After the AlCan I headed east on Highway 16 toward Jasper National Park in Alberta. Beautiful drive! The scenery in most of British Columbia is a tantalizing green with such clean waters in their rivers and lakes!
The weather cleared through Prince George, but the further east it started raining. The mosquitoes were relentless. Still, all this rain makes for a very green landscape!
I saw another bear and a lot of very graceful deer. The deer here look almost like gazelles. Then I rounded a corner on the highway and came face to face with a deer with a huge rack of antlers! I really couldn't linger or take my eyes off the highway since there was a semi-truck in front of me. God, he was beautiful, a honey colored coat of fur and his antlers were fuzzy. He was like something from a dream just standing there on the side of the road!
British Columbia has signs for "Artisans". I always notice them because their decorative capital A looks like a tent. Underneath the A is what media they practice. I love it they honor their artisans. I don't know if this is done for the whole of Canada or just B.C. and I wonder what the process is for the artists to obtain a street sign?
I stopped in McBride. I still wasn't sure if I wanted to continue to Jasper and Banff National Parks. First, I don't have a Canadian pass so the cost might be too much. Second, it's raining. How much am I really going to see? Maybe I should just detour to Kamloops? But Kamloops is ugly. These are the decisions I'm faced with everyday and they often change my plans on the spur of the moment.
The McBride visitor centre had two lovely and very helpful women. They said, "Yes! Go see the icefields!" Yes, I'd have to pay but it's so worth it. Hmmm...a local woman who I met at the hot springs said she didn't think this park was very impressive.
I found a camping spot at Belle Mountain, a recreation site on a logging road only I'm tired of the dirt and parked at the base which gave me internet. It rained all night and in the morning I decided I'd drive to the intersection and decide then my plan of action. I started driving at 4am! I love driving in the morning when there is no traffic and often wildlife milling about.
I get 87 kilometers from Jasper which is about the same mileage back to McBride and I realize I forgot to get gas! There is a sign post that says the next gas station is 87 kilometers away. So I pull in to the gas station that is right there...they are closed! Most gas stations in Canada have 24 hour access and you just use a credit card. I'm in a panic. I only have 1/4th tank left. Will I make it? This was stressful watching the needle move. I did make it!
Jasper, the town, is delightful. Lots of really cute architecture and shops of all kinds, some gluten-free advertising, but I couldn't find food for the life of me. I walked around, got more Canadian cash, and then headed out on Highway 93 through Jasper National Park.
At the park entrance booth, the woman said, "There is no fee! They aren't charging until September 2nd." REALLY? She spoke French so her English accent was really hard to understand when she explained why, but I just thanked her and went on.
The first hour of the drive was through wildfire destruction, but it soon opened to greenery and the most beautiful lakes I've seen! Bow Lake, for instance, is turquoise! Some of the lakes and many of the rivers were various shades of aqua. Dazzling! When I got to the ice fields, I though the river was just dried up. Not very impressive. There was a Skywalk one could view over the cliff, but the parking lots were so crowded. The traffic at the beginning and then at the end in the lane coming into the park were bumper to bumper. I hate crowds! Every time there was a traffic jam, I assumed there was wildlife. I saw my tenth bear right on the side of the road as I slowly passed all the vehicles stopped to look. I hate tourists!
Alberta has really cool wildlife corridors over their highways.
I didn't do a lot of getting out because of the traffic. There is no guarantee I'd be able to get back on the highway! There was one pull-out with car trying to cross to get in the opposite lane and they were stopped in my incoming traffic lane! Idiots! I didn't want to be one of those idiots so I just drove. I also didn't want to get out in the rain, and more importantly I hated opening my doors and letting mosquitoes in the van. I've been eaten alive! Canadian mosquitoes are worse than Alaskan!
I drove to the Radium Hot Springs because the visitors centre girls said they were wonderful, not crowded, and free. No, no, no. The parking lot was packed, the price was $15, and way too many people. It was a big tourist draw as was the hot springs down the road at Fairview. The drive to and from Radium was gorgeous.
I kept driving and driving through southeastern British Columbia at Cranbrook, over the U.S. Border, and back into Idaho. I was exhausted from such a long day, but I still managed to go to the car wash and clean all that dirt off the van.
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