Tok

We weren't really that thrilled with the spot, nor the mosquitos, we found in Tok on our way in, so we knew we weren't really aiming to stay near Tok on our way out. The big question was before or after? Our new friends we met in Denali had made suggestion about some national forest on our route but it ended up being about 2 hours before Tok and 40+km detour. The detour didn't bug me, but I wasn't really digging on the 2 hour early stop. That add's the hours to the next day, not ideal.

I had already made some marks on the map for places that looked decent after Tok, closer to the Canadian border. Bri and I decided to risk it and head to those, one in particular, Tetlin National Wildlife refuge.

While I have no doubt the route that was recommended to us would have been amazing as described, I want to say this spot was pretty fantastic. There were four other campers, one of them a cool Unimog. We missed selection of the prime spot right on the water but it ended up being a good thing, I'll get to that in a bit. We still ended up with a nice large spot with a trail down to the water. Far enough away from the other campers to feel a little seclusion.

Like most of our stays at developed camp grounds we took a talk around the camp, talked with a few other campers, and got some great photos of the wrangles range. As we were heading back to camp I noticed a lot of trees had been chopped down. It's been ages since since I'd seen beaver but I noticed and pointed out the tell-tale cone shape of the stumps of the felled trees. We had a warm meal and sat around the fire before tucking in.

The next morning on my way to the restroom I noticed what looked like a tree in the middle of the road near the spot on the water so I walked over to investigate. I was greeted by the owner of the truck & camper coming out to survey the scene. Turns out I was right about the beaver, they'd decided to bring a large aspen which subsequently ended up smashing into the camper in the middle of the night. The damage was light having only dinged the camper and cracked the vent cover on top. I was treated to a story of how they woke to the crash and peaked out a window to find beaver working fervently to dismantle the tree and bring the large branches under the truck and then get the branches stuck under the truck. It sounded like a simultaneously cool and jarring experience.

Kloo Lake

Originally Bri and I had planned to stay in the same spot outside Klaune with the epic views, but the sub-thirty degree temperatures were somewhat daunting. I'm such a baby.

We were also feeling quite spry towards the middle of our drive and we had discussed possibly pushing through Klaune and Haines Junction and make a little extra distance to reduce on a long drive we had the next day. We did pretty well. We were cross referencing spots between  Gaia and iOverlander and found a decent spot on the road to Kasawa Lake but we had so much sun left we decided to take the 17km detour and hit the camp ground.

I'm so glad we did! It ended up being $12(CAD) which wasn't much considering the free fire wood and the view! Its quite a spacious campground which I imagine in the prime season is just packed to the brim. We camped with probably seven other rigs out of fifty three spaces, not a bad spot either, tucked away in a corner with one side being light beachy forest. We had a little path right out the a spot on the beach with a fire ring. The lake was so peaceful this late in the season. In the morning we were even treated to large mass of fog retreating off the lake.

Upper Liard

We got an early start the next morning. Knowing we were going as far as Liard/Watson Lake but I really wanted to get to Liard Hot Springs. Only a minuscule 733km (~455 miles). It. Was. A. Long. Day. But! It's the highlight of the trip for me, only behind Denali. We saw so much wildlife! Four black bear, porcupine, two herds of Bison, Caribou, and eagles. I'm sure I'm missing something. Awesome hardly describes it, but it truly was. We called out to the provincial park at Watson Lake while filling up and the attendant assured us they had plenty of room. It's couple hours out but we felt pretty safe because that's just how we roll. Well after a very wildlife filled last leg we arrived to only three spots left! I couldn't believe it, the spot even ended up being great!

We were most excited for the host springs and it was pretty late, so we decided to live like the twelve year olds we are and made a simple pb&j dinner. We quickly changed and made the short walk to the host springs. Seriously, I was still riding the thrill of so much wildlife on our drive that I wasn't prepared for how great the springs were. Canada really nails their outdoors activities. To say they were recharging is an understatement. We were both feeling pretty stiff after being in the car for so long and such a long day. Those springs relaxed and melted all that away. We ended up soaking for a couple hours; just taking it all in. The sun goes down so late this far north that even at ten pm we could see the other people in the springs. It was a nice reprieve from the encroaching fall and winter. We both were warmed to our very core and still warm while we were getting ready for bed later.

How could it get better!? I'll tell you how! Looking up while brushing your teeth and getting to see the northern lights! What!? I didn't think we'd see them after basically living under cloud cover in all the prime viewing spots and just like the cherry on top we got a nice little treat as we were just recounting how amazing the day was.

