Anchorage - Week 1

March 24^th – March 30^th 2014

We had “normal work week” - well, J. had her orientation at the hospital and it was every work day more less between 8 – 5. Mornings were really cold and unpleasant. Afternoons had sunshine and were nice and pretty and enjoyable (still somewhat cold). We had to do more practical stuff – get settled, completely unpacked, more groceries – again, normal boring stuff. Quiet evening by fire (we have real fireplace) on Friday. As far as I can remember we did not do anything special during those work days.

Snow is slowly melting (even we were told that there will be one or two more snow storms before summer). Mornings are cold (about 15 – 20 degrees), afternoons are warmer (35 – 39 degrees). However, we saw quite a few people who are walking around in shorts (and some type of jacket). But, one day while driving I saw a guy in the park walking in shorts and t-shirts. In general, however, it is like anywhere else, people are wearing normal winter clothes. 

Saturday … there was 17^th annual gathering on Southcentral Foundation of Native people https://www.southcentralfoundation.com/ in one of the Anchorage's convention centers. Stage, some art and craft stands, and many organizations and initiatives run by SCF. Music and dance by one of the tribes. It was interesting experience. The top of the building had a terrace with some impressive mountains views. A lot of activities showcased during the fair were affiliated with Alaska Native Hospital (J.'s work place). After leaving the fair, we walked through the downtown (quite small one), we got to the sound's parks (and main trail: Tony Knowles), some nice views, snowy and icy walk, Alaska railroad, Ulu (traditional knifes) http://www.theulufactory.com/, and Ship Creek where in summer people can fish for salmon. Back to the town, main street, mostly souvenir shops, nothing really special. We found (by some people in Phoenix) recommended restaurant/bar Humpy's. It was late afternoon and we were hungry so we went in and had fish and chips (pretty good ones). Back to the car. Drive by Eastern European Deli and store (mostly Russian stuff) – interesting but nothing really for me. Home. Cold is making us kind of tired and slower (or at least it feels like that). When relaxing after getting home, we saw on television that there was some type of even at Alaska ZOO for Earth Hour. Looked it up. http://www.earthhour.org/ Around eight o'clock we were at the Zoo. There were some people. We listened to a short presentation and walked through the Zoo after that. It was interesting, cold, and mostly enjoyable. When sun was down, it got darker (still fine) but also colder (not so fine). There was supposed to be something with polar bears by 9:30 pm but we were too cold to wait for that so we went home. Fun day.

Sunday … cold morning (surprisingly). Slowly planning the trip home – it will be middle of summer and accommodation will be limited. We even booked the Alaska ferry for part of the trip. By midday or so we drove north to the Thunderbird Falls in Chugach State Park. http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/units/chugach/ Melting snow is showing gray ground and bunch of garbage all over the place – it is kind of sad look. About half an hour drive, nice views of the mountains around Anchorage. Mile long trail to the waterfalls. There were some people enjoying the nature. Mostly packed snow, few sport had sheet of ice on the ground. Viewing platform, the path down and all the way to the fall. Mostly frozen, therefore offering very different view of the fall. There was a small segment in the middle that was exposed, also part of the creek was not frozen so we could see water flow. Amazing picture. While catching sunshine we were fine, in shadow it was quite cold. We drove through (bedroom community) Eagle River (nothing there) and then home. Quiet evening. Our first full week in Alaska. We also have a date when we will be at home: July 10^th 2014 (at 3:38 pm).

Going North - Week 3

March 17^th – March 23^rd 2014

17+18

We were still driving to Anchorage. Those two days are described below.

19

Getting to know the city. It was cold in the morning (about 15 – 20 degrees). Really cold. Slow morning, breakfast, relaxing, and enjoying “new place” and not being on the road anymore. Pretty comfortable bed, quiet place – all good. We drove to the city – downtown area (a lot of snow), parked and walked to the visitor center. Some information there and in the building next to it we got big pile of maps and brochures. It looks like we are way too early (not much happening until the end of April). Seems that mid May is the “soft start” of the season in Alaska. People on the streets. Pretty small downtown. Across the street there was a visitor center for a public lands. It was federal building so we had to go through the metal detector (really????). Somewhat annoying security person – telling us to buy the house in Anchorage. More information about parks and very nice display of artifacts and animals etc. We did not have much time for that because of parking meter (who wants to get a ticket first day in town?). We drove along the edge of the city (not much access to water) and ended up in the Earthquake park – short walk and decent view of the bay. Really cold – we underestimated weather and were quite cold. Some more groceries – generally food is slightly more expansive here. Home – some cooking – movie – school – sorting and unpacking. We are in Anchorage, Alaska (I am trying to make it believable by repeating it again and again).

