Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Monday July 26
Today we tried to make some miles. We drove 315 miles. Remember most of this is at 50 mph on the Cassair Highway in the mountains most of the time. We ended up in Stewart, even wimped out and stayed in a campground. ($25) They tell you not to go out after dark here because of bears and wolves. Tomorrow Hyder and the bear creek viewing area. Steward and Hyder are two miles apart. Stewart is in BC, Canada and Hyder is in the US, strange I thought. You don't go through customs going into Hyder but you go through Canadian Customs coming out back into Stewart.
We saw one black bear this afternoon eating clover beside of the road. 15 minutes later we saw a mother with two cubs beside the road. Pictures later. This morning I saw a fox beside the road but no pictures.
The scenery today was a lot of beautiful clear lakes and streams and many mountains with snow on top as we came through several mountain passes. All types of vegetation and wild flowers including fireweed and fox tail barley. We went through one area that is know for its concentration of huckleberries. Stewart is at sea level so as we neared this area the spruce gave way to more and more hardwoods. We saw less extensive areas of rocks and more grass. North of here everything is gravel and rocks. Then the last 38 miles we descended through a mountain pass past rugged peaks and snow covered areas. We stopped to take pictures of Bear Glacier which drops into the river right beside the road. It is going to be a long steep climb out of here. It is beautiful here as we are surrounded by mountains. Here in Stewart the leaves are just starting to come off of the trees. Our campground even has grass. We may stay one more night in this area depending on what we find here tomorrow.
ps. We haven't had phone service in almost a week that is why we haven't called anyone. This is the second time we have had good internet in about two weeks. This connection is so slow I don't know how many pictures I will get posted. I'll try to post the most interesting first, then some older ones I missed the other night.
We saw one black bear this afternoon eating clover beside of the road. 15 minutes later we saw a mother with two cubs beside the road. Pictures later. This morning I saw a fox beside the road but no pictures.
The scenery today was a lot of beautiful clear lakes and streams and many mountains with snow on top as we came through several mountain passes. All types of vegetation and wild flowers including fireweed and fox tail barley. We went through one area that is know for its concentration of huckleberries. Stewart is at sea level so as we neared this area the spruce gave way to more and more hardwoods. We saw less extensive areas of rocks and more grass. North of here everything is gravel and rocks. Then the last 38 miles we descended through a mountain pass past rugged peaks and snow covered areas. We stopped to take pictures of Bear Glacier which drops into the river right beside the road. It is going to be a long steep climb out of here. It is beautiful here as we are surrounded by mountains. Here in Stewart the leaves are just starting to come off of the trees. Our campground even has grass. We may stay one more night in this area depending on what we find here tomorrow.
ps. We haven't had phone service in almost a week that is why we haven't called anyone. This is the second time we have had good internet in about two weeks. This connection is so slow I don't know how many pictures I will get posted. I'll try to post the most interesting first, then some older ones I missed the other night.
Sunday July 25
We were slow this morning because we had stayed up so late last night trying to get the pictures on the blog. Finally we got going. I filled up with gas at $4.27 a gallon. Yesterday we drove 270 miles and got 9.45 miles per gallon. I drove around 60 - 65 most of the time but we had a strong tail wind. That really cuts cost at these prices.
We went back and turned on the Cassiar Highway. It runs through the wilderness to say the least. It is narrow with steep shoulders in most places. So far traffic on it is very light. We saw a lot of pretty lakes and scenery today but no animals. We only drove 100 miles today so I expect to see some animals by the time we get to Stewart.
Within the space of 20 miles we went through an area that contained the former mine of the worlds highest grade of asbestos, and another area that mined 92% of the world's Jade. That is hard to imagine because these places are in the middle of nothing.
We stopped at a pullout overlooking Simmons Lake to grill some hot dogs for lunch. I kept looking at the clear water and a few shallow points running out to the deep and it was such a pretty warm day. Today you could actually wear a short sleeve T-shirt for the first time in a while. I talked myself into taking the kayak off the top and going fishing. I fished a couple of hours with only two strikes, same fish. He looked like a small trout. I was using a #1 Mepps spinner. The Kayak performed well, this was its first trip. I really enjoyed being on the water and slinging a lure even if I didn't catch any today. I came in and sat on the hill over looking the lake for a while. O decide to go for a walk and a swim. Some people had come in down the hill at the beach near where I put in. O though he should investigate the situation and go for another swim.
We had a snack and are getting ready for a shower and bed. We didn't make as many miles today as we should have but it has been a really nice day, and that's what it is all about. Stewart will still be there tomorrow. Carpe Diem!
We went back and turned on the Cassiar Highway. It runs through the wilderness to say the least. It is narrow with steep shoulders in most places. So far traffic on it is very light. We saw a lot of pretty lakes and scenery today but no animals. We only drove 100 miles today so I expect to see some animals by the time we get to Stewart.
