Day 84

Could we have a day with as much happening as yesterday? Doubtful, but we tried.

First, the continued tale of our unwanted house guest, as reported yesterday.

No luck overnight with the traps, and so as Marlipops was looking on line to find some super dooper all singing all dancing electronic mice traps, I saw the little sod run right along the wall, right by the Pops.

So, quick as a flash, your hero flew over the chair and catched him in my powerful left hand!

I then took him outside, humanely smashed his head in, and threw him into the bushes for the bears!

Then, after bidding a fond farewell to our friends Grayson and Pauline, we drove over the border to Alaska, and into the town of Hyder, again. We had not even got as far as Fish Creek, and had already seen two black bear cubs, at separate times.

We did not stop at the bear viewing area, but carried on, for 23 miles, back over the border, although there is nothing but a sign, to Salmon Glacier.

We have seen glaciers from afar, we have seen hanging glaciers and tidewater glaciers, but we have never looked down on a glacier. This thing is incredible, mile and mile long, coming down off the icefield, splitting into two different directions and filling the valley with chunks of ice as big as a house.

The drive was a dirt and gravel, single lane track, winding around and only just clinging to the side of the mountain as it rose 3000 ft.

The view of the drop over the edge was to die for, literally!

The whole journey took over 3 hours to complete, since a certain companion wanted to stop every few minutes for more breathtaking pix.

We saw a Hoary Marmot, and then we saw another one. These things eat only vegetation, hibernate from September to April, and are often digged up by bears, and eaten while still asleep!!

We then went to the boardwalk to watch for bears, but only saw a mid sized black bear, picking up dead fish, dragging them into the bushes, and then coming back for more.

Coz we had gotten up so early, we went back to the coach at early o’clock, and had a beautiful halibut and chips dinner, followed by an early night.

Bear watch today was three black bears, Goldilocks again absent, two hoary marmots, two bald eagles, some herons, Canada geese, and a live, then dead mouse.

Day 83

Today was the best day of our trip, without question.

As Marlipops so eloquently put it, “ If you only have three days, and want the best scenery, the best town and the best wildlife, come here”

We started off with a moose. But, it was the wrong type of moose. This was a house moose, of the rodent variety. We had overnighted in the middle of nowhere and woke up to the patter of tiny feet. Actually it was the sight of the little bugger scampering across the floor that gave us our first clue. The second clue was moose crap in my shoes.

More to this later.

On the road by 8, we encountered not one, not two, but three bears in the road. Where was Goldilocks? The first was an indistinct blob from afar, and as we got closer, all we could see were a pair of ears and a snout, which disappeared into the undergrowth. The second was a big grizzly we came across suddenly as we rounded a bend in the road. He was ambling gently across, but ran away when he saw us. The third was a black bear which darted across in front of us. In all three sightings we did not have much chance to get a good picture, and we thought that is was OK, coz we had lots of other pix, and the memories of three bears in one day will be with us forever.

150 miles down the Cassiar Highway, which was freshly paved and a pleasure to drive on, compared to the day before, we turned on to the Stewart – Hyder access road……..and encountered the most gobsmacking scenery imaginable. There were mountains so close around we felt we could touch them, lots with avalanche paths, where there are no trees, lots of beautiful lakes, waterfalls galore, and several magnificent hanging glaciers. These literally hang off the mountains, gradually melting, forming roaring streams and rivers. The road meandered through a narrow canyon/gorge, with the river rushing and boiling right alongside. We were so close to the river we could smell the unique “glacier melt” odor from it.

And then into Stewart, and the Bear River RV resort. This place had been recommended to us by a couple of fellow travelers we had met a few weeks ago in Kenai, and with whom we had kept in touch via e mail. They were going to be here for another day, so we were hoping to meet up with them.