20

Cold, again. Surprisingly. Same lazy and relaxing morning. It is pretty outside – snow and mountains in the near distance. It is also cold. J. had her intake interview at 1:00 pm. After that we drove to downtown area where J. found pretty nice used bookstore. Do we really need more books – apparently yes. Cold. Home. Quiet evening. It is messy, snow everywhere – slowly melting. The chip on our car window cracked overnight and now we have nice longer crack. Too bad.

21

Still cold here. J. got her schedule and initial information yesterday and today she had to go visit the unit. At eleven. Similar slow morning, some phone calls, did I mention cold? Hospital. 20 minutes max. After that we stopped by thrift store (J. needs gloves and hat). Nothing. Home. In a short while we drove to Alaska botanical garden (obviously snow covered). There was a guy who appeared when we were looking at their information board. Short talk with him followed by short walk through the garden. Cold. Kind of pretty with no people and all that snow. Close by (on the same road) was Far North Bicentennial Park – big park with many trails. We thought we would check it out and see what is what. The road actually went into strange subdivision (like forest with really big houses). Four or five large parking areas, people skiing or out with their dogs. Many trails designated for dog mushing and skiing. There are many parks in and around Anchorage, unfortunately it is still winter (though slowly leaving the area). After taking a walk in the botanical garden we were less inclined to take another one in the park (snowy and cold). We saw some people on bicycles (they have very wide tires, probably 3 inches or so). Interesting. It will be great area to explore when snow is gone. Home. Quiet afternoon and evening. We are still adjusting to real winter and have some issues how to deal with it and explore Alaska.

22

Saturday. We were both in funny mood and it made the day somewhat strange. Same morning. We left by eleven or so and were heading south. City streets, freeway for few miles and than just two lane road along the water and train track. Impressive views, sun, snow covered mountains. Quite a few people along the way. Hiking trails. State park sites – some closed, some parking lots open. Many pull offs. Some ice on water. Village of Girdwood, some mining sites near by (now tourist attractions), ski resort, aerial tram, hiking trails. Tiny town with not much to do (except winter sports). Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center http://www.alaskawildlife.org/ along the way. Option of driving or walking the loop. Muddy and snowy but still pretty pleasant walk. Bison, moose, elk, bear, and few smaller animals. Pretty nice area with really impressive surroundings. River (or stream) with bunch of ice and bunch of ice breaking off. Few miles further toward Whittier (tiny town, sea port for Alaska ferries and cruise ships). We did not go to Whittier because there is toll tunnel (12 dollars) with assigned times to go there or from there (single lane together with train track). Portage glacier and Portage lake, its visitor center opens in mid May, frozen lake with bunch of people on it (walking or skiing). Strange. Probably 44 cars parked there. Drive back home, sunny and cold. Made us really sleepy. Alaska is interesting and strange.

23

Sunday. Easy and quiet day. Lazy day as well. A lot of monkey business at home (sorting, documents, papers, unpacking, cooking, etc.). We took shorter walk towards Russian Jack Park (really close), but it is hard to know if the trails are for skiing or walking. Few degrees above freezing, sunny – makes it nicer and warmer. Other than that, not much, just normal life.

Going North - To Anchorage

Tuesday, March 18^th 2014

(Tok, AK – Anchorage, AK : 332 miles)

WE ARE IN ALASKA!!!

