July 29, 2014 Canmore, AB

Today was another laid back day. We drove the 12 miles to Banff for a day of sightseeing and shopping. We arrived in Banff at about 11:00.

We were early enough that parking was not a problem. We visited several shops along the main business area for a couple of hours and then had a late lunch/early dinner at Chili's.

We then drove the Tunnel Mountain circle and got back to the RV park at about 4:00 PM. We had a great day.

Although we are a bit anxious to get home, we are somewhat sad that this is the last day of our journey through Canada to Alaska and back. This was absolutely a trip that was everything we had anticipated, plus a bit more. We were able to see amazing scenery and wildlife throughout the trip. We have favorite places that we would like to see again and a couple of places to which we likely would not return. But overall, it was a great adventure.

A special thank you to Jeremy for creating and updating our blog. We will download the blog to allow us to visit Canada and Alaska anytime we wish.

July 28, 2014 Canmore, AB Canada

Today we drove approximately 50 miles north to Lake Louise. The drive was easy and we arrived at the lake at about 10:30 only to find a parking space extremely difficult to locate – particularly in an extended cab, long box ¾ T pickup.

Once we got parked, we only had a short distance to walk to a boardwalk at the lake. I mentioned parking was difficult??? It was nearly elbow to elbow on the boardwalk. However, we were able to get photos of the lake and the Fairmont Lake Louise resort.

This lake is fed directly from glaciers and ice fields directly west of the lake. The ice grinds and pulverizes the smaller rocks. These small particles are suspended in the water and refract the light to make the water appear to be aqua marine in color. Absolutley beautiful!!

A person we talked with at Lake Louise recommended we visit Lake Moraine which is only a short distance from Lake Louise. When we arrived at Lake Moraine, we encountered cars parked on the edge of the narrow road at least ½ mile from the lake. We drove on, meeting cars and driving very slow. Well...the parking lot was full. Cars were stopped, waiting for people leaving to vacate their parking spot. The park service has an attendant directing traffic in the parking lot. We quickly decided we didn't really need to see this lake. We fired our tour guide.

On the way back to Canmore, we could see a very large building in the town of Banff with spires that rose far above the trees. We drove through Banff to the original Banff Springs Hotel which is still in business. The hotel appears to hav had an addition built on in recent years as the stones are a bit different in color. This is truly a magnificent structure!!!

The Bow River falls lie directly behind the Banff Springs Hotel. We drove to the viewing point and spent about an hour watching the river and people.

We got back to the RV Park about 6:00.

July 27, 2014 Canmore, AB

We left Hinton at 8:30 this morning. It was about 46 degrees this morning and the skies were clear.

As we approached Jasper, a 6 point bull elk was grazing beside the road. His horns were still in velvet and were huge. I believe these elk may be a different subspecies from the elk found in the Idaho/eastern Washington region. The horns were much, much larger and heavier plus the elk just nonchalantly grazed along while passersby took photos. All the elk we have seen in Idaho don't hang around very long when they see you. (Actually, National Park wildlife have become so accustomed to humans, they no longer fear them.)

As we drove south towards Banff National Park, we were overwhelmed by the sights!! It seamed as the mountain peaks got steeper and larger. Glaciers and ice fields were also viewable from the parking/viewing areas. All of the lakes and rivers are aquamarine colored from the glacial silts. These are just a couple of photos. (We must have taken over 100 photos today.)

One of the highlights along the way was the Athabasca River falls. Over eons of time, the water has carved a narrow slit through the rock. The colors and rainbows were amazing!! (The Athabasca River heads in Jasper NP at the Columbia Ice Fields and flows across Alberta and Saskatchewan to the Hudson Bay.)

We entered Banff National Park and drove on to Canmore. The roads are much improved and are divided 4 lane similar to our Interstate system. We noticed that the roadway is completely fenced to keep wildlife off the roadway (8' tall elk fencing). Periodically, underpasses and overpasses have been constructed to allow the elk safe passage across the highway.

We arrived at the Spring Creek RV Park (south of Banff) at 5:00. This day was glorious. Tomorrow, we will visit Lake Louise.

July 26, 2014 – Hinton, AB

We awoke to a beautiful, clear and sunny morning. Today, we will travel back into JNP for a ride on the Jasper Tramway.

We left the RV Park at 9:30 and drove directly to the Jasper Tram arriving at approximately 10:45. Each Tram car holds 26 occupants and it takes about 10-12 minutes for a round trip. We purchased our tickets and found that our gondola will depart at 12:00 noon. An hours' wait isn't too bad.

