The Alcan Highway
We relocated from Yoho NP near Lake Louise today and drove the Icefield Parkway to Jasper. We are here for two nights, then a stop at Grande Prairie for resupply before hitting Mile 0 of the Alcan. Grande Prairie has Sam’s Club and Costco, so we can get fresh veggies, dairy and eggs. So, while at Jasper we saw bears, elk and deer. Then on the way out of Jasper we saw more Bighorn Sheep right in the middle of the rode.
A black bear on the way into Maligne Lake.
Athabasca Falls
Columbia Icefield/Athabasca Glacier
A nice elk in velvet on the way out from Maligne Lake
Our campsite at Whistler Campground in Jasper
Our departure from Jasper took us from the Yellowhead Highway 16 to the Bighorn Highway 40 to Grande Prairie, AB and on to Dawson Creek, the start of the Alaskan Highway. While here, we went to the Alaskan Highway Museum and watched a movie about the making of the highway. Despite trying for years to get a highway built, it took WWII to actually make it happen. The whole highway was completed in 9 months at a cost of $140,000,000. We finished some grocery shopping and then today we drove to see the Kiskatinaw Bridge and the wood carvings at Chetwynd, BC. The International Chainsaw Carving Championships are coming up in June.
Tomorrow we start our journey up the Alcan. We hope to see lots of wildlife along this stretch of the road. Before we get to Alaska, we will go through more of British Columbia, the Yukon, Northwest Territories and we'll cross the Yukon River. Have a great Memorial Day weekend. And especially thanks to all of our veteran's out there.
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