Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Kinaskin Lake

View from our campsite on Kinaskin Lake
As many of you know, Kinaskin Lake Provincial Park is one of our very favorite places to camp on the Cassiar Highway.  The pristine water is lovely.  The campsites sit right on the lake.  And for those of you who remember our beautiful Roxanne, she loved swimming here and sunning herself. 

So we found ourselves once again enjoying the view.  This time we not only had Calypso with us but also fishing licenses.  We blew up the boat, donned our life vests, and proceeded to catch some major lake trout.  Unfortunately, our first attempt left us searching the pantry for supper.  


Undaunted, we knew if was probably because we were use to fishing for bass, not trout.  That evening, one of our favorite camp hosts, Margaret, came by and offered suggestions for the morning catch.  So we took note and first thing the next morning we were back on the water fishing the opposite direction we had gone the afternoon before.  Still no luck.

Midday we took our poles and hiked a mile up the lake near a creek inlet and tried to fish from shore. Still no luck.  Finally, we sailed Calypso on the lake again late that afternoon.  Nary a bite. Margaret told us that hardly anyone had been catching fish.  Perhaps it was the weather… it had been in the 90s during the day.  

Margaret asked David how long he wanted to fish.  David laughed and said, "As long as the motor lasts."

View of campsites from Kinaskin Lake
That evening a lovely young couple arrived with four children and a very large trailer.  David helped the young man back his trailer into the spot next to us.  We all had a good chat.  Then the gentleman dropped the tailgate to his pickup, and we saw an enormous generator. It would be loud and noxious.  We decided to leave the next morning and let them have their fun.  


So we lashed Calypso to the top of the rig.  Hopefully the fish would be biting at Boya Lake.

Saturday, July 28, 2018

The Nisga’a Highway


Nisga'a Memorial Lava Bed
David discovered an intriguing side trip for us before we hit the Cassair, so we traveled up Highway 113 from Terrace to the Nisga’a Memorial Lava Bed Provincial Park.  The lightly traveled road wound through beautiful mountains until we arrived at a fascinating valley layered in moss-covered lava rock.  

Nisga'a Visitor Center
We arrived around ten in the morning, stopping at the small visitor center to learn more about the area. Steve, the cultural interpreter, told us that the unique lava beds were from an unknown volcano that suddenly erupted in 1752.  Because the Nisga’a people did not know the volcano existed, many fled to the water and others to the mountains when the rumblings began.  Most of the people along the river were trapped by the molten lava and noxious gases.  At the time, over 30,000 people lived in the area.  At least 2,000 of the Nisga’a people died when the volcano erupted.

With a map of the auto tour in hand, we drove approximately two hours, past the lava flow, several small Nisga’a villages, and on to the Pacific Coast and the small village of Gingolx which sits on the mouth of the Portland Inlet.  

Portland Inlet
Much to our surprise, we discovered an open restaurant with delicious fish and chips.  To add to the ambience, restaurant owners John and Bonnie told us stories about their lives and their people.  Another gentleman soon joined us.  Although he appeared to be close in age to John, John introduced him as his grandfather.  I asked how that happened.  He told me that in their culture it was important that no one be without a grandfather because of their responsibilities to the family.  After John’s real grandfather had passed away, the new gentlemen was appointed as his grandfather.  What a wonderful idea! 

Ginglox Restaurant
Ginglox Church
On our way back to camp at the Lava Bed Campground, we stopped at the Nisga’a museum in the village of Laxgalts’ap.  The architectural structure of the museum is stunning.  The collection of Nisga’a artifacts and history was well worth the stop.

Supernatural beings of the Nisga'a
The campground was quiet that evening.  We were one of only two other campers there for the evening.  The screened tent proved useful once again when the mosquitos began buzzing.