We boarded promptly at noon and occupied the space at the rear of the car (where we could look out over the Jasper valley). The trip to the 7500' peak was quick and the view breath taking!! On top we took several photos and had lunch.

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When we returned to the parking lot, we took a side trip and went to Lake Maligne, which lies 25 miles off the main road. Boy, did we make the right decision!! The lakes and granite crags were spectacular. The Maligne River reminds us of the Lochsa, only smaller and on a steeper grade.

We returned to the RV Park a little after 6:00. Tired, but well satisfied with our day!!

Tomorrow we will move to an RV Park near Banff and spend the next three days site seeing Banff Natl Park.

July 25, 2014 – Hinton, AB

The rain continued throughout the night. At 6:30 this morning, it was still raining. Because the mountains are shrouded in fog, we decided to stay at the RV Park today and visit the town of Hinton.

We went into Hinton around 11:00. Hinton is the east gateway into Jasper Natl Park and has a lot of commercial businesses including, WalMart, Safeway, a large tire center, several hotels, and the usual fast food restaurants (DQ, A&W, KFC, etc). The business area is 2-3 miles long which took us all of 10 minutes to look over.

We restocked some of our supplies and had a treat at DQ. We arrived back at the RV Park around 1:30 and relaxed the rest of the day.

The rain quit in the afternoon and the skies to the west cleared some which resulted in a pretty sunset at 9:45 PM.

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July 24, 2014 – Hinton, AB

We arrived at the Hinton KOA about 1:30 PM. The drive over was uneventful, but we must say, this part of Alberta certainly has its own beauty. There are no jagged peaks or magnificent lakes, only rolling hills covered with sense birch, lodge pole, and spruce with cattle ranches and farm ground etched out of the trees. The area reminded us a lot of the of the drive from Portland to Lincoln City, particularly southwest of McMinnville.

In the later afternoon, we drove west into the Jasper National Park and the town of Jasper (about 45 miles). The mountains around Jasper are steep, jagged monolithic granite. On the lower sections of the mountains, trees are able to grow.

We stopped at the Fairmont Jasper Lodge which was a little disappointing to us. We expected a “mountain-themed” lodge like Yellowstone or Glacier, but what we found was a modern building with some natural features. We entered the lodge and found a latte shop for a quick mocha and muffin.

The town of Jasper is located about in the middle of the park. It reminds us a bit of Leavenworth, WA the first time we visited there, about 20 years ago. Jasper is in the midst of upgrading their streetscape and there is quite a bit of commercial construction in progress. We walked the town's business area, made a few purchases, and then drove about town.

On the trip back to Hinton, we were able to photograph a few big horn ewes on a near-vertical cliff beside the roadway. It is absolutely amazing how these sheep are able to maneuver up, down and across the steep slopes.

We encountered intermittent rain showers late in the day, but as we approached Hinton, we had steady rain. We arrived at the KOA about 6:30, had dinner, and watched TV before going to bed.

Tomorrow we plan to go back into JNP and take the Jasper Tramway to a 7500' peak.

July 23, 2014 – Stony Point, AB

Not much activity today. We visited a second hand/antique store but there wasn't anything in the store that begged us to purchase it, so we went on into Edmonton to see the downtown area.

Hmm...we forgot the map. So we just drove around. The Edmonton area industrial park is located on the north side of the city. It covers an immense area. Gayle was really impressed (not!!).

We milled around in and out of residential and business areas, crossed the Athabasca River in mid city, and ended up in a large mall (not the WEM) and had lunch and did a little shopping.

Our Magellan navigator found our way back to the RV Park around 5 PM where we relaxed for the remainder of the day.

Tomorrow, we will drive ~180 miles towards Jasper Natl Park. We will stay in Hinton, AB as all of the RV Parks in JNP are full.

July 22, 2014 Stony Plain, AB

Since we had no big plans for today, we laid back this AM, had breakfast, and, just before noon, drove the 15 miles to the West Edmonton Mall. This mall has over 600 stores, a replica of the Santa Maria, a sea world type sea lion display, an indoor beach/sea wave pool, an amusement park, a hockey/ice skating rink, 2 or 3 food courts, 2-3 Starbucks, and one section of the mall with very nice sports bars and restaurants.

When we arrived, we found the parking spaces to be ample. We entered the west side of the mall at “Entrance 55” which begs the question: 55 of how many??? As we entered the mall on the second floor, we were astonished to find a corridor ahead of us that seemed to extend beyond sight. We were also amazed that the mall was fairly crowded – especially for a Tuesday.

