Saturday, July 30: On The Alaska Hwy.

Saturday, July 30

Our bodies seemingly still on Alaska Time, we woke up late this morning at the Laird Hotsprings Lodge campground.  Luckily, the black bear(s) that had visited camp at dinner the night before had not returned…or at least we think so.  We were so relaxed & tired after our soak in the Laird Hotsprings that we fell asleep quite easily in our little yellow tent.  We breakfasted/lunched at the on-site restaurant, used the wifi and took off on the Alaska Hwy. southward toward Dawson Creek, BC.  As with the Yukon, the scenery was stunning.  From the car we saw aquamarine lakes, raging rivers, picturesque creeks, river valleys & wildlife. 

Not far from Laird Hotsprings, we saw another bison.  Soon after we saw two small groups of caribou.   

Later on our drive, we added two new species (by Mike’s identification) to our wildlife list:   grey wolf & stone sheep. 

 The wolf was perched on the roadside as we approached but was quite shy and apprehensive about our white Toyota.  Perhaps it didn’t favor imports?  Anyway, we did manage to get a snap although it is not ideal.

 Looking to stock up on supplies, we stopped for groceries at an IGA store in Fort Nelson.  A short distance later we stopped for fuel & (quite importantly) coffee.  As we’ve been driving we’ve been listening to the book on CD “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” by Stieg Larson.  The book mentions coffee constantly.  Perhaps as a result, we’ve both had a hankering for coffee for some time. 

Pushing on into the evening, we drove into a more agricultural region of British Columbia.  In the ever-increasingly dim light (What?!? Darkness?!?)  we saw yellow canola fields.  Exhausted & unable to go on, we finally landed at the Mile 0 RV Park in Dawson Creek, BC. This is the official start of the Alaska Canadian Highway.  By the light of a lantern, we cooked up a quick dinner of grilled cheese washed up at the not-to-clean washrooms and went to sleep.  This night we saw stars & true darkness for the first time that we can remember since leaving MN.