Summit Lake BC to Watson Lake YT
Last night we got a little rain, which fortunately washed all the smoke out of the air, and this morning we were rewarded with a perfectly blue sky. Today’s journey allowed us to complete the most remote and isolated stretch of the Alaska Highway. The leg between Ft. Nelson and Watson Lake is about 325 miles long, with basically no towns or other services and not much traffic. There were a few lodges that sold gas along the way but the law of supply and demand was clearly in effect. We were able to complete the trip without stopping at them, by using 10 of our 15 gallons of emergency gas reserves.
Shortly after pulling out on the highway this morning we spotted this porcupine on the side of the road. There was very little traffic so we had an opportunity to get a really good look at him. Little did we know that we would see much more amazing wildlife today.
Shortly after reading in the guide book that Stone Sheep are in this area, we came around a corner and this beautiful guy was standing on the side of the road. We were able to stop right beside him and get some good photos. He was not frightened at all and was still standing there looking at us as we pulled away. The Stone Sheep are only found in Northern BC and Southern Yukon.
A few more miles down the road we spotted a moose and calf on the side of the road. They allowed us to stop and watch them for a bit before they headed into the brush. Sure is nice that there was no traffic on the road.
The terrain that we were in today was mostly mountainous, so were surprised to see road signs warning that bison might be on the road. Sure enough there were several feeding on the road side. Later in the day we had a whole herd of 40-50 along the road - complete with their young calves.
All morning we kept hoping to spot some bear and we weren’t disappointed. Actually it got to the point that there were so many that we quit stopping. All total, we spotted 10 bear today. We would not want to be in a tent in this area. We picked up a large can of bear spray back in Alberta and that will come along on any hikes….
Before reaching Watson Lake we passed a very pretty lake called Muncho Lake. The water was very clear with a blue tint. The lake was many miles long and we only spotted one boat on the water.
This evening we are at the Downtown RV park in Watson Lake. It is nothing special but is the only place in town. Tomorrow we will be heading to Whitehorse, YT which is about 250 miles away.
Todays Stats:
| Miles driven: | 248 miles |
| Hours on road: | 6 hours, 45 minutes |
| Gas prices: | $5.13 |
Route:
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