In the center of the corridor we found a full-sized replica of Christopher Columbus' ship, the Santa Maria sitting in a blue lagoon. Directly next to it was a Sea World-type sea life pool. These folks explained the life of a penguin and then had a great show with trained sea lions. It is absolutely amazing how well trained these sea lions were. The show lasted approximately ½ hour.

We walked the mall and found many of the same stores that we see in the Spokane malls, but there were many stores with names we have never seen or heard. As we walked along, we discovered a HUGE indoor water park with a beach, lounge chairs, and an ocean setting complete with waves. This park covers 5 acres, has 23 water slides, and can accommodate 40,000 guests. We watched the people play in the surf for a bit.

We also discovered an ice hockey/ice skating rink. It just so happened, that a Starbucks was located directly above the rink. We enjoyed a blended, iced mocha while watching the people skate.

We ended the day with dinner at Mikes Steakhouse (in the mall) and an ice cream treat at a Cold Stone-type kiosk in the mall.

We arrived back at the RV park exhausted. But it was a great day.

July 17, 2014 – Ft. Nelson, BC

We left the RV park around 9:00.

We stopped in Watson Lake to coin-op wash the trailer (mud, bugs, road dirt, etc!!). The wash is a Tooney for 4 minutes ($2). I took 7 Tooneys and we left Watson Lake at 10:00.

The drive started well – then we blew a tire!! This tire was the spare that I put on two days ago because the original tire looked like the tread was about to separate. This tire had never been on the road!! Brand new!! Oh well. It could have happened at a much worse location. In 15 minutes, we were back on the road :-)

Then...construction, construction, construction. We were delayed at 3 locations for ½ hr each. Oh well – it could have been worse.

We did have several sitings, though. Apparently there is a herd of woodland buffalo in northern BC. We found it!! We counted 110 buffalo along side the road. We also saw 8-10 black bears along the road. We figured that the vegetation along the road is easier picking and tastier than the stuff growing in the thick timber.

We know we have mentioned the scenery...but it is magnificent!! We drove Hwy 97 through some of the highest peaks and past glacier lakes. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!!!

This area is also quite remote. No phone lines, no power lines, etc. When our tank was down to ½ empty, we decided to stop at the next available gas stop. We pulled in and were absolutely shocked to see $1.75/liter (that equals $6.09/gallon in US $$$). I would not pay that amount, so we drove on.

The terrain is very rugged. Grades exceeded 10% and you could literally hear the gas being sucked form the tank. At ¼ empty, we decided we had better get gas at the next available stop. Muncho Lake Lodge and Resort. Boy, we sure showed the last place!! The gas at the resort was $2.00/liter. ($6.85/gal.) I stopped the pump at $150 and we drove on to Ft. Nelson.

The Ft Nelson area scenery is quite different than what we have been seeing for the last month. The crags and spires have changed to lower, rounded mountains and farm ground – mostly hay ground. And all surrounded by pine, spruce and tall birch trees. Very neat and nice looking.

July 16, 2014 – Waston Lake, Y.T.

We left Haines Junction about 9:00 and drove the 368 miles to Watson lake.

Not long after leaving Haines Jct., a young grizzly bear crossed the road ahead of us and stopped on the roadside. As we approached the young bear started grazing along the roadside. He was not at all concerned about our presence. Along the way we saw two more black bears.

The drive from there on was uneventful. The scenery was good and we got back into the lodge pole pine forests. The mountains reminded us a lot of northern Montana.

We arrived at the RV Park around 5:00, set up the trailer, and drove into Watson Lake to make phone calls for our next stop – Fort Nelson, BC. On the way to town, we saw a young black bear beside the road. On the way back, the bear was still feeding. We stopped right beside it – no more than 15' away. Gayle again got some great photos.

July 15, 2015 Haines Junction, Yukon Terr,

We drove the 300 miles from Tok today. It was a very sloooow day as there was 110 miles of intermittent construction, some with pilot cars. If it wasn't construction/pilot cars, it was very rough roadway – frost heaves and settlements – that slowed us at times to 25 km/hr (that's 15 mph for you in the lower 48). The 300 miles took us 10 hrs - ugh...

We arrived in Haines Jct around 8 PM. The RV park is nice enough, although a little bare. However, the back drop for the park is stunning!!

Tomorrow we will drive to Watson Lake, YT.

