Saturday, May 31, 2014

Post # 44 Whitehorse to Alaska border.--Deadmans Lake

Saturday, May 31, 2014

Another long day of traveling. We spent the night in a Walmart parking lot  in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada , along with about 10-12 other motor homes, fifth wheels and campers.. Sure is nice of them to let us do that. But, we do go shopping there so it sorta makes up for the hospitality. Engine ran good all day, no overheating and transmission stayed cool. Thank you LORD for the blessing. HE fixed it for us.


There were some good photo scenic areas that we really enjoyed. The mountains with glaciers on top and a beautiful Lake Kluane  that was a bit obscured due to a sand storm from the dry beds of the lake.


Some Majestic Mountains. Drove around them all day. Some have glaciers

There were some good photo scenic areas that we really enjoyed. The mountains with glaciers on top and a beautiful Lake Kluane  that was a bit obscured due to a sand storm from the dry beds of the lake. Nita got some rock samples and we took a few photos.



Along the way was the roughest highway I think I’ve ever driven on. They call it “frost heaves”. The pavement buckled over the thawed permafrost and we had to do a lot of zig-zagging to miss the bad parts. Couldn’t drive over 30mph most of the time. I followed a guy who had experience driving that route. He said he did it twice a year to pick up trailers and deliver them back to Anchorage, AK. He said he usually blows a tire or two each trip so I should slow down to 20-30 if needed. I didn’t need a blown tire, that’s for sure. Our two hundred mile trip took us eight hours to drive. 

Just a sample. Most was much, much worse and had to zig-zag for almost 100 miles at 20-30 mph




                                          Dust storm on Kluane (kloo-WA-nee) Lake. couldn't see across bridge


.


Nita gathering rocks on the beach at gorgeous Lake Kluane -the largest in the mountains
Lake Kluane






We saw the glacier ice mountains and they were beautiful. We stopped in Haines Junction, which is on the eastern boundary of Kluane ( pronounced kloo-WA-nee) National Park and Preserve. And went to  a local bakery (Village Bakery) and enjoyed the most delicious Quiche made with salmon, eggs, veggies and spices. Nita had a most delicious Almond  Cheese  Danish along with her coffee and we bought a Russian/German Sandwich called a TOG ? To go. We’re having it for lunch or dinner tomorrow.







We saw and took a picture of a quaint Catholic Church built from a Quonset Hut left over by the  Alaska Canadian highway road crew in 1942.  It is reported to be the most photographed church in the Yukon.




Instead of wildlife we came upon seven wild horses along the highway. Couldn't tell what bloodline they were except one looked like  a pinto (or paint) and one looked like a Roan. He had a beautiful coat that just shined.


                                                    Beautiful coat
                                                  Paint or Pinto?


Didn’t have time to try it. LOL







Border Crossing into Alaska from the Yukon was easy. No hassle, just a few questions, showed passports and vehicle registration and that was it. Just as easy as coming into Canada. The stretch of higghway between the border station and Haines Junction is supposed to be the most challenging to the road companies. the deep bed lies on top of glacier permafrost (hundreds of feet deep) and is a real challenge to maintain. So, the US and Canada (since it was a US highway built by the US) it is a joint venture to design a way to create a solid foundation to prevent the permafrost buckling and cracking/freezing that occurs. The picture below is an experiment to create cool air underneath the pavement in hopes of maintining a constant
tempature.

                                       .
                                                    Customs at the Alaska Border


The vent extends underneath and  across to the other side

Thermometer recorder






Alaska's Aboriginie

A sample of an Aleut (Alaska’s Aborigine) in olden days.  A very accurate statue of the Alaskan Indian butchering the hindquarter of a caribou.

The highway cuts through several of these sand dunes.  The sand originally was part of the volcanic mountain range to the south.  Prevailing winds moved the sand across the valley floor forming the dunes, now stabilized by plants.  A distinct layer of volcanic ash is also found here, evidence of a volcanic eruption in the St. Elias Range some 1,400 years ago.



                                              Sand Dunes from millions of years ago


The Tetlin National Wildlife Reserve has been recognized internationally because of its habitat for birds.  The area is an important breeding ground for the nesting trumpeter swans and migrating sandhill cranes and more than 126 other nesting species and  64 other migrating species.

Nita and Boomer at Deadman Lake Campground in the Tetlin Refuge. All such are free and most have picnic tables and fire pits but no services. You can even sleep over in a highway pull off parking area.   We were told that anywhere you can safely pull off the highway, it’s ok to park overnight (unless signs say otherwise).



Friday, May 30, 2014

Post # 43 Liard River to Whitehorse Yukon Territory

Friday May 30, 2014

Nita decided she didn’t want to go to the hot springs this morning so we started out for Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada. The engine seemed to be running OK but after a while the temp gage started climbing and the transmission gage started getting hotter.  It didn't get to the danger zone so I just kept watching it all day--392 miles. It would rise and drop, rise and drop, until finally it decided to drop and stay there. Both in the normal range. I’ll see if there’s a diesel shop open tomorrow (Saturday--maybe) and get them to look at it. Otherwise, if we don’t decide to stay here, we’ll head North again.

