Mt Robson and Jasper

We camped for 2 nights in Mt Robson.  A beautiful area about an hour from Jasper.  The afternoon we arrived we saw this

We have seen lots of rainbows but this was the first one we've seen that just laid across the mountain like this.  No arch or bow to it.  Just laying on the mountain.

One day we hiked to a few water falls.

We have heard so much about Jasper, Banff and the Canadian Rockies that we were excited to get there. The weather was very cloudy with on and off rain so the beauty of the high peaks of the Rockies was lost, but what we did see was beautiful.

Elk grazing along the road

This fox greeted us as we entered the campground.

In spite of the clouds and rain Jasper was gorgeous.

Then on our way to happy hour we were greeted by this bull elk.

Our view for happy hour

Another great day!

Cassiar Highway and Hyder

From Watson Lake we had a decision to make.  Take the Cassiar Highway south to Stewart/Hyder or continue on the Alcan.  Either way you spend a lot of time driving in British Columbia.  We picked the Cassiar because we had heard it is more beautiful than the Alcan and we wanted to go to Hyder, AK to see more bears.  There are only 2 ways to Hyder; by boat or by road thru BC.  We had also been told that we would see lots of wild life driving the Cassiar.  Turns out the drive was spectacular. We did see several animals; 3 black bears, 4 domestic horses and a goat!

It was a very long drive (8 hours) from Watson Lake to a campground.  Once again there were no hook up sites available so we boon docked with no problem.  Next day we drove another 2 hours to a Provincial campground about an hour from Stewart.  Then we jumped in the car and dove the hour to Stewart/Hyder.

We paid to go out onto the well protected walkway hoping to see bears feeding on the thousands of salmon that were spawning.  I mean there were tons of salmon, many of them dead already, but no bears.

So we drove up to Salmon Glacier.  Beautiful!!

We went back to the viewing platform later to see if any bears were around.  Nope.  The ranger said the bears were really quite full and that most of the bear activity is in July.  Too bad for us.  But the day was not a complete loss as far as bear sightings were concerned.  We watched a black bear cross the street in town.  They are that plentiful that they just wonder thru town.  Awesome.

A few notes on Hyder.  It is in Alaska so is on Alaska time.  Stewart is in Canada and on Pacific time.  Our car clock changed time zones when we crossed into Alaska from BC.  Later we learned from the mail clerk at the post office in Hyder where we had had out mail sent that even though they are in Alaska, they all stay on Pacific time.  It is just easier that way.

There is no customs check point from Stewart, BC to Alkaska USA.  Don't know why, but there isn't.  There is a Canadian customs check point coming out of Alaska to BC.  So take your passport.  We did, no problem.

Watson Lake

Watson Lake is a small town where you need to decide if you are taking the Alcan highway east or the Casiar Highway south.  We went south toward Steward and Hyder.  More on that in the next post.  About the only thing Watson Lake has is a huge area called sign post forest.  People from around the world have hung signs saying where they are from.

The place is massive.  It is estimated that over 60 thousand signs have been posted.  I think that is an understatement.  Naturally, we added ours.

Breweries

Just a note about breweries in Alaska.  I found a publication that listed 30 breweries here.  By my count we have made it to 18.  Sadly, we are out of time.  These people brew some very fine suds.  What comes to the lower 48 is good but they keep the really good stuff here.  We have truly enjoyed the breweries and the variety of beers they offer.  We've had great conversations with owners, brew masters, bar tenders and patrons of the establishments. Locals tend to hang out at the brewery.  They need all these breweries as the winters are very long and cold.  I also very much appreciate that Diana is more than willing to go and be my designated driver.  She's a keeper!

Denali Brewing Co. in Talkeetna