Oct. 5 Drive from Fort Nelson to Edmonton

Grain Elevators near Grande Prairie, Alberta

The Mascot of Beaver Lodge, Alberta

Hay drying near Grande Prairie, Alberta

Hay bales near Hythe, Alberta

Over the last two days we have driven from Fort Nelson in Northern BC to Edmonton, Alberta. We left the mountains and entered the prairies. We over-nighted in Grande Prairie. The last crop of hay is being dried and baled. The relative flatness of the land and lack of tall trees makes this big sky country.

This will be the last post.

Tim and Joan

Oct. 3rd Drive to Fort Nelson, BC

We were underway at 9:00 and made it 15km down the road before our first photo stop. Today we crossed into BC, and the scenery is still very impressive. We stopped to photograph (and watch) 3 different herds of wood bison. BC keeps a wide shoulder clear of trees on their highways. The bison love to graze on the shoulders, It was fun to watch the young calves still feeding from their mothers. About halfway to Fort Nelson we stopped at the Liard Hot Springs. This is a BC provincial park and completely open to the public. Entrance was free today – although in summer it is $5.00 per car. Joan did not have a bathing suit, so I went in while she watched. We walked 700 meters through the woods and there was a changing room (unheated) but no other services. I changed quickly and hopped into the pool. It was lovely. I chatted with several people there ( 2 of whom were drinking something from a floating bar) They all seemed to be repeat visitors, most from quite a distance away. The most talkative lives 900km away and comes several times a year. He always visits on New Years day. The springs are open all winter and during the cold spells the trees are white with frost and ice.

After the hot bath we were on our way again. We have yet to see a moose on this trip, but today we saw a lynx, 4 elk, and of course the wood bison.

The walk through the woods to the hot springs

The floating bar.

Not too close

Northern British Columbia

The Elk were very shy

Oct. 2nd Drive to Watson Lake

Early Morning Frost

River Bank at Johnson's Crossing

Just another mountain in the Yukon

We are starting our trip home. We drove across the bottom of the Yukon east to Watson Lake. It was a leisurely drive but again we made far too many photo stops along the way.

Oct. 1st Drive to Atlin and return

We drove to Atlin and back today. Atlin was a resort town for the rich and famous from 1910 to 1936. The railroad ran a spur to Atlin and built a hotel and cruise ship to entertain rich guests. The scenery is spectacular. Fishing and hunting were also promoted. In 1936 the tourist industry collapsed and the town fell into disrepair. Lately it has been restoring boats and buildings and it is known as an artists' colony. The houses are somewhat quirky.

View from Atlin

Definitely different

Definitely Old

This cruise boat was dry docked in 1936 but is now usable.

Sept. 30 Drive to Fraser BC and return.

Joan in the cool mornings

Along the rail line

The rail line runs beside the lake for several kms

We are in Carcross for three nights to see the scenery in the south Yukon and Northern British Columbia. We drove to Fraser BC and back today. Fraser is a railway town left over from the 1898 Gold Rush. The White Pass and Yukon Railway is a narrow gauge railway built for the miners to get to Whitehorse from Skagway in Alaska. The railway still runs, but mostly for tourists. The road we took goes to Skagway, but I didn't bring the passports so we didn't cross the border.

The Aspen and Tamarack trees turn yellow.

Sept. 29th Drive to Carcross

Sun and fog early morning

Sunrise is after 8 a.m. and since we were on the road shortly after 8 we got the early morning sun shining through the fog. It was -9 this morning so the fog stayed until 10. We are heading south and the bright yellow aspen trees have returned to the landscape. Carcross is in the Southern Lake District which is very mountainous. Carcross has been around since the Gold rush of 1898 and is on a narrow gauge rail line from Skagway, Alaska to Whitehorse, Yukon. We took a leisurely walk through the town which is pretty small but has some interesting buildings.

More fog

Island in thick fog

Emerald Lake