km 24081 - 27678

Alaska Highway - legendary road, famous signs and wild animals
In only 240 days the famous road was build through the forest by some thousand soldiers during World-War 2.
We follow it from Whitehorse in the North to Prince George.

During building up our tent the material gets broken two times with a big noise. Like paper it tears - o dear! And this on the campground in Watson Lake which is full of hungry mosquitos.
Alex repairs as good as possible with some Therm-a-rest patches and tape. Now we have a colorfull house like Pippi Langstrumpf...

It looks like a forest of signs in front of the Visitor Info of Watson Lake. Everybody who has been here and who had a sign has fixed it. We see city-signs and plates from former GDR, Germany, plates from all over the world - it looks great!
To visit this place, it's worth because of somewhere between all these signs there is also one of us now. ;-D

Some very long straight parts are typically for the Alaska Highway, remebering us of Siberia. But mostly we drive in lovely scenery. Especially after Coal River, where we meet a British couple on their way around on one BMW GS1150. They started just some weeks ago to their round the word trip for three years and we have a nice talking before we enjoy the road passing the northern beginning of the Canadian Rocky Mnts.

Close to the road we see wild animals again and again. A bear and her kids pass the road, Deer looking out of forest, Goats and Moose inviting for some photos.
A small flock of Buffalos standing at the shoulder, eating calmly, not impressed by all the people around with cameras, taking photos.
Wildlife beginns close to the Highway here in Cannada.

Hot springs and hungry Mosquitos again
Steaming and coverred with bubbles the small lake appears, water between green and blue. And so warm, a bath tub in the middle of forest.
We are at Liard Hotsprings, sharing our place with hundreds of hungry mosquitos. After a short walk passing some muddy meadows we reach the so called Beta Pool where water is more hot than in the further up placed Alpha Pool. So we go on and reach the empty small lake which we enjoy for a hot bath. Smell of sulphur is bearable and so we are clean and fresh back in our free of mosquitos tent, enjoying supper inside.

Peaks of the Canadian Rockys scraping the sky, deep valleys and unknown sculptures of rocks fascinate us after every turn. Already some miles behind Liard River an impressing landscape welcomes us. We could stop every mile and take pictures.
Especially beautiful the turqouise Muncho Lake shines in the sun. We ride on through a lovely mountain landscape to Summit Pass. At 1290m elevation we enjoy a great view again.

Fort Nelson is not worth to go to, but we can use the library for uploading our first report aboout Canada (the German one).
We enjoy so much time on our bikes that we have not enough left for doing all the writings... ;-D

Again hungry mosquitos are waiting for us - we reach a small campground South of Fort Nelson. We thought we passed the bad times with mosquitos by crossing Western Siberia but Canadian mosquitos are not better than their Russian relatives!

Fascination Mountains-scenery - Canadian Rocky Mountains
No mosquitos! After we left Alaska Highway behind Fort St. John and took the small but beautifull John Hart Hw 99 untill some miles behind Chedwyn we left them behind us.
Enjoying the first mosquito-free time we are tenting on the cheap Wildmare RV Park (10,- CAD incl. firewood, showers unlimited for 2,-). The young owner joins us a while before we enjoy showers and cooking outside calmly. World is so much nicer without mosquitos!

After one night at Purden Lake we are in the middle of a unique mountain-scenery, suddenly.
At the right the beautiful Cariboo Mtns., at the left the Rockys with snowcovered peaks and special shapes.
Majesticly Mt. Robson appears after a turn. 3954 meters, the highest mountain of the Canadian Rockkys. Snow-covered peak, huge walls and a bottom seeming unique. Face to face to Mt. Terry Fox of the Cariboo Mnts. with more than 2400 meters also beatiful. The story how this mountain got his name is touching:
The 18 years old Terry Fox had cancer and his riight leg had to be amputated. During his stay and training with the new artificial leg in hospital he was touched by the pain and illness of other patients.
He decided to collect money during a marathon from coast to coast. So he ran about 42 km a day on his way from the East coast to the West coast of Canada and collected one CAD from each person he met. 24 Mio. CAD he got on his 143 days taking marathon.
On his way backk he had to interrupt because of new cancer in his lounge.
Terry died at the age of 23 and got a hero for his nation. So the mountain got his name.

At the entrance to Jasper Nationalpark we goot a small shock as we are asked to pay 17,90 CAD entry fee for the park, per day. 123,- CAD we have to pay for the family anual pass for all National Parks in Canada. Because we want to drive a bit slowlier now and there are some further Parks on our route we take it.

Jasper seems to the Davos of the Rockys - tourists from all over the world fill the streets, gas prices are high (and this although we left BC!) and people seem to be nerved. Quickly we fill up our gas and food and leave this crowded town as fast as possible.

