After leaving Destruction Bay, Y.T, we had nothing but spectacular weather and amazing views. They are forever etched in our memories.
As we traveled along the Alaskan Highway, we were taking our chances on getting a room for the night. We had never had a problem before and thought we'd have even better chances since we had left later in the year. Think again about that one.
We were soon to find out why. We planned to stay at Watson Lake, Y.T. on September 12th. We stopped late afternoon for a late lunch/early supper at a little cafe called "A Little Taste of Home". Watson Lake is a linear town like so many along the Alaskan Highway. The cafe was just a short distance from the motel we usually stay in called The Big Horn. We got word in the cafe that we might have some difficulties finding places to stay. We were told about how all the motels were filled or were filling up with all the road crews from Watson Lake on down the highway. Oh great...... We had a soup and sandwich and topped it off with a piece of pie, which really hit the spot on the cool day.
After checking the Big Horn and finding no rooms available, we checked another one. We were saved when "Andrea's Motel" had a couple rooms left. WHEW! An interesting note - when I was checking in, the clerk asked where we were from. I told her a small town in central Illinois west of Peoria, but I doubt that she had ever heard of Peoria. To my amazement, she replied that she had indeed heard of Peoria and was trying to remember where. "Oh, I remember. It had something to do with politics and would it play in Peoria." She went on to say that she watched more American TV than Canadian. If it weren't for American TV Canada wouldn't have TV. I was astonished that someone in the Yukon Territory would have the slightest hint Peoria, IL existed. Never underistmate the power of the media anywhere.
As usual, the next day we left early and not quite so confident of easily finding a place to stay. It was a long travel day to Ft. St. John. We've had a lot of long travel days in Canada as there just aren't a lot of towns in between with facilities. One day we traveled over 300 mi before finding a rest area which only consisted of an "outhouse" type facility. This is not a good situation to be in when one NEEDS a potty. HA! At one point I couldn't wait on this 300 miles stretch out in the middle of nowhere. We found a desolate (or so we thought) place to pull back into. I grabbed the toilet paper, hopped out of the car and ran only to find the spot I picked was full of toilet paper all over. I couldn't stop laughing. Hey Canada, listen up, there is a huge need for bathroom facilities along that 300 mile stretch!
In Ft. St. John, we were blown away by the amount of 18 wheelers and pickup trucks parked in motels and restaurants. We started trying to find a room. I lost count of the number of motels we checked. There was nothing available. Now we were starting to get concerned because we were being told there were no rooms at all for the next three towns including Grand Prairie, Alberta which was another almost 4 hr drive. It was now 8:00 at night and had been a long day already. We resigned ourselves that we would have to go on and maybe sleep in the car. On the way out of town, we saw a very small motel and thought we'd give it a try. I was so relieved when the owner said he had a room. Thank you, Jesus!
He asked me if I wanted the $80 room or the $85. room. I almost burst out laughing because an $80 room in Canada is unheard of. I was in no position to get picky, but I ask him what the difference was in the rooms. The $80 room was on the second floor (yes, it had 2 floors) and had a queen size bed, but the $85 room was on the first floor, had a queen bed and was fixed up "beautiful like hotel". I knew what that meant and had to keep from laughing. I sprung for the $85 room just elated we had a place whatever it may be like. Not to worry, I had my mega-container of Clorox wipes. Anything would be better than trying to drive at night on a curving, narrow and hilly road - not to mention any animals that might decide to cross.
When we opened the door, Gary looked at the bed and said I get the pillow. There were two pillows, but one was extremely flat. We started laughing. It had a coffee pot, small refrigerator and microwave and Internet. Hey, couldn't ask for more.
The next morning, I was getting ready, plugged in my small travel hair dryer and tripped a circuit breaker. Oh dear.... It got dark and Gary didn't have his shower yet. Oops. I finished getting dressed and went outside to check the office. There were road crews all over and when I passed one near the office and saw it was dark, he told me that the owner doesn't open until 6:00. It was 5:20 a.m. Drat.... Back to the room. Gary showered in the dark; not too much of a problem since the window near the top of the shower (yes there was a small window which creeped me out) let a little light in. It became more of a problem when he shaved. There was a light that worked in the "living area" near a mirror so he was running back and forth from the bathroom sink to the mirror. We survived and left about 6:00. I turned in the key and told the owner about the problem, and with a puzzled look, he said "it fixed now?" Uh, no, it didn't heal itself, you'll have to check the circuit breaker since there was none in the room. I have a feeling the light in the bathroom, the coffee pot, the microwave and the refrigerator still aren't working.
