We left the AK/Canada border and made our way south on the beginning of our 3,390 mile trip to Mexico. This episode covers the first month of our trip all the way to the Washington border.
We took our Oliver Travel Trailer to the shores of Kluane Lake where we stayed at Congdon Creek Campground. We stayed up late warming ourselves by a campfire and looking for the aurora borealis (a.k.a., the northern lights). Later we hiked the Soldier's Summit Trail, with an overlook of the area the US and Canadian forces met and completed the Alaska Highway, and got a great view of the surrounding areas, including distant glaciers and Dall sheep.
We continued our southerly route and made our way to Pine Lake Campground, near Haines Junction. We had drizzly weather the whole time there and didn't get out to hike. Our only outings took us down a multi-use trail and to the Mile 1016 Pub. The lake and its paths were nice to stroll during the dryer times, but soon we were back on the road.
From there, we headed to Whitehorse, YT, again and spent a few days visiting with our friends Kelvin and Andrea, their son Charlie, and their dog Lucy. We had a great time there visiting and doing some chorin' on Piccolino (replacing a touch-light). Stormy had a blast with Lucy and was sad to say goodbye.
Too soon, we hit the road again and made our way to onto the Stewart-Cassier Highway and down to Boys Lake Provincial Park. After a few more days of rain, we finally got a break and took out one of the park's canoes for a paddle around Boya Lake. The foliage and views were amazing, but the snow was coming down the mountain so we couldn't stay long. We did get lucky during our stay and finally got a good view of the northern lights and watched until they faded into the night.
We continued our drive down the Stewart-Cassier, going over a river and through the woods until we came across a cross fox and a black bear along the sides of the road. We drove until we reached Meziadin Lake Provincial Park where we would stay util kindly asked to leave, as they were closing their gates for the season. From there, we took a side trip down Glacier Highway to Stewart, BC, and Hyde, AK.
In Stewart, we drove out to the Fish Creek Wildlife Observation site to look for bears feeding not he spawning salmon. We saw salmon continuing their upstream pilgrimage, but no bears, so we continued on to Titan Trail. It was a beautiful walk, but wet and slippery and after coming upon some very fresh grizzly tracks, we decided to make an about face and head back down the trail.
With more to see further up the road, we made our way to the Salmon Glacier Scenic Viewpoint. We snapped the requisite selfies and found a social trail on the opposite side of the road. Yearning for a hike, we took the trail up and connected onto game trails for about half a mile getting us an even better view and perspective on the incredible size of Salmon Glacier. The day was getting late and we hadn't brought lunch, so we headed back down through Hyde and back into Stewart, BC, where we found one of the few remaining open places to get food was the Harbor Lights Grocery. Fortunately, their breads and sandwiches were tasty, so we gobbled up some food before returning to Boya Lake.
After being rushed out of Meziadin Lake Provincial Park so they could close the gates early, we made our way to Burns Lake Municipal Campground for the night and were fortunate to arrive for a First Nations celebration. After a relaxing night, we headed back onto the road.
With fewer and fewer campgrounds remaining open, we headed toward Kamloops, BC, and found Lodgepole Lake recreation Site campground was still open for another week, so we found a lakeside site and set up shop. We went into Kamloops to do our chores and to try out Red Collar Brewery and Distillery. They did not disappoint. Their beers and gin cocktails were delicious and Stormy appreciated their dog friendliness and indulged in a pup-cup of his own. We walked along the trail from Riverside Park and checked out the Locking-in Hope sculpture. Later in the week, we headed back to Kamloops and to the Kenna Cartwright Nature Park for some hiking.
Finally, our month in Canada was coming to a close as we hooked up for a final push to the US. We made our way toward the border crossing in Sumas, WA where we realized we still had many many pounds of Alaskan halibut, Ling cod, pacific cod, and rockfish as well as some wonderful bison and moose meat from Kelvin & Andrea. We questioned if we would be allowed to enter with our deliciousness, then crossed our fingers and went to check back into our home country.
Join us next episode to see what the border agents confiscated...