Day Four - Jun 16, 2004
Liard River Hot Springs, B.C. to Dawson Creek, BC
Daily Didactic
Brian has driven the Alcan a lot. He can't really recall any more, but it is around twenty times and definitely once more than Todd. Sadly, it wasn't until his and Theresa's first lengthy road trip that he took the time to stop at Liard River Hot Springs. They haven't missed it since. The hot spring has upper and lower pools, the upper being a lot more muddy, murky and smelly. Clearly this is Brian and Theresa's favorite. The lower is way hotter and a little more civilized, but you really have to do them both while you are there. That said, any day that starts with a muddy smelly dip is a good sign that things are going well and today was no different. After sleeping in, dipping in the springs, and reploying camp we made it on the road promptly at noon.
This is one of the most majestic stretches of the Alcan, taking in Toad River, Muncho Lake and Summit Lake. It was a blue bird day over the summit and the scenery was spectacular. Down the backside of what the MilePost simply calls "Summit", things are still pretty but the communities are not so charming. Fort Nelson and Fort St. John both peddle gas, food and lodging, but also clearly make more of a living on the development and refining of smelly natural gases of some sort. On down the road, Dawson Creek always represents a milestone in the drive, as the official beginning of the original Alaska-Canada highway, and introduces an agricultural flavor (and to Theresa's ongoing delight cows). What seemed to hold more delight for her this time, however, was a Dairy Queen dipped cone she had been going on about most of the day.
After the Dairy Queen stop, we putted on down the road a few miles and found a spot for the night at the nicely located Swan Lake Provincial Campground.
Today's Photos