Cold and dark morning. The cabin was great and comfortable but we were up quite early. That gave us easy morning. We learned from the previous day and pumped gas last night. So we did not have to return to the town in the morning. There was a small coffee maker with several packages of coffee – we could have our two morning cups plus travel cup. We left at 7:15 am, got on the Tok Cutoff highway and were heading to Anchorage (distance of about 325 miles). No wild animals. Our main goal was to get to the city by two o'clock and get into our apartment. The sun was slowly coming up (behind the mountains) and it was really nice. The scenery was the real “Alaskan” one. Snow covered mountains everywhere. Those were some incredible views. Few stops – really, really cold. Other than that: driving and driving. Speed limit: 55 miles per hour. Few icy or snowy spots on the road, otherwise great road. About 150 miles with goofy speed limit, few houses, snow, nice road – intersection – down to Valdez or Anchorage. Quick stop - “gift shop” - gas station. Sunny. Breezy (cold). Driving and driving. Amazing views. At one of the rest stops we finally saw a lonely moose. So far the first one. Other than that: driving and driving, some houses, more civilization, Palmer (town) and than Anchorage. Relatively easy to find the apartment. Drive by hospital. Way too much snow in the city. Apparently it snowed few days ago, otherwise it was incredibly warm and mild winter. Meet our landlord, finish paperwork, get keys. Move in (less than 15 minutes). Costco – groceries (at least some of them). Gasoline price: 3.74 (March 18^th 2014). Costco slightly more expansive. Back in the apartment. Take it easy, unpack, relax. WE ARE IN ANCHORAGE, ALASKA. Still kind of surreal.

Going North - To Tok

Monday, March 17^th 2014

(Haines Junction, YT – Tok, AK : 296 miles)

The time was changing between Yukon and Alaska so we were gaining extra hour and it was relatively short day (six plus some hours). We slept in and enjoy slow and easy morning. The place we stayed in was nice and had kitchenette with supplies for breakfast. Nice breakfast and views of the majestic mountains not so far from the town. When we were getting our stuff into the car it was till bloody cold. It was probably our first day (in long time) when it was really cold (a bit later we were told that it was about minus 2 degrees of Fahrenheit). We left a bottle with water in the car and it was frozen. Gas station (so cold) and tiny (expansive) coffees. Less and less convenience and civilization (sort of). So, so, so cold … however the views that were surrounding us were so incredible. Finally heading to Alaska. Pretty much the same description as yesterday. For about two hundred miles we saw 25 cars (including three semi trucks). The road was bare and dry, however, we finally “met” the famous frost heaves http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frost_heaving – the road damaged by unstable land and frost. The speed limit was 90 kilometers per hour but mostly we had to go slower than that. It made the trip quite long and tedious. By the Lake Kluane (frozen and covered with snow) we saw six Dall sheep (some type of mountain sheep) on the road. There were more running on the side of the mountain. It was interesting view, animals did not really care about us, we slowed down and almost stopped and watched them to cross the road. What a highlight of the day. Few spots on the road with gravel. Still – pretty decent drive. Few settlements – closed or really empty looking ones. Most of the time we had this really amazing surroundings – tall and snowy mountains as far as we could see. Other than that we were just so tired of this long trip, and we are still going and going. We passed the Canadian customs station and drove another 30 kilometers to the US one (bumpy gravel road). Just before the border station there was pull off with “Welcome to Alaska” sign and a monument showing international boundary. The boundary is never ending clearing in the forest, as we were standing there we were looking at this straight empty space just going towards the sky. The US border, passport check, few question, check our pears (fruit from outside of the US and Canada in not allowed). And … surprisingly … there were no other cars passing the border. 90 more miles to Tok, Alaska. Speed limit was 55 miles per hour (what the hell), the road was in excellent condition (what is different here from 20 miles away Yukon?) and the scenery was as beautiful as before. Though we just wanted to be done driving. Tok – about 1400 people – some industrial buildings, few stores, few gas station, a lot of snow. We stopped by Public Lands information center – small and cozy building – helpful lady – display of native crafts and Alaskan animals (large bear). Abundance of booklets and maps, will be easier to figure out what we can do in Alaska. Not much else in Tok. She was surprised and said something like “Just March and we have already visitors”. Our accommodation – really nice a comfortable cabin. We put our stuff in and drove back to the town. Gasoline. Restaurant – we were so hungry – pretty decent food. Back to the cabin and enjoy the evening. Last day on the road. LAST ONE.

