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This was one of the more
beautiful sections of my trip, particularly the Canadian Rockies in Banff
and Jasper National Parks [1-2]. This segment also included the Alaska Highway
which officially begins at Dawson Creek [4], British Columbia, and ends at Tok,
Alaska [5].
Day 7 - Thursday, June
7
- Canmore to Jasper
Today's ride through the
Canadian Rockies was awesome. Even the photos can't capture the grandeur and
magnificence of the natural beauty. The road threaded its way northward between
mountain ranges for the entire way. Imagine panoramas of snow-capped mountain
peaks, waterfalls, full mountain streams, sparkling lakes, and glaciers gliding
by continuously for 180 miles. Along the way I saw a black bear, mountain sheep
and moose along the road. The scent of pine trees and the brisk mountain air
added to the experience.
| This mountain
rises above the town of Banff, nestled in the valley off to the right.
It looked like this huge section has been pushed up over time creating the jagged line
visible on the left. I am becoming much more aware of geological events
and formations on this trip, and geological time. Even though the
mountains seem "rock
solid" today, in many cases they are still growing and they are
always, always changing. |
 |
 |
This lake at the
foot of a glacier was partially frozen, creating an almost surreal
scene. It was cool here, 52 degrees Fahrenheit with a breeze blowing in. |
| Lake Louise is a
beautiful emerald blue lake nestled in a high mountain valley fed by a
melting glacier. |
 |
 |
This is the
Columbia Icefield. It was considerably larger when I was here with my
family in 1958 - the sign in the lower corner shows how far the glacier
reached in 1908. The little tiny black speck in the center left of the
photo at the edge of the mountain is a small vehicle on tracks. We took
one out on the glacier in 1958.
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Day 8 -
Friday, June 8 - Jasper
to Dawson Creek
Today was all riding and no
picture taking. I rode west out of Jasper on the Highway 16 to Prince George and
north on 97 to Dawson Creek - 500 miles in all. The ride to Prince George was
beautiful, much like the day before. The roads were lightly traveled and the sun
was out, making for an enjoyable ride. I got to Dawson Creek around 7 pm, found
a room, then rode downtown to see milepost "0", the official start of the Alaska
highway.
Day 9 - Saturday,
June 9
- Dawson Creek to Ft. Nelson
Today was my first day on
the Alcan Highway. It was a day for
reminiscing - reliving my trip of 49 years ago with my family...
| Here we are in 1958. That's my older
brother Gilbert on the left, younger brother Jerry in the middle, and me
in the red shirt on the right. Mom and dad are in the rear. We put
10,000 miles on the Chevy in five weeks that summer, camping every night.
Lunch was always Chef Boy-Ar-Dee
spaghetti, warmed in
the can on top of the engine for an hour before we stopped
to eat. As far as I can remember I've not had a can
of that spaghetti since! |
 |
 |
This was milepost
"0" in
1958, the official start of the Alaska Highway, known
then as the Alcan (Alaska-Canada). The sign said it was 1523 miles to
Fairbanks. |
Today
milepost "0" and downtown Dawson Creek looked
remarkably similar. There is a new milepost "0" in a park over where the
new highway begins, but I didn't have any interest in going over to see
it. |
 |
 |
Just
north of Dawson Creek is a section of the original
Alcan highway much the way it was when we drove it in 1958. The road was
all gravel then, and I remember huge clouds of dust stirred up by
the semis that barreled down the highway throwing up rocks. Our
windshield was cracked from top to bottom in 5 places by flying stones
when we got back down to Dawson Creek. |
| This
is the last remaining wooden decked bridge of the
original highway, now preserved in Kiskatinaw Provincial Park. It was a bit
surreal riding across this bridge today realizing that 49 years ago we
drove across this very bridge in our '57 on our way north. Much of the
original Alcan has been rebuilt and straightened. |
 |
 |
When we drove up
in 1958 the new suspension bridge on the Peace River built the previous
year had collapsed, dropping an entire section into the river. I
remember that sight very well, but unfortunately I don't have a photo of
it. We had to take a ferry across back then. Here is the new bridge
across the Peace River. |
| The ride today on
the modern Alaska Highway was beautiful. The road was all paved and in
very good condition with wide cleared areas on either side. That is good
- today on four different occasions deer ran across the highway in front
of me, and the cleared area helped me see them. Northern BC is a
beautiful place - the photo captures it nicely. |
 |
Day 10 - Sunday, June
10 - Ft. Nelson to Watson Lake
 |
The ride north out
of Fort Nelson was beautiful. This was a section of the road that goes
through the foothills of the Canadian Rockies. |
I crossed the Yukon border
in the afternoon and stopped for the day at Watson Lake.
 |
That's me on the
left at the border in 1958. Today's sign (right) shows much more
class. Not
sure about the boy, however... |
 |
Day 11 - Monday, June 11
- Watson Lake to Whitehorse
|
Watson Lake, where
I stayed last night, has the famous Signpost Forest. The custom began in the
1940's when travelers would nail a sign on a post as a marker of their
travels up the Alcan. Today there are more than 40,000 signs nailed up
here. |
 |
 |
When we drove up
in 1958 dad nailed up a license plate sign that had a
big ear of Iowa corn on it. I couldn't find his sign among the thousands
there today, and in truth it would probably be completely rusted
and unintelligible today. This license plate in the upper right corner
is from 1957, so I know some of the old ones are still there. It was fun
looking anyway... |
|
I feel certain we
stayed at this campground near the Rancheria
River in 1958. It was memorable because it was
on the edge of a large forest fire and I can remember seeing glowing
embers at the edge of the campground. Erik Molvar's Scenic Driving
Alaska and the Yukon helped me find this. |
 |
 |
The mighty Yukon River
originates just north of Skagway, and was used by prospectors during the
Gold Rush era of the late 1900's as a route up to Dawson Creek, where
they would stake their claims. Before getting to the river they had to
make an unbelievably arduous trip across the mountains - more on that
later when I visit Skagway on the way home... |
|
This portion of the Alcan Highway
skirted the northern end of the Cassiar Mountains. I'll be crossing
these mountains and riding down the western side on my way back home
when I take the Cassiar Highway. Today was mostly
gray, cloudy skies with occasional light rain, and occasional sunshine.
As with most days in Canada the temps range from the low 50's into the
upper 60's. |
 |
Day 12 - Tuesday, June 12
- Whitehorse to Tok
 |
Today was mostly riding, again, and
little photo taking. The mountain views were
incredible, mile after mile. The road was good most of the way, but
there were several sections under construction - one that was
particularly muddy. I almost dropped the bike. The frost heaves each
season make it difficult to keep the road in good shape. Sections of the
highway are built over permafrost. |
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