August 27th saw us driving about 250 miles down the Cassiar Highway and taking a cutoff to Stewart, BC, where we set up camp. We had a lot of gravel going south out of Dease Lake with road construction going on where the land slides had occurred earlier in the summer. We encountered one sizeable stretch of gravel road that was unmarked, had no shoulders, and dropped straight down off the side for a considerable distance. Eventually, we got on good paved roads. This was a beautiful drive through the coastal range with lots of green vegetation as we got into the hemlock/cedar forest area. Continuing southward, the mountains became covered with vegetation to the tops and the trees became much taller—not many bald mountains in this area of the trip. Some of the taller mountains still had patches of snow which provided a wonderful contrast to all the greenery. As my notes from this day said, it was an incredibly beautiful drive. The spur road into Stewart was in a narrow canyon with lots of vegetation, hanging glaciers up in the mountains and one large glacier (Bear Glacier) that terminated in the valley. We set up camp and drove to Hyder, AK, which 
adjoins Stewart located at the head of the 
Portland Canal (think “fjord” when you read “canal”). The towns are very different—Stewart has paved streets, numerous businesses and places to stay while Hyder, aka “The Friendliest Little Ghost Town in Alaska”, has dirt streets, is much smaller, and doesn’t have much in the way of businesses. Hyder is at the end of the Alaska and has a definite “outback” feel to it. We drove to the famous bear-viewing area outside Hyder where we were treated to quite a show put on by three grizzly cubs and a sow. We watched the bears for probably 1 ½ hours and also saw bald eagles in the area.
August 28th and 29th were spent in Stewart-Hyder. We went to the bear viewing area and watched grizzlies and black bears eat salmon and low bushes again. They were fascinating to watch up close and didn’t seem to mind the observers on the viewing stand. We also went to a neat museum in Stewart and to Hyder’s Glacier Inn where we didn’t get “Hyderized”, which consists of drinking straight everclear, but we did enjoy a drink to celebrate our time and experiences in this neat, out-of-the-way part of Alaska. This area is a definite “must-see” for anyone traveling the Cassiar. One note concerning weather here: it is very changeable so if you see an opportunity to take pictures or observe a landmark, take advantage of it at the time because the opportunity may be gone in a few minutes and may not present itself again for days.SMITHERS AND PRINCE GEORGE, BC
August 30th found us back on the road headed south. We stopped at Gitanyow a small Indian Village with one of the largest concentrations of standing totem poles in northwestern B.C. The totems are really works of art; however, I didn’t learn much about interpreting them on this trip. Services were very limited here near the end of the Cassiar Highway. The Cassiar Highway ended west of Smithers, BC, and we were on the Yellowhead Highway into the Smithers area for the night. I unhooked my car to use for local travel and found, much to my chagrin, that I had a very bad vibration. I wasn’t sure what was causing it and I hadn’t had it when I hooked up after the drive to Telegraph Creek; however, it was the kind of vibration that loosens your tooth fillings! Since Labor Day weekend was coming up, I had all kinds of thoughts about being stranded in Smithers for several days. Fortunately, I was able to find a garage early Friday morning, the 31st, and they were able to cure the problem. I had a LOT of mud impacted in and around the wheels. Taking off all the wheels, cleaning and rebalancing them, cured the 
problem. (Note: I was still cleaning mud from that trip packed under the car weeks later after getting into the Lower 48!) We departed Smithers after my “problem” was solved and stayed in Prince George, BC over the Labor Day weekend. Terrain became much more rolling as we drove south on the 31st. Lodge pole pine in this part of BC had been infested with a bark beetle causing significant loss of timber and a lot of dead trees for miles. We also saw thousands of acres of fir trees devastated by the beetles.CLINTON, BC
September 1 and 2 were down days spent in Prince George doing laundry, cleaning the inside and outside of the rigs, etc. Monday, September 3rd (Labor Day in Canada and the U.S.), we headed south on the Caribou Connector (Hwy 97). This was our last full day for Roberta and me to be traveling together as we headed toward Clinton, BC. We were in the Fraser River Valley much of the time and it was a beautiful drive through rolling countryside with more farming and pasture land evident than we had seen for some time. I picked up some fresh sweet corn from a roadside stand for dinner—it sure tasted good! Trees were turning—lots of yellow and gold evident. We noticed the drivers in this part of BC pretty much ignored yellow no-passing lines on