We parked the coach, hooked up all the essentials, and went into the town of Stewart. This tiny town is right on the edge of Canada, at the top of The Portland Canal, the fourth largest fjord in North America, and 2 miles away is the tinyer town of Hyder, which is in Alaska. There is no customs post going into Hyder, but there is one coming back into Stewart. Both towns are tidy and rely on logging and tourism for business. Hyder has a post office, but no bank. Stewart the opposite.

We went into the hardware store and stocked up on moose traps!

The streets of Hyder are gravel, no paving anywhere. The best thing is the wildlife.

We had been told, but were skeptical that the best place in the world to watch bears fishing and eating salmon was in Hyder. Not the Kodiak bears, or Denali, but Hyder, population 80. ( that’s people, not bears!)

Well, check out the pix.

We stood on the observation boardwalk overlooking Fish Creek for over six hours. We could not get away.

We met up with our friends Pauline and Grayson, and chatted for a while, and then the first bear arrived. It was a female immature grizzly, and proceeded to chase and finally catch a fish. Soon, a mature black bear showed up, ran off the grizzly, and went about his business for about a hour. Then, Marlipops noticed some movement in the bushes above the road opposite, and there was the grizzly, which had been run off from the creek earlier, busy eating berries.

Next, the black bear wandered off, and another, bigger grizzly appeared, and entertained us for ages. We were getting photo shock by this time, and had stopped taking pix, just happily watching the bears antics. I was just looking round, to the beautiful lake behind us, and right on the path, not 10 feet away, was a black bear, strolling along, totally ignoring everyone. He disappeared into the bushes after a while, and then, not long after, there was a female black bear, with two small cubs, crossing the creek, on to the road, and stopping all the traffic.

Marlipops saw a beaver, which was busy doing nothing on a log.

While I was busy talking, Marlipops went looking for more bears, and saw a black bear cub, supposebly two or three years old, sitting in a tree, making noises.

We eventually left, although the big grizzly was still eating big salmon, and the seagulls which had been there all day, were too stuffed to fly.

All the while, the poor old salmon, on their last legs, were still trying to spawn, before they died or got eaten!

On the way back, we went past a place called Moose Pond, although there are no moose there, and saw another beaver swimming along.

We had a lovely dinner with our friends, at the only restaurant still open at nine o’clock!

Wildlife watch today was out of this world, and the great thing is, we get to go back tomorrow.

Day 81

Today was a travel day, but first we decided to wash off the dust from the coach.

The high pressure wand did its job brilliantly, but there was a total lack of drainage, so I was paddling in mud while washing mud off the coach!

In my infinite wisdom as Captain Cautious, I saw that my muddy sandals, still on my feet, needed cleaning. If you have never pressure washed your feet, then don’t….it bloody hurts!!

Still, onwards and upwards, we left Dawson City limits ( wasn’t that a song by Tina Turner?) at 10 of the clock, and proceeded towards Whitehorse.

The pix you see are some of the road hazards we had to avoid!

The bear was just darling, he didn’t see us for a few seconds, then looked round, took fright, and jumped up as he ran into the bushes.

Mrs Moose and her mooselets did not even see us, and if they did, would probably have ambled just as slowly across the road as they did.

The fact that I was hitting the air brakes with my right foot and the engine brake with my left was of no concern to them.

We stopped at a place called Five Finger Rapids, ( John, behave yourself) because there is a wonderful part of the Yukon River Valley, with some amazing, erosion resistant rocks. These were a major navigation hazard 100 years ago, when paddle steamers were plying their trade up and down the river between Dawson City and Whitehorse.

So, to get to the best view, you have to go down 219 steps of a rickety wooden staircase, and then trek for one kilometer through bear infested woods, all the while shouting “Go Bear” ( see previous reports) to finally reach a viewing platform to look at……….rocks and water.

Despite all my pathetic attempts at belittling this, it was well worth the trip, but some people would not think so after the trek back!

Of course, being totally prepared, we had forgotten to take any water, and as the weather was once again unseasonably hot for this neck of the woods, (clever pun) we were knackered when we got back to the coach.

