Alaska Highway - Mile 0 to Muncho Lake

Keith’s unedited Pics at the end

Day: 5

Mileage daily: 335 km

Mileage total: 1061 km 

Campsite: Beatton PP

Services: Pit toilet and water

Cell signal: 2-3 bars

Cost: $20

Morning at Young Pt

Woke to the patter of the rain but it tapered off and a nice wind kicked in. Handy when you need to dry a tent!! Everything was soaked but most things dried pretty quickly. Keith did a reconnoiter over at the showers and did his good deed for the day, removing some trees that fell across the road. The shower was minimal but sufficient to clean up. Used two loonies but felt fresh.

Wild life alert: we were told that there was a momma bear with two cubs in the area and that they were “good bears!” Well we saw them on the way back from the shower. Shiny black coats just glowed in the grey light. Momma saw us and high tailed it into the brush. When one of the Cubs stopped to take a peek at us, she cuffed him in the head and moved hm along. They were very good bears!

Drove through Grand Prairie and picked up a new leash for Kayenne, a few towels for dirty, wet feet and some accessories for the mud flaps Keith put on the truck. The. It was off to Dawson Creek, mile 0 on the Alaska highway and just shy of 1000 km from Calgary. We took some pics, chatted with a few folks and then continued to Fort St John and Beatton Provincial Park. 

This place is glorious!! Amazing view of the lake, Private, comfortable sites and beautiful blues skies. Keith loved all the mushrooms, including King Boletes. We even had enough of a cell signal to connect with a few folks. We were very tempted to stay a few more days. 

Dog thoughts: LAKE!!!!!!!

Day: 6

Mileage daily: 380 km

Mileage total: 1451 km 

Campsite: Triple G RV Park

Services: Full services

Cell signal: 1-2 bars

Cost: $48

Morning:

The sky brightened at 3:45am and sunrise was at 4:45 or so. The gorgeous weather means we were able to dry everything out - yay!! Fresh baked goods from Cobbs in Grand Prairie and a leisurely coffee got the morning going right. We took a morning stroll around the campground, enjoying the lake and the weather. 

Had a nice chat with Fiona, one of the park officers. She was busy weed whacking. We asked how she ended up here and she she wanted out of Vancouver. It is hard for B.C. Parks to get long term workers in the Far North because many don’t realize what it really means to be off the grid - no electricity, internet or cable with limited cell service. Folks are okay for a few weeks but then get stir crazy. She is originally from Whitehorse so it was no big deal.

A lost key search led to melted battery wires (it was a joint effort, okay it was my fault) but no fires and all was well. Then off we went toward Fort Nelson. 

The drive was pleasant along the front ranges. Fields of purple fire weed blanketed the roadside. And then another BEAR!! They were just strolling and nibbling on the goodies along the tree line. We arrived in Fort Nelson around 7:30 and pulled into an RV Park. The power was nice! Frank from Duluth Minnesota Came by to ask Keith ab it his mudflaps. We saw these folks at Mile 0 at Dawson Creek. He and his partner, Karen are in an A-liner...nice machine! He is a retired water quality biologist and she just retired from a career as a cardiac nurse. We will likely see them again.

Day: 7

Mileage daily: 265 km

Mileage total: 1716 km 

Campsite: MacDonald campsite in Muncho Lake Provincial Park

Services: pit toilet, hand-pump water

Cell signal: none...for hours!

Cost: $20

I woke up at 6:45am, I kid you not!! I think it is that the sun was up for so long prior. It was quiet in the campground, so I decided to get a jump on things with a shower. It was GODLY!! Hot water and lovely water pressure. Clean and warm. What a delight!!

Took Kayenne for a walk while Keith dozed. Chatted with Frank and Karen a bit more. Keith needed his sleep, so we didn’t rollout until about 10:45. Napa Auto parts was our first stop where we got new parts for charging the battery. This is gonna be important for the next few nights where we won’t have any power but will need to keep the fridge going. Arguably, the items in there do not need to stay frigid, so even if we can’t get the thing recharged, we should be okay. Next stop, groceries. Cream, some meats for grilling and veggies.

The drive from the front ranges into the Northern Rockies was truly magnificent — even with the grey overcast skies. As we climbed into the Rockies we noticed the terrain was kind of a mix of rugged, jagged peaks, massive granite monoliths and rounded cascade-like domes. Another bear made an appearance but quickly slipped into the brush. 

As we wove in and out of the mountain passes, we noticed another Tab trailer in a rest area. We had to stop!! We took several pics and chatted. Mark and Debbie are on a North American Tour. They started from their home in Florida and have been exploring! 

Unfortunately, they were experiencing technical difficulties with their Subaru, with several warning lights going off. As Debbie and I chatted, Keith pulled into it our dealer reset device - the thingie that resets the warning lights after you fix things. mark had fixed the issue, a glitchy gas cap, but the lights were still on, which is always worrisome. Keith reset the system and and it didn’t trigger again, suggesting that Mark fixed it. YAY!! They are heading to Liard, so maybe we will see them there. If so, beer is on Mark and Debbie.

As we approached Muncho Lake, the search was on for a campsite. It was late on a Saturday in a popular area. sure enough, Strawberry Flats, our first choice, was full. Next stop was Northern Rockies Lodge. $47-55 for a spot in what was arguably a glorified parking lot. Sure there were full facilities and the lodge and cabins seemed nice, but for us, it was pretty limited/dull. We decided to try our luck at the next spot. 

MacDonald PP campground had 3 sites left!! We grabbed #5. This spot is amazing!! There have been storms all day and as we arrived the skies were ominous. We backed in, unpacked the camper putting stuff into the car just as the skies broke. A torrent of rain came down for about 15 minutes. Then it was as if 40 days and nights had passed and we entered the promised land. Muncho Lake glowed green from copper oxide and the incident light of early evening. Our spot is literally right on the lake. We took our chairs to the waters edge, and sipped Gin&Tonics while watching the loons float by. Solitary and Western sandpipers skirted along the shore peeping and exploring. 

Kayenne was not impressed. 

Dog Thoughts:

This lake is AMAZING!! Why won’t you let me swim without a leash??!! What is this? Dead fish bits - yum!!! Let me go and lick mommy so she knows how wonderful this is! Mom and Dad set up a chair just for me, which was so relaxing. Until that weird oblivious bird decided to join us. That stupid creature walked right up to me. As a bird dog, there was only one thing to do - POINT! But the thing just kept coming. Doesn’t it know I can eat it? I am a dog of infinite patience and anyone who says otherwise is either lying or has video evidence to the contrary (shush you). It was going down and if I have to take out Mommy’s chair, so be it.

Mom was not impressed.

Kamala Patel