Day 13: Haines, AK to Destruction Bay, YT

August 03, 2017 by Rita Fisher

On our way out of Haines we drove down to another area on the Chilkat Lake, right near the campgrounds. The lake was incredibly peaceful and serene, with excellent views of the Davidson and Rainbow glaciers, seen below (you can see the larger glacier on the far right, and the smaller one closer to the shoreline, further left):

In order to get over to the interior of Alaska, you have to cross the border into the Yukon Territory, then back over into Alaska near Tok. The drive to the border was as beautiful as expected, but the really fun part was getting into the Yukon Territory. Imagine the desolation of driving through parts of North Dakota and Sasketchewan, but with a lot more elevation and plenty of nature on either side. The driving here is really, really fun. And pretty nice to drive for a few hours without having to pass caravans of RVs all the time.

The road after the border skims the edge of the Kluane National Park and Preserve, home of the Saint Elias Mountains and the highest mountain in Canada, Mount Logan, as well as icefields, grizzly bears, Dall Sheep, and much more. The views are pretty spectacular, to say the least. Just outside of Haines Junction we stopped by the Million Dollar Falls Campground, but we wanted to try to get a little bit further today. That being said, the campgrounds were beautiful, not very crowded, and a lot of the campsites were right next to a very active creek that would have been perfect to sleep alongside.

We were determined to find a good campground, stopped at one more that we deemed a little too commercial, then landed at the Congdon Creek Campground in Destruction Bay. The Milepost (which has increasingly become our bible now that we're further north) said the campground would be RV-only this time of year, due to bear traffic, but we figured we'd give it a shot anyway. Tucked between the park and Kluane Lake, the campgrounds are very well-kept, have easy access to the lake, AND feature a separate tenting area with an electric bear fence for use when bear traffic is considered too high for tenting (seen on the right).

By nightfall, the fenced in area was fully occupied and we'd met a lot of very interesting people, including a family from Anchorage, a family from Israel, and campers from Quebec and Ontario. We talked around the fire, went for a walk by the lake, and ended the night with our first view of the Northern Lights! It was a modest show, but amazing to see nonetheless, and seemingly uncommon for this time of year given how few hours of true darkness there are.

After telling our new friend from Anchorage about our trip and the car and everything, he gave us his official stamp of the approval, calling our dusty, bug-covered ride:

"Very rugged." —#200lbsofCanadianSausage

Days 11-12: Prince Rupert, BC to Haines, AK

August 02, 2017 by Rita Fisher

When we finally got onto the ferry, we made our way right up to the solarium deck to pitch our tent and get settled in for the night. Yes, we could have gotten a cabin or slept in the "recliner lounge," but the tent option was just so appealing. And, in the end, we really liked it. There were several other people sleeping up on that deck, though most were tucked under the shelter of the solarium. Here's a look at our tent in the daylight, without the rainfly (which was very necessary to keep the wind out overnight):

Our tent on the solarium deck of the Matanuska

We woke up as the ferry was approaching Ketchikan and decided to use our two-hour "layover" to explore. We were pleasantly surprised by Ketchikan. It's a little tourist-y, which is to be expected, but there's also plenty more that's unique.

Highlights included Whale Park, Parnassus Books, and also hustling back to the ferry when the free shuttle back wouldn't pick us up... But, thankfully, we made it back on time and settled back onto the solarium deck to enjoy the rest of the ride.

The following stops in Wrangell, Petersburg, and Juneau were too short to get off and see anything, but perhaps we'll go back another time and do the ferry all over again, this time with stops. We met a lot of nice people on the ferry, got some ideas on what we should see in Alaska, and settled in for another night in the tent. Below are a few shots from aboard the Matanuska:

The next day, we got things packed up in preparation for our return to the Fiat and spent the rest of our ferry ride relaxing until our 2PM arrival in Haines, Alaska, which we really liked. We drove around town, checked in at the Captain's Choice Motel, which is super clean, very convenient, and has amazing views of the bay. We decided to go for a drive around the area to check out the Chilkat Lake. On the way, we happened upon some people fishing for salmon in the Chilkat River. Just upstream were two juvenile bears doing a little fishing of their own. As they meandered toward us, everyone made their way back to their cars and RVs, but the bridge above made a perfect spot to watch one of the two making his way casually down the river.