So, with our dashboard AC not having worked since we left Houston, we had to travel for the next 200 miles with the generator going full blast to run the roof AC units.

At the same time we watched with morbid fascination as a stone chip in the windshield developed into a crack, and proceeded at a leisurely pace upwards. Luckily for me, the crack is on Marlipops’ side, so my view will not be interrupted, and the Pops is too good a wife to complain!

The scenery improves as the road goes southwards, and there are lots of huge areas which are recovering from forest fires. First to take over the forest floor is the fireweed, the brilliant red plant which is everywhere. From a distance, whole mountainsides look red, a stunning contrast to the greens of the unburned areas. On our way up here several weeks ago, the fireweed was not blooming, but now it is, the views are totally different.

We got to Whitehorse around 5 this evening, filled up both vehicles with petroleum spiritus sanctus, did some grocery shopping, and wandered down the Alaska Highway for another 100 miles to Mukluk Annies. This is a place we stopped at 7 or 8 weeks ago, which is free overnight parking, a lovely view of Teslin Lake, and an all you can eat breakfast buffet in the morning to look forward to!

Wildlife watch today was the aforementioned bear, mooses and a bunch of crazy magpies.

Just a footnote, Marlipops has brought our travel maps up to date, and they are attached.

Day 80

At 2.30 in the morning, the alarm blew my head off, and I rushed outside to see the Northern Lights. It was pitch black dark, the sky full of stars, and nothing else. No Aurora Borealis, no nothing. So, back to bed.

Which reminds me, while we were at the Dawson City visitors center yesterday, we were told that some people come in and ask what time the Northern Lights get switched on, and others ask which side of the river they have to get on the ferry.

Alaska! We could not stay away, we had to go back to Alaska!

We got on the ferry on the proper side this morning, sailed across the mighty Yukon River, fighting the raging current, the rapids, the wild winds whipping all around us, and the savage Indians firing arrows from the hillsides above.

Actually, none of that really happened, it is a five minute gentle float across to the opposite bank.

Then, 108 miles to Chicken, Alaska.

Marlipops drove all the way, the journey taking about 4 hours. The road is partially paved, and partially not paved. The not paved bits on the Canadian side are loose gravel, but pretty smooth and relatively easy going. Once you cross the border, the northernmost U.S. border crossing by the way, the road becomes very rough packed dirt, with pot holes and ruts and lots of twisty turny sections. We went round one hairpin bend and down to our left was the remnants of what happens to a motor coach when you don’t pay attention. See pix. This accident happened yesterday, thankfully no one was hurt.

Although the road was a bit of a slog, the scenery and views were worth it.

This road, which is closed from September to May, is known as The Top Of The World Highway, for excellent reasons.

We have mentioned before the awesome majesty of Alaska’s mountains, especially when driving through and between them. Well, this was as good, and the mountains just as beautiful, but we were on top of most of them, not between them. The road winds along the old miners trail from100 plus years ago, with drop offs on both sides, of hundreds of feet. The views go on for miles and miles, virgin forests and rolling hills, with snow capped mountains in the far distance. Also, there are lots of valleys, with rivers at the bottom, full of gold!!!

We were above the tree line in a lot of places, that’s how high up this road is.

We finally got to Chicken in time for lunchish, and soup of the day was chicken!

So we had a hamburger! It was an actual hamburger, a regular beefburger, with a big slice of ham on top. Delish.

The real downtown Chicken comprises 3 buildings, and the most incredible toilets.

In this part of the world all public restrooms are just a hole in the floor, with a commode above. All of them have been super clean, and this one in Chicken was no different, except when you looked in the hole, you could see daylight at the bottom!

We did NOT investigate any further.

We met Tucker, the three legged dog. He lost a fight with a GMC truck.

There is a massive old dredge, currently being restored, from about 100 years ago, which was used to pick up trillions of tons of river bed, in search of gold. Now it is home to a bunch of swallows, or swifts or some bird that makes mud type nest things.

