Mile 0 RV park

Sunday, July 31

 At the Mile 0 RV Park we fell asleep listening to the sound of coyotes.  By the light of day it was quickly decided that this place was a complete, disgusting dive.  We woke early, eager to partake in the advertised “hot showers.”  Unfortunately the hot showers came with a healthy (or unhealthy?) dose of mold & filth.  Disgusted, we packed up quickly & left.  We were so disgusted in fact that we may have forgotten to pay our camping fee on the way out.  Now soft-core fugitives, we sped off and headed toward Alberta.  The scenery was agricultural & pretty. The morning highlight was a huge beaver statue the town of Beaverlodge proudly displayed .   

  

We stopped in Grande Prairie to add fuel to our car & stock up on groceries.  In Grande Prairie we also learned that tomorrow, Aug. 1^st, is a holiday  (Founder’s Day) in Alberta.  Hmmm…and we thought finding open campsites for a Sunday night might be fairly easy.   With a new sense of urgency, we then turned South on the Big Horn Hwy. (Hwy. 40) with our goal of reaching Jasper National Park by late afternoon.   As we traveled we did see some wildlife along the road including:  sheep & elk. 

We entered Jasper N.P. by way of the east entrance point at about 4:30 p.m.  The park was incredibly busy & a sign indicated all campgrounds were full.  The attendant directed us (& many others) toward Snare River Overflow.  The overflow area was on a first-come-first-serve basis.  It was partially wooded which was nice for those with tents but also had large open areas for RVs.  Relieved, we ended up with a pretty nice space (with nearby & clean latrines) for $10.50.  Hungry, we set up camp & cooked an early & delicious dinner of pork tenderloin & mashed potatoes.  It started to sprinkle, then rain and then really rain hard.  We decided to spend the evening in the town of Jasper.  In Jasper we got some hiking information at the historic visitor center, changed money & topped off the evening with ice cream.