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Day 15 - 7:00 PM
No insects!
We entered British Columbia today, but only for a short time. The Alaska Highway dipped into BC before returning to the Yukon during today's drive.
Snow greeted us as we awoke this morning in Haines Junction. It was the light powdery kind of white that easily blows free of whatever surface it coats, which was pretty much everything not under shelter. The snow arrived some time after 1:00 am. How can I be so sure you ask?
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| Photo: Rob Rothwell/Auto123.com |
At 1:00 am, I was wandering around the outside of our hotel in the freezing cold looking for the Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis as they are more technically known. Stefano assured me that they would be visible, and being a boy from the south who had never seen the northern phenomenon, I was anxious to hold witness.
Stefano had verification from his Uncle Camillo, in Italy, that the lights would be aglow for all to see at one in the morning. Well, they definitely treated some folks to a show but they managed to evade my anticipatory eyes; I went back to bed and allowed the microwave LCD to glow in substitution.
Stefano and his crew applied a little more rigor in their mission to observe nature's light show by driving out of town to where man's presence had not obscured such sightings with extraneous light sources. They validated Camillo's claim and were grandly rewarded for their determination.
Soon after departing Haines Junction en-route to Watson Lake, Yukon, the sky began to lighten as heavy clouds lifted to reveal the full magnitude of the peaks they had been keeping from us. One never tires of the magnificent vistas in the north that spoil the eyes with every glance.
My driving partner and I continue to marvel at the rugged landscape that makes up the majority of this unspoiled land, which we are exploring in the pre-tourist season. There are some significant benefits to an early spring trip to the north; perhaps the greatest of which is the absence of insects. I understand they can grow as large as Buicks in the summer months.
Along with an insect-free experience, April sojourners will find the mountains heavily coated from top to bottom in snow. In fact, heavy snowfall throughout the region is not unusual this time of year, and must be factored into one's trip planning. Despite the need for contingency planning, many rewards--such as quiet roads and an absence of crowds--await those hearty enough to face the frozen tundra at the onset of spring.
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| Photo: Rob Rothwell/Auto123.com |
We have certainly benefited from touring the north this time of year, and now having done so, I'm not sure I'd want to undertake this challenge at any other point in the calendar. Except for some morning snow, our roads were clear and dry as the sun escorted us to Watson Lake. While en-route we had the good fortune to stop and gaze at a small herd of caribou as they bounded their way safely across the Alaska Highway.
At just under 900 km, tomorrow's drive to Smithers, BC will be the longest of the Arctic tour. We plan to be mobile at 6:00 am; breakfast will have to wait until we have a couple of hundred clicks behind us. This early jump should have us into Smithers around dinnertime. The weather's looking a little sketchier, with light snow in the forecast--but it's all good.
Rob