July 24 - 26 Back into the States

The 24th we cleared customs.  We lost half an uneaten orange.  While in the area we drove to Grand Coulee Dam.  The dam must not be a big tourist attraction. We were unable to find a spot to park the RV in order to look around. 

We're in Montana and with any luck we'll be in South Dakota tomorrow evening. 

British Columbia has some of the most spectacular lakes we have ever seen.  Okanagan Mountain Region.

At Kelowna BC, a river runs adjacent to the highway and the locals gather to float down the river which dumps into a lake.  It's like a lazy river at a theme park.

 

 Just a shot along the highway in Washington.

A terrible photo at the Coulee Dam.  This was as good a shot as we could get.  It's not like the Hover Dam.

July 23 we are headed home

The afternoon of the 20th we spent at Happy Trails RV Sales & service.  The dumpgate on our pooh tank would not open.  This malfunction had to be corrected before we move on.

July 21 and 22 we visited Barkerville BC an 1800's Mining Town that is a National Historic Site.  We are in rain again and it's in the upper 40's.  The night before we arrived it had snowed in the mountains. The town has been preserved as it was in the late 1800's early 1900's.  We also roamed through the Barkerville Cemetary which was layed out in section according to the period.

Tonite we are in Kamloops BC.  We are headed home and we have the dirties RV in the campground.

This is the view out our back window.  The RV is so dirty.

July 18 Stewart BC and Hayder AK

July 18^th we begin our day with a drive through scenic Stewart and across the border to Hyder Alaska.  The streets in Stewart are for the most part paved, Hyder, gravel. 

We moved on to the Fish Creek Wildlife Viewing area to observe Chum and Pink Salmon that spawn in the creek .  Also Grizzlies and Black Bears frequent the area to feed on the spawning salmon.   Just our luck we are about a week or so early this year.  Three salmon in the creek and no bear.  It must be those darn bells.  There’s a salmon in the picture see if you can find it, where’s Waldo.

We move on up the mountain to view the Salmon Glacier.  Unbelievable..  We’ve never seen anything quite like this.  And it’s so big.

The Salmon Glacier is the fifth largest in North America,

Of course once we get to the summit the clouds and light rain move in.  Still, worth the 14 mile drive up the mountain to see.   This is what the Glacier looks like in September.



Back to Hyder for a little lunch consisting of fresh Halibut and some shrimp.   A couple of local shots and what everyone needs is a bear on your front porch.



Tomorrow we begin our long slow trek back home.  

July 17th we head for Stwart and Hyder

July 17^th we continue down the Cassiar to Stewart BC and Hyder AK to see the Glaciers.  Along the way we meet a Black Bear up close.
Lacey is ready for the Glacier..

July 15 and 16

July 14^th we arrived back in Whitehorse and visited our favorite tire guy, new tires on the pickup.  The Alcan Hwy with the frost heaves, potholes, & gravel sections has taken its toll.  After new tires we did some replenishing of supplies and traveled through the local Wal-Mart parking lot.  They rope off the majority of the parking lot to allow RV’s and such to camp on the lot.  Rednecks everywhere.   Some even decorate their space with flowerpots, bbq grills.  I believe they plan on staying a while.

 

July 15^th we headed down the Alcan to the Cassiar Hwy and planned on heading toward Stewart, BC and Hyder, Alaska.   Again the road is horrible.  There had been a wild fire earlier this year so the first 50 miles the timber has been destroyed and you could still smell the burnt foliage.  We made 50 miles or so and stayed at Boya Provincial Campground and the lake and scenery were absolutely beautiful.  

Moose and bear spotted along the Cassiar Highway.

The water at Boya Lake was so clear it was translucent.

July 16 we continue down the Cassiar, in the rain.  The road continues to deteriorate and we are stuck in construction zones.   Bear was spotted along the highway.  We decide to stay at Kinaskan Provincial Park and the scenery is spectacular.