Dawson Creek to Fort Nelson (19 May) Updated
We saw a bear!!
No photo unfortunately. As we drove along Merryn spotted a black shape in the grass and weeds at the side of the road. We slowed, hoping it was a bear. Two other cars whizzed past it and it seemed unperturbed. We pulled to a stop about 100 meters before it. The bear looked up and saw us and then headed for the trees. It was about 1 to 1.5 meters long.
Other than that, our journey was uneventful. As we left Dawson Creek we saw a pile of logs. Note that they are quite thin but there are a lot of them.
It was a long drive of 454 km along the AlCan Highway. There were many climbs but nothing very steep. For the first 100 km we were in prairie land and even saw a few farm animals, although most of it was for cropping.
Then we entered forest, a mix of conifers and deciduous trees. There were no turn offs except at the three or so towns we went through. This countryside is mostly devoid of people and their impact. We stopped for lunch at Prophet River, a collection of huts and a boarded up hotel/hostel. I stretched my legs outside (while Merryn prepared a nutritious lunch) and realised that I couldn't hear anything. Absolutely no sound. No cars, no birds, no wind in the trees. Fantastic.
The road ahead often stretched dead straight for several miles and not another car in sight. Occasionally we would drive over the brow of a hill and catch a view of the horizon all around us. There were no mountains, just vast distances and the landscape seeming to fall away from us. Eventually we started to see the Rockies, although they were not not as high, nor as dramatic, as the Rockies we encountered a couple of days ago in southern Alberta. Mostly the road ahead stretched away with no turnoffs and , sometimes, many miles without seeing another vehicle.
Sometimes a lake or mountain would relieve the monotony. Now that we know there are bears about we are driving with our eyes skinned.
Since we left Las Vegas 16 days ago we have travelled about 5,000 km. That includes 2 days in which we didn't travel in Vancouver, 1 in Salt Lake City and 1 in Banff. The next few days involve relatively shorter journeys, with more stops at points of interest.
No photo unfortunately. As we drove along Merryn spotted a black shape in the grass and weeds at the side of the road. We slowed, hoping it was a bear. Two other cars whizzed past it and it seemed unperturbed. We pulled to a stop about 100 meters before it. The bear looked up and saw us and then headed for the trees. It was about 1 to 1.5 meters long.
Other than that, our journey was uneventful. As we left Dawson Creek we saw a pile of logs. Note that they are quite thin but there are a lot of them.
It was a long drive of 454 km along the AlCan Highway. There were many climbs but nothing very steep. For the first 100 km we were in prairie land and even saw a few farm animals, although most of it was for cropping.
Then we entered forest, a mix of conifers and deciduous trees. There were no turn offs except at the three or so towns we went through. This countryside is mostly devoid of people and their impact. We stopped for lunch at Prophet River, a collection of huts and a boarded up hotel/hostel. I stretched my legs outside (while Merryn prepared a nutritious lunch) and realised that I couldn't hear anything. Absolutely no sound. No cars, no birds, no wind in the trees. Fantastic.
The road ahead often stretched dead straight for several miles and not another car in sight. Occasionally we would drive over the brow of a hill and catch a view of the horizon all around us. There were no mountains, just vast distances and the landscape seeming to fall away from us. Eventually we started to see the Rockies, although they were not not as high, nor as dramatic, as the Rockies we encountered a couple of days ago in southern Alberta. Mostly the road ahead stretched away with no turnoffs and , sometimes, many miles without seeing another vehicle.
Since we left Las Vegas 16 days ago we have travelled about 5,000 km. That includes 2 days in which we didn't travel in Vancouver, 1 in Salt Lake City and 1 in Banff. The next few days involve relatively shorter journeys, with more stops at points of interest.
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