On our way to Watson Lake the terrain leveled out into rolling hills with vast expanses of boreal forest.  The sunny delights of fair weather we had enjoyed for so many weeks ended as we rolled into passing rainstorms; it did help to clean off the layers of bug caracasses we had diligently collected and the rig looked a bit more cleansed for a change.  

We passed convoys of RVs thankful we were going the other direction it was starting to get pretty busy up north.  

We overnighted at the Downtown RV Park that we had stayed at on our way up to Alaska (this is the place with the “sign post” park).  It’s a parking lot but has good laundry and shower facilities and the Scottish proprietor was a pleasant albeit a bit stressed out fellow; this was prime time for him and he was working long days.  It had rained most of the day and let up enough for us to take a walk around Wye Lake that was right across from the RV park.  It’s nature trail and we spotted two beavers swimming through the lake. We noticed as we moved south, the sun was now setting at 10:30ish and the nights were a tad darker.

It rained overnight and didn’t let up as we pulled out and headed for Liard Hotsprings.  We entered British Columbia once again and bid our final farewell to the Yukon – reflecting on what an amazing experience it has been.  As we drove we saw ponds threatening to creep onto the road; the rivers were raging, showing signs of flooding as trees had become partially submerged.  The rain and late melt from the mountains was creating problems up and down the Alcan – we hoped we wouldn’t get caught in the middle of it and have to wait somewhere for the floods to recede.  We pulled off to a site called “Whirlpool Canyon” where the swollen Liard River clashed with contradicting tides; it was certainly unfriendly and the rain wasn’t putting a damper on the mosquitoes.  A couple who also stopped by said they would come down here every year and had never seen it so turbulent.  

We have been experiencing climate change all around us and have had too many vacations disrupted due to wildfires; we are glad we are doing this trip now – who knows what it will be like with more crowds and challenging weather systems in the near future. 

Beyond the “watch for caribou signs,” we saw new signs for bison with digital warnings that we were entering a crash corridor.  There were certainly a lot of spore on the highway and then we spotted a bison grazing on the side of the road.  I didn’t realize that bison were a thing in British Columbia and it turns out they were nearly wiped out due to the early trading in bison hide. Canada has the Woods and the Plains Bison and have been trying to conserve the species. It is great to see them roaming free and we did eventually see a small herd of them – those and the occasional black bear.

We reached Liard Hotsprings Lodge that appeared to just now realize that it was almost summer and that they might want to clean up the lodge?  The RV park was operational enough with electricity and water, but the laundry and bathrooms were out of order and besides the log lodge itself, it looked like the additional rooms were containers shipped from a research facility in the arctic.

We waited for the showers to pass and as the blue skies opened up we walked over to the Liard Hot Springs located in the Provincial Park across the street.  Passing through the campsite that was surrounded by a Jurassic Park style electric fence (bison, bear, elk and moose all wander around this vicinity ready to wreak havoc on the human population), we went through the gate onto a long boardwalk that passed through a lightly wooded marsh. The hot springs were located in a lovely wooded setting, much like a grotto, surrounded by ferns that reveled in the perpetual steam.  There were bathrooms, changing rooms and cubbies for your stuff.  Fortunately it wasn’t too crowded and the smell of sulphur wasn’t too bad. We welcomed the heat as we lowered ourselves into the shallow, crystal-clear water. In some areas the temperature was scalding hot and I was instructed to stir up the colder water from the bottom.  

We wallowed in the healing waters for about an hour and decided to head back as another wave of thunderclouds had inched their way in our direction.  We got back to the rig just as the sky unleashed its burden.  Not much later the blue skies opened up once again.  

We headed out early as we had a long drive to Pink Mountain.  It wasn’t long until we saw the peaks of the Northern Canadian Rockies.  The boys enjoyed a bit of moose spotting.

We drove by Muncho Lake and its unreal larimar-blue waters that were disturbingly close to the edge of the road.  I can’t image how long we would have been stuck if the lake had flooded the road.  

We were hit by some heavy thunderstorms, the theatrics complete with thunder, lightning and hail.  When the storms dissipated the vast valleys lit up with mist as if the landscape had slid back into the steaming jungles dinosaur age.  It was a rare and breathtaking site to behold. 

Further up the road we saw the warning signs for Bighorn Sheep and they weren’t kidding.  Other RVs were flashing us from the opposite direction as the sheep were here and there in small herds and weren’t easily spooked.  It was pretty cool to watch them as if we barely existed. 

The land eventually leveled out into terraces and we hit an impasse on the road with vehicles blocking the shoulders on both sides.  The semi truck in front of us was struggling to get by.  We were too busy trying to navigate the obstacle course that I didn’t see the large black bear at 1:00 about to saunter right in front of BigB.  I gasped – OMG!  The bear must have had enough sense to stop in time as there was no visible “thud” as we rolled by.  What I found odd is that he had a piece of garbage in his mouth.  Canada has more garbage stations along the road than people have common sense and you barely see any debris, it’s absolutely pristine; it occurred to me that one of those wankers across the road was probably feeding this poor fellow and he was crossing the highway for more…..

We arrived at Pink Mountain and camped amongst the pines – ending a rather dramatic day in peace.  

After passing through the agricultural section of British Columbia, flat and beautiful, we arrived at Dawson Creek – Mile 0 of the Alaska Highway. Now onto Jasper!