Prarie Dawn sang it best.

They're the people who you meet when you're driving down the street.  The people that you meet each day.

I'm back in Prince George, British Columbia.

I had a magnificent two day journey from Whitehorse on the Cassiar and Yellowhead Highways.  I saw two bears-- one was chasing (unsuccessfully) a young man who had gotten out of his car to take a photo and the other lumbered into the middle of the road and then stood there and glared at my little car menacingly.  Did I manage a picture even though I was a mere 10 feet away?  No.  Here's my pathetic attempt:

I camped at Kinaskan Provincial Park.  The scenery was gorgeous but the mosquitoes were the worst I have ever experienced.  I couldn't even take the time to get out my camera and take a photo of the place.  I set up my tent, ate a banana in the closed car, and then got into my (mosquito-free!) sleeping bag!

Kinaskan Provincial Park from the road

More gorgeousness...

I drove east on the Yellowhead highway (Rte 16) for much of yesterday.  And I managed to run into someone I know!!!  John and Kathryn are cycle touring from Prince Rupert to Winnepeg.  I watched my Canadian friend, Philippe, and John build the bikes for this adventure, so I when I saw those distinctive machines on the side of the road in Houston, BC, I had to stop and say hello.

Sammy, doggy extraordinaire, is in the trailer.  Sometimes he gets out and pulls.  John, Sammy, the trailer, the gear and the bike weigh more than 400 lbs!!

I met another cool cycle tourist in Whitehorse.  Wim is a Dutch man who is just starting a Pan-American tour.  Check out his website (with google translation feature, phewf.)

Whitehorse, part two

I'm back in Whitehorse.  The weather is beautiful.  There is so much to do and so many hours of daylight to do it!

A leisurely paddle on the Yukon River.

Lola, a dog with high standards, does not like to sit on the bottom of the canoe.

Alberta honey

I keep meaning to recount a funny story from my trip up the Alaska Canada highway.  I was in Watson Lake which is a town about 600 miles up the Alcan.  The population is around 1500 residents.  It has considerably cheaper gas than other places on the highway, so I decided to stop and fill up my tank while the getting was good.

I parked at a pump at the main gas station in town and was greeted by a very friendly and very intoxicated local.  "Good morning," he slurred loudly and smiled.  I scooted to the door of the gas station before he could intercept me.  I pre-paid for my gas and then walked out of the store and back towards the direction of my car and gas pump.  The aforementioned drunk local stood between the bumper of my car and the bumper of the conversion van filling up at the next pump.  I was blocked.

"What do we have here?" he asked me.  And then turned his head in slow motion towards my car.  "Oh boy!  An Alberta honey!"  I was totally confused and really just thinking about how I could distract him, get to my car and fill up my tank.  A tribal police officer had apparently been watching the scene unfold and made his way over to my car.  "That's not an Alberta license plate, Carl.  That's a Massachusetts plate.  From the States.  And leave this woman alone, would ya?"  Carl let out one more plaintive attempt to gain my affection "Wanna take me to Massachusetts with you?"

I filled up my tank and scurried back onto the highway, unsure of exactly what had taken place.... until I saw a red and blue Province of Alberta plate on a pickup a couple of miles down the road and thought to myself "that looks an awful lot like a Massachusetts license plate to me."

You can call me Alberta Honey from now on....

Summer Solstice in the land of the midnight sun

I left Sitka via ferry on Monday afternoon.  It was honestly a little hard to function without Emily and Caroline-- especially Emily who started to do this really cute and bossy finger wagging thing at me when I stepped out of line.  The four hour ferry ride was beautiful and I saw a pod of Orka floating lazily in the shallows.

I spent Monday night and Tuesday morning in Juneau.  Let's just say that I am now an expert on Juneau's public transportation system.  I own the two city bus lines.  I even own the Express Line.  That's me-- expert world traveler.

The ferry from Juneau to Haines left on Tuesday afternoon.  That was Tuesday June 21st.  The summer solstice.  The longest day of the year.  And it turned into the best solstice of my life (so far).  We saw more marine life than I have ever seen-- 4 or 5 humpback whales, more Orka, porpoises galore.  The forest ranger, whose job it is to ride the ferry and teach about the wildlife on the Alaska Marine Highway, said it was the best day in years.