Fort Nelson

Once again we decided to let the fates decide on where we'd camp today! We knew we were getting as far as Fort Nelson so we decided we'd see if we wanted to stop around here or if we wanted to push on to some spots we hope we'd find. We made excellent time to Fort Nelson and decided to grab a coffee, snack, and wifi to find somewhere to sleep that night. I really liked the sound of a spot we found, Sikanni Chief Falls. Another detour off the highway but we were once again awarded with a great spot. A user maintained site in a protected area down a 14km forest road. The drive in was simple but fun with a couple pretty large spots that made great use of the tires. We had a huge area to ourselves and still had a bit of light to get in a small hike to the falls. The hike was short but technical given the steep inclines of sandy, rocky terrain that take you down to a rim trail where you can see the falls fairly well but given the multitude of warnings we passed on the way in about steep cliffs and drop-offs decided to skip the smaller single track trails that traced a steep cliff face on one side and a nice 50' drop on the other. With the only thing to grab on to being a sandy tangled cliff face on the one side it seemed a little risky for my blood. Still the view from where we were was beautiful none-the-less.

We made our way back to camp right as the rain started to set in. We were lucky to hike out when we did cause it rained long into the next day, non-stop. Not sure how fun the hike back up the inclines would have been in that weather. Given we were still in bear country, seeing two on the drive that day, we made a quick dinner and cleaned up. This is how much of the trip went due to my overly bear-aware stance on dinners in bear country. Come on, I really don't want to end up on that show "I was Prey".

Dawson Creek

I mentioned the rain already. We got a brief respite when we pulled into Dawson Creek to refuel and grab a couple provisions. We were pushing on past the city a bit to find somewhere to camp. We ended up in a small camp at Kakwa River. So did the rain. All of it. We setup the awning pretty fast and our tarp to deal with a little water issue we started to have when opening the camper shell window in the rain. It worked pretty well but our old tarp needs replacement.

Its at this point I had a mild break down. I was pretty tired, wet, hungry and just generally over the freaking rain. One thing Bri and I learned pretty fast is we work better together when we kinda let each other vent. So she set about doing something only half listening to me throw a tantrum about how tired I was of being wet, like somehow with all my bitching the universe would reward me with dry clothes. I felt better though and both apologized and thanked my lovely wife for letting me work it out, lol.

We walked down to the river in our rain jackets and talked to another camper with a very enthusiastic dog. Quick dinner, cause the grizzly sign put me on edge. Over all the spot was alright even in the dry weather as its not too far off a busy highway and those trucks are loud. But with a little river of water running under the awning it made for a damp chilly evening.

Calgary

I was pretty stoked about this drive since we realized last year that our original route took us out to the prairie and down to Calgary. Why would we miss the opportunity to get to experience Jasper and Banff national parks?

We were still looking at a solid seven hour drive to where we had originally been a campground at around the midway point between the two parks. With photo stops, miscalculated bathroom breaks, and fuel stops ends up clocking in at eight hours minimum. We had a really solid drive through Jasper National Park. The views were amazing even in the pretty dense cloud cover. We stopped for a quick lunch and refuel in the town of Jasper where we spotted a really awesome Land Cruiser 70.

We continued on towards our camp making our way towards the town of Banff but with a forecast of heavy rain I opted for my mulligan card. We had always made room in the budget for a couple discretionary hotels along the route. We're on the tail end of our journey and haven't used any of these. The thoughts of setting the awning up in the rain still fresh in my skin I opted for a rest. The options in the town of Banff are polar in the sense that you're either looking at a hostel or a chalet. I'd rather camp in the rain when presented with a hostel and I wasn't looking to spend that entire budget in one night. We opted to look a few kilometers down the highway and in Canmore found a Holiday Inn that had decent prices for a last minute booking. Bri, master of all that is planning, nailed down a room we could stay dry in. The reservation person offered only a double queen like it was going to be a problem! Is it dry and clean? I'll take the extra bed. I can dry clothes on it.

We checked in a bit later having a room waiting for us we felt we could use a warm meal and since our last hotel didn't have a microwave we decided to track down something after walking through the town a bit. I hoped against all hope we could find a Pho place that offered  a vegan option for Bri. I know she'd been craving it for a while and a huge bowl of hot soup sounded delightful. We found one! I have a lot of great things to say about Canada but not least of all is that we never had trouble finding a meal for Bri.

We've done so much driving and been in the car so often that we've missed quite a few things we would have stopped to do had we more time. It was nice to have this unplanned stop with a warm meal and a warm bed waiting at the end of the road. It really lifted my spirits. It's amazing how days of rain can really bog you down, but a nice long meal where we didn't have to immediately clean up for fear of being mauled to death by bears, was so refreshing.

Imagine our surprise to check into not only a single bed but a deluxe two story suite with a jacuzzi tub. It's hard to argue with those signs. The correct choice was made. The hotel really out did themselves and short of a little issue with some loud neighbors in the middle the night, the stay was great. Not a bad time to call for a do over if I do say.