Within the space of 20 miles we went through an area that contained the former mine of the worlds highest grade of asbestos, and another area that mined 92% of the world's Jade. That is hard to imagine because these places are in the middle of nothing.
We stopped at a pullout overlooking Simmons Lake to grill some hot dogs for lunch. I kept looking at the clear water and a few shallow points running out to the deep and it was such a pretty warm day. Today you could actually wear a short sleeve T-shirt for the first time in a while. I talked myself into taking the kayak off the top and going fishing. I fished a couple of hours with only two strikes, same fish. He looked like a small trout. I was using a #1 Mepps spinner. The Kayak performed well, this was its first trip. I really enjoyed being on the water and slinging a lure even if I didn't catch any today. I came in and sat on the hill over looking the lake for a while. O decide to go for a walk and a swim. Some people had come in down the hill at the beach near where I put in. O though he should investigate the situation and go for another swim.
We had a snack and are getting ready for a shower and bed. We didn't make as many miles today as we should have but it has been a really nice day, and that's what it is all about. Stewart will still be there tomorrow. Carpe Diem!
Saturday July 24
Once again left the Whitehorse Wally World and headed toward Watson Lake on the Alcan. We stopped at Swan Haven a lake where Swan come in the spring in great numbers. The birders are set up with a viewing platform and the whole nine yards. The bird count for April was still up so I took a picture for Mike to examine. O felt the necessity to go for a swim and played stick for a few minutes.
We ate lunch at Teslin Lake where we ate four weeks ago. O went for another swim but didn't like because of the waves.
We drove on to Watson Lake which was about 12 miles past our turn off for the Cassiar. We had stayed a Service Campground 4 weeks ago and the internet was good so we decided to go back so I could post some pictures and Deatra could do laundry. We also needed a drop and flush of the black tank. This campground is only $22.50 where a lot of the nice campgrounds are $32 to $35 with some over $40.
We tried unsuccessfully to get on the internet for about two hours with the lap top and the ipad. We even tried up close to the office. It would say we we logged on with good signal strength but it would not connect to the web browser. Finally about 9 Deatra got on and I started downloading pictures. She even connected on the ipad. Life was good with the internet!
You won't believe this but it actually got dark sometime after midnight. We are getting south I guess.
We ate lunch at Teslin Lake where we ate four weeks ago. O went for another swim but didn't like because of the waves.
We drove on to Watson Lake which was about 12 miles past our turn off for the Cassiar. We had stayed a Service Campground 4 weeks ago and the internet was good so we decided to go back so I could post some pictures and Deatra could do laundry. We also needed a drop and flush of the black tank. This campground is only $22.50 where a lot of the nice campgrounds are $32 to $35 with some over $40.
We tried unsuccessfully to get on the internet for about two hours with the lap top and the ipad. We even tried up close to the office. It would say we we logged on with good signal strength but it would not connect to the web browser. Finally about 9 Deatra got on and I started downloading pictures. She even connected on the ipad. Life was good with the internet!
You won't believe this but it actually got dark sometime after midnight. We are getting south I guess.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Saturday July 25, 1:35 am
I posted all I can for now. Blogger cut me off for too many posts in one day when I was doing pictures. I didn't realize it until I had 14 pictures rejected. I have to solve a word picture to post anything else. Now I have to go back and get those pictures and re-post. I'll have to do that later.
We are in Watson Lake tonight and will turn onto the Cassiar Highway in the morning. We will go back into Alaska briefly to see the bears tomorrow or Monday. I hope you enjoy the pictures, I'll get more posted soon. Good Night.
We are in Watson Lake tonight and will turn onto the Cassiar Highway in the morning. We will go back into Alaska briefly to see the bears tomorrow or Monday. I hope you enjoy the pictures, I'll get more posted soon. Good Night.
3 days worth then some old pictures.
Wednesday July 21 Headed Home
This morning we filled the water tanks, dropped the grey tank, and rode around Valdez one last time. It had rained all night and by the time we left the sun was starting to peak through the clouds for the first time since we had been there. We went back to Allison Point for me to try and catch some more salmon. There were not eagles flying or visible in the trees along the road. There seemed to be no fish activity as none were breaking. I though it was just too early as the tide was still pretty full. I fished a couple of hours and had two strikes that produced 0 fish. Finally I came back to the camper to take O for a walk. By then it had warmed up to where I could put on a short sleeve T shirt, and we were actually seeing some sun. The water was calm and we saw some sea otters and one sea lion swimming. Only the gulls seemed to be active as they had found some fish carcasses but no eagles stealing them today. I met a woman who said she had caught her limit early and left and was coming back just to sit by the water. So I guess I missed the bite as I didn't see anyone catching fish. Finally about 2:30 we decided to leave. It was sad because I knew we were officially headed home from this point in our journey. We drove through the mountain pass coming out of Valdez that we couldn't see the other day for rain and fog. Today the weather was much better and we could see the mountains, glaciers, and waterfalls clearly. It was a breathtakingly beautiful drive with tons of waterfalls from the glaciers. It was equal with any drive we have had on our trip. We drove about 150 miles and found a pull out to spend the night. Actually their is another gravel pull out across the road. Two campers are over there and 4 others are sharing this lot with us. Tomorrow we have less than 100 miles to Tok where we will get propane and fuel and turn toward the Canadian border. I figure tomorrow night we will be back in Canada heading southeast.
