On Sunday, August 5th, we discovered the trailer had developed a flat tire. Using lessons learned from this same problem in Florida last year, we left the car ON the trailer while we loosened the bolts. In 15 minutes we had swapped out the flat for the spare (last year's repaired trailer tire) and were soon heading south along the ALCAN again. This northeast corner of British Columbia boasts the largest population of disease-free, free-ranging
bison in North America.
As they are typically seen along the highway, I complained loudly that we hadn't yet seen any when...WHAM!, a whole bunch of them! We crested a small hill and just beyond lay easily 50 or 60
buffaloes lounging in the grass and along the side of the road. While one crossed behind a car up ahead, another rolled around in the dirt. Others lazily munched at the grass and still more just laid there looking droopy. We were mesmerized by these giant shaggy beasts seemingly unaware of, or completely uninterested in, the folks taking pictures of them. We watched another buffalo walk beside the RV before we left. To be fair, I'm glad to see these guys hanging around wherever they please, without fences or in a zoo. But to just see them is a such a thrill...they look like leftovers from the dinosaur age, and they're so cute!
Along the ALCAN we saw several more groups of
buffaloes, though no other group as numerous as the first. Apparently, the Nordquist herd numbers only about 100
buffaloes and we saw most of those in an hour's time. How fun!
As we neared
Liard Hot Springs, intending to dip ourselves in the hot mineral water, we noticed a ranger parked in the entrance to the park. He told us that the springs were, indeed, closed, and would be for a couple of days. Evidently, some nefarious human activity last night caused the closure, and though he assured us no wildlife was involved, the investigation necessitated no one be allowed into the park. We reckoned it must have been something particularly un-good because even all the campers were asked to leave. Hmm.
Disappointed, and curious but not wanting to pry, we continued our journey toward the
Toad River Lodge, a combination of cafe, gift shop, RV park, cabin rentals, gas station and tire repair. The latter offering led us there. Considering the prices are commensurate with the remote location (and the apparent up-charge for being in Canada), we opted only for the tire repair, though with what we paid we could have replaced the whole tire down south. Grr.
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| Mule Deer |
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| 70th Anniversary ALCAN Convoy |
Back on our way, we stopped for lunch at a pullout where we saw a
mule deer snacking on the grass across the street. As I approached our side of the street, he took notice and leapt off into the woods, bounding away on all four legs at once. Quite a jumper! At some point in our day, we found the entire convoy of historical military vehicles gathered to celebrate the
1942 completion of the ALCAN Highway. The whole fleet, about 50 vehicles, was assembled at an overlook when we pulled over to check the trailer straps and tire. How fortuitous we happened upon them during their journey commemorating the 70th anniversary of this monumental engineering accomplishment!
As the afternoon wore on, we pulled into Fort Nelson, mile 300 on the ALCAN Highway. We chatted with the friendly guide at the visitor center who directed us to the
Fort Nelson Museum across the street and answered our questions about general RV services. We first walked over to the museum and read the plaques on the monuments to the ALCAN. Several historic pieces of construction equipment stood nearby and the flags of both Canada and the US were hoisted above the cairns.
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| Job Description for the ALCAN Highway |
Like the wilderness of northwestern Canada, the lives of so many men were changed forever by the coming together of these two nations for the construction of this highway. Several regiments of black soldiers also worked under the awful conditions but endured discrimination and racism as well. Theirs is a story of triumph and the beginning of societal change. Widely believed by the US Army at the time that black soldiers were lazy, irresponsible and shiftless, several stories stood out to refute that belief and earn these men the respect they deserved.
The 95th Engineer Regiment was tasked with constructing a timber bridge over the
Sikanni Chief River, replacing a hastily built pontoon bridge crossing the swift flowing, 300 foot wide torrent of icy water. With inferior equipment, they completed the bridge in only 84 hours, setting the newly hewn timbers into place by wading chest-deep into the river. Of the 133 bridges built along the ALCAN, this one withstood the relentless battering by ice and water longer than any other.
Another story is the symbolism of the two regiments who met at Contact Creek. The ALCAN was built beginning from both ends working toward the middle. The last stretch of the two sides were being cleared by two regiments, one black, one white. As they met in the middle, it was a unusual symbol of unity and cooperation that the US Army splashed on the cover of its
Yank magazine, sent to US soldiers around the world. The picture of the two bulldozer operators shaking hands over their machinery, accompanied by a glowing article about the tremendous work ethic of the black regiments, helped galvanize the populace at home in support of the war and win more recruits for the Army's growing needs. These remarkable accomplishments, along with other examples that negated the going opinion of these soldiers at the time, helped to turn the tide against segregation, racism and bigotry that soon after, led to the full integration of the US Army.