At Athabasca River we find a quiet campground and rest a few days before riding the Icefields Hw. 93 South.
Carsten cleans the carburator of the XL. Because of whatever it's running not as good as before. Alex writes a new article for our local newspaper and we relax.

Passing glaciers on Icefield Highway
1931 a few hundred men were sent with horses, shovels and a few tractors into the heart of the Rockys. Earning 20 Cents a day they shovelt and build A.O. Wheelers "Wonder Trail" into the Banff - Jasper Highway. 1940 opened it was paved between 1950 and 1960 and named into "Icefields Parkway", Hw. 93.

We are surronded by many over 3000 meters high peaks, one nicer than the other. Huge icefields on the peaks, glaciers flowing down into wild valleys, ending in wild foaming rivers with icy water.
Some of the rocky giants lockk like bizarre sculptures, others reemind us to Wild West movies. We would not be wondering when an Indian appears, looking for Yankees.
But these times has gone long time ago. Today hundreds of RVs and cars creeping up the high passes. Crowded on the only road through the heart of the Canadian Rockys traffic is much and we are no more used to so much traffic.
Monster-trucks are carrying paying tourists over the millions of years old glaciers, especially to the biggest one, the Columbia Icefield. RVs and cars crowding the parking lots.

Trying to ignore all the vehicles as well as possible we are driving through this fascinating scenery made of stone and ice.
For 170 km we need more than five hours - because of taking photos and wondering. Too much impressing the mountains, too unique the lakes for just driving through.

Hiking the mountains
That's why we walk a while - taking the trail up to Helen Lake. But we never arrived...
No, no fear, nothing happend! We only not have been sure if we are on the right way and our oncoditioned muscles has shown signs of tirement ;-D

At elevation over 2000 meters the trail starts, 500 meters alttiitude will be done on 6 km on a steep forest trail. We feel the thin air!
After a while and some impressing views to the Bow Glacier and the surrounding 3000 m peaks we reach the zone without trees.
Fields of stones and alpine meadows are around us. View is spectacular again. Nevertheless we turn around and start the way back after two hours. Later we see on a map that we have not been far away from the lake but it was a very nice hike, nevertheless!

Missing a beer and no more tourist crowds
Actually we wanted to visit a guy in Revelstoke who had invited us for a beer some weeks ago by internet. But unfortunately Cameron is not at home and so we spend there only one night at a campground at Williamson Lake.

Almost no "Fivth Wheel", no tourists, empty highways although we are still next to the Rockies. We escaped from the crowds and enjoy the lonelyness on Hw95 South.

Carsten found out why the XL didn't work contended. The airfilter was sticked and after cleaning the filter everything is fine again.

A few days are left only, before we will enter our last unknown country - soon will be close to the US-border.

Fernie is at Hw3 next to the Fernie-mountain skiing area. Houses look pretty nice, like we know them from wildwest-movies. Folks are espacially friendly, smiling and chatting with us. The scenery around us is beautiful!
We feel very comfortable and Alex dreams about getting old in Fernie...:-)
But we don't stay there, we go on and pass the 1396 m high Rocky Mountains Crowsnest Pass.
Long time ago a big mountain next to the highway collapsed and we look at huge parts of rocks which have been spread in the area.

Suddenly the scenery changes - bare mountains, many stones, steppe instead of forest. There's no shadow and villages seem to be little lakes in this bare landscape.
We are riding South, direction United States.
Our last night at a campground we spend in the Waterton National Park.
We can already see the Mt. Chief in the States, only a few kilometers separate us from the border.

Ameeriicaa, Ameeriicaa...
Carsten is a little bit nervous because of the border crossing - our last one was like a nightmare! Like always we have absolutely nothing to hide, but who knows what they will think of something...
Nothing but we have to eat our sausages!

We can't believe first, but it gonna be the fastest and easiest border crossing since we have left Europe.
Fingerprints and pictures are taken, we have to fill a small questionnaire and answer some questions ("Are you planning any terroristic activity in the US?").
The Immigration Officer is satisfied with our answers, even our flight tickets he won't see!
We are treated good, the friendly officer forgets almost to collect the 6,- USD per person and comes out again as we are eating the Canadian sausages. Importing meat is not allowed.
After 15 minutes everything is done we got stemps for 3 months and they wish us a nice stay in the US.

While leaving Canada nobody cares about us, nobody is at the border, we get no stemp, no questions, nothing! We ask ouself why they made us so much trouble at entering when nobody checks us at leaving?

Next two month we will visit the "Country of unlimiited possiblities".
What we will experience here you can read as usual on this screen in the next report.

Greets from Montana, USA,

Alex & Carsten