After a little more driving, we stopped in at Second Nature, a really cool little shop just across from our motel. The owner is incredibly helpful and gave us some great tips on the area. We followed this up with dinner at Fireweed (which I believe is owned by a former Chicagoan, based on the very large Cubs Win flag by the bar). Then, back home to the Captain's Choice, as seen below (hell of a view, right?).

Day 10: Terrace, BC to Prince Rupert, BC

July 31, 2017 by Rita Fisher

Just as promised, the drive from Terrace to Prince Rupert is spectacular. Lots of long, winding stretches lined with wildflowers, curving along the Skeena River. It's not a long drive, but there were plenty of times that we came around a curve and we both struck by the beauty of the tree-covered mountains. We stopped at turnoff just past the Khyex River, just as what looked like a Bald Eagle perched on the tree by the turnoff.

Next, we made our way into Prince Rupert and drove around a bit, checked out the ferry terminal, walked around the "downtown" area and got some supplies. There's not much to it, but it's got some charm. We stopped for burgers at Cargo Kitchen, seated on their back patio overlooking the bay.

Our ride on the Alaska Marine Ferry Highway from Prince Rupert to Haines was scheduled to leave at 3AM, which meant checking in at the terminal by midnight. We ended up heading over a little before 11PM, which was a very good idea. There were already cars lining up, so we took a spot, walked down to the terminal to check in, and then settled in for the long wait.

Day 9: Jasper, AB to Terrace, BC

July 30, 2017 by Rita Fisher

When we decided on an extra day in Jasper, we knew that would mean a long day of driving today. Our ferry to Alaska leaves on August 1, so we knew we needed to make it to Prince Rupert by then. The drive was a little long, but it was pretty amazing to see the landscape change from the rocky terrain of Jasper to a bit of flat to the beginnings of the lush combination of rainforest and mountains in the Pacific Northwest.

Other than that, the day was pretty uneventful. We learned a bit about the Yellowhead Highway along the way, before finally arriving in Terrace. We heard from a few people that the drive from Terrace to Prince Rupert was especially beautiful, and would therefore be a shame to drive at night, so we decided to spend the night in Terrace. We found an excellent Airbnb in Terrace, in a fairly residential neighborhood, but with everything we needed and more. A very nice kitchen to make dinner, plus some extra time in the morning to do laundry and get organized before we got on the ferry.

Only a little over a day until we finally arrive in Alaska!

Day 8: Jasper, AB

July 29, 2017 by Rita Fisher

We took the time to plan a little bit more of the next couple of days, and decided that we could afford another day in Jasper. Between the cabin and the park and the town, we couldn't leave just yet. We were lucky enough to obtain another night at the Pine Bungalows, and we spent the day meandering around the Jasper townsite and surrounding area.

The drive up to Maligne Lake and the lake itself both come highly recommended, so we began the day with that. After a quick stop at the Maligne Lookout, we wandered around the Maligne Lake grounds and decided to rent a canoe from the Maligne Lake Boathouse. The rental part was super quick and easy, and just like that we were paddling along the shoreline. There are more than a few people at Maligne Lake, so it was definitely easier to appreciate the beauty of the lake from a canoe, with less of a crowd.

We followed this up with a little more driving, a walk around downtown, and another night at the Pine Bungalows, dinner made in their perfectly portioned kitchen. We also took the time to re-evaluate and re-pack the car, which should help things run more smoothly once we're on the ferry to Alaska, coming up in just a few days!