Along the way we did see some bears and some Bison (Buffalo) and I think we got a few good pictures of them. So will post them here.  The highway was much better for traveling than the stretch between Fort Nelson and Liard river.. We were told that there wouldn't be much wild life to be seen but we did see some. .


Stephanie at Liard Hot Springs Park.




Monument for the surveyors work for the Alaska Canadian (ALCAN) Highway until construction was completed and then renamed the Alaska Highway (officially)


                                                Brown Black Bear--not a grizzley

YUKON Larger Than Life
Welcome to Yukon

Guess where we are? The highway crosses the Yukon-BC line seven times before becoming official.


                                             Everybody's been here
Watson Lake and the crossroads of BC and Yukon. The entire block was posted  signs  from everywhere and anywhere. If you didn't have one they would make it for you. No. we didn’t get one but should have
          The longest steel bridge in the Yukon
Everybody has one in their business yard

                                  


Thursday, May 29, 2014

Post # 42 Fort Nelson to Laird River

Thursday May 29, 2014
Up and away early since we planned to travel to Whitehorse in the Western part of B.C.. Engine warning light came on with no explanation.  After a few minutes it changed to “check Status panel” Still no clue. Finally just went out and wouldn’t come back on. So we fueled up with a truckers discount given  us by the campground.
dirty, filthy truck
Big sign to alert  us of bison and deer  and wildlife on highway. Must be a ad  promo
 cause we never see them. We did eventually see some more bears, mountain goats, bison and a fox on the road.
Half way between Fort nelson and White horse the “stop engine light” came on. So I pull over, shut down and open engine bay doors. Anti freeze is spewing all over the place .and water reservoir is empty. Knew it was full when we started out this AM as I always check everything every morning. Let engine cool off some and add antifreeze and water. Crank up and it started spewing again. We were just 2kM from a lake and campground and hot springs. Filled it up and took off for the campground. Made it to the hill across from campground gate.
Used  the land phone at the gate since we didn't have a signal on our cell phones.  Made arrangements with Good Sam for towing. Went back and started troubleshooting and found problem. Small hose from reservoir to engine had broken (busted). Repaired it and added more antifreeze. ( a mechanic passer by had 1 and ½ gallons  and I bought that from him. Actually he gave it to me but I insisted he take some money for it. ).  Found  out later that the passerby was actually the husband of the park manager and was the superintendent of that section of the highway between White hall and Fort Nelson.
 So far engine seems to be OK. Find out tomorrow. Got a site in the campground for the night. Such a sweet and wonderful girl at the gate. Her name is Stephanie ( I think) and she really went out of her way to help me. Told me not to arrange for towing, let Good Sam do it. She said the locals would charge me up to around $5000, to tow it to Whitehorse, Yukon. UGH AND WOW!!!.
I believe GOD was again watching over us. We broke down in the only place within 150 miles where I could get help. I had no more antifreeze, our phones didn't have a signal and no one was stopping to see if we needed help. I was able to get it to the pullover immediately across the highway from the entrance to the park. THANK YOU FATHER.
The Liard River Hot Springs Park is a Provincial (State)  Campground and  a Hot Springs,  so we took advantage of the hot springs  for about an hour or so. One end the water stream was around 120 degrees and the other end around 100 degrees. OH MY GOD!  was it ever wonderful. Not a strong Sulpher smell but it was so relaxing I could have taken a nap. They recommend a maximum of 20 minutes per session.
The area has a bog river running through that has a really small fish the can tolerate the warm water. Plus the Caribou come there to eat the warn bog grass for the extra energy they get from it. Naturally, we didn’t see any nor did we have the camera with us.
tomorrow we will head for Whitehorse again

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Post # 41 Canmore to Fort Nelson in BC

Wednesday May 28, 2014

What a day. Up early and on the road headed for Ft Nelson in British Columbia , Canada, a distance of about 500 miles through the Rocky Mountains. It was climb a hill and go down a hill, climb a mountain and down the other side. Over and over again all day. So, any photos will be just that except for the black bears, the Mountain Goats and mule deer we saw. Saw a caribou yesterday but too late to get photos. Stopped a couple times for diesel. We didn’t want the tank to drop below ½ full. The stations are anywhere from 50 to 150 miles apart.





We arrived in Ft Nelson around 8 PM and got a spot at The Triple ”G” Campground because they had a RV wash station and LORD knows we needed it. The truck was unrecognizable with all the dirt. BOY! Was it ever dirty. It took us almost an hour to clean the motoe home  and there's still areas we need to go back over. Maybe in Alaska. We’re hoping to be in WhiteHorse by tomorrow night.