Awoke to 46 degrees this morning.  We broke camp around 7:30.  It was overcast with spotty showers along the way.  We only encountered one section of a bridge where construction crews were replacing the decking.  The temporary lane was quite narrow for a motor home or large truck to get through but LeRoy did a great job of maneuvering the coach.

Welooked for rock messages that are spelled out along a section of highway.  The1990 Fort Nelson swim team started this. My favorite was "send money" . 

LeRoy saw a red fox but nothing else. Signs warned of caribou on the road but none were spotted.  We crossed the Continental Divide.  We stopped to stretch several times and each time at least five pesky mosquitos entered the coach.  So for the next 20 miles we swatted at mosquitos.  They are big but fast and great escape artists.

We stopped at Nisutlin Bay to see the longest bridge on the Alaska Highway.  Then we stopped at one of the original lodge locations on the Alaska Highway at Johnson's Crossing.  There was a lunch break at a deli and bakery for lunch...and another cinnamon bun.  Maybe we should call this the cinnamon bun tour as we scheduled another stop for buns on Sunday.
  
We are in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. Today was another long day of travelling dow a two lane road but we will be here for 3 nights for some R&R.  We also need to figure out what is wrong with our jacks as they won't go up or down.  Average speed today was 54.4 mph. LeRoy thought travel would be faster than 50 mph but the grades and curves require us to slow down. 
Today is the last day of school for children in Canada. And they are all excited about William & Cate's visit here.  July 1 is Canada Day and it sounds like they celebrate just we do on the 4th of July.  
Tomorrow is a tour of the SS Klondike Museum and then a boat cruise.  It's LEO for dinner afterwards.



Wednesday, June 29, 2011
It was a short drive today...only 127 miles from Liard Hot Springs to Watson Lake. There were bears and herds of bison along the roadside. There are signs at reststops that warn you to drive slow on a 73 mile stretch of the Alaska Highway as bison are hard to see in fog and at night. Their eyes don't reflect the light as they keep their heads down.

Upon arrival in Watson Lake we headed for the Sign Post Forest, mimicked around the world. It all started in 1942 because a homesick GI who was working on the Alaska Highway put up a sign stating the miles to his hometown.  It has  grown to over 21,275 signs. Rib Mountain now has its own sign here.  It would be like going to Marathon Park and seeing signs from all over the world hung on 16 foot poles.  It is almost solemn as you walk through the rows upon rows of signs that have been hung here. 

We received "passports" for the Yukon Territory - similar to what our Visitors Bureau does along Highway 51 to encourage tourist stops.  A briefing at 5:30 and a LEO (let's eat out with the Wagonmaster). We were told that a head of lettuce in Fairbankscould cost as much as $20 and a bunch of bananas as much as $8.   Good grief, I don't think I will complain too much about prices back in the States after this trip.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011
It was 60 and rainy at 10 a.m.  We stopped at a really, really small log cabin diner along the Tetsa River that servesfresh cinnamon rolls that were as big as my head.  The narrow, winding roads of the Alaska Highway provided steep grades and sharp curves but we saw elk, bear, Stone sheep and bison along the highway.  We stopped at the Toad River Lodge to see their world famous hat collection.  They claim to have over 7,800 baseball caps hanging in the rafters.  Muncho Lake is another beautiful turquoise colored lake.  It is said the color is attributed to copper oxide leaching into the lake.

We arrived at Liard Hot Springs Provincial Park where there are two springs pools with water temperatures from 108 to 126 degrees.  The water in the hotter areas smelled like perm solution from the calcium sulphate.  We have beautiful sites in this campground with a boardwalk that crosses an interesting wetlands to the hot springs.  The lush vegetation and warm waters in the surrounding marsh provide habitat for moose and birds. This is a world renowned spot and I heard soaking in the hot springs could shave 10 years off how a person looks so I stayed in an extra long time.  I think I may have found some British Columbia jade stones in the hot springs.