the road. If they wanted to get ahead of us, they passed whether or not there was a yellow line present! Also, the Caribou Connector didn’t have any kilometer markers so we relied on my GPS for location information along this stretch. We checked into the campground at Clinton in the early afternoon and had some time to get things sorted out before going our separate ways. Weather was nice so we grilled steaks and had sweet corn and ice cream for our last dinner together on this trip. The evening was spent reminiscing about the fantastic 4 ½ months we had just had. I was able to use my Verizon card for an internet connection here—Roberta had been told by Verizon before we left that she could use the card any place she had service and that it wouldn’t cost extra. I decided to give it a try and successfully logged on, keeping the session short so if there would be any “hidden” charges they wouldn’t be too steep. Well, when I finally got my bill for that session, I found that I had been charged an “international roaming” charge—and it wasn’t cheap. Lesson learned…
BACK INTO THE U.S. (Oroville, WA, to Albuquerque, NM)
Tuesday, September 4th, found us headed south once again and we parted company at Cache Creek after 7374 miles driven on the journey since our departure from NM on May 7th. Roberta headed towards the Seattle area and I went towards the Wenatchee, WA, area. I had a beautiful drive through the Kamloops area and along long narrow lakes, including Okanagan Lake, before crossing back into the U.S. at Oroville, WA. There were several long climbs and descents on this stretch—6% climb for 15 miles in one area. One of my first stops after crossing the border was at a fruit stand to pick up fresh fruit and vegetables which I really missed this summer. The night was spent at a very nice state park on the shore of the Columbia River near Wenatchee. I took two-lane roads south through central WA, following the Columbia River much of the way. Stayed overnight near Quincy, WA, on the 5th. The drive the past two days was very pretty through WA—I was struck by the large number of vineyards along here. I knew winemaking was getting strong in WA, but I was really surprised at the large number of acres that have been planted to grapes. September 6th I continued on country roads until getting on I-84 near the WA/OR border, and then continued on to Boise, ID, where I found a Wal-Mart to park in for the night. The 7th found me up early and headed for Salt Lake City, UT. I stopped at Burley, ID, for a nice visit with friends Marilyn Sidwell and John Jones. We all travel in motorhomes but I thought I’d take a chance to see if they were in the area. They were and it was really nice to meet up with them for a short visit.
I left Burley and traveled on down to Salt Lake City where I stayed on the 7th and 8th. While there, I had a nice visit with Frank and Shirley Robles and with Carol Clarke. Wow! Has that area changed! It is one big city from near Brigham City to Spanish Fork, UT. September 9th saw me driving on towards Grand Junction, CO, to visit an aunt and uncle, Harve and Peg Huffer, and cousin Dave and his family. I had a wonderful short visit (and a tremendous lunch, too) with Rick and Ardith Keppler in Price while enroute to Grand Junction. After one night in Grand Junction, I was up early and headed for Bennett, CO, where I parked at nephew Paul’s off and on for the next week. It was good to see Paul, Jenn, Lexi, and Conner and I appreciated, once again, their hospitality and their RV parking setup. During this period I moved the coach to Boulder where I parked in a hotel’s parking lot for five nights while attending the Ninety-Nines’ annual meeting. These conferences are always enjoyable as women pilots from around the world gather for several days to do the business of the organization, attend seminars, and catch up on what has happened in our lives over the last year. Soon everything was done in CO, so it was on to NM. I stayed in Santa Fe on the 18th and had an enjoyable evening of catching up with friends Judy Waite and Nancy Evey. I arrived in Albuquerque on September 19th, 4 ½ months and 9735 miles (on the coach) since leaving there on May 7th.
WHAT A TRIP!
What a trip this was! Would I do it again? You bet—I’d do it in a heartbeat! Was it too long? No way. Four months is just right—we were able to see just about everything we wanted to see, we weren’t on a schedule, and we had ample “down time”. Where would I like to spend more time (besides in Alaska)? In the Yukon—people there were sooo nice and sooo proud of their part of the country. Would I advise others to take the drive? Absolutely! Driving yourself is the only way to really see the north country, plus you get to explore areas and see things that aren’t on a cruise ship’s or bus company’s set itinerary. Roads are better than adequate, although you do need to slow down in some areas, and fuel is readily available. Just plan to drive on the top half of the tank. One of the real bonuses of this trip was meeting old friends along the way, both in and out of the motorhome community, and making new friends in the far-flung places. I look forward to seeing all these friends in the north country again in the not-too-distant future.
Two guides that were indispensable on the trip were The Milepost and Traveler’s Guide To Alaskan Camping by Mike and Terri Church. RVing Alaska By Land And Sea by Bill and Jan Moeller was also helpful. However, the most help we received came from friends and acquaintances that have made the trip, some of them numerous times. You all know who you are so I won’t list names here. I just want to extend a Heartfelt THANK YOU! Your willingness to share added immeasurably to the success of this trip and I cannot thank you enough. I hope that I can return the favor by helping others who are thinking about making their dream trip as much as you helped me with mine.