Thursday July 22
This was an up and down day. We woke up with the heat not working. It was 49 degrees outside and 55 inside. Sometime during the night it quite. If you tried to start it, it would light and go out in 3 seconds. It would repeat this three times and stop completely. I got the manuals out and looked for the obvious things to no avail. We decided to head for Tok about 100 miles away since we knew we would have phone service there to try and find a service center. Their are a few mechanic and places there but we needed an Atwood Authorized dealer because it is under warranty. We arrived in Tok and called Atwood customer service. At first they said they did not have any Authorized service centers in Alaska but when he looked further he had two and one was in Tok. We also called Mike to Google it and to get a number. We called them but the number would not work. I called Atwood to see if they could get me a number. I got the same guy so after giving me another number he ask what the furnace was doing. I described the problem and he said most of the time when they do this it is low gas pressure. He ask if the stove and hot water heater were working okay. I told him that the hot water heater and stove were fine but the oven had not worked the whole trip. He recommend I fill the propane tank as a possible solution to the furnace. I told him the gauge said half but it was on the to do list anyway so we would fill it. He said to take the knob off of the oven and push it in to light the pilot by hand, then light the stove manually. He said on certain models the knob did not push it in enough to light it. I gave him my model number and he said that was it. I tried it and it worked. As directed I put some cardboard inside the knob to make it push the button in further and the problem was solved. When I went to fill the propane the gauge on the tank read less than 1/4 which did not agree with the inside gauge. After the tank was filled the furnace worked normally. So two problems solved while in Tok. I even bought a lucky Tok, Alaska hat when we went to the grocery store. I noted that 3 Bears Outpost Sporting Goods is the place to ship guns when coming to Alaska. It is the first gun shop in Alaska coming by either direction. I filled the tank with gas which was $3.48, I knew it would be a while before I saw it that cheap again. We ate lunch at Fast Eddies and headed for Canada.
In the late afternoon we crossed into Yukon, Canada. The crossing was uneventful, thank goodness. We drove through Beaver Creek and took some pictures of some statues and read some signs about the Alcan. The road after that got horrible with frost heaves. If you haven't drove through them you don't know what you are missing. All the pull offs had no camping signs up for miles. I guess they were trying to fill the government campgrounds in that area. We finally stopped at a newly opened private campground beside the White River. No services camping (dry camping) was $15 but I talked the lady into letting me fill the water tank. The campground was real nice and quiet and the lady who owns it was extremely nice and friendly. They had a collection of old military trucks, steam shovels, and other equipment used in the road construction. The had a few old chain saws and boat motors too.
Friday July 23
Today was a driving day. It rained all night last night and early this morning but then it stopped and cleared for most of the day. Frost heaves continued to be terrible until after Destruction Bay the got better. Road construction is a real problem up here with the permafrost and surface thawing in the summer.
We drove by some pretty mountains and around the shore of Kluane Lake with its turquoise colored water. O went for a swim but didn't like the waves created by the wind. They said stone sheep were in the area but we didn't see any.
We stopped Canyon Creek bridge built in 1903 to look and take pictures. While we were there I looked down beside it at a sand bar and their were fresh bear tracks. You could even see the long claw prints. Deatra headed for the camper and the photo session was over.
We drove 242 miles today and ended up at the Wal-Mart that we camped at exactly four weeks ago. Tomorrow we will retrace our steps to Watson Lake and then turn off of the Alcan Highway and head south on the Cassiar Highway. We will see new sights on the way home. We will stop in Stewart, BC and Hyder, Ak about Monday to look at the bears. We are over 4,000 miles from home but headed that way.
I will try and find internet this weekend to post some pictures, I promise.
