First stop, Visitors Centre to learn today’s must doThe suggestion is hike the Berg Lake Trail to Kinney Lake. It’s 4.2k each way, will our weary bones make it?
A quick walk around the Visitor’s Centre, oh our history
3,954 m = 12,972 feet WOW It’s not quite as smoky hereBerg Lake Trail, be kind to us 🙂Back to Bob to get our bear spray. Berries & bears!
Fast moving river!
Tree on tree! Mount Robson as seen from the trail, with just a little zoom
We’ve passed a few of these, skat? If so, then the answer is… “Yes, a bear does shit in the woods.
Almost there!
Made it!! Simply beautiful! So calm Beautiful! Handsome!!
Well earned!! Find our rewards…Walk back, big mountains, big trees Fence, made of logsSkies at home 🙁 Mountains gone again!
We walked from our park so our step goal wasn’t an issue.
View from lookout #1
Lookout #2
Clear water, no salmon, yet. We’ll have to research when spawning season begins.
The park/trail was much shorter than expected. The trail loops and we are back where we began about 15m later.
Back at Bailey the smoke from the wild firest is getting worse. We are surrounded by mountains which are barely visible.
This is how dry the ground is. One spark and …
Evening sky, there is a mountain there.
July 29th The days have been rather dreary because of wild fire smoke. The photos on the left were yesterday, right today. We can see the mountains!!
There is a famers market in town today, hours 4p – 7p. Weird hours, nothing in this town opens early. I’m hoping for tomatoes, corn & garlic scapes. We’ll walk to town, go to the market, then have dinner at the The Loose Moose that opens at 430p (even on the weekend). We selected this restaurant because it has Rickards Red on tap. Allan hasn’t had that since Kelowna! And Chicken Parm.
Can’t remember if I spoke about trains here. There are trains, super long trains, feels like they run 22/7, and blow their whistles (long, long, short, long). We have the misfortune of hearing 2 separate crossings.
We have been lucky on our walks to not encounter a train. But not today The conductor waves 🙂 5m later we cross, yes, I timed it.
We walk past the Valemount Fire Department. They have an engine for sale This mural is on the side of the building. Who thought a mural of a fireman watching a fire burn was a good idea???
The market was larger than we expected
No tomatoes or corn, we did score garlic scapes. Yum
The Loose Moose has no Rickards on tap, in fact no beer on tap. Then why not update your online menu? They have all the listed bottle beers, Allan selects a bottle of Kokanee. Sorry, we don’t have that one either. Allan settles for a bottle of Rickards. My wings were good. Allan’s Chicken Parm, bottom of photo was the weidest Chicken Parm.
Featured in the men’s room of this classy restaurant
The plan is to go to a trail in Tête Jaune Cache, 15 minutes down the highway. We have a map! Allan is a great map reader. First right, over the railroad tracks, and there the trail is. Hum, the street on the map does not exist. We, take the first right – no railway tracks. Take a drive back the other way and end up on this bridge over the Fraser. Bridge is not a Bailey bridge. Maximum weight 25,000k
Back at the park we take a stroll under mean looking skies.
July 26th
Errand day! Post office to return the flag post, Visitor Info Centre as it is the #1 thing to do in Valemount, IGA for Boursin cheese (Allan has decided TicTok Pasta for his birthday dinner on Saturday), Deep Woods Off (works great for mosquitos), non allergic sunscreen. BC Liquor to put a smile on our day. What a fun day!
Visitor Centre, we park beside 2 Jeeps. Jeeps tend to do that, park together. Neither have ducks…. yet! We get to duck them #45 & 46
Next the Post Office, parts missing flag post returned.
“Let’s do the Valemount city walk” the Visitor Centre suggested. Stopping at Swift Creek Train Station. Allan is interested in the caboose.
Bye bye Allan, wave bye bye 🙂
Inside the caboose
Equipment of the day!
A Busy Bee!!
Mission failures… No Boursin cheese, meat shelves mostly bare, no non allergic sunscreen, no Deep Woods Off, BC Liquor closed between 1 & 2 for lunch. What time did we get there? 115. How do people survive?
We took the 5m drive to Valemount yesterday. We ordered a replacement flag post from Amazon and had it shipped to the Valemount Post Office. We’ll be flying our flag again. Not so fast, the box is missing a part. Back it has to go. We’re back in the flag post market.
This is the first town we’ve been to that doesn’t open until 3. Our destination is Three Ranges Brewing, they put the ALE in vALEmount. They have 4 different ambers beers, Allan can’t wait to give them a try.
We leave at 225. We walk & walk, through a forest. Granted the road is paved but there is nothing else around. We’re good, we have our bear whistles.
At the side of the road, an out of commission, tractorWe’ve encountered some strange stuff. This work of art is right up there.The word “Stu’s” is made from vehicle grills, under it is a Studebaker truck mounted on a pole. It must be there for a long time as the bottom part of the truck was overgrown. Perhaps this was the delivery truck…
Here we are, we walked by the brewery at 304 (they open at 3), the line up was up the sidewalk. We’ll go to Home Hardward to see what they carry in flag posts. None 🙁 Back at the brewery the line up is shorter. Takes a while to get to the front of the line but, we order, no outside seats, inside we go. Wonder.. why as they are so packed they don’t open earlier especially on the weekend? They fill growlers, Allan is anxious to put his to use again. The top of the walls are lined with growlers from other breweries. Allan’s flight and my beer!