September 1 and 2 were down days spent in Prince George doing laundry, cleaning the inside and outside of the rigs, etc. Monday, September 3rd (Labor Day in Canada and the U.S.), we headed south on the Caribou Connector (Hwy 97). This was our last full day for Roberta and me to be traveling together as we headed toward Clinton, BC. We were in the Fraser River Valley much of the time and it was a beautiful drive through rolling countryside with more farming and pasture land evident than we had seen for some time. I picked up some fresh sweet corn from a roadside stand for dinner—it sure tasted good! Trees were turning—lots of yellow and gold evident. We noticed the drivers in this part of BC pretty much ignored yellow no-passing lines on
the road. If they wanted to get ahead of us, they passed whether or not there was a yellow line present! Also, the Caribou Connector didn’t have any kilometer markers so we relied on my GPS for location information along this stretch. We checked into the campground at Clinton in the early afternoon and had some time to get things sorted out before going our separate ways. Weather was nice so we grilled steaks and had sweet corn and ice cream for our last dinner together on this trip. The evening was spent reminiscing about the fantastic 4 ½ months we had just had. I was able to use my Verizon card for an internet connection here—Roberta had been told by Verizon before we left that she could use the card any place she had service and that it wouldn’t cost extra. I decided to give it a try and successfully logged on, keeping the session short so if there would be any “hidden” charges they wouldn’t be too steep. Well, when I finally got my bill for that session, I found that I had been charged an “international roaming” charge—and it wasn’t cheap. Lesson learned…BACK INTO THE U.S. (Oroville, WA, to Albuquerque, NM)
Tuesday, September 4th, found us headed south once again and we parted company at Cache Creek after 7374 miles driven on the journey since our departure from NM on May 7th. Roberta headed towards the Seattle area and I went towards the Wenatchee, WA, area. I had a beautiful drive through the Kamloops area and along long narrow lakes, including Okanagan Lake, before crossing back into the U.S. at Oroville, WA. There were several long climbs and descents on this stretch—6% climb for 15 miles in one area. One of my first stops after crossing the border was at a fruit stand to pick up fresh fruit and vegetables which I really missed this summer. The night was spent at a very nice state park on the shore of the Columbia River near Wenatchee. I took two-lane roads south through central WA, following the Columbia River much of the way. Stayed overnight near Quincy, WA, on the 5th. The drive the past two days was very pretty through WA—I was struck by the large number of vineyards along here. I knew winemaking was getting strong in WA, but I was really surprised at the large number of acres that have been planted to grapes. September 6th I continued on country roads until getting on I-84 near the WA/OR border, and then continued on to Boise, ID, where I found a Wal-Mart to park in for the night. The 7th found me up early and headed for Salt Lake City, UT. I stopped at Burley, ID, for a nice visit with friends Marilyn Sidwell and John Jones. We all travel in motorhomes but I thought I’d take a chance to see if they were in the area. They were and it was really nice to meet up with them for a short visit.
I left Burley and traveled on down to Salt Lake City where I stayed on the 7th and 8th. While there, I had a nice visit with Frank and Shirley Robles and with Carol Clarke. Wow! Has that area changed! It is one big city from near Brigham City to Spanish Fork, UT. September 9th saw me driving on towards Grand Junction, CO, to visit an aunt and uncle, Harve and Peg Huffer, and cousin Dave and his family. I had a wonderful short visit (and a tremendous lunch, too) with Rick and Ardith Keppler in Price while enroute to Grand Junction. After one night in Grand Junction, I was up early and headed for Bennett, CO, where I parked at nephew Paul’s off and on for the next week. It was good to see Paul, Jenn, Lexi, and Conner and I appreciated, once again, their hospitality and their RV parking setup. During this period I moved the coach to Boulder where I parked in a hotel’s parking lot for five nights while attending the Ninety-Nines’ annual meeting. These conferences are always enjoyable as women pilots from around the world gather for several days to do the business of the organization, attend seminars, and catch up on what has happened in our lives over the last year. Soon everything was done in CO, so it was on to NM. I stayed in Santa Fe on the 18th and had an enjoyable evening of catching up with friends Judy Waite and Nancy Evey. I arrived in Albuquerque on September 19th, 4 ½ months and 9735 miles (on the coach) since leaving there on May 7th.
WHAT A TRIP!
What a trip this was! Would I do it again? You bet—I’d do it in a heartbeat! Was it too long? No way. Four months is just right—we were able to see just about everything we wanted to see, we weren’t on a schedule, and we had ample “down time”. Where would I like to spend more time (besides in Alaska)? In the Yukon—people there were sooo nice and sooo proud of their part of the country. Would I advise others to take the drive? Absolutely! Driving yourself is the only way to really see the north country, plus you get to explore areas and see things that aren’t on a cruise ship’s or bus company’s set itinerary. Roads are better than adequate, although you do need to slow down in some areas, and fuel is readily available. Just plan to drive on the top half of the tank. One of the real bonuses of this trip was meeting old friends along the way, both in and out of the motorhome community, and making new friends in the far-flung places. I look forward to seeing all these friends in the north country again in the not-too-distant future.
Two guides that were indispensable on the trip were The Milepost and Traveler’s Guide To Alaskan Camping by Mike and Terri Church. RVing Alaska By Land And Sea by Bill and Jan Moeller was also helpful. However, the most help we received came from friends and acquaintances that have made the trip, some of them numerous times. You all know who you are so I won’t list names here. I just want to extend a Heartfelt THANK YOU! Your willingness to share added immeasurably to the success of this trip and I cannot thank you enough. I hope that I can return the favor by helping others who are thinking about making their dream trip as much as you helped me with mine.
