The past 2 weeks since my last blog post have been a filled with a tremendous amount of driving: Haines to Stewart, then on to Prince George to celebrate the completion of our 52-day Alaska caravan. Then we were challenged to modify our post-caravan travel plans in order to safely avoid the many British Columbia wildfires.
So, let me catch you up…….
Stewart/Hyder
After leaving Haines, Alaska, our next destination was Stewart, British Columbia and Hyder, Alaska. Similar to the other Alaska coastal cities (Valdez, Haines, Juneau), Stewart and Hyder sit within a valley surrounded by a glacier carved fjord which acts as a natural boundary between Canada and the US. However, because of the rugged coastal terrain you can’t just drive south along the Alaska coastline to get there. Instead, you need to go back north to the Alaska Highway and then eventually turn south on the historic and scenic Stewart-Cassier Highway. So, getting there requires some back tracking.
Stewart is Canada’s most northern ice-free port and together with Hyder they were established around 1900 because of gold and silver mining. Over the decades, copper and asbestos were also mined and with the creation of the Stewart-Cassier Highway, these port cities have been a key supply line to/from northern British Columbia.
Cruising the rolling 2-lane Alaska roads offer many kitschy displays; some historically pertenent, some just for fun…….here are a few we recently passed:
Prince George
Our adventurous caravan came to an end in Prince George, British Columbia. It was from here, 50 days ago, that we headed north to Dawson Creek and the start of the Alaska Highway. So, it was fitting that we had our celebratory dinner here. However, it was also a bittersweet evening as we recounted all that we had experienced over the past 52 days and 5,000+ miles. Needless to say, goodbyes were difficult and promises to get together in the future were solidified.
Traversing the Last Frontier with 48 other RVers forged new friendships, created a unique bond among strangers and provided safety and invaluable teamwork while driving thousands of miles across rugged and variable terrain. We completed the caravan with vivid memories of indescribable vistas, elusive wildlife, a respect and appreciation for those that live there and countless caravan stories of the people, activities and events we experienced together.
Although the Alaska caravan portion of our summer adventure ended our journey did not. Susan and I, with Tammy and Jeff, had plans to continue meandering together to Jasper, Lake Louise, Banff and then Glacier National parks. However, mother nature decided otherwise.
We were going to head south-east from Prince George on the much heralded and scenic British Columbia Highway 16 to Jasper. However, it was closed because of a horrific wildfire, the Jasper Wildfire, which not only closed the National Park but also destroyed about 40-50% of the town. Our other route to the Banff area had numerous out-of-control wildfires along the way and as such, we decided to stay put in Prince George for a few extra days to see how things played out and give us time to assess our options. The last thing we wanted to do was to find ourselves caught between wildfires or stuck in traffic due to town evacuations.
After hunkering down in Prince George for 4 days, the four of us decided to head south towards Washington and then east to Banff on the Trans-Canada Highway. Although this route was going to be longer, the wildfires seemed to be further from the road and more controlled. The next few days went smoothly, but the air was continuously filled with grey smoke and haze from all the various wildfires burning across British Columbia.
Banff National Park
Banff is Canada’s first National Park and the quaint town of Banff is uniquely situated inside the park. Rugged mountain peaks and pristine lakes surround the town with the landmark Banff Springs Hotel rising stately among the jagged mountains. There is so much to experience in Banff that you could easily spend a month taking it all in. I have been fortunate to ski here many years ago and seeing it in the summertime was a special treat. Although the wildfire smoke drifted here as well, the majesty of the mountains could not be clouded.
But, it doesn’t end here!…..next stop on our summer journey is Glacier National Park (Montana) and then we head east to Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Dakota). So, the Meandering continues…….