Houston to Prince George
Day 78
Longer drive of over 200 miles today. Definite change in country. For weeks we have been in mountains with everything that entails. Evergreen forests, cool days and cold nights, twisty roads with little traffic, snow capped vistas everywhere. Now we are in farm lands. Rolling hills, mixed/deciduous forests, hay fields, straighter and busier roads, cattle and horses instead of moose and bears. Also much warmer. Getting close to A/C weather.
Short drive day to Houston
Short day but we did do some sight seeing.
There are is a trio of towns called ‘The Hazeltons’. Each of them have Hazelton in their name. They are old first nation villages that have been updated to keep with the times and appeal to tourists. Lots of historic buildings and info plaques.
A river flows between two of the villiages in a VERY deep gorge.
Here is the bridge over the gorge.
Here is the original bridge. :)
Here is the gorge.
We camped in Houston (pronounced the same as in Texas). Houston boasts the largest fly rod in the world.
Here it is.
South Again
We left Stewart about 8:00 am. Overcast but still pretty. The road between Stewart and the junction with BC 37 passes something like 18 glaciers and 45 waterfalls. We didn’t see them all but did see quite a few.
About an hour and a half south we went through a couple of first nations villages. These villages have totem ‘forests’. Totems are most common to the natives of southern Alaska and British Columbia. One major reason is that there are large trees in the south that do not exist in the more northern areas. Totems tell stories. It helps a great deal to know the story ahead of time I think.
We are now in a small provincial park beside a very pretty lake.
Sue and Gladys are kayaking on the lake.
This is the one section of the trip that I did not research or plan. I just figured we’d see what came up. So we’ll read a bit about the road ahead and see what happens for the next few days.
Salmon Glacier
The gravel road to the bear viewing area continues on for twenty miles or so, passing old mines, water falls and rivers. Eight miles beyond bear area it starts climbing and climbing and climbing. Eventually it just hugs the mountainside and keeps climbing. On one side is mountain, on the other is this:
Looking upstream is this:
That is the lower end of Salmon Glacier, fifth largest in Canada.
It is huge. Largest glacier you can drive to/near.
Unfortunately, it was a cloudy day and much of the view was in the clouds. We drove to the summit which has a spectacular view of the glacier but the cloud was so thick that visibility was only about twenty feet. Looked at what we could and then headed back.
The road to the glacier goes back into British Columbia. At the border there is a marker.
In this area, as well as further north, the US/Canada border is cleared. A path through the forest.
Border marker between Stewart and Hyder.
First masonry building in Alaska.
Tallest Fireweed we have seen. In campground, right by our site.
West to Stewart
Beautiful, sunny, calm, morning at campground.
Drive from campground to Stewart is less than 40 miles. It is good road but all down hill and some narrow spots. We left late and took it easy.
About half way down is this:
Bear Glacier
These are everywhere:
Typical scenery on road to Stewart:
After setting up in nice RV park in Stewart, we headed west a couple of miles to Hyder. Back to Alaska.
Main street, Hyder, AK
At least 2/3 of the buildings in Hyder are closed. About 100 people call Hyder home.
Most popular of Hyder’s three eating establishments. Order at the door. Pick up at the window.
Hyder post office
Just outside Hyder is a salmon spawning creek.
This spot is VERY popular with bears and with people who want to watch the bears. They have built a boardwalk/viewing platform to keep people away from the bears and still watch them catch fish.
The salmon run has not started yet so seeing bears is iffy. We didn’t.
Further South on Cassiar Highway
Another four hour drive through some of the prettiest country we have seen.
The drive down into Stewart is supposed to be prettier in morning (assuming no rain) so we stopped near the junction (to Stewart) at a provincial park. Very nice. We are right on a lake shore looking out on a bay of the lake with a nice island in it.
Very impressive tables at camp sites. 3x12 planks heavily finished with urethane. Surface was like glass.
Further Down the Cassiar Highway
Short, easy drive today because the next leg is pretty long and has no good break spots in it.
Started under sunny to partly cloudy skies. Road still in good shape. Beautiful scenery.
No animals :( .
Except for these.
We did encounter several miles of road construction (gravel) but that was just encouragement to slow down and enjoy the country.
We are staying in a very pretty RV park just outside Iskut, BC. Maybe the prettiest surroundings we have camped in.
View from park.
View of lake next to RV park. Note rains have returned.
RV park from lake. Owners parents lived in Auburn ‘till recently. Ran an antique store in Old Town. Small world gets smaller.