Then, the return journey with the captain at the helm, going slower than Speedypops, and almost falling asleep, so her ladyship took over driving duty and we got home faster than a speeding bullet, after once more braving the mighty Yukon!!

Wildlife watch was some squirrels, and the coyote Marlipops thinks she saw.

Day 79

The first 200 miles today was pretty……………….boring!!

After our overnight stop in the rest area overlooking the Yukon River valley, the rest of our 350 mile drive from Whitehorse to Dawson City was straight, level and for the most part very samey. There were some interesting sections where we followed a Yukon Department of Road Fixing truck, which was laying down water to kill the dust, but we couldn’t see past him to get by, so traveled for about 10 miles at 20 mph, in a dust cloud.

We have parked the supercoach at Guggieville RV park, on the outer limits of the town, and we are surrounded by huge mega piles of rocks. In between the rocks are pools of incredibly clear water. These rocks were put here from the massive rock dredging machines, which until the end of the fifties, were used to dig up ore looking for gold. What they use now we have no idea.

Dawson City was once home to over 40,000 inhabitants at the height of the Klondike Gold Rush, and was in fact the Provincial capital. When you think that there are now only about 30,000 people living in the whole of the Yukon Territory, it gives you some idea of it’s importance back then.

The town sits on the convergence point of the Klondike and Yukon Rivers, and there is a 24 hour ferry which takes traffic over the rivers, so you can continue your journey.

Where the rivers meet is interesting as the Klondike River is sparklingly clean, and the Yukon is a light brown muddy color, so there is a distinct difference for several hundred yards until they mingle proper.

There are also some very small huts, floating on rafts made from oil drums and plywood. These are vacation huts!! People come up for the summer, pan for gold and boat out to these little huts on the river! Crazy!

The main income for the Yukon is tourism, closely followed by gold mining. There are over 40 mines, some just small mom and pop affairs, in this area alone.

We inquired about gold panning, and were told that for $ 7.00 we could be taught how to pan, and we would even be guaranteed some gold. They put $5.00 worth in the gravel before they let you loose!!

The town itself is quaint, and has sort of been preserved with the turn of the last century feel. Of course, it is for the tourists, but there are still a lot of people who live here and work in the mines.

What we found neat was that all the sidewalks were raised wooden boardwalks, and all the streets were gravel and dirt. We do not want to be here in the winter, when snow turns to mush. It would be a real mud bath.

We have to mention the weather here. While the rest of the US swelters in the heat of the dog days of August, we were looking forward to lovely, 70 degree temperatures.

We have had all the coach windows blacked out, and both AC units going full blast coz it has been in the 90’s here!

Air conditioning up here means opening a door, and one store proudly boasted that it has AC, so we went in, sand found the smallest, Wal Mart cheapo window unit, no colder than an ice cream!

We had lunch, and then, on the way back to the RV park, decided to explore a side road. It went up and up and up the side of a mountain, and right at the tippy top was a small parking lot, with the most wonderfully vast 360 degree panoramic views, for miles and miles around. We could see the river convergence area, virtually all of the town, the ferry, and miles and miles of forests, rolling hills and distant mountains. This place is a meeting place for the townsfolk on June 21^st, the longest day, to celebrate the summer solstice, or get drunk, or both.

Talking of beer, I have found another brewery, you will be pleased to know.

It is the Yukon Brewery of Whitehorse, and so far I have imbibed of their Chilcoot Lager, which was reasonable, the Yukon Gold, “an English Style Pale Ale”, which is very nice, and the Cranberry Wheat, with a grizzly bear on the label, which was crap.

Talking of bears, ( see how I move smoothly and effortlessly from subject to subject?) the bear we sent pix of yesterday was actually officially known as blonde grizzly. Although they are all brown bears, they can vary in color tremendously from black to almost white.

We are going to bed early, have set the alarm for 2.30 am, coz we have been reliably informed that as tonight will be clear, we should be able to see The Northern Lights.

