What a FANTASTIC beginning on the Alaska Highway

We left milepost 0 at Dawson Creek on Tuesday, June 3rd and drove to Fort Nelson, British Columbia. On Wednesday we continued north on the Alaska Highway to Muncho Lake at milepost 442. The scenery has been absolutely stunning. Around every curve (and there are a lot of them :) the view is more incredible. The roadway is sometimes challenging. At one point Pat encountered the following warning signs within a single 20-mile stretch: CAUTION: winding road; CAUTION: narrow road; CAUTION: soft shoulder; CAUTION: rock slides; CAUTION: steep 10% grade; CAUTION: construction (a lot of that); CAUTION: bison on road; CAUTION: caribou on road; CAUTION: moose on road; CAUTION: stone sheep on road; CAUTION: bears on road and CAUTION: horses on road. And every one of them was true!!!

We have spent two days here at Muncho Lake which is an incredible teal blue color due to mineral deposits. The picture at the top of this page is from our campsite and YES that is the REAL color. The lake is surrounded by towering snow-covered mountains. We also went to Smith Falls, a beautiful waterfall, secluded and off the beaten track. We heard about it from the Post Mistress in Dawson Creek, who said it was one of the “best-kept secrets along the ALCAN”. From there we went to Liard Springs, had a picnic lunch, and then walked to the Hot Pools. There are two, Alpha and Beta, and they bubble out of the earth at more than 110 degrees. The first stays hotter because it is not as deep as Beta, which is more than 9 feet in depth. It was VERY luxuriating to just bask in the warm, mineral waters. The air temperature was in the 50s so it was quite tolerable. We spoke to a gent who comes to the Springs in the winter when the outside temp is 30 degrees BELOW zero! Can you imagine? It must be a major shock to your body. We found it wonderfully refreshing and it really eased the aches and stiffness from road fatigue.

Tomorrow we continue north on the highway approximately 180 miles to Watson Lake. That’s where the Signpost City is located. More on that in the next Post…

Below is the link to some more pictures. They include a photo taken at one of our many “construction stops”. We frequently have to wait for tar and gravel to be laid as they are patching the roadway EVERYWHERE. There are a couple pictures taken out the front windshield intended to give you a peek at the beautiful views we have every day. Also, there are a few shots of some of the four-legged friends (and also a two-legged one) that we have “met” along the way. The huskies were part of a truckload of 12 that were moving from Michigan to Alaska to live near the trail for the Iditarod. Seeing wildlife along side the road is becoming more and more of a common occurrence. Travel is slow, which is OKAY by us, because one never knows what will be encountered around the next curve.

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0Sbs27hoxZPaA&notag=1

Hope you are enjoying the Posts and the pictures.

Take care and stay safe,
P&J