We like it hot (Fort Nelson to Liard Hot Springs Provincial Park)

Day 3
Mileage: 190
Wildlife: caribou, sheep
Because we put in the extra miles the day before we were able to get a late start on the driving. We arrived in the park around 3 and set up camp. After exploring a bit (there really wasn’t much to explore…Did I mention we are in the middle of no where?) we walked along the boardwalk over the bog to the hot springs. Liard hot springs is a unique hot spring, because it is a bog rather than a river. So, plants and animals that normally wouldn’t survive at this elevation and latitude are able to survive. Our book said that 12 species of orchids grow in the ecosystem, but we weren’t able to hike up to see them. There are normally 2 pools open, but the “beta” pool we closed, because of bear trouble. Apparently a mom and her cubs were staking out the area. We did just fine in the “alpha” pool though. It was plenty hot (between 30 to 40 C). The hot water comes in at around 50 C and mixes with the cold spring water. Neither of us was able to get within 20 feet of the source water. It was hot, but also nice and relaxing. Especially after all of the sitting and driving we’ve been doing. We had dips before and after dinner (Neil had a buffalo burger – it was one of the best burgers he’s had in a while – it tasted like sausage).

One cool thing about the campsite was that you could buy a giant Rubermaid of firewood at the gate for 5 dollars. But instead of hauling it to your site yourself, they drop it off for you, with kindling. And it was super dry. Emily got our fire going with only one match. The S’mores were tasty.

More pics of Day 3

Day 3 continued:
Here are some more pictures:
There are actually two pools at the Hot Spring: the Alpha pool (where we were) and a Beta pool (a little further away). A Momma bear and her cubs were walking around the Beta pool, so it was closed off.
This is Emily doing what he loves best: making roasting sticks for marshmallows. Our fire got nice and toasty.
Another picture from the road, and Emily walking on the boardwalk back to our campsite.

A soggy day (Prince George to Pink Mountain...I mean Fort Nelson)

Day 2
Mileage: 505
Wildlife: nothing (I think it was too wet)
We got up early again this morning to get a jump on driving. Luckily our car was still there with all my belongings. Another Yank from Wyoming who was making the move to Alaska had his car broken into and his passport stolen. They also made away with his gas! No one touched Big Boy (our newly named wheels).

It was raining so hard today that we decided camping was not the best of ideas, and after driving through the Pink Mountain camping grounds, which were basically RV hook-ups in someone’s field, we decided to keep climbing north. Although we did get a little scare when our ‘Check Engine’ light kept going on and off. But we made it to Fort Nelson, which had the world’s nicest Super 8 (complete with water slide and waffle breakfast) but we decided to live modestly and stayed in an inn down the road.

Northward Ho!!!! (Seattle to Prince George, BC)

Day 1
Mileage: 574
Wildlife: deer, bear
We left this morning a little after 6:00 am. It was dark and raining, and it continued to rain on and off throughout the entire day. We made it through the border without incident (although Neil got really nervous beforehand and couldn’t eat his muffin). For lunch we stopped off in Cache Creek, where we saw our first order of Poutine (apparently a Canadian favorite: fries with cheddar and brown gravy on top). After about 6 hours of our audiobook, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, we arrived in Prince George in time for dinner. Although Prince George is the 4th largest city in the province (80,000), there weren’t many restaurants open. We settled upon a Greek restaurant, which we gave a “C”.