Whitehorse to Kinaskan Lake

We’ve been out of touch since leaving Whitehorse, YT, because we couldn’t get the Datastorm satellite dish tuned in last night. We stayed at Junction 37, where Canada Highway 37, the Cassiar Highway, meets the Alaska Highway. Tall trees could have been the reason, but we moved the motorhome a few times trying to get the dish in the ‘sweet spot’ but never succeeded. Maybe it was just another one of those ‘dead zones.’

We did some repeat visits to places we’ve been before, including the Yukon Motel and Restaurant in Teslin.

We didn’t buy fuel this time, but ate lunch there. And Marilyn and I had our leftovers for lunch today. We saw the same moose, the same bridge.

Uh-oh, this fireweed looks like it has bloomed all the way to the top. That means snow is coming soon! Time to head south.

We drove about 260 miles from Whitehorse to the junction. If we had gotten an earlier start, we might have made it further down the road. But we started out with the challenge of getting our air bags to inflate, since the same controller for the failed jack system controls the air bags, and Don was given misinformation by one of the Atwood techs. We had to get tech support on the phone again. Meanwhile, Larry and Marilyn discovered another sheared-off bolt under their slide-out, so they had to make a quick trip to the hardware store. By the time we were both ready to hit the road, it was after 10 am.

Our home in the woods last night. We had one neighbor, a man on a motorcycle with a tent. Very quiet!

Today was a beautiful day for traveling. We drove about 225 miles, and road conditions varied. We hit gravel, narrow roads with no shoulder, some with a ditch where the shoulder should be (even scarier, especially when meeting semis - and that had to be when I was driving!), construction, and washboard surfaces. Most roads had no center line or side line for the shoulder (what shoulder?). Oh, yes, and there are still frost heaves even though we’re south of the really cold places.

Scenery was beautiful.

We stopped at Jade City to see all the overpriced and less-than-unique items.

But it was interesting to see some of the equipment used to cut the huge rocks of jade.

And some of the huge rocks.

This must be what they use to move the rocks.

And here’s where they wash them.

Don thought this fountain might look good on our lot in Benson. But how can we get it there?

We resisted buying the T-shirt.

Or the bear with a fish in its mouth.

Or any number of overpriced (IMHO) cats, dogs, pendants, earrings, etc.

This chess set was nice, if you play chess. Only $3995!

We had lunch at a turnout overlooking a river.

We bought diesel at Kluachon Centre Store for $1.40/litre. We’ve paid more, and the people were really nice.

Here are a few more road and scenery pictures. Some drivers didn’t slow down in the gravel.

Most of the truckers were very considerate. We slowed down and they did, too. They usually waved, too.

One of the tough spots.

Beautiful views.

We’re parked tonight at Kinaskan Lake Provincial Park. It’s a beautiful location, with no-hookup parking for $16 Canadian. Our sites are next to each other, fairly level (since we have no leveling jacks) and with a beautiful view of the lake. And we have Internet!!

We enjoyed a peaceful happy hour with the Forbes. Marilyn knitted while we chatted.

And Larry read email and blogs, using our Internet connection. It’s great to be online again!