Going North - To Haines Junction

Sunday, March 16^th 2014

(Watson Lake, YT – Haines Junction, YT : 367 miles)

We were up early, called the bank about the credit card (should be solved), packed the car, and went to the “house-office” to drop the keys and possibly to have breakfast. It was Sunday and we were not sure if they would get up for their only guests. Cold. Cloudy. Gray. Snow. The owner (Peter, originally from Switzerland) had a breakfast ready for us (really nice). We had nice meal and talked to him for an hour. He was very interesting man. It is hard to imagine better start of the day than talking to nice and interesting person. Back on the road – first of the snow showers. Again, there was not much to do along the road, mostly everything was closed for the season. It is interesting to see the area with snow (end of winter) but there is a price to pay for that: no parks and attractions (or very limited). Oh well … we will have to drive back this way anyway. It was supposed to be about 5 hours to Yukon capitol Whitehorse (population 25000, more less). Initially the road was great, speed limit 100 kilometers per hour and incredibly majestic sights around us (forest, mountains, snow). However, the weather felt playful (I guess) and we experienced broad variety of it: dark sky, snow, flurries, and sun. There was several stops along the way where we could get out of the car and soak the natural beauty of the land and take some pictures. But again, it is very hard to capture all what we could see with our eyes. Nothing else open in the close proximity of the road. There are pluses and minuses to our trip: almost no tourists and almost nothing open, beautiful views with plenty of snow and possibility of horrible driving (so far we were very lucky). Teslin Lake (apparently about 80 miles long) – mountains around, completely frozen.

Again, great sights to see, not much to do: get closer, walk, or hike. Three or four times we hit part of the road that had some ice and snow on it. It was not too bad but we had to slow down and the driving was less pleasant. On the top of that we got two or three snow showers – very light but enough to dust the road so we could not see how the road looked like. Whitehorse. The town was two miles off the Alaska highway. J. found in the Milepost a restaurant with Smoked salmon and Yukon BBQ. Small town, dirty snow, few people. We parked almost next to the restaurant just to find the sign “closed until spring”. Quick walk along the main street – bookstore. Museum-interpretative center about Yukon, history, and animals. Kind of interesting (off Alaska highway). Gasoline, free popcorn, and about two more hours on the road to get to Haines Junction for the night. We are kind of tired of this super long trip. We left Phoenix two weeks ago and we still did not arrive to our destination. The drive to Haines Junction (apparently the starting point for Kluane National Park known for its pristine wilderness) was quite boring and long. Tiny settlement (with municipal swimming pool) of Haines Junction. Really nice motel and done for the day. Tomorrow we will cross the border to Alaska.

Going North - To Watson Lake

Saturday, March 15^th 2014

(Fort Nelson, BC – Watson Lake, YT : 318 miles)

At 5:00 am we woke up to bunch of dogs barking and making bunch of noises. There were some people with dogs for sledding competition in the motel. Cold and gray morning. Coffee. J. had pretty much normal breakfast (eggs and potatoes). Gasoline and coffee. And … surprisingly … driving and driving. The road became a bit worse and more twisty. The maximum speed limit dropped to 80 kilometers per hour. The country though started to look more rugged and empty. But again, pretty much all parks and side roads were closed and covered with a lot of snow. This was the landscape we were kind of expecting on our road trip. Twisty road (still very nice one), hills and mountains with a lot of snow and pretty much nothing else. Northern Rockies Lodge was the first real sign of civilization, still there was nothing to do. Muncho Lake – big lake (mostly frozen) and the road winding around it (about 7 miles). Great views from the top. And … more and more driving. Almost no cars on the road. Very quiet and peaceful. More snow. Some snow and ice on the road. I guess this would be the best case what we were expecting. So far we were lucky and drove on dry and clear roads (as good as in any state). Liard River Hot Springs – according to the Milepost “must” on this part of the road. I added that in winter it is pretty much the only thing. Parked. Surprisingly there were few cars parked. A bit less than half a mile walk on partly snow covered board walk – two structures and steaming pools surrounded by snowy land. We did not have swimsuits out so we just walked there to check it out. It looked good, there were people in the pools (natural ones, deck and few stairs into the water). Walking back to the car we debated if we should grab some clothes and go in. We did, walked back, changed and really enjoyed nice and warm water. It was great. It was definitely highlight of the day. The road got better, it was pretty much straight and again never ending. Before the springs we saw four or five stone sheep by the road. It was time to see some wild life. Driving and driving … some nice views and landscape but nothing else. Few businesses – mostly closed. After all the road signs and few portable signs warning against bison and other wild life, we were kind of fed up of not seeing anything. Within a short while after such a conversation we saw few bison along the road. Just standing and digging in the snow. And there were about ten more sightings of bison within next 40 miles. Finally there was some wild life for us to see. The traffic was pretty much non existing but unfortunately we got hit with bigger rock and got first real spider web crack on our windshield (small one). Watson Lake – our destination. Tiny community covered by snow. We entered Yukon. Sign post forest – one of the few attractions in the area. It was pretty cool, mostly inaccessible because of snow. Northern Lights observatory (or museum) – closed. We got gasoline (looks like two gas stations in the town). Bed and breakfast cottages place for the night: really nice place. Some issues with the credit card: 50 minutes wait on the line to talk to somebody. Easy and relaxing evening. The trip is starting to feel too long and tedious. Other than that: so far so good. I mean, we are driving to Alaska and in the middle of the day we were in warm water looking at snowy peaks in the distance. Life is good.