I didn't get any pictures of wildlife (why must I always put my camera away??), but here are some shots of the amazing scenery.

[To quote Imogen: not mad or sad, just serious.]

[Photographing safety equipment, in honor of Kate.]

[Stunning]

[I swear the matchy-matchy orange was not intentional]

[I'm waiting to see if my offer on this house has been accepted]

[Nearing midnight on the Haines Highway outside of Haines Junction, Canada]

I forgot...

I forgot to post pictures of the ferry rides from Haines to Juneau and then Juneau to Sitka.

So, here it goes (with a few cuties as an added bonus):

Supervising departure.  More passengers joined me later.

Brrr... but beautiful!

Haines to Juneau leg.

Juneau's Mendenhall Glacier

Nearing Sitka: general gloriousness

Awfully cute welcome wagon, don't you think?

Sitka, Alaska

I'm in Sitka staying with my buddy Sally and her family.  I was here last year in September 2009 when Emily was born.  I loved Sitka then and it hasn't lost any appeal in the meantime.

Misty downtown Sitka.

Sally and Caroline sing away the bears on the way to Hart's Lake

Josh and Emily bring up the rear.

Sally and Emily on the Cross Trail

Salon Sally

Whitehorse

After two and a half days on the Alcan, I couldn't have been happier to drive into Whitehorse which, with a population of around 25,000 people, is the largest city in the Yukon Territory.

[Whitehorse from the Clay Cliffs above town.]

[Canoe ride on Snafu Lake.]

[A Yukon fixer upper]

Sadly, after a mere three days in Whitehorse, I drove off in search of Sitka.  I make it sound like a smooth process, but the night before I was to leave to drive to the ferry in Haines, Alaska, I realized that I could not cross the border in time to make the ferry sailing.  The border in Haines is very small and operates only during limited hours.  I rearranged my schedule with the very accomodating Alaska Marine Highway System (they operate the ferries in this neck of the woods) and spent a night in Haines before departing for Sitka by way of Juneau.

[The drive from Whitehorse to Haines was stunning-- the most beautiful stretch of my trip so far.]

[I saw a grizzly bear along the way but didn't stop to photograph it.]

[Through the raindrops on the windowshield.]

Haines is a lovely little fishing village with a population just over 1500 people.  Cruise ships do not dock in this village which means that the harbor area is actually a nice spot.

[Haines Harbor in the evening.]

[View from my table at the Lighthouse Restaurant]

[The ferry leaves from Haines.]

Now, where was I?

Last I wrote, I was still blogging about the US of A.  Within a few hours of leaving Twsip, I entered Canada.  Crossing the border was a bit more of a hassle than I anticipated.  I was asked the usual range of questions when I drove up to the booth.  I was apparently suspicious enough to warrant a private interview inside the border station.  The trickiest question was "What do you plan to use for self defense?"  "Ummm... my secret ninja ways?"  After only 5 minutes or so, they decided I was worthy of entry into Canada and I drove on to Kelowna where I camped at a nice Provincial Park on the shore of Lake Okanagan.

From Kelowna, I drove north to Prince George.  As I drove, the country got wilder and wilder and more empty.  I panicked a little-- I felt slightly agoraphobic and much like when I first stepped out of my car in South Dakota.  What wide open spaces!

I stayed one night in gritty but friendly Prince George.  It was here I learned to conceal my city of origin.  British Columbia is in full Stanley Cup mode.  Even polite Canadians could hardly contain their dismay when they found out I was from Boston.

From Prince George, I drove on to Dawson Creek and officially started the Alaska Canada Highway.

I saw a lot of wildlife on the drive: a pair of bald eagles, many bison, and eight (yes!  eight!) bears:

[This black bear had three cubs with her.  They scooted off into the trees before I could take their picture.]

The second night on the Alaska Canada highway, I camped at Liard Hotsprings.  The springs are 104 degrees at their hottest.  It was a welcome dip after sitting in the car all day (and camping in 40 degree rain the night before).  By the way, gas at Liard Hotsprings cost nearly USD8/gallon.  I bought just enough (2 gallons) to make it to Watson Lake for some more reasonably priced fuel.