We walked back to the RV and took showers in the parking lot of the visitor center before emptying the tanks at the town's facility. Just down the road, we dined at
Boston Pizza, an odd amalgamation of dinner choices. To our dismay, one choice was a 100% Canadian beef hamburger, precooked. Yikes. What's the point of that? Instead, I opted for the chicken quesadilla and Ken chose the Southwest Chicken and Bacon Salad. Despite our initial misgivings about the precooked burgers, we both really enjoyed our meals. After dinner and filling up the gas tank, we drove out of town in the evening sunshine, the temperature finally in the low 70s. Mmmm.
On Sunday, August 5th, we discovered the trailer had developed a flat tire. Using lessons learned from this same problem in Florida last year, we left the car ON the trailer while we loosened the bolts. In 15 minutes we had swapped out the flat for the spare (last year's repaired trailer tire) and were soon heading south along the ALCAN again. This northeast corner of British Columbia boasts the largest population of disease-free, free-ranging bison in North America.
As they are typically seen along the highway, I complained loudly that we hadn't yet seen any when...WHAM!, a whole bunch of them! We crested a small hill and just beyond lay easily 50 or 60 buffaloes lounging in the grass and along the side of the road. While one crossed behind a car up ahead, another rolled around in the dirt. Others lazily munched at the grass and still more just laid there looking droopy. We were mesmerized by these giant shaggy beasts seemingly unaware of, or completely uninterested in, the folks taking pictures of them. We watched another buffalo walk beside the RV before we left. To be fair, I'm glad to see these guys hanging around wherever they please, without fences or in a zoo. But to just see them is a such a thrill...they look like leftovers from the dinosaur age, and they're so cute!
Along the ALCAN we saw several more groups of buffaloes, though no other group as numerous as the first. Apparently, the Nordquist herd numbers only about 100 buffaloes and we saw most of those in an hour's time. How fun!
As we neared Liard Hot Springs, intending to dip ourselves in the hot mineral water, we noticed a ranger parked in the entrance to the park. He told us that the springs were, indeed, closed, and would be for a couple of days. Evidently, some nefarious human activity last night caused the closure, and though he assured us no wildlife was involved, the investigation necessitated no one be allowed into the park. We reckoned it must have been something particularly un-good because even all the campers were asked to leave. Hmm.
As the afternoon wore on, we pulled into Fort Nelson, mile 300 on the ALCAN Highway. We chatted with the friendly guide at the visitor center who directed us to the Fort Nelson Museum across the street and answered our questions about general RV services. We first walked over to the museum and read the plaques on the monuments to the ALCAN. Several historic pieces of construction equipment stood nearby and the flags of both Canada and the US were hoisted above the cairns.
The 95th Engineer Regiment was tasked with constructing a timber bridge over the Sikanni Chief River, replacing a hastily built pontoon bridge crossing the swift flowing, 300 foot wide torrent of icy water. With inferior equipment, they completed the bridge in only 84 hours, setting the newly hewn timbers into place by wading chest-deep into the river. Of the 133 bridges built along the ALCAN, this one withstood the relentless battering by ice and water longer than any other.
Another story is the symbolism of the two regiments who met at Contact Creek. The ALCAN was built beginning from both ends working toward the middle. The last stretch of the two sides were being cleared by two regiments, one black, one white. As they met in the middle, it was a unusual symbol of unity and cooperation that the US Army splashed on the cover of its Yank magazine, sent to US soldiers around the world. The picture of the two bulldozer operators shaking hands over their machinery, accompanied by a glowing article about the tremendous work ethic of the black regiments, helped galvanize the populace at home in support of the war and win more recruits for the Army's growing needs. These remarkable accomplishments, along with other examples that negated the going opinion of these soldiers at the time, helped to turn the tide against segregation, racism and bigotry that soon after, led to the full integration of the US Army.
We walked back to the RV and took showers in the parking lot of the visitor center before emptying the tanks at the town's facility. Just down the road, we dined at Boston Pizza, an odd amalgamation of dinner choices. To our dismay, one choice was a 100% Canadian beef hamburger, precooked. Yikes. What's the point of that? Instead, I opted for the chicken quesadilla and Ken chose the Southwest Chicken and Bacon Salad. Despite our initial misgivings about the precooked burgers, we both really enjoyed our meals. After dinner and filling up the gas tank, we drove out of town in the evening sunshine, the temperature finally in the low 70s. Mmmm.
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