Going North - To Fort Nelson

Friday, March 14^th 2014

(Dawson Creek, BC – Fort Nelson, BC: 289 miles)

Again, not the best night and someone left the alarm clock in the room set for 5:00 am. Kind of unfortunate. We finally got up at 8:00 am, slowly got ready and left the motel. It was cloudy, gray, and sad looking morning. Coffee and gasoline, our new standard routine. We had relatively short day ahead of us so there was nowhere to rush but it looked like there was not much to do or see along the way either. Oh well … As we were leaving Dawson Creek, sipping our coffee and driving toward Alaska, we were thinking about all those scary stories we were told or read about the ALCAN (gravel road, no services, wild animals, etc.). (Knocking on the wood.) So far it has been pretty good. Roads were better than in Michigan or other states, services are not ten miles apart but 40 to 50 miles is just fine and for the wild animals – we did not see any yet!!! Dawson Creek looked really sad as we were leaving – all the industrial sites lined up the road. Not much for next 50 miles or so to Fort Saint John. We drove through interesting town called Taylor – oil refinery, lumber production, etc. Saint John – visitor center in the municipal hall (offices, ice rink, etc). Other than that there was not much in the town. First storm of flurries. Our first snow so far (not really snow but close enough). The road got wet and the “storm” was over in twenty minutes. Few parks along the road (closed for winter). Few towns and other attractions along the road – way too far for us to go there (50 miles or so one way). Basically just driving and driving. We tried to read, follow, and find something in the Milepost but again because of the season there was not much to do. There was great advertisement for a certain restaurant-gas station, we stopped (gas station was one uncovered pump), it was eight tables, tiny place and few sweets next to the door. There are some things that are still different along this long highway. After couple of days of being Monster Inc. (because of feeling sick) J. finally felt better. We stopped at the rest stop that had heated bathrooms (as described also in the Milepost). Second flurries “storm” of the day. Probably again twenty minutes or so of flurries, road wet, did not slow us down. Several parts of the road was “very industrial” - it seems that there is some new oil extraction or pipeline construction. We also saw several “work camps” - bunch of trailers piled up together. Strange places. Other than that … driving, driving, driving. Small part of the drive we got some amazing views of the mountains in the distance. Again: no wild life. Mostly straight and never ending roads. At 2:30 pm we arrived to Fort Nelson (our destination for the night). About 5 and half hours on the road. Visitor center – nice talk with the lady there, nothing really to do in the town (swimming pool, cinema on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, restaurants). Tomorrow they have dog sledding race. We stopped by two guys who had their dogs out next to the visitor center. Many friendly dogs. Short drive through the town. Hotel. Some reading, television, and relaxing. This is our third night between Vancouver and Anchorage, we have three nights left. Tomorrow we will also hit the half point between those two cities. Still very surreal that we are on the way to Alaska.

Going North - To Dawson Creek

Thursday, March 13^th 2014

(Quesnel, BC – Dawson Creek, BC: 347 miles)

We slept in, getting up at 8:00 am. There was frost on the car. Estimated 23 degrees. Small breakfast, pack our stuff and leave Quesnel, BC (apparently living off logging industry). Before we left the motel I saw probably 15 trucks with lumber. All messy, dirty snow along the road, kind of sad. There was not much between Quesnel and Prince George (“metropolis” with 85000 people). We drove about 75 miles without stopping or seeing really anything super interesting. Yesterday (in one of the visitor's centers) we were told that a week ago it was minus 20 degrees and horrible weather. More clouds than yesterday. Still, some sun and pretty pleasant weather. More snow. So many logging trucks. The car got really dirty. Prince George – a town, drive to a visitor center, few magazines and the lady talking with really interesting accent. J. felt sick whole day. Piles of dirty snow. Sheets of ice. Art gallery – some strange video artist and few pieces from First Nation artist (do not remember the names). We took a detour to drive through the campus of the Northern British Columbia University – apparently moose was seen there licking the salt from cars. Oh … in the morning, loading the car, I was watched by big Swiss rum carrying dog (saint Bernard) who was in the back of the car parked next to me. Strange. No moose there. We got lost a bit in the town, got gasoline and coffee and left. More and more driving. Several feet of (mostly dirty) snow along the road. Pretty much every park closed. The result for us: nothing to see along the road. After complaining about the lack of “majestic sights” we drove for a while through some incredible area with amazing views of snowy mountains. Again, no wildlife. Later in the day we saw some deer and possibly elk (in great distance).

