Canada

 4/23 Wednesday:  Today wound up being interesting.  We woke to 26 and clear skies.  We had a beautiful drive up to Lethbridge, I forgot how beautiful Montana is between Helena and the border.  We stopped in Sweetgrass and exchanged a few bucks to Canadian.  While we were at the Duty Free store, a sprinter van full of female Mennonites came in.  Each one of them picked up a liter of Rum and they bought the  man who drove them a case of Busch Light.  

The border crossing for us took less than 5 minutes at both checkpoints.  The US Customs asked just as many questions as the Canadians.  One of the questions was, “How do you like socialism?”  My response was, “I’m not sure if I can answer that.”  I was then told it’s fine to answer it right here.  I then said, well we are headed for Alaska.  We then got moved along to Canadian customs.  We received the normal questions and Duncan kept trying to get a treat from the agent.  She asked if we were positive they would find no firearms or restricted weapons in either vehicle to which I responded, “I’m positive, they’ve all been left in the states.”  We were then sent on.  

We drove up to Lethbridge and parked at the Pure Casino.  We had a late lunch and a few drinks and decided to gamble $10 cad a piece.  Katy burnt through hers pretty fast on the nickel slots, but she said she had a good feeling on the machine.  I put my 10 in and in about 5 minutes had $185 and change.  We cashed out and walked over to the convenience store for some supplies we couldn’t bring across the border.  

During the late afternoon and early evening we hung out in the rig with a few other RVs around.  A man on a bike approached our rig carrying a large, 3 piece case.  He stood outside the rig and said something they neither of us could understand.  We didn’t respond and he moved on.  Fast forward about 5 minutes and he was back.  This time he knocked and the dogs went nuts.  We told him to move along and he said he wasn’t looking for money and only had a question for us.  We told him to keep going and he mumbled something and left.  Based on my training and experience he may have been under the influence of the “mathamphetamines”.  

I watched him through the window as he headed over to the casino entrance and approached a few people outside.  He had an interaction with a guy in a yellow jacket and left the case with him.  He then peddled away.  Of course I headed over to the casino entrance after Katy notified security of our interaction and observations.  I talked to the very intoxicated man in the yellow coat who advised me he bought the cases from a guy on a bike.  

Not feeling too comfortable about the parking situation as a few more inebriated people started making the rounds, we packed up and headed west.  The Lethbridge KOA seems to be a nice park!  

4/24 Thursday.  We had a good nights sleep at the campground.  The Lethbridge KOA is really nice, you wouldn’t think it’s a Journey.  The workers are also great.  We got on the road just before 10 and headed for Okotoks to shop.  

First stop was Walmart where we picked up some groceries.  Katy was in the produce section when she overheard a couple talking.  He brought something over and the wife said, “Absolutely not, that’s from the USA.”  Over at the liquor store, there was a sign explaining that some items might not be available due to the tariff dispute.  On a side note, we’ve only had good interactions with people up here.  

The drive from Okotoks up to Lake Louise was pretty uneventful.  We were reminded that Calgary is huge and we’re lucky to avoid going into the city.  West of Calgary, things get beautiful as you approach Canmore and Banff.  It’s hard to believe we been to Banff/Jasper NPs three times in a year.  

The older gentleman working at the NP gate was really nice.  He pegged us for traveling to Alaska right away.  He has done the trip multiple times and told us about a double flat he got last year on the Klondike Highway.  Duncan kept trying to get in my lap to see the guy for treats and that cut our conversation short…that and the line of cars.  We discussed that we will not let strangers give our next dog treats…ever.  

We found a nice back in spot at the Lake Louise Hard sided campground and got set up.  We didn’t unhook, but we leveled out.  It was a beautiful afternoon so we put out our new camp chairs and enjoyed the sun and view.  We had some pasty’s for dinner and went in for the night when the sun went behind the trees.  Earlier we had been advised there were two grizzly’s wandering the campground so I made sure all our compartments were locked and the dog food went in the truck.  

4/25 Friday.  We rolled out at about 9:30 to take the Icefields Parkway.  We did this route back in October as the snow was starting to come back for the winter.  This is an Epic drive from Lake Louise to the town of Jasper and is a must, not matter the time of year.  

We both agree this spring drive with ample sunshine was our favorite.  Every corner has a view that beats the last.  There are a good amount of turnouts and only one section near the Athabasca Glacier where it’s steep up and steep down.  We stopped at the Glacier because it wasn’t very busy.  It’s a cool area.  The wind was blowing strong enough to take Katy’s hat off and it was pretty cold with the wind.  We snapped a few pics and headed out.  The lodge up there opens next week.  

About a mile out of the parking lot, my car play shut off and the truck threw a code saying service the charging system immediately.  I couldn’t get the code to go away so we pulled over and I popped the hood.  Our drive belt was still there and working both alternators.  I confirmed the cables were tight on both batteries and then shut the truck off.  I gave it a minute and then turned it back on, no code…. 

We continued down the mountain and ended up pulling over for lunch along the Athabasca River.  Down off the mountain it was still windy, but a lot warmer.  We need to do this more often.  We had a million dollar view with a cider, sandwich and salad.  We decided not to drive through the town of Jasper, we figured not much had changed over the winter.  In the fire zone, there is green grass sprouting up which is a good sign.  We saw a bunch of elk and a ton of bighorn sheep on our way to Hinton.  We fueled up and then rolled out to Jarvis Lake to camp for the night.  

There was no way to pay online or over the phone and the pay vault had been ripped off its pole.  While we were sitting around, some workers came to put it back up.  I gave them a hand in holding the large box up and one of the workers screwed it back in place.  I thought the snow plow knocked it off and they told me about 5 of them had been pried off by thieves last fall and they were getting them back up for camping season.  It didn’t give me a fuzzy feeling about using a CC or check to pay for our night here.  It was $33CAD for electric and we were the only ones here.  It was a nice quiet night.  

