The Trip

Here are some quick summary notes as I get ready to crash in Tok, Alaska:

I'm now in a place called Tok, Alaska. I was very tired tonight, and glad I made it here. 1,000 miles in two days since Stewart is a long haul. I'll be at 5,400 miles for the trip when I hit Anchorage.

The first picture today is of a beautiful lake I ran into yesterday. This was an awesome view.

In my last post regarding Stewart, BC, I'm going to post a few pictures of the small downtown area so you can get a feel for it. When I say "downtown" I should emphasize that there's just one main street downtown, and it runs about 4-6 blocks long, depending on how you count. :)

The first picture is of the Bitter Creek Cafe, where I had a terrific dinner, even though it was the first weekend they were open. The food was both stylish and good.

Before I get too far away from Stewart I want to note some of the beautiful scenery I saw on the way here.

First, there is some of the spectacular mountain scenery on the drive, and this is actually well before you get to Stewart:

I thought I'd include a few pictures from Hyder, Alaska here, as well as one comment about border security.

First, I need to mention that Hyder had over 30 feet of snow this past winter (yes, feet), which I can't even begin to comprehend. This was twice their average, so it was bad news for them, and also for me, because I could only get a few hundred feet down the main road before it was blocked by a huge mountain of snow (with six snowmobiles parked on the side of the road).

Just to give you a little idea of the bears that I saw on the drive today (the drive that ended up in Stewart, BC), I'm attaching five different pictures of black bears I snapped along the way.

This is the first black bear I saw today, the first one of the entire trip:

It turns out that they filmed part of the movie Insomnia in the area where I've been stranded. Here's a link for Stewart, BC, and Hyder, Alaska.

Now, Insomnia may not mean too much to you, but it's actually the movie that brought me to Alaska.

I did finally eat at a Tim Horton's donut place in Canada -- I can't remember which city -- but they were good. Very light and fluffy, I ended up wishing I bought another one or two because they weren't as filling as I'd hoped.

In a note that's only slightly related, I've started to notice a trend: most of the policemen I've seen here wear bullet-proof vests, even when they're standing in line at Tim Horton's. Including the two policemen at the donut shop, I've seen six total, and five of them had the vests on, one did not.

Wow, here are some of the pictures from this incredible area. (I actually took 198 pictures today -- wow!)

First, the estuary where I saw the bald eagle:

The owner of the hotel and liquor store says it's pretty funny to watch the bald eagles try to catch the salmon and lift them out of the water. Usually the salmon are way too heavy, but the eagles don't give up, and they end up getting dunked in the water.

This is insane! I'm deep in the heart of a town named "I'm Going to Freaking Die, British Columbia", and they have high-speed internet access at the "hotel and liquor store" I'm stranded at.

(Actually, the town is named Stewart, BC, and it's right on the border of southeastern Alaska, and it is incredibly, incredibly beautiful, with a glacier and plenty of wildlife included.)