Banff to Glacier National Park

Hi all, 

We thoroughly enjoyed both Jasper and Banff but it was time to head back south to the lower 48. We crossed the border into Canada on May 31 and we crossed back over on August 6. Two months and one week. How time flies when you’re having fun.

Our first stop was at Glacier National Park in Montana. We stayed at an interestingly named campground, Chewing Blackbones. It’s just outside the park on the Blackfoot Reservation. We stayed there two nights so we had a full day to drive around the park.

Our route from Banff to Glacier National Park

You thought it was a typo, didn't you?

Wild Goose Island

It was a little hazy

Running Eagle Falls

Take care.
Brian

Ketchikan to Banff National Park

Hi All,
I'm still behind but trying to catch up!

My last post ended in Ketchikan. From there we had one more ferry ride which took us to Prince Rupert, British Columbia. Yes, we were no longer in Alaska. If there was one disappointment about our ferry rides, it was we didn't see any marine life. While on shore I saw one seal that I was only able to make out with binoculars and heard and saw a whale blow a few times but again it was so far away I wouldn't have known it was there if not for the sound. That being said, if you have more time to explore Alaska than the standard one or two week cruise, we would highly recommend using the ferry to get to all the islands in Southeast Alaska and stay several days in each place. There are staterooms on the ferry if you have an overnight passage. It's not going to be as luxurious as a cruise but you'll be able to stay as long as you like at any stop.

A lighthouse seen from the ferry on the way to Prince Rupert

Once back in Canada I was feeling a bit down about the Alaska part of the trip being over. So we went back! From Prince Rupert we drove to Stewart, BC and then crossed back into Hyder, Alaska. Hyder is not really accessible any other way. There isn't even a US border crossing, you just drive over to Hyder with no customs or immigration stop. There is Canadian customs when you come back though. In Hyder there is a bear viewing boardwalk where bears come to feed on salmon in the stream. That was something we had to do and were rewarded with another up close look at a black bear.

Bear Glacier, on our drive from Prince Rupert to Stewart

Where the bears go to feed on salmon, you will usually also find eagles

Despite the fact there were salmon within 10 feet this one wasn't interested enough to get one

From Stewart / Hyder it took us a couple of days to drive to Canada's Jasper National Park. Besides this year being the 75th anniversary of the Alaska Highway, it is Canada's 150th birthday. To celebrate, all entry fees for the national parks in Canada are free this year. Happy Birthday, eh!

I'm starting to not feel so bad about leaving Alaska

Mountain Goats in the parking lot of a natural hot spring

Big Horn Sheep along the road in Jasper

Moose cow and calf along the the shore of Maligne Lake in Jasper

After a couple of days in Jasper we drove south to Banff National Park. We stopped at Sunwapta Falls at towards the southern end of Jasper.

The drive from the town of Jasper, in Jasper National Park to Lake Louise in Banff National Park may be one of the most beautiful drives in all of North America

Tangle Creek makes a nice waterfall on the side of the road

Wow

Should you ever find yourself in the vicinity of Banff / Lake Louise, do yourself a big favor and don't miss two places. First, visit Baker Creek Mountain Resort. If you don't stay there, at least have a meal at the Bistro. You will not be disappointed. We chose the Bistro to celebrate the true end of a chapter of our lives. We have sold Good Morning Vietnam. Within days of moving her to Deltaville, Virginia we had an offer. There have been many twists and turns but the deal is now done. It was a great experience that we would not trade for anything. But it is also a relief to have the boat finally sold.

This bear has his dinner for the evening

I'm not sure if this one is sneaking in or sneaking out

The second "must do" while in the area is to visit Morraine Lake. Having seen both, Lake Louise pales in comparison to Morraine Lake. Unbelievable.

From the rock pile at Morraine Lake

Here's our route since getting off the ferry in Prince Rupert.

The truth is, we're now back in the lower 48. But as I said, I'm behind on posting. We'll be in Yellowstone National Park the next couple of days so I'm not sure when I'll be able to post again but I'll try to get caught up soon.

Take care.

Brian

Just how big is Alaska?

Alaska is bigger than Texas, California and Montana combined.

Alaska - 571,951 square miles

Texas - 261,797 square miles

California - 155,959 square miles
Montana - 145,552 square miles

Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay is mostly a gravel road, not paved. The rest of these roads are mostly paved but there are sections that are gravel.

Miles of road in three largest states

Texas – 675,580

California – 394,608

Alaska - 31,618 (approximately 4,900 paved)

Just looking at it, looks to me like there’s a part of Alaska that is bigger than Texas that doesn’t have any paved roads. Alaska, the last frontier.

Sitka to Ketchikan

Hi All,
It has been some time since I posted an update so I'm going to do it in a couple of parts so I don't overwhelm you with pictures. Last time I posted we were in Sitka, Alaska. Both Susan and I liked Sitka a lot and it may be our favorite stop so far. Here are a few more pictures from Sitka.

An island off Sitka only accessible by boat or at low tide.

Totem Pole National Park in Ketchikan

From Sitka we went to Petersburg, Alaska. The ferry left Sitka around 6:00 PM and arrived in Petersburg about 6:00 AM. We only stayed in Petersburg two days and one night. It was OK but we ranked it towards the bottom of the places we visited. The bottom of a list that consisted of all good places.

Susan and Duncan checking out some ducks.

From Petersburg we took the ferry to Wrangell. The big cruise ships don't go here so it's more of a fishing and cannery town than a tourist stop. We really liked Wrangell. We had two meals at Coastal Cold Storage, one of chowder and one of Snow Crab legs. Yum!

A river where we could see salmon but couldn't catch them. But we saw Bald Eagles catch some so it was one of our favorite places.

No salmon but we weren't completely shut out

We stayed at a municipal campground in Wrangell. Our first night there a guy from the city stopped  to invite us to a potluck they hold every Friday at a US Forest Service campground. We went and met several interesting people, many associated with the Cape Decisions Lighthouse Society who were leaving the next morning to spend a week working at the lighthouse. It sounded like something that would be interesting to do for a week some summer.  https://www.capedecisionlight.org/
We also learned of a lake where we could fish. There is a john boat at the lake for anyone to use. So we did.

Are you catching the trend in our fishing success?

One of many porcupines we saw

The LeConte Glacier

A salmon ladder along side the creek

One of two eagles hanging around the ferry dock to wish us bon voyage.

The other eagle there to send us off

Goodbye Wrangell

From Wrangell it was on to Ketchikan- a very touristy stop, but it was not hard to get away from the tourist areas and well worth the trip. Here we hiked around Lunch Creek Falls and went to Herring Point where the locals go to see black bears feeding on salmon each evening. We also met a couple, Michael and Lois, who invited us to go out fishing with them on a boat they rented for the day.

One of the Black Bears we watched at Herring Point

Michael and Lois, ready to go fishing

Finally! And it sure tasted good too.

That's it for now. Stay tuned for more!

Brian