Friday, July 21, 2006. We will be heading down the Cassiar Highway going south into British Columbia (BC) to get on route back to Ontario.

 
Denis says "does it get any better than this". Caught native rainbow trout which means not stocked. He is quite surprised there is still Native Trout..
Saturday, July 22, 2006.  Stayed at Boya Lake CG on the first night of the Cassiar Hwy and last night stayed at Upper Gnat Lake, dry camping. The drive has been very scenic but the weather has been cool and cloudy...this means above 0C and below 10C! We are amongst the Cassiar Mountain range. Upper Gnat Lake area seems to be in a mountain pass. We will be in the Skeena Mountains soon.
Monday, July 24th. We are at the Kinaskan Lake Provincial Park today and will stay for 3 days. Denis is hoping for some sunshine. We have not seen much of that this past week. BC Provincial parks charge $14.00 - $17.00. Fourteen dollars is with no Sani-dump nor free hot showers but have hand-pumps for drinking water. We have noticed that municipal visitor centers have sani-dumps, which is great.

Winding gravel roads on and off but the views are spectacular.

 

 

 

 

 

 
There is not a look out for this picture, I just happen to spot it between the trees. There is a Glacier there. There is a look out further up but not as good.

This tennis look alike is called the Executioner. Up to now we have been laughing about this gizmo but since a week ago we have put it to good use with the mosquitoes. We bought it before leaving at the Bass Pro store and it sure works good besides making killing mosquitoes so much fun.

 
Denis checking to see what he has left to fish with. He still has his brook trout gear!

 
This little guy is fishing for food. It just happens we have some nuts for him.

We visited Jade City. This is world famous jade capital. There are chunks of raw jade and lots of jade jewellery. There are two stores in competition here. One is the original, on the left if going south.
The jade is called the Cassiar jade (Rhodonite). These local mines supply 75% of the world Jade. The most precious boulders are personally inspected and bought by Chinese, Hindu and even monk purchasers.

 

 
I really like this pink (raspberry) stone but I cannot remember the name. I did buy a cute little necklace from this stone. This also is a local stone mined in this area.


 
Wednesday, July 26, 2006. We are heading South on the Cassiar to-day. Weather has been 7 degrees in morning - 13 degrees mid-afternoon. Hope to go to warmer weather. We hear it 100 in southern BC!. We are in mountain ranges. Costal Mountain Range, Skeena Mountains and the Cassiar Mountains. We should be staying at the Meziadin Lake Provincial CG and visit Stewart and Hyder.
Thursday, July 27, 2006. We have left our trailer at Meziadin Lake, since we will start heading west from there and driving from the Junction of Cassiar Hwy 37 & 37A. The views are spectacular and Denis is driving me crazy. The drive to Steward/Hyder is stated to be spectacular, and it is. Most tourist go a bit further to the fish creek boardwalk area, a US Forestry managed platform to see the salmon spawn and the grizzlies feed on them, BUT, there is a gravel road that leads on further for 40 kms or so, to the Salmon Glacier and this road is not to be missed. This had to be one of the most scenic roads we have ever taken! It's a cliff hanger that goes by many old and modern mines and takes you up to an overlook of the Salmon Glacier. The road went further, but we ran out of time, so start early!

Salmon Glacier Road

The Granduc (Salmon Glacier) Road was completed in 1965. It was originally there for  the Granduc Mine site about 40 km north-northwest of Stewart. The road winds its way through some of the most spectacular and rugged scenery in the world as it passes along the eastern edge of the Salmon Glacier and Summit Lake to the site of the Granduc camp. As of 1983 the mining activity has been closed. The ride to the Summit is soooo worth it.

Denis says when he dies he would like some of his ashes scattered here. This is "Salmon Glacier Summit". This summit is surrounded by Coastal Mountains. You have to see it to believe it.

This is looking west towards the Pacific coast and down below a few kms past the river is the bear viewing platform.
This is looking east towards the Salmon glacier.
 

Steward, B.C., is a small town. In 1902 Robert and John Stewart arrived in the community. The brothers laid out a town site and formed the Stewart Land Company. The community received its name in 1905 from Robert, who was the towns first Postmaster, using his last name as the official designation. Mining was Stewart's beginning.

 

A glacial pond.

 

 

 

 
A glacial  stream.

 

 

 


Hyder, Ak. is located at the North end of the Portland Canal and on the south end of the Alaska Panhandle, Hyder is just 2 miles from Stewart. The town is surrounded by glacier crowned peaks, many exceeding 6000 feet. Some of the largest glaciers in south Eastern Alaska wind among the peaks and ridges of the Salmon Valley. Hyder was also a miners and prospectors town and was once know as Portland d City but was changed in 1915, after Frederick B Hyder, a Canadian engineer working for the Juneau Gastineau Mining Co.

<I do not have a good picture of Hyder, if you do please send it to me. Thanks

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Fish Creek Wildlife Viewing area.
This is unique opportunity to view and photgraph Alaskan Brown (Grisslies) and Black bears. The bears come here to feed on the Chum and pink salmon which spawn in the creek. While we were there we had only observed one black bear but his/she was not hungry.
Friday, July 28, 2006. We have finished the Cassiar Hwy today. We are now heading east on the Yellowhead Hwy. The Yellowhead highway will take us all the way to Winnipeg. We will visit Denis' cousin in Houston on Sunday.

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