Muncho Lake Provincial Park, BC, Canada

 This was one of our most beautiful and favorite camping spots.  Muncho Lake Provincial Park.  The weather broke briefly so we caught some great images of the sun going down at midnight.

We fished late into the evening, too.  I am not really a night person, but who can sleep with this kind of scenery and fish jumping in the lake (no - we didn't catch anything). 

In Hot Water at Liard Hot Springs

 Soaking while the rain falls.

Liard Hot Springs

 

Liard Hot Springs was a stop we really looked forward to.  It is a very special place.  The pools are natural with a flat gravel bottom.  The water is always moving because it is a natural spring with a heavy flow that makes a good sized creek.  Apparently there are many flowers that grow only here - especially some species of orchids.  It was raining during our time at Liard, but it was fun to be all warm and steamy and having the rain falling down on our heads.

Wood Buffalo

I had no idea there was a species of bison other than the Prairie Bison we see in Yellowstone National Park.  The Wood Buffalo is actually a sub species of the North American bison and is native to this part of Canada, apparently.  In fact, there is an entire Canadian National Park devoted to this animal.  Wood Buffalo National Park is located in Alberta and is the second largest National Park in the world!!!  We did not drive up to the National Park (would have been hundreds of miles out of our way) , but we did enjoy seeing the many bison grazing near the highway as we drove along.  They look a bit different from the bison we see in Yellowstone.

Sign Forest

Watson City is a traditional stop for anyone driving the Al-Can Highway.  The sign forest now contains 80,000 signs (according to the lady at the visitor center).  We stopped at the library in Watson City to get online for a few moments and people we spoke to here were all remarking on the unusual rainy spell that had been going on for days with deluges that were causing all kinds of problems for the locals.  This big storm system was our constant companion for the last two weeks of the trip.  It seemed to be traveling right along with us.  There was a brief break in the rain for us here.  Joe found a semi-dry spot to sit and eat an apple.

Sasquatch

 Somewhere along the road in Yukon, we made a pit stop and had to have our pictures taken with the Sasquatch carving (for 9 year old grandson who is fascinated by mythical creatures).  This little shop had all kinds of literature about Sasquatch.  I can't even remember the name of this place (maybe no community name at all, actually).  It was just a store along the highway.

Tombstone Provincial Park in Canada

 I was thrilled for a brief moment of sunshine while we were stopped at a scenic overlook in Tombstone Provincial Park.  We ate lunch here and soaked in the views.

Tombstone Provincial Park, Yukon, Canada

We could not resist the opportunity to visit this stunning Provincial Park in Yukon, Canada. 

There are some good hikes here, and we hoped for a break in the weather as we drove the long gravel road to get there.

Alas, cloudy, rainy and quite cold the day of our visit.

 The scenery at Tombstone Provincial Park was stunning in spite of the weather.  We felt it was well worth the extra driving.

Dawson City, Yukon

 All the buildings in Dawson City have been restored to their former glory and this place is pretty much a living museum.  Very fun to walk through the town and step into some of the buildings.

Dawson City Paddle Boat

 This old paddle boat used to make the trip up and down the Yukon River.  It is now a floating museum.

Dawson City Ferry

 When you get to Dawson City, Yukon - the highway crosses over the Yukon River - except there is no bridge.  Instead, there is a ferry.  No charge to ride it, but you have to wait your turn.  We used the ferry three times, since we camped across the river from the town.

You just drive right on and park where they tell you to.  You sit inside your vehicle for the 5 minutes or less that it takes to cross over to the other side.

Hybrid Fox?

 Well, I am in Mexico this week, so am returning to posting about the Alaska - Canada Roadtrip we took last July.  I am continuing where I left off - the border between Alaska and Canada.  One of the first things we saw as we approached Dawson City, Yukon - a pair of unusually colored foxes.  With a bit of research - I believe they may be a hybrid between an Arctic Fox and a Red Fox or possibly a Gray Fox. 

A Bit of Blue Sky on Top of the World

 The Top of The World Road is 80 miles long - all of it through uninhabited wilderness.  Very scenic and something to experience.

 Note the rainbow in the photo above.  This rainbow followed us for a very long time - probably 20 minutes or so.

Caribou Herd on the Top of the World

 We encountered a rather significant number or caribou as we drove the Top of the World Highway.  The herds have names, this herd is called the Forty Mile Herd.  We enjoyed seeing these beautiful beasts, as we saw none to this point on the trip (well, a few very far away in Denali)

Top of the World Highway

Not many of the "Top of the World Highway" miles are paved.  Most of it is gravel - and quite muddy this day.  I understand the reason for the gravel roads -vs- paving.  The permafrost is very hard on paved roads - making them terribly potholed. 

Gold Slough

We saw a lot of different kinds of gold mining operations.  This one was located between Chicken, Alaska and the Canadian border.

Fireweed Along the Al-Can

 One of my most influential images from the trip is that of the Fireweed that we saw virtually everywhere we went.  It was along every roadside for 8000 miles!  So bright and colorful!  It really made the gray skies tolerable!

I took lots and lots of pictures of the fireweed with the idea that somehow it will be showing up in some of my future artwork!

Chicken, Alaska

 Chicken was our last stop in Alaska.  This place really is in the middle of nowhere.  It is an old gold mining area, but it is still active. 

People in this picture were learning how to pan for gold.  We met and visited with a guy from Helena, Montana here.  It was his second year visiting Chicken and he said he had already found several ounces of gold in just a week.  He was working for the gift shop to earn his camping spot - and he was panning during every spare moment.

Black Spruce Forest

 More Black Spruce - these have not been burned.

Black Spruce Forest Fires

 We drove through many hundreds of miles of Black Spruce forests.  I grew very fond of the special shape of the Black Spruce.  This section of burned forest - I found especially interesting.  I took quite a few pictures with the idea that eventually some of these images might make it into some of my art.