July 14, 2014 Tok, AK

We left Anchorage this morning at 8:30 and drove the 316 miles to Tok. We arrived at 4:30.

Have we mentioned scenery in AK? Over every hill and around every corner. So many beautiful sights.

Today, we passed by the Matanuska Glacier which is located approximately 100 miles northeast of Anchorage. The back drop of this glacier is a mountain range capped with snow and ice.

As we approached the GlennAllen area, we could see more snow capped mountains in the Alaska Range.

Tomorrow we will continue our drive towards Edmonton, AB with an overnight stop in Haines Junction, YT, Canada.

As we travel through Canada we will be without internet, cell or WiFi service so bare with us, we will be in contact soon!

July 12, 2014 – Anchorage, AK

Today we left the RV Park around 10:30 and just drove around Anchorage. We visited the airport, the harbor, and the core area of downtown Anchorage. We noticed that there were several tour busses parked near the downtown area. It soon became apparent that Anchorage derives significant income form the tourism industry. The downtown area has numerous gift shops and a large vendor flea market. All of these business' were very crowded.

At the end of the day, we realized that this will be our last time to dine in AK. We dined at “The Bridge”, a casual restaurant famous for their seafood courses. Gayle dined on Halibut, while I had King Salmon. Both were excellent. We turned in early.

July 11, 2014 – Kenai Fjords

We left the RV Park at 6:30 this morning for the 2½ hour drive to Seward. It was raining when we left Anchorage and we experienced rain, wind, fog, and sun while enroute.

When we arrived at Seward, the weather was fairly calm and the fog surrounded the mountains. The harbor was full of large “tour” boats.

The boat tour “Orca” departed sharply at 10:00 AM. This boat is about 70' long and has a catamaran-type hull.

Were informed as we got our tickets that the sea at the outlet of Ressurrection Bay is a little rough this morning. The Captain also announced that it will be his decision whether or not to proceed with the voyage once we reach the rough water. As we proceeded towards waters of the Gulf of Alaska, the ride got significantly rougher. The Captain announced that the swells were 12'-15' (not only that, they were also extremely choppy and the wind was blowing strongly) and that we would proceed to the Fjords. Shortly after that announcement, the boat was pitching and bobbing over and through the waves. Many of the land lubbers were utilizing the little white bags conveniently provided to the passengers by the crew.

We finally reached the Aialik Fjord and were able to view the Holgate glacier from about 300 yards away. The noise that the glacier continually emits as it moves toward the water is amazing. The glacier calves continually and mini-icebergs peppered the water. We tried to get pictures and video of the calving, but it always happened when were not prepared. Even at that, the glacier was magnificent.

As we returned, the sea was a little calmer and we were cruising with the wind. We did see some spectacular scenery and stopped at a Fox Island resort for a salmon bake and prime rib dinner. It was excellent!!

While on the cruise, we got to see a bunch of wildlife including: sea otters, harbor seals, sea lions, piffins, muirs, grey whales, a mountain goat, and several porpoises.

On the way back from Seward, we took a side trip to Whittier, AK, Until about 25 years ago, this community was only accessible via boat or train via a 2½ mile tunnel. The Federal Highway Administration coordinated with the Alaska Railroad company to upgrade the floor of the tunnel to accommodate cars and trucks. And we actually got to see the “light at the end of the tunnel”!

Although the weather could have been better, overall, we had a great day. A long day (16 hrs), but a great great day.

July 10. 2014 – Anchorage, AK

This morning, we had a little R&R and got a late start. We visited the communities of Wasilla and Palmer – about 45 miles north of Anchorage. These cities have a beautiful backdrop of steep, snow covered mountains.

In the late afternoon, we returned to Anchorage, stopped at Costco for supplies, then went to Best Buy to purchase a better camera. We got back to the RV park around 8:30 and very tired.

Tomorrow we will visit Seward and take an 8 hour cruise to the Kenai Fjords wildelife area and coastal glaciers. The day will end with a salmon bake on a private island resort in the Seward inlet.

July 9, 2014 – Anchorage, AK

We left Denali at 8:30 for our 230 mile drive to Anchorage. The roads during the first part of the drive were heaved and sagged which made our drive a bit slower. However, the second half was smooth going!

We stopped in Cantwell for gas (only 2 places). The price: $4.799/gallon. Just as well be in Canada!!

