May 6

SOLTESWEB.NET ALASKA TRIP 2005 - MAY Page 6

Saturday, May 28 - Barkerville

Back to Barkerville this morning to finish the town and points of interest. We attended several really good and funny walks and talks by actors in costume of the 1870's period. Lots of fun! We left about noon. We finished listening to The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis that we had on CD, and really enjoyed it. We have a few books left to hear on our trip.

Just as we reached Prince George (about 3?) our truck air conditioner went out. This would not normally be a problem, except it was 89° at the time and climbed to 93° later that afternoon (where was that cool weather we had in California a few weeks ago and at least 500 miles south?). Canadian Tire (a large Canadian auto store/tool/appliance/garden chain store) said they could have a look at it at 7:30 next morning, so we found a nice campground (with electric for A/C, and ADSL for internet and hot water for showers). :)

Sunday, May 29 - Chetwynd

We arrived at Canadian Tire at 7:15, checked in and went to Tim Horton's (like Dunkin Donut in Canada). There we met Sandra, a sweet lady who said she was 61 yrs, recently divorced and trying to get her life right. She has seen counselors for ages, belongs to several meditation groups, church of the divine enlightenment (!) and a healing touch group. Anyway, she had recently received a New Testament (her first, in her purse, but not probably opened). We were able to share the truth of Jesus Christ with her using passages from her book. We prayed with and for her, and continue to pray that God doe reach her with the whole truth. The air conditioner problem was minor. We have to believe that this was all for the purpose of sharing with Sandra.

Back on the road, we passed through Chetwynd, a large logging town which also built itself as "the chainsaw carving capitol of the world". There was to be an international chainsaw carving competition next week (June 2-5). How come we are always a little early or a little late?

A hard day of driving brought us to Dawson Creek, where we spent the night (of course) at Wal-Mart. Before we settled in, we got some information about a nearby marsh (we needed to get out and walk) to see some birds. We met this Polish man from the Yukon and his daughter Kyla, about 8, there. The daughter went on the walk with us. We gave her a book, and the man gave us some hints on what to see and where to camp. We went back to town and ate Chinese at, believe it or not, Ho Lee Chow. Ho Lee Chow...it was good!

Monday, May 30 - Dawson Creek

Dawson Creek is Mile Zero, the start of the Alaska Highway - just 1523 miles to Fairbanks, Alaska! That a picture of the back end of our camper with about 30 bumper stickers (decals) on it. Room for about 40-50 more? We just bought another one (not in this picture) that says: Caution...May Contain Nuts.

A good day's drive to Fort Nelson. We saw our first moose (picture below) and a bear on the way, later also a bear cub crossing the road. We found an off road site for parking overnight. Lots of mosquitoes and bears...it doesn't encourage walking.

Did you ever really look at a dandelion? We tend to think of it as a weed, because it appears where we don't want it, and it is so abundant, but isn't it as nice as any other wildflower? And what other flower is as amazing when it changes into its seed head?

Depending on where you are, people think of other flowers as pests. Here, in Northern Canada, wild roses are invasive weeds.

What other things do we not appreciate because they are everywhere, and sometimes not where we want them, or maybe because they appear at the "wrong" time? Are cowbirds and pigeons less valuable than finches and hummingbirds?

Tuesday, May 31 - Muncho Lake, Liard Hot Springs and Campground

Need we say more than these pictures for you to see what we saw today? These were taken on the top most part of B.C. before we entered the Yukon. Muncho Lake is really that color! The mountains are the terminal mountains of the Rocky Mountain chain. The sheep is a stone sheep, kin to the longhorn variety in California. They were in the higher elevations looking for salt licks along the highway. There were supposed to be caribou here also, but we didn't see them.

We also stopped at the Liard Hot Springs and Campground. Everyone we talked with on the way up said this place was a must stop, and it was! From the campground, we walked about 1/4 mile on a boardwalk over a marsh to a fairly small creek maybe 20 ft wide and 3 ft deep. The water was very warm (hot!) and we sat in it for over an hour. Ed preferred the hotter side (106-108°, Patty the cooler, ~100°). The mosquitoes really prefer warm bodies, we found out as we walked back to the campground.

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