Later the surroundings got somewhat boring again. Flat. Some small settlements. At one point we had almost 150 kilometers without any services and pretty much nowhere to stop. 100 kilometers (km) is about 62.1 miles. Also crossing some mountains, more snow and dirty walls of snow along the road. Water (from melting) on the road. A bit tricky driving. Chetwynd - smaller town about 60 kilometers from Dawson Creek. In travel brochures (because of so many chain saw carvings) the town has slogan “carved to success” or something similar. At the end of winter (right now), the town was looking pretty sad and dirty. They had a lot of carvings though. About half of our trip we had really nice road – much nicer then Michigan. The other half of the trip the roads had bunch of holes and bumps and it was less pleasant driving. Kind of long and not very exciting day. It is still hard to believe that we are driving to Alaska. At 4:30 pm we arrived to Dawson Creek. Visitor center: closed. Gallery next door: open, some interesting pictures, also pictures from 1940s when Alaska highway was built. The town was again really messy and dirty (all the snow melting, salt, gravel). The mountains with the snow in the distance are really pretty, the “close” experience is somewhat messy and dirty from the normal life when roads have to be cleared and snow pushed away. A block into the town we found (in the middle of the intersection) famous “0 mile post” of Alaska highway. Tomorrow we are officially starting to drive on Alaska-Canada highway (ALCAN) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Highway. We got few things in the grocery store and had “Boston Pizza” (seems be Canadian chain) for dinner (average pizza, steep price). Night in Dawson Creek, British Columbia (apparently nothing to do with television show Dawson's Creek). Well, so far so good.  

And ... greetings from GREAT WHITE NORTH to everybody.

Going North - To Quesnel

Wednesday, March 12^th 2014

(Vancouver, BC – Quesnel, BC: 415 miles)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY S.!!!

Somewhat cloudy and gray morning in British Columbia. We packed our stuff and left the apartment at 7:30 am. More less. We did not sleep very well and it looks like J. is getting sick. Pretty easy drive out of the city (few miles on city streets and than highway 1). A lot of trains in Vancouver. Sun in front of us. No horrible traffic because we were leaving the city. Toll bridge. Nothing really special along the main stretch of highway 1. The speed limit was 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour). We saw some waterfalls from the road but unfortunately the park was closed. Slowly, we were seeing more snow, the mountains were bigger and more majestic. It was also getting colder. The town of Hope was our first real stop (for a few minutes). Chainsaw carvings all over this small town. Snow on the road (old one). Otherwise nothing special. Speed limit dropped to 90 kilometers per hour (no wonder our trip takes forever). More snow along the road but the road itself is clear and dry. Time to time there was a house or a small settlement. It did not look much different from driving in Nebraska. Long and tedious driving. The landscape was much nicer, rivers, mountains, and forest but the close proximity to the road there was a lot of farming and cows. We saw many road signs warning of wild life but did not see a single thing. Many of those small settlements were sad looking. Few visitor centers, largest cross country ski (from Vancouver Expo exhibition), big log building, jade gift shop (they had huge jade rock by the store). The road was changing between two and four lane highway. Speed limit 90-100 kilometers per hour. Speed dropping in towns to 50-70 kilometers per hour. All major international corporation present (Walmart, McDonald's, Subway, Chevron). There was provincial park – volcanic chasm – about 3 miles off the highway 97 (our access road to Alaska Highway). All snowed in and inaccessible. Nice detour with not much to see. We were using Milepost http://www.milepost.com/, apparently the must have on the way to Alaska. Stop for the fudge (good one). Nice and pleasant weather. About 6:00 pm in Quesnel, British Columbia for the night. Somewhat goofy motel. Overall: so far so good. We just passed half mark for our trip from Phoenix to Anchorage (about 1950 miles done and also so many left to go).