The next morning we hiked a short distance across the lava beds to a site with a tree cast formed when the lava cooled quickly after burning a tree.  Much of the landscape remained barren except for moss, flowers, and ferns.  Trees were just beginning to grow back in the area, although many were stunted in size. So many fissures weaved through the lava rock that each step needed to be well placed.
Lava Bed Flow
After our hike, we traveled on to the Cassiar Highway.  I leave you with the Nisga’a legend of the Lava Flow that was distributed by the museum:

Long ago this land began to shake and rumble.  Nature’s harmony had been upset.

It all started by the river as two children took a humpback salmon from the water and split open the back.  They stuck sticks into its back, lighted them, and then made the humpback swim. The children were amused to see the fish swim upriver with smoke coming from its back.  The children split open another humpback and stuck a piece of shale into its back.  Then they made it swim, but the humpback floated on its side, weighed down by the shale. The children laughed, despite the elder’s warning.  The ground rumbled.

Finally, a scout was sent to investigate the rumbling.  From the top of Genuu Axwt, he saw smoke and flame in the valley.  Immediately he ran to tell the villagers of their firey destiny.  In a panic, the villagers moved to the mountaintop.  Some canoed to the other side of the river and remained there, but they were killed by the lava.

As they watched the lava flow over the village, a super natural being named Gwaxts’agat suddenly emerged south of Gitwinksihikw to block the path of the lava.  Gwaxts’agat was very powerful and also possessed the power of fire.  For days Gwaxts’agat lay with his big nose fighting back the lava.  Finally, the lava cooled and Gwaxts’agat went back into the mountain where it remains to this day.

To the Nisga’a, fish is very important.  To ridicule the fish is the first and foremost taboo and to do so would certainly cause misfortune.  The children’s disrespect of the fish led to the unfortunate death of many Nisga’a.

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Canada... Finally!

It seems like it has taken an inordinate amount of time to cross from Texas into Canada this year. We crossed into Canada from Oroville, Washington.  This section of Canada is full of orchards.  We stopped by a fruit stand to buy cherries and apricots before heading to Green Lake for camping.  

In Williams Lake, we purchased our first Canadian fishing licenses.  We had our eyes set on catching lake trout… a first for us.  We planned to drive up the Cassiar Highway, stopping by our favorite Kanaskin Lake as well as several others before meeting Morgan and family in Whitehorse on August 9th.

We camped at Ten Mile Lake but got in too late to blow up Calypso, our little three-man boat.  We planned to stop early the next evening, but ended up at Sealy Lake.  While the lake was described as being secluded and easily accessible by boat, the campground sat 20 yards from the roadway, and the launch site was too far to portage the boat.  So we waited another day.

The crazy part about it all was how hot it was.  It reached into the mid-90s during the day.  We had never seen temperatures this high, particularly for this long a duration, in Canada.  Every person we spoke with complained about the weather.  Thankfully the temperatures dropped into the low 60s at night, making sleeping comfortable.  

We decided to push on. Surely we would find a place to fish!

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Where the Rubber Meets the Road

We decided to take a break from hard traveling and set up camp fairly early in Washington’s Selkirk mountains.  We drove through one small campground on Lake Theo but decided to try for something a little more remote.  David located a forest service road, and I turned up it.  

We heard a rock chink hard against the undercarriage.  Within second, the front left tire was completely flat.  I had run over a sharp rock that punctured just between the tread and the sidewall.  The tire was destroyed.  Thankfully, we were off the main, narrow highway, protected from the heavy traffic.  It didn’t take us long to change the tire… once we figured out where the jack went, etc. (Ah, the joys of a new vehicle.) It was, however, a disappointment to know that instead of making it into Canada, we would now be delayed at least another day while we found a place to get a new tire.

We returned to the campground at Lake Theo and settled in for the evening.  The next morning we drove into Colville to see what they might have.  They didn’t carry what we needed.  On top of it all, we were surprised to find that the tires we had were not truck rated as we had been told.  They were only fancy six-ply passenger tires.  We learned long ago to run ten-ply tires, particularly on roads like the Dempster.  