In our original travel plans, we had hoped to take a flight seeing ride in Talkeetna. But since it is cloudy and you cannot see Mt McKinley, we talked about just bypassing Talkeetna altogether. Then we decided to drive the 14 miles off the route to see Talkeetna (Gayle was reluctant). When we hit the City Limits, Gayle perked right up. Apparently, Talkeetna is one of the main destinations for cruise ship land excursions as well as the bus tours of AK. (Now Randy is reluctant to proceed.) There must have been at least 1,000 tourists visiting the town. We ate lunch at the Wild Flower Cafe (very good halibut & chips). Gift shops??? Why, yes, on every corner and in between!! We visited them all. Before we left town, we indulged in an ice cream. Actually, we are glad we went to Talkeetna as we likely will not be back in this region.

We continued on to Anchorage. We were not sure exactly where the RV Park was located, so we exited the 4 lane onto side road “JBER”. Oops! This is the access to Joint Base Elmandorf -Richardson air base. We pulled into the parking lot of the visitor entrance to load the RV Park address into our Magellan. Apparently, this is not the proper protocol for the USAF as, one of the guards came out to find our what we wanted. After a brief explanation, the guard gave us explicit directions and we drove right to it.

We arrived at 4:30, set up the trailer and relaxed for the evening. Tomorrow, we will visit the communities of Wasilla and Palmer. Who knows, Sarah may invite us for a salmon bake!!

July 8, 2014 Denali, AK

We left the RV Park at 7:30 to begin our 8 hour/132 mile round trip bus tour into Denali National Park. The bus was packed (55 people) and we sat in the second to the last row. The bus left promptly at 8:30.

The Park Service says that of all the visitors that go into Denali, due to the mountains micro-climate, only 1/3 of the visitors actually are able to see Mt. McKinley. The weather was overcast and cloudy and the clouds surrounded the mountains. However, the scenery was absolutely amazing. We took over 50 photos, and we can tell you that they do not do justice to the actual view.

After four hours, we arrived at the Eielson Visitor Center. You guessed it – we could not see Mt. McKinley. The photo below was taken inside the visitor center, looking out towards McKinley. If you look closely, you can see where the Park Service has etched the glass to allow visitors to see where the peak of McKinley is (or would be if they could see it.).

Even though we did not see McKinley, the excursion was not a loss. We were able to see an abundance of wildlife including doll sheep, caribou, grizzly bears (2), and an arctic fox.

On our way back, we saw another bus coming towards us. Gayle took a photo of the bus on a bridge. Earlier we said the camera doesn't do justice to the scenery. Look closely at the bridge – particularly the bus. Now compare the bus to the mountains. Unbelievable!!!

We did have an excellent day. Tomorrow we leave Denali and head to Anchorage.

July 7, 2014 Denali, AK

Since we only had 130 mile to drive today, we didn't leave North Pole until 11 AM. The drive was uneventful – which is a good thing!!

We have noted before that the streams and rivers are running bank full. They still are. Not only that, but the ground water level has risen as well. There is water standing everywhere. Although the mosquitoes are not bad yet, we are glad we will not be here when the hatch occurs!!

We arrived at Denali around 2 PM, set up the trailer, and headed to Denali Natl Park. Vehicles inside the park are restricted to the first 14 miles of roadway. After that, you must ride an excursion bus. We obtained our tickets for tomorrow and drove the 14 miles. The Park is beautiful but in order to see Mt McKinley, you must ride the excursion bus.

At the turn-around, we were able to see 3 caribou grazing along the Savage River, but they were about ½ mile away. We did manage to get a photo.

On the way back to the RV Park, we stopped at a visitor village to do a little shopping and then stopped at the 49^th State Brewing Company for dinner. We had a great day!!

Sunday July 6, 2014 – North Pole, AK

We had a great day!!! No rush about anything for a change!! This morning we did our bi-weekly chores – laundry, cleaned the trailer, and generally spiffed up.

After lunch, we went to the Santa House at the North Pole (AK) - where Christmas lasts all year long. This is a large store and believe me VERY busy!! We spent the better part of 2 hours there. (Which I am reminded by Gayle that after the drive to the Arctic Circle I owed her that much time in a store of her choice :-) Gayle started her Christmas shopping with gust and zeal!! We also got to see some of Santa's reindeer.

In the late afternoon, we went to see the movie Tammy. It was humorous, but on a scale of 1-10, we rated it a 6. After the movie we re-visited Pikes Landing for dinner. Another great time. And of course, we went back to our newest best ice cream shop for a treat before returning to the RV Park at 8:30.

Tomorrow we head to Denali Nat'l Park and stay for a couple of days. We only have a 130 mile drive so it will not be an early start.