Rainy Days and Tuesdays

May 30, 2016.

We left Clearwater BC on Friday morning and drove north on Hwy 5 in light rain. Almost every vehicle we saw (both directions) was an RV, most of them rentals. When we reached the junction of Hwy 5 with 16, the Yellowhead Hwy, all of the traffic turned east, toward the Canadian Rockies, and we had the road westward to Prince George to ourselves. Despite the drizzle, it was a lovely drive along the Thompson River with occasional glimpses of the Rockies. At Valmont we filled up our spare gas can for the first time as it is a long haul between gas stations. We saw our first bear between McBride and Prince George.

We stayed two nights in St. George at a so-so campground. It rained most of the time but we got our laundry done and went to WalMart and Costco. We met a couple from the RVillage North to Alaska group, John and Rocki. They are from Pensacola and recently retired from the military.

It was still raining on Sunday morning but we decided to push on in search of better weather. Continuing west on Hwy 16, we saw vast improvement within an hour. This is such a beautiful road; it has lakes and rivers and mountain ranges and it just gets better the further west we go. We stopped that night at Fort Telkwa RV Campground. It is on a little bluff overlooking the Bulkley River with the Hudson Bay Mountains in the distance. The sites are basic (although we have a lovely aspen tree and a briar rose bush) but the views are to die for! 

Monday was a super day. First we went up to Driftwood Canyon Provincial Park to walk up to the fossil beds. The ride out there and back was gorgeous and the walk was neat. They ask you not to remove any of the rocks but we had fun shifting through the piles of shale looking for fossils. There have been some very significant finds from this site, including a fossilized prehistoric bird complete with feathers. We did find some worm casings and tiny plants.

The Telkwa – Smithers area is known for its world famous steel head fishing. The season hasn’t started yet but there are all kinds of outdoor activities going on. Smithers is a real G & B (Granola & Birkenstock) kind of town and we enjoyed our lunch at the Two Sisters Café and our stroll through the village. Afterwards we drove out to Twin Falls Provincial Park and hiked up to the overlook to the Falls. The variety of wildflowers was just amazing. We liked the Falls up we loved the flowers.

On the way back we stopped at Lake Kathlyn for some local color. We chatted with a young lady who is an Olympic sprinting kayaker. She was at Lake Lanier in 1996. Also watched a First Citizen toddler enjoy his first (nude) plunge in the lake. His laughter was absolutely delightful. A group of young folks spread out on the grass to make music and let us enjoy their totally amazing little dog. A toy Poodle-Boston Terrier mix, he had so much personality he should be a politician. I really wanted that dog!

It rained again today and there is rain in the forecast until Saturday. We decided to drive on to Prince Rupert, set up, and wait for the ferry. PR is a good sized town and has indoor activities we can pursue. The drive was marvelous even in the rain. Most of the time we were beside rivers; either the Bulkley or the Skeena, or one of their tributaries with towering mountain ranges on both sides. As we neared Prince Rupert we began to traverse deep canyons with waterfalls streaking down the walls. Stunning!

Our campsite at Telkwa

Twin Falls

Kayaker on the Lake

Fi

Concert on the Green

My new best friend

The Church of What's Happening.

It rains a lot in this part of the country so there is no point in getting bent out of shape. One of the advantages to a leisurely trip like ours is that we have time to wait out the weather. The advantage to an RV is you can be warm and dry while you do it.