We weren't too far from Ft. St. John when we saw a Moose Warning Sign. These signs are not at all unusual, varying from moose, caribou, sheep, elk, bison giving distances of anywhere from a few kilometers to as many as 50 or 60. This particular sign was a warning of 700 meters. We couldn't stop laughing wondering if the moose had a special time they crossed in that one small area.
Along the way we became aware of all the road crews and 18 wheelers carrying machinery and equipment related to oil. It became very apparent about the oil boom in this area. The highway was stacked with 18 wheelers and big pickups carrying all the crews. Besides all the motels filled with long term stays, there were "work camps" set up with huge numbers of construction trailers where the crews stayed. We had never seen anything like it. The U.S. needs to learn a lesson from this and start drilling. We have the oil too and it would employ a lot of people. Canada is begging people to come work.
We arrived at our daughter's late afternoon on Wednesday, the 14th. Everyone was excited to see each other, including Zoie the wonder dog, their Golden Retriever.
The weather was beautiful, so we spent a lot of time outside. I was like a sponge soaking up every millisecond I could with the grand kids. Breathe in deep and they become a part of my every fiber.
Colin (3 years) is in pre-school two days a week, so we were able to see his school and meet his teachers. I was thrilled to watch him walk into school with his backpack eager to show off his hook to hang his jacket and backpack and his room. He is taking ice skating lessons now - pre-hockey. It was such a joy to watch him for the first time on the ice in his skates. He did extremely well. getting up on his own after falling a few times. One time, he looked up at me in the bleachers above the rink, pointed to me with a big smile and waved, telling his coach "that's my Ma". I was overwhelmed with emotion. He is also in gymnastics and loves it.
Eva (15 mo) is enrolled in story time at the Library in St. Albert. What fun that was to interact with her and watch her interact with others. We enjoyed that time one day while Colin was in pre-school. We had some time before we had to pick up Colin so we walked around downtown St. Albert. We stopped in the local Deli and Courtney got some turkey sticks. Eva devoured a whole stick. She loves them. We enjoyed our walk around the downtown area, then had to pick up Colin. Our days were filled with "being together".
We stayed eight days and the time was over in a blink of an eye. We had to say our good-byes on Friday morning and head for home - not easy; in fact it was excruciating.
So this is where we are now, on our way and almost home. It's been three very long travel days, but we're still having the most beautiful weather ever.
We crossed over the border at Sweetgrass, Montana on Friday and waited in line for almost a half hour because of the lineup of cars. We breezed through when it was our turn. We stayed in Great Falls, Montana and had supper at "Fuddruckers", a first for me. The burger we had was awesome.
When we left early Saturday morning, the "banana moon" was illuminated against the dark sky. It was one of those stunningly bright moons with the circle around the moon slightly visible. The stars twinkled and danced with delight - an awesome display in the vast Montana sky with no lights and little pollution. When the sun rose from behind the mountains, the sky glowed with a beautiful rose color. When it peaked, it was extremely difficult driving conditions driving right into it. We had supper in Rapid City at the Olive Garden. Our waiter was a nice young man, eager to earn a good tip. He struck up several conversations and ask us if we were passing through. We told him where we had been and he said he would like to go to Alaska. When he came back later to check on us, he ask how many miles Alaska is from where we live in Illinois. Gary told him 4,000 mi. He was surprised and asked us, just how long does it take to get there, maybe 3 or 4 days? Uh, we're pretty fast, but not even we can do 1,000 or more miles a day. Gary just smiled and told him at least a week. Guess Kaleb didn't think that one through. :) After he left, we had a good laugh over that one. When we finished, we headed to Murdo, S.D., our destination Saturday night.
We were up early again this morning and on our way with a stop in Mitchell, S.D. for breakfast. Within an hour from Mitchell, the topography was changing and we knew we were getting close to home. It was back to corn fields, a very welcome sight
knowing we were getting closer.
We hated to leave I90 at Albert Lea, MN because it's so nice traveling without all the heavy traffic. We headed down Rt 35 in Iowa to Rte 20 E which will take us to Rte 380S to I80, then 74 and home.
It's been a fantastic trip and were blessed beyond measure all along the way.
Blue Skies
Gary and Kathy
