Alberta-Banff & Jasper National Park

Highway toward Banff

Banff Main Street

Overpasses through Banff National Park allow wildlife to cross safely

We camped at a rustic campground in Banff National Park, aptly named Mosquito Creek, for two nights, the 23^rd and 24^th of July.  Mosquito Creek is a glacier-fed creek that flows into the Bow River.  Where we registered there were signs posted about how to keep a “Clean Camp” so there is nothing to attract bears…  also signs telling how to avoid being eaten by or have your pet eaten by a cougar, which had been seen on the camp perimeter the day before.  I have to say we were both a little spooked by all of the information and we had our bear spray ready. 

Cougar Warning!

How to keep a Clean Camp

Our spot in the trees

Panorama of the cooking tent ready for action

Bear-proof food storage

 

The weather smiled on us as we set up our tents and cooking station and did a quick wander about, but as we cooked dinner the rain started and kept falling pretty steadily for the evening and overnight.  We were warm and dry in our tents listening to the rain on the fly, but when it doesn’t get dark until 10 pm and it’s raining and cold in the mountains you just feel like going to sleep.  We did.  We slept well, even suspecting there were wild animals lurking about.  In the morning it was 42 degrees and wet!  Between rain showers we explored the campground and discovered a deposit of fresh-looking poop identified by the camp attendant as from a bear.  During the time we were there we found two more deposits – one was between our camp and the outhouse on the path I’d been blithely using.  I stayed on the road after that!  Interesting tidbit:  bears “deposit” an amount the size of a soda can every hour.

Dinner in the rain

Even with all of that, the campground was perfect.  There is a little wash house where you can take your dirty dishes and clean them up with potable water instead of a dishpan at your camp.  There are specially designed ropes to pull your food pack high into the trees so the bear cannot get them.  These are for the bicyclists or backpackers who are staying and don’t have a car to lock their food in overnight.  The outhouses are clean, dry and well-kept…but they are dry outhouses!

 

Warming Hut

Baby Sparrows perched inside the warming hut

  There is a rustic but cozy warming hut with a big iron wood-burning stove in the center and a nest of baby sparrows with mama swooping in and out to deliver food.   We could gather around a fire and meet the other campers.  Our adventure pales in comparison with that of one couple we talked to, a delightful couple from Belgium who both quit their jobs and are on the downhill side of an 8-month world tour.  They spent four months in Asia and now are touring Canada and the western US in a tiny rented car, with some very basic camping gear and a huge and contagious enthusiasm.  We loved meeting them and felt more bold after hearing their stories.

 

 

The hostel adjacent to the campground was also rustic and the sign advertised “No Showers, No Electricity, A Sauna, Some Wi Fi!  We walked over on Tuesday and were intrigued with the idea of staying in a place like that sometime.  Note that probably electronic devices used for the Wi Fi should be well-charged before arrival.

 

The hike description claimed there were a couple of small streams to cross but “nothing major.”  We got to this point and decided the message implied by the boots lying by the water was enough to discourage this crossing.

 

North of Banff National Park is Jasper National Park.  Around every bend in the road I had to stop and photograph another mountain, another glacier, the only bear we saw in the park…something breathtaking.  Watching bicyclists, some of them distance riders with packs and panniers, work their way up and down these hills was humbling.  Most of them looked quite a lot younger than we are but there were some “mature” riders mixed in. 

Tangled Falls

 

After visiting the information center at the Ice Fields and admiring the big ice-touring vehicles and the glaciers filling the valley we left the park on the North end and picked up Highway 40 at Hinton – following the sign “The Scenic Route to Alaska!”  This country is “managed forest” land and there are swaths of clear cutting separated by areas where trees are labeled with the dates they were clear cut, re-planted and the predicted date of next cutting.  All of this timber leads to huge plants like “Foothills Forest Products” and “Ainsworth O.S.B. Plant.”  They are making finished lumber and “Oriented Strand Board” – lots of it.

Loaded with logs

It’s sad to see the amount of damage done by the pine beetles.  Every campground has signs about not moving wood from another area in order to protect the forests.

Near Grande Cache there is a mountain of coal being mined on one side of the road and going directly into a coal-fired power plant on the other side.  There is a wealth of natural resources in this part of the world.  We asked a young woman server at dinner about what kinds of jobs are available and she said there were many, mostly in the oil fields and lumber.  That’s obvious when you count the pickup trucks driven by young men in the parking lot of the brew pub.  She said that young women also come and love the area – mostly working in service jobs.  It’s a high-energy, fast-growth, high-testosterone world!

Coal power plant

As we left Alberta we had to stop at the town of Beaverlodge to take a photo of another giant animal sculpture.

Thursday we connected with the Alaskan Highway, Mile Zero, at Dawson Creek, British Columbia.  We took the requisite photos, picked up extra maps, documentation, information on road conditions, etc., crossing another time zone line as we entered what Diana calls “No Man’s Land.”  So far, that is not true.

The Path

 

Mile Zero!

 

If you’re ever this way you should definitely not miss a little place called “Trapper’s Den Wildlife Emporium.”  From the outside it looks tiny but inside is a wonderland of leather moccasins, Indian-made jewelry, books focusing on the North West, any kind of camping and hunting gear you may have forgotten.  We also got advice on fishing and camping/cabins. 

Trapper's Den Wildlife Emporium, Fort Nelson, British Columbia

Today, the 27^th, we drove from a log cabin at Tetsa River Lodge where we stayed last night, to Watson Lake, Yukon.  The log cabin sounded good in the ad and looked picturesque when we first looked at it but we missed some clues.  Next time we’ll be smarter and ask whether the kitchen sink actually works or is just for decoration and when they say they have Wi Fi I’ll ask if it is fast enough to upload a photo or just for text email.  Oh well, you learn.  They did tell us that the electricity got turned off at 10 p.m.  I didn’t realize that meant water, too!

The road is better than either of us expected.  There have been a few places where they are putting down fresh tar and then covering it with gravel.  In almost every case there’s a wait at one end while traffic from the other direction comes through in a dense cloud of dust – then it’s our turn to do the same.  Other places have just patches of new gravel where they do maintenance.  Mostly it’s paved and smooth and dry.  One stretch went right on the edge of Muncho Lake…literally on the edge!  Hopefully the photos show how close to the water we were.  Muncho Lake is famous for its deep blue-green water.

Can you tell how close to the edge the road is?

Today we also saw the most wildlife we’ve seen to date.  Right after we left the lodge this morning we saw a really young moose and then a couple of miles later another one a little older.  We started passing signs warning about bison and we almost didn’t believe it – until we started to see them!  The first one was a huge guy just walking along the highway.  I rolled down my window and took his picture and he didn’t even acknowledge our presence.  Obviously he’s accustomed to photographers.  There were several other big males and one large group with calves.  We saw a couple of black bear cubs and another larger one who was intent on eating berries.  We saw a group of wild horses grazing right by the road!  We finally saw a couple of the Stone’s Sheep that we were supposed to be watching out for, too!

Can you see the baby on the hillside?

We followed this custom-made camper from Texas for a while today

We’re using a book called “The Milepost” to guide this trip along the Alaskan Highway.  In it there are notations about almost every feature on and about the road.  Today we went across a bridge called Lower Laird River Bridge that is the only remaining suspension bridge on the Alaskan Highway.  It was built in 1943 – just like the guy standing next to it.

1943 was a good year!

Thanks so much to everyone who is watching the blog, commenting on the blog, and sending us notes and wishes.  It really is so much fun to think of sharing this adventure with you and we love getting your messages!

Sure, Diva. 
You may have some of my water!