4/26 Saturday.  As the day began to dawn, I woke up to  a pack of coyotes going crazy.  It sounded like they found something to kill and eat.  Our dogs didn’t make a peep, I think they knew better.  This kind of commotion usually makes Maggie go nuts.  Not today.  

We drove up Highway 40, also known as the Bighorn Highway.  The signs in Hinton said, “Take the Scenic Route to Alaska.”  It was scenic and there were a bunch of deer (mule and whitetail) and a bunch of Bighorn near the coal mine north of Grande Cache.  The town of GC was really nice, what a view.  We fueled up, got some liquid snacks and some small pipe insulation from the local hardware store.  I need to wrap some of our pex to prevent it from rattling when the water pump is on.  Lunch was on the side of the highway again today.  Three days in a row of not eating out.  Boom!  

We made our way to Grand Prairie and got on the 43 westbound.  We planned to stop at a roadside pull out for the night, but gained an hour when we crossed into BC.  What do you do when it’s only 2:30, keep driving.  Back to the start of the Alcan for a quick photo and family bathroom break.  There were actually quite a few people stopped there.  More diesel and continued travel Northbound.  We tried to stop at a park in Charlie Lake that we stayed in last fall, but they are not open.  After a little research on iOverlander and Campendium, Katy found a spot about 45 minutes up the highway called Inga Lake.  

We pulled in about 5pm and found a spot near a class c from Texas.  It’s a nice free campground which has been slightly abused by guests prior to our arrival.  Lots of trash.  There are two more rigs here and a family fishing in what open water there is.  There was also a Loon trilling in the distance.  No cell service so we’ll watch a DVD with dinner and call it a night.  We had a pre packaged Kung Pao Chicken for dinner.  I chewed and swallowed what I thought was a slice of red bell pepper.  It was not…it was violently spicy and it was terrible.  This has happened to me twice in the past with Asian cuisine.  Full on panic mode.  After 15 minutes it passed.  We also had some hail/snow.  Overall it was a good evening.  

4/27 Sunday.  We had a quiet sleep down at Inga Lake.  We woke to clouds, fog and 26*.  There was a lot of gas truck traffic for the first 100km or so and we also drove into a clear crisp day.  We had multiple fuels stops, Pink Mountain, Fort Nelson and Toad River as we typically fill up when we are at a half tank.  

We also stopped at Tetsa River Lodge.  None of the lodging is available yet, but they are still making their cinnamon rolls and other food.  We bought some homemade sausages, some turkey soup and of course a cinnamon roll.  We ate lunch in the parking lot and then continued on.  

The drive through Stone Mountain/Summit Lake and Muncho Provincial park were stunning as usual.  The lake is starting to thaw and along the edges it is showing its beautiful green color.  We saw an otter running along the edge of the ice.  We also saw a bear on the way up to Fort Nelson.  It was in great shape for likely just coming out of hibernation.  It had a really dark face on it and it wasn’t concerned with us trying to get its attention.  

We rolled into Liard Hot Springs at about 4pm and got parked in the spot we had last spring.  We had a campfire and sat outside (it was 60*) for a few hours, had dinner and I went to the springs for about an hour.  It was a nice soak.  I think we’ll stay another day.  

4/28 Monday.  We stayed another day at Liard.  I got Duncan out for a mile walk around the campground and found a few more pieces of abandoned firewood which I collected.  As we started our second lap of the campground, it started to rain.  It did not let up for the rest of the day/evening.  It rained so much, the end of our site turned into a lake.  

We made a breakfadt scramble, sandwiches for lunch and chili for dinner.  I enjoyed the springs twice and we watched old movies. After hitting the springs twice, I went to bed right at 10pm and slept pretty darn good.  Off to Teslin tomorrow, we need to find a dump station too.  Teslin had one last October, not sure if it’ll be open yet.  Three days/nights of no cell service has actually been a nice little break.  I haven’t taken many pics the past few days so I’ll have to sprinkle some in from 24’.  I also added 9’ of pipe insulation to the pex under our fridge and countertop area to quiet it down.  

4/29 Tuesday.  Duncan got me up pretty early and out the door to do his business.  I then fed the dogs and went to the springs one last time.  It was really quiet being down there in the morning.  A few workers showed up to clean the deck area and bathrooms.  Then the three of them got in their bathing suits and got in with brushes to clean up the seating areas and hand rails.  Can’t tell if that’s a perk of the job or not.  They then argued about who would go to the head of the spring to take the rock cairns down.  

We hit the road right at 8.  Picked up some diesel at the Hot Springs Lodge along with a breakfast Sammie.  We saw a bunch of Bison, a few caribou and another black bear.  The drive was cloudy and rainy for most of the day.  We got to Watson Lake and topped off our fuel and then ran into The Cummins Camper.  We hadn’t seen them since 2021 in L’Anse.  We BS’d with them for a few minutes and then we got “honked” at for blocking the side road.  They’ll be in Seward so I bet we’ll see them again.  

Next stop was the dump station at Wye Lake Park, followed by the sign post forest to check up on our dog tag.  It was still there. Teslin for fuel and water and we decided to keep going west.  We made it to Whitehorse and stayed at a Boondockers spot for the night.  A nice retired couple who have been Boondockers since 2015.  It’s a nice property along a creek and I was able to take Duncan for a good walk.  We had dinner and enjoyed having power to hook up to as our batteries were down to 70ah.  That would have been hours and hours of generator use.  Several days of no sun, running the fridge on 12v, the new 12v freezer and the furnace fan had run them down from 270.