Then we are off to Chicken tomorrow.

Wildlife watch today was a suicidal scampering squirrel, lots of huge ravens and a delightful blue grey jay type bird, who sat on an information sign at a rest stop we were at, then flew down right by my feet, hopped over to the feet of the Marlipops, and flew back to the sign. Fascinating, he had no fear………….at least until he got near my feet!!

Day 78

First off today, a huge, huge thank you to my little brother Stuart.

He has put all our travels together on an internet blog, and if you go to:

Rollinghills2007@blogspot.com you will see his great efforts.

This site will be updated daily as soon as our e mails arrive, so if you are missing some pix or pages, or want to show friends, or are just plain bored, have a look, Stuart has done a wonderful job. Thanks a million.

If any of you out there in reader land would prefer to check on our progress through this blog site, instead of getting an e mail from us, since some are big and often have lots of pix, please let us know. It would be great to get some feedback, on the new blog site as well.

Today was plugging holes day.

After our overnight stay at wonderful Wal Mart, we decided that our right rear outside tire had finally started more than a slow leak, so we went to Yukon Tire Center right round the corner. Actually everywhere is right round the corner coz the towns are small!

Anyway, we spent an hour there, were charged the ridiculously cheap price of $ 43.00, and we got to use their RV dump station and water filler upper.

A very pleasant bunch of people, and so we went back there later in the day to fill up with gas and diesel.

Then, the other hole had to be plugged. I lost a filling in my mouth, supposebly during one of the many gourmet dinners cooked by Marlipops, so I had to go to a dentist, bite the bullet literally, and get plugged.

After that, we trogged around town looking for the post office and the liquor store, the only place to get beer, and a WiFi café.

We had a look at the longest wooden salmon ladder in the world, about 1200 feet long, alongside a hydro electric dam on the Mighty Yukon River.

What did the salmon say when he smacked his head into a wall in the river?

Dam.

Moving swiftly on, this salmon ladder is supposed to be full of fish this time of year, all going upstream to spawn and die, and last night there was the annual appreciation night, to celebrate the peak season of the salmon, and there only 14 fish.

We took a tour around the local brewery, Yukon Brewing Company, but were not allowed a sample, as we were a few minutes late!!

Don’t they want to sell this stuff, or what?

Still, we had earlier bought a 12 pack in the liquor store. I enquired, at the brewery, as to the price of the same 12 pack there, and was told it was exactly the same!

Government runs the liquor stores, and they are not allowed to sell it any cheaper. Apparently there is a huge drinking problem among the native population, especially during the long winter nights.

We have decided that Canadian drivers are as bad as Alaskans.

We left town around 6 this evening, headed up the Klondike Highway towards Dawson City. This place was the original provincial capital, back in the heydays of the Klondike gold rush. In case we have not told y’all before, this whole area was gold feverish about 110 years ago, and there are still some mines operating, and panning for gold, and finding some is a popular touristy thing to do. We have resisted……so far, but if our funds run low, we may have to resort to panning.

The road up to Dawson City, or Dawson as it is known locally, is in as good a condition as the Alaskan Highway, and less traveled, so even more wilderness, if that is possible, and some of the views over the Yukon River valleys are stunning.

A little known problem up here is the sides of the roads.

Vegetation, such as spruce and pine trees abound, so the edges of the roads, about 30 ft on either side, are kept cleared and mowed where possible. This is done coz in winter these trees cause too much shade on the road, preventing thawing during spring and fall, and also they attract moose and other big animals, which is very dangerous to drivers. But, after the trees are cut back, plants such as fireweed are abundant in the cleared areas, and all these plants are food for moose, so the moose still get close to the roads!!

Of course, we have the answer to this conundrum………..close the roads, let the moose take over completely!!!

We are currently camped at kilometer marker # 394.8, “a large gravel pull out, with good photo op” says the travel bible.

We didn’t see any wildlife today.

Once again, thank you, Stuart.