“Alberta Bound” by N&J

Whistler, BC (Jun 27/24) – From what has been a very wet & weird spring, the road is calling N&J back to their first love… traveling & camping in their beloved HOBBES. The first half of 2024 has been a been a very busy time for N&J, dealing with their new acquisition… ‘Spirit Bear’ the boat.

In these times of high gas prices, the cost of a road-trip sometimes can be warranted for various reasons (family, friends & material purposes). As chance would have it, a ‘technical piece’ of equipment from N&J’s new sailboat required a warranty repair in Calgary, Alberta. The cost of shipping this equipment including insurance was going to be approx $1100 (there & back), so rather than fork out what seemed like an exorbitant amount of cash… it was decided to spend some of that on fuel for a road-trip. So they are Alberta bound. N&J’s good Ukrainian friends (Tania, Dima & Masha) who emigrated to Canada (Whistler & Vancouver) a couple years ago, now live in Calgary …a great excuse to visit!

…Chasm Provincial Park

Getting back on the road felt so good, the weather pleasant, warm, dry & bug-free. The usual travel route north via the Duffey Lake Road (Hwy 99) was taken, passing through Lillooet, north on Hwy 97 to the Cariboo region. It was surprisingly quiet with little tourist traffic as yet & the surrounding landscape was a lush green from all the moisture that fell during the wet spring.

The first overnight was at Chasm, a BC Parks stop a number of kilometres away from the noisy highway, where you look out south from a dramatic escarpment onto a vast canyon, where the upper & lower plateau of the region meet. Not really a campsite, more of a roadside stop to stretch your legs… but there are no signs indicating that “overnight is not permitted”, so up goes Hobbes’ pop-top & a beautiful peaceful 1st night is experienced. Of course Jesse (N&J’s beloved kitty) just lives for this, a place to walk & explore freely (with his leash & harness of course)… he too embraces travel in Hobbes.

After a very restful sleep, the traveling trio (NJ&J) break camp and continue north on Hwy 97 (almost to 100 Mile House) before making a right turn east onto Hwy 24… aka the Fisherman’s Highway. That moniker comes from the multitude of lakes that permeate this area (Bridge, Sheridan, Lac des Roches to name just a few) that are richly endowed in Rainbow Trout & other species. Lots of recreational opportunities to be found in this region between 100 Mile House in the west & Little Fort in the east.

At the eastern end of Hwy 24, it meets up with Hwy 5 (between Kamloops & Jasper), with a turn-off onto a backroad east to Adams Lake & Chase, BC. Lovely valley with many farms that dot the route, soon the fire ravaged forest from the 2023 summer is encountered. Beneath the destruction, fresh green sprouts of new life are already poking up from the ash. Checked out a BC Rec campsite at Adams Lake for a possible overnight; the long windy narrow road to the campsite through a burnt out forest was treacherous but beautiful as well. The camp was almost full of mushroom pickers foraging the surrounding areas for their delectable bounty of morels (mushroom growth always follow a wildfire), it was decided to move eastward this time to get closer to our Albertan destination (next time we will definitely stay).

…the incredible peaks of the Selkirk Range

Traveling east on the Trans-Canada Highway (Hwy 1) was surprisingly quiet, an easy drive, good weather meant for an enjoyable journey. Finally the travelers were growing tired & decided to stop somewhere east of Revelstoke. N spied some camp opportunities in the Albert Canyon area in between Revelstoke & Glacier National Parks, a drive down a CP Rail railway access road, duck under the tracks, about a km to a spot along the Illecillewaet River. There was only one other camper in the area so a very quiet evening was in store, even the railway traffic in the distant was essentially un-noticable.

….at the Continential Divide, the provincial border of BC & Alberta

Next morning brought bright sunshine & endless vistas of the Rogers Pass, Golden, Yoho & Banff National Parks. The drive to Calgary was easy where we found overnite refuge and dinner near the repair facility (for the boat equipment) at the Big Rock Brewery pub parking lot in south-east Calgary. Next day the repair was completed quickly & off to visit our UKE friends (Tania, Dima & Masha) near downtown Calgary, where a BBQ picnic was held at a nearby park.

A beautiful visit was had by all with a sharing of great food and friendship. A gracious neighbour offered their very secluded driveway as an overnite spot for N&J to camp …what a lovely gesture!!!

The following day the threesome (NJ&J) were westward back towards British Columbia for the next leg of the journey. Doubling back towards Banff they followed the highway to Radium Hot Springs in Kootenay National Park, stopping at a Rec Site off Hwy 95 along Johnson Lake near Canal Flats. Beautiful spot, quiet with a few campers.

The next day the trip continued southward, stopping in the quaint mountain town of Kimberley …a cozy place to browse the shops, restaurants & indulge is a scrumptious scone with chai tea (YUM!!!).

After passing through Cranbrook, traveling west along Hwy 3 took them to the Kootenay Lake ferry (a free ferry at that), crossing over to the west side at Balfour then an easy 20 minute drive to the Kokanee Creek Provincial Campsite. N&J took Jesse out in his ‘go kart’ for a walk around the camp, along the beach before settling down for a peaceful nights sleep.

Next morning was a beautiful sunny day and a visit to Nelson BC was top of the list. This town has an incredible downtown, so much like the ‘downtowns’ of yesteryear. Great shops & restaurants abound the quaint streets, N&J stopped for a nice Mexican meal at Cantina Del Centro at the outside dining area located curbside …delicious!!! Jesse sat in his ‘go-kart’ watching the world go by which kept him quite occupied.

Driving west on Hwy 3 (Crowsnest Hwy) was beautiful with all the fresh colours of a late spring & early summer busting out. Near Greenwood N&J ventured about 12kms off the main highway to Jewel Lake Provincial Campground. The road was surprisingly paved all the way, lots of climbing but the effort was worth it. N wanted to try some fishing but it was quite cold & blustery …the weather turned very wet into the night.

The following day was an easy drive into Pentiction to spend a couple days with N’s family …and to attend niece Haley’s graduation ceremony. A nice side day-trip to Chute Lake Lodge high up in the mountains north of Naramata. This area is famous for the Kettle Valley Railway (KVR) that passes through, long abandoned but now used as part of the Trans Canada Trail …a popular route for cyclists.

…delicious breakfast at the Chute Lake Lodge

Haley’s (and her boyfriend Griffen) graduation ceremony in Penticton was a spectacular event!!!

After the grad ceremony …it was a quick drive home back to Whistler with a overnight stop just west of the Hwy 99 & Hwy 97 junction.

OK maybe not so quick. When approaching Lillooet, climbing a rather steep hill there was a loud bang from the back of the van resulting in no power steering. Turned out the serpentine belt that powered the power steering pump, the alternator (to charge the battery) & the AC system …self-destructed and blew apart the pulley on the air conditioning pump. This resulted in a quick call to BCAA to arrange a tow.

… no better time to wash your hair, waiting for your ride to show up.

Hobbes breaking down really threw a wrench into N&J’s plans …they were supposed to be back in Whistler by noon to attend a ‘Celebration of Life’ for their good friend Vicki who passed back in February. The tow truck ride home was hours away, so N contacted good friend Dave who quickly jumped into action, driving up from Whistler to pickup N and Jesse & return back to Whistler.

J waited for the tow to return Hobbes to home…