We soon discovered a Discount Tire in Spokane, a company we have done business with for years in Texas. When David called, they pulled up our records and told us they could have the exact tires we normally use in by three that afternoon.  So we drove south another 70 miles into Spokane and waited for the appointed time to have the new tires mounted.

It was hardly the anniversary we had planned, but we counted our blessings.  The tire had blown in a safe area.  Before we hit really rugged roads, we had discovered the tires we were running were not the ten-ply tires we needed.  On top of it all, the tire blew in the Lower 48 where the tires we needed were readily available and at much less cost.  

So we set up camp not far from where we began the day before in Colville and toasted our good fortune.  We joked that for anniversary gifts, David had given me two big rings, and I had given him two big rings.  If the 25th anniversary is silver, and the 50th gold, I’m guessing the 42nd anniversary might be rubber!

Sunday, July 22, 2018

Our Trek Continues

Salmon River near Salmon, Idaho
Greetings from Salmon, Idaho!  Unless you have traveled these great United States, it is difficult to realize how large our country is.  We have traveled over 1,700 miles and have yet to cross into Canada.  

Last night we had our first campout in the cool of the Utah mountains.  It was absolutely lovely to don sweatshirts and enjoy the brisk air.  By evening, rain drove us into the camper, and we spent the night with the patter of rain on the roof.

Today we had hoped for the same weather, but ended up in a very arid region of Idaho.  With temperatures in the mid-90s at six in the evening, we wimped out for another motel room.  Showers are definitely necessary, plus we have a few loose ends to tie up before we head into Canada either late tomorrow or (most likely) early Tuesday morning.

Our motel room sits on the edge of the Salmon River in Salmon, Idaho.  We were curious... do salmon actually spawn this far east?  The answer is yes... unbelievably so.  These salmon migrate 930 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean and gain 7,000 feet in elevation during their journey.  Incredible!

If I were to choose two things on this earth that confirm there is a Living God that created this planet and all that is in it, salmon and bees would top my list.  The life cycle of each of these amazing creatures simply cannot be attributed to slime and time (as a dear pastor friend of ours has called it).  

The Salmon River rushes past our room this evening.  How many salmon swim upstream below us?  I am in awe.

Saturday, July 21, 2018

Hot Time in the Old Town

Our first two days' of travel have been hot... in more ways than one.  We thought that loading the camper with temperatures in the mid-90s was hot.  While traveling the plains of Texas, temperatures soared to 113 degrees.  When we arrived in Amarillo the first evening, the temperature was still 108 degrees.  We wimped out and opted for a motel room.

Yesterday we drove across Monarch Pass, a beautiful area outside of Salida, Colorado.  The temperature at the pass was a mere 52 degrees.  We were excited to have our first night of camping, and maybe even don sweatshirts.  Then we hit the downhill side of the 11,312-foot pass.  We smelled smoking brakes on our brand new truck.  One of the brakes was so hot that David blistered his finger checking them.

I sit in a motel in Montrose, Colorado, this morning.  David has taken the truck to the dealer to have the brakes checked.  We are hoping it was just paint burning off rather than anything serious.

Great news... I just heard from David, and the brakes are fine.  North to Alaska we go!

Thursday, July 19, 2018

Let the Next Adventure Begin!

Dear Friends, I am happy to report that we leave tomorrow for our next great adventure!

We plan to return to Canada and Alaska during this trip.  Do you remember Morgan, our young friend who traveled with us for three weeks last year?  Well, this year we're meeting her entire family of five ... plus two friends of theirs... in Whitehorse in mid-August.  Together the nine of us will travel up my favorite road on the planet... the Dempster.  We're especially excited to travel new territory now that the road has been completed from Inuvik to Tuk on the Arctic Ocean.

We invite each of you to join us for the fun.  Surely we will find lots of animals and maybe even see some northern lights.  Our house sitters are settled, and we are certainly ready to go.  Can't wait!