Day 7: Canmore, AB to Jasper, AB

July 28, 2017 by Rita Fisher

Today brought us into the National Parks, beginning with Banff National Park and making our way down the Icefields Parkway into Jasper National Park. Along the way, we stopped at Bow Lake, the Columbia Icefield, and Athabasca Falls.

Bow Lake is undeniably beautiful, especially on a sunny day when the turquoise waters are glinting up at you. Then you look left and notice the giant Bow Glacier at one end (see the photo on the right), feeding the lake. But, just up the road is Peyto Lake. It's not visible from the road and it's a little bit of an ascent on foot, but it's 100% worth it. We decided to skip Peyto this trip, for the sake of time, but if you’re anywhere near Peyto Lake, definitely stop. (Here's a picture from our trip to Peyto Lake last year.)

Next, the Columbia Icefield, where you can get pretty damn close to the toe of the Athabasca Glacier. Note: Across the way you’ll see a big information center/cafeteria thing (pass), from which you can also take a bus onto the glacier (hard pass). Instead, we walked up a short, gravel ascent to where you can walk around the toe and watch the glacial runoff begin it’s trip downhill.

As you walk up, there are markers showing where the toe of the glacier reached in previous years, which is incredibly interesting (in a very tragic way)—not to mention the fact that the whole spot will likely be a lake by 2100, with no glacier in sight.

After that, onto the Athabasca Falls (which are fed by the glacier above), which are quite active this time of year. There were more people there than is ideal, but you can’t deny how spectacular they are, even when ten other people are at the same viewing point with you. See below:

Though we'd originally planned to try to get further today, there's just something about Jasper. On the off-chance they had something available, we pulled into the Pine Bungalows, located just outside of town on the Athabasca River. Turns out, we took the very last room they had—we even watched the "Sorry, no vacancy" sign turn on when we got back in the car to drive to our cabin.

The cabins are absolutely perfect, super clean with everything you need, including a functional kitchen with a stove. There's no wifi in the cabins, but it's kind of nice to be a little disconnected. They've done an excellent job renovating the place, and they keep the area very quiet and dark at night. Less light pollution + the sound of the Athabasca River outside our cabin = two thumbs up. We went to the grocery store for some supplies (which was surprisingly well stocked, for a grocery store on the small end) and walked around in downtown Jasper. It’s an old railroad town, very quaint and relaxed. It's a bit more understated and homey than the Banff townsite, and even though it has the expected surplus of t-shirt and tchotchke shops, there’s also plenty more to see.

Days 5-6: Drumheller, AB to Canmore, AB

July 27, 2017 by Rita Fisher

For the sake of keeping up with posts, we're combining days 5 and 6. Day 5 began with a drive down the Dinosaur Trail: we stopped by Horseshoe Canyon (below, left), took a ride over the Red Deer River on the Bleriot Ferry, and took in the view at Orkney Lookout (above and below, right). At last, we made our way out of the badlands and over to Calgary, where we were set to stay with some good friends. After dinner at Bocce and a walk on the outskirts of Calgary, we headed back home for the night.

Day 6 brought us back to Canmore, a fairly perfect little town in Alberta bordered by Kananaskis Country, Bow Valley Provincial Park, Banff National Park, and Kootenay National Park. We were lucky enough to spend another night with our friends from Calgary (tonight in Canmore), enjoyed some Chinese food for dinner and took a walk, where we spotted a herd of elk—have you ever heard the sound a baby elk makes?

P.S. Here's an excellent B&B if you're ever in Canmore!

Day 4: Moose Jaw, SK to Drumheller, AB

July 25, 2017 by Rita Fisher

We set out from Moose Jaw nice and early this morning and started our journey westward, passing through more tiny towns. As we were making our way down the 1 toward Swift Current, we noticed what almost looks like snow on either side of the road. It turns out these are actually large sodium sulphate deposits from Chaplin Lake, Canada’s second largest inland saline water body. The salt from the lake seems to make up the predominant industry in the postage stamp of a town, as well as making it an excellent place to spot shorebirds (and grow sea monkeys, another export). Googling small towns has become a favorite road trip diversion, so there may be more of these off-topic asides coming up.

