty neat to watch.
They didn't realize that they might be bear dinner in a while.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Momma says, "I'm out of here"
of it steep sides. Very few guard rails.
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