This morning we filled the water tanks, dropped the grey tank, and rode around Valdez one last time. It had rained all night and by the time we left the sun was starting to peak through the clouds for the first time since we had been there. We went back to Allison Point for me to try and catch some more salmon. There were not eagles flying or visible in the trees along the road. There seemed to be no fish activity as none were breaking. I though it was just too early as the tide was still pretty full. I fished a couple of hours and had two strikes that produced 0 fish. Finally I came back to the camper to take O for a walk. By then it had warmed up to where I could put on a short sleeve T shirt, and we were actually seeing some sun. The water was calm and we saw some sea otters and one sea lion swimming. Only the gulls seemed to be active as they had found some fish carcasses but no eagles stealing them today. I met a woman who said she had caught her limit early and left and was coming back just to sit by the water. So I guess I missed the bite as I didn't see anyone catching fish. Finally about 2:30 we decided to leave. It was sad because I knew we were officially headed home from this point in our journey. We drove through the mountain pass coming out of Valdez that we couldn't see the other day for rain and fog. Today the weather was much better and we could see the mountains, glaciers, and waterfalls clearly. It was a breathtakingly beautiful drive with tons of waterfalls from the glaciers. It was equal with any drive we have had on our trip. We drove about 150 miles and found a pull out to spend the night. Actually their is another gravel pull out across the road. Two campers are over there and 4 others are sharing this lot with us. Tomorrow we have less than 100 miles to Tok where we will get propane and fuel and turn toward the Canadian border. I figure tomorrow night we will be back in Canada heading southeast.
Thursday July 22
This was an up and down day. We woke up with the heat not working. It was 49 degrees outside and 55 inside. Sometime during the night it quite. If you tried to start it, it would light and go out in 3 seconds. It would repeat this three times and stop completely. I got the manuals out and looked for the obvious things to no avail. We decided to head for Tok about 100 miles away since we knew we would have phone service there to try and find a service center. Their are a few mechanic and places there but we needed an Atwood Authorized dealer because it is under warranty. We arrived in Tok and called Atwood customer service. At first they said they did not have any Authorized service centers in Alaska but when he looked further he had two and one was in Tok. We also called Mike to Google it and to get a number. We called them but the number would not work. I called Atwood to see if they could get me a number. I got the same guy so after giving me another number he ask what the furnace was doing. I described the problem and he said most of the time when they do this it is low gas pressure. He ask if the stove and hot water heater were working okay. I told him that the hot water heater and stove were fine but the oven had not worked the whole trip. He recommend I fill the propane tank as a possible solution to the furnace. I told him the gauge said half but it was on the to do list anyway so we would fill it. He said to take the knob off of the oven and push it in to light the pilot by hand, then light the stove manually. He said on certain models the knob did not push it in enough to light it. I gave him my model number and he said that was it. I tried it and it worked. As directed I put some cardboard inside the knob to make it push the button in further and the problem was solved. When I went to fill the propane the gauge on the tank read less than 1/4 which did not agree with the inside gauge. After the tank was filled the furnace worked normally. So two problems solved while in Tok. I even bought a lucky Tok, Alaska hat when we went to the grocery store. I noted that 3 Bears Outpost Sporting Goods is the place to ship guns when coming to Alaska. It is the first gun shop in Alaska coming by either direction. I filled the tank with gas which was $3.48, I knew it would be a while before I saw it that cheap again. We ate lunch at Fast Eddies and headed for Canada.
In the late afternoon we crossed into Yukon, Canada. The crossing was uneventful, thank goodness. We drove through Beaver Creek and took some pictures of some statues and read some signs about the Alcan. The road after that got horrible with frost heaves. If you haven't drove through them you don't know what you are missing. All the pull offs had no camping signs up for miles. I guess they were trying to fill the government campgrounds in that area. We finally stopped at a newly opened private campground beside the White River. No services camping (dry camping) was $15 but I talked the lady into letting me fill the water tank. The campground was real nice and quiet and the lady who owns it was extremely nice and friendly. They had a collection of old military trucks, steam shovels, and other equipment used in the road construction. The had a few old chain saws and boat motors too.
Friday July 23
Today was a driving day. It rained all night last night and early this morning but then it stopped and cleared for most of the day. Frost heaves continued to be terrible until after Destruction Bay the got better. Road construction is a real problem up here with the permafrost and surface thawing in the summer.
We drove by some pretty mountains and around the shore of Kluane Lake with its turquoise colored water. O went for a swim but didn't like the waves created by the wind. They said stone sheep were in the area but we didn't see any.
We stopped Canyon Creek bridge built in 1903 to look and take pictures. While we were there I looked down beside it at a sand bar and their were fresh bear tracks. You could even see the long claw prints. Deatra headed for the camper and the photo session was over.
We drove 242 miles today and ended up at the Wal-Mart that we camped at exactly four weeks ago. Tomorrow we will retrace our steps to Watson Lake and then turn off of the Alcan Highway and head south on the Cassiar Highway. We will see new sights on the way home. We will stop in Stewart, BC and Hyder, Ak about Monday to look at the bears. We are over 4,000 miles from home but headed that way.
I will try and find internet this weekend to post some pictures, I promise.
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