On the road to the Great Sandhills in Sasketchewan

Our next stop was the Great Sandhills, one of the largest set of active sand dunes in Canada. Once you hit the town of Sceptre (home of the Great Sandhills Museum and Interpretive Center, which sadly closed at noon), you head south on a pretty unmarked route on a gravel road, surrounded by a whole lot of nothing. Thankfully, between the map posted here and the directions posted here, we were able to find the right spot. We spent a couple of hours meandering around the "trails" and climbing up dunes—overall it was definitely worth the stop.

After dumping about a pound of sand out of our shoes, we got back in the car and headed to Dinosaur Provincial Park—named for the forty different dinosaur species (and countless specimens) been discovered there. There's nothing quite like going from the sandy dunes to wide open expanses to what almost looks like the surface of the moon. Driving through the badlands feels very epic. It was getting a bit late by then, so we drove a loop through the park and got out to see some of the amazing landscapes and fossil displays around the park.

We decided we would spend the night in Drumheller, stopping in Wayne first at the Last Chance Saloon to pick up some dinner (delicious food, very friendly service). You'll notice in the video below several bridges near the end—the road into Wayne weaves along the Rosebud River with the help of eleven bridges. Between that and the rugged badlands on either side of you, it's a hell of a place to go for a drive.

Day 3: New Rockford, ND to Moose Jaw, SK

July 24, 2017 by Rita Fisher

The day began with even more expansive North Dakota prairies, followed by a drive through Minot (home of the North Dakota State Fair), then onto even more wide open spaces, separated by yellow fields of canola and tiny towns that seem to be a few blocks long. We crossed the Canadian border in Portal, ND (which was quite quick and painless) and entered Sasketchewan. Did you know Saskatchewan looks a lot like North Dakota?

After a bit of research in the car, we decided to spend the night in Moose Jaw—also known as Little Chicago, so dubbed for its connection to Al Capone. Overall, we’re big fans of Moose Jaw—we took a walk through Crescent Park, visited some of Moose Jaw’s many murals (shown below), grabbed a bite at Browns Socialhouse, and headed back to Grant Hall Hotel, a hotel originally built in 1927, during Moose Jaw’s Railway Era.

You’ll see in the video at the top of the post that we hit a bit of gravel eventually. The Traction+ Mode worked wonders on a loose gravel road that hadn’t seen maintenance in quite some time.

Our bug-killing tank takes a rest in the parking lot of the Bison Lodge.

Day 2: Warrens, WI to New Rockford, ND

July 23, 2017 by Rita Fisher

We covered some pretty good ground today, despite a pretty long construction slowdown in Minnesota and a bit of a stop when a car ignited on the side of the road in Minneapolis (no, really, a car became a fiery inferno within a few minutes).

The 500x has been quite the trooper, especially once we got onto the great expanses of traffic-free North Dakota and could really open her up. Here's what you'll see in the video below: the tail-end of Wisconsin, Minneapolis, a little bit of Minnesota's Otter Tail County, followed by Fargo and more glorious, wide-open North Dakota.

We stopped for a pizza at Jonny B's Brickhouse in Jamestown, then ended the night one hour north in New Rockford at the Bison Lodge, an old school motel (in the best possible way—very clean, great service) with a hunting lodge.

Day 1: Chicago, IL to Warrens, WI

July 22, 2017 by Rita Fisher

After a bit of a late start today, we made our first stop of the trip in Warrens, Wisconsin—where we found an excellent Airbnb surrounded by 40 acres of horse pasture. Check out the video below to see our drive (shot on a YI 4K Action Camera and GoPro HERO5—we're testing out both). Stay tuned!

we're going to alaska

July 22, 2017 by Rita Fisher

The 500xpedition to Alaska is ready to begin! After one last stop to see Miss Della, the 500x is all packed up and on the road—ready to see how far can get today.