Allan likes each beer, LESS, than the previous!
No growler fills here! We did meet a young couple who were here from Toronto wilderness backpacking. Their backpacking was cut short when his mis-step resulted in a sprained ligament. They still had 10k to walk downhill = brutal! Memories being made = priceless! They didn’t see a bear, only a wolf. I can’t imagine sleeping in a tent in the wilderness!
Who BBQed last night in the hail/rainstorm?? This guy, AKA my guy! It wasn’t raining when he started. Flashstorm, good for the wildfires. BC declared a”State of Emergency” starting July 21st. The fires are disconcerting, we are monitoring our routes.
Good bye PG! It’s been fun, not quite a blast but fun.
RCMP Building
Clock Tower, clock doesn’t work
On the road again!
Allan’s fire research prior to us heading to Valemount revealed we are going to detour. Here we are!Too funny. The flagman, unlike most, will not make eye contact
We are first in line, Bailey the Leader! Here we go, finally … This is single lane!
More hay First photo I’vetake of bikers. Blows my mind how many travel the highway. Even in the Rockies.
We arrived back at MamaYeh on Thursday, 07/15 to this welcome signOur week here is flying by, Saturday we went to PG’s Summer Fest. We then met up with our Kelowna neighbours, Mags & Steve for a delightly time at CrossRoads Brewery. We are having fun keeping track of each other’s travel adventures.
Today, Barkerville. It’s 2 hour drive and we soon find the construction. This was caused by a rock/mud slide.
Very curvy road with many “Watch for Wildlife” warnings
First stop the brewery! Unfortunately, this is not one of the functioning buildings
Next stop, super early lunch as we didn’t have breakfast. Love having a private restaurant, feel for the restaurant though. Allan is busy planning our walking tour. First stop: Doctor’s office, oh the tools… Dentist’s office
You’d think gold would be cheaper during the gold rush
Along the way, we meet this gent who tells us a facinating story about how gold was found in this area. Sad story but it did make me chuckleNo chuckles for this sign, it was a difficult life.
Stagecoach rides, $10/person. Allan’s allergies, my cheapness = no rides for us.
Flashback to candies, wow those prices. $18.00 for an ultimate Gobstopper!
Saloon, also not operational. Would be fun to be in a throwback saloon.Love this barber! Wonder how he stopped the baldness?? Mr. Moses should have passed on this expertise.
Blacksmith
Hightlight of the visit? Allan will be panning for gold!!
Dude is teaching Allan how to pan. We learn gold is more dense than stones. The idea is to fill the pan with water, shake & shake to bring the stone to the surface, dump the stones & repeat, ends in nuggets-you hope.
Pay dirt!!! 4 nuggets! Think we can retire now!!!
Quesnel is close by (pronounced: S is silent) Head there to take a peek
Our walk takes us by a salmon hatchery where we meet Mabel
We’re done in Houston, back in Smithers. Look up! We parachuted about 20 years ago. Time to again??
End the day finally getting our reward for having our second jab. We’re at Alpenhorn Bistro & Bar. Snack was BBQ pork potato skins. Never tried these before. Delicious!
Not much planned for tomorrow, we’ll see what shakes out.
We ducked, shopped at No Frills, as we are exiting a siren sounds, very loudly. “What the heck is that?” We are a little alarmed, no one else reacts. Must be OK. Google, my friend, tells me the story behind the noon siren:
The sounding of Smithers’ fire hall siren every day except Sunday – a prominent (and sometimes alarming, YES we were alarmed) Smithers tradition – has its origin in a fire. This tradition has existed since at least 1956, when a siren was installed in the community’s fire hall. The tradition may have begun earlier. An Interior News article in 1949 notes the following:
“As a result of the failure of the village fire siren on the occasion of the recent fire, arrangements have been made between the Telephone office and the council to blow the siren every day except Sunday at 12 o’clock noon. The siren had formerly been sounded only on Saturdays, but apparently this is not often enough to ensure that it is in good working order as was shown when it failed to work after a short blast during the Smithers Garage fire.
This new policy caused a flurry of excitement on Monday of this week when few were aware of the change. To make matters worse a short developed in the wiring and the siren wouldn’t shut off until the hand switch was pulled. Incidentally the siren won’t be sounded on Sundays.”
Boville Square: Provides the community a location for small and medium sized arts/music/cultural performances and special events. There is no rental fee to use the park/stage.
Downtown, Main Street
Smithers, home to our 2nd jab!
Home Hardware knows, now that we are double vaxxed, Covid is “almost” over. Time to bail on PPE…
Beneath our feet & in our shoes! Lots of sand. 
Mount Robson as seen from the trail, with just a little zoom 
Walk back, big mountains, big trees 
Fence, made of logs
Today is 
The conductor waves 🙂 
My wings were good. Allan’s Chicken Parm, bottom of photo was the weidest Chicken Parm. 
We get to duck them #45 & 46 
Allan likes each